December was a great way to finish off the year. There were piano serenades, scooter rides with my love, fancy cocktails, dog snuggles, walks in the woods, more music, “fireside” cuddles with Henry, warm chunky-knit sweaters, family time at the ranch, SNOW, a trip to a cabin in the woods with some good friends, a little bit of knitting, and a toast to good things to come.
Happy New Year- 2013 is going to be a good one!
Oh the pom pom. I’m seeing them everywhere these days. They are such a fun way to embellish knits, crafts and even use in home decor. Here’s a simple way to make your own pom poms.
Yarn: I find it best to use yarns with plies that don’t unravel- that way your pom won’t have frayed edges. Wool is my favorite go-to yarn for making poms. The yarn pictured is Cascade 220.
Cardboard: for making a reusable pom pom template.
Scissors: a sturdy pair that will cut easily though cardboard.
Glass, or a circular object for tracing circles onto cardboard. Your circle diameter will be the approximate size of your finished pom. The finished pom shown is around 3 inches in diameter.
Quarter, or other small circular object for tracing smaller circles onto cardboard.
Pen: for tracing
Gather all materials listed above.
Trace two large circles onto cardboard using the glass as a guide.
Trace a smaller circle in the center of each larger circle using the quarter as a guide.
Cut out the cardboard circles, cutting a 1/2 inch wide wedge opening on one side of each circle.
Holding both cardboard circles together, start wrapping the yarn around the circles. Make sure to cover all of the cardboard and wrap many layers of yarn; the more yarn you use, the fluffier your pom poms will be.
Once finished wrapping, cut the yarn end. Cut a length of yarn about 10 inches long and set aside for later.
Place your thumb in the center of the circle to secure yarn and start cutting the edges of the yarn by guiding the scissors between the two pieces of cardboard.
After cutting about half of the yarn, slide the length of yarn you set aside between the two pieces of cardboard to start securing the cut pieces of yarn. Make sure not to let any cut pieces get loose. Continue cutting all of the yarn that is wrapped, and tighten the length of yarn around the center, gathering all cut ends tightly. Tie in a few knots to secure.
Remove the cardboard circles and fluff your pom pom into a circular shape. Trim any long ends.
Today Joey and I went for a walk at a nature preserve near our house. It was so amazing walking down a winding trail covered in fallen leaves while looking up at massive trees arching over our heads. It was just what I needed to make me feel centered again.
We also took advantage of our beautiful surroundings to take photos for my newest design. I’m working on the pattern now and having it test knitted. I can’t wait to share it with you. Here’s a sneak peek:
Sharing a few of my favorite instagram snaps from the past month. Oh that Henry, he sure finds his way in there a whole heck of a lot. Miss Daisy even makes an appearance as we got to see her when we visited my parents ranch over the Thanksgiving holiday. She is queen of the ranch and loves it there.
You can follow my instagram antics here.
Have you heard of the new knitting/craft/food/drink/music/art magazine Pom Pom Quarterly yet?
I came across Pom Pom on Ravelry and was instantly smitten with what these lovely London ladies are doing; this is a beautifully designed/laid out/photographed and printed magazine that is so different than your typical knitting mag.
The patterns are interesting and ones that you’d actually want to knit AND wear and they are photographed and styled so beautifully. Plus, there are food and cocktail recipes, a bit of music love and some great articles that you want to read while snuggled under your favorite knitted throw. (That’s what I did!)
There is a lot more to this great new publication, but I don’t want to show you everything here, because I think you should hop on over and buy an issue or subscribe and support what these fabulous ladies are making. Something this great doesn’t come along too often, but I’m very glad to see that it has.
I spent a little time this afternoon perusing the local handmade wares at the Etsy Denton Handmade Harvest event. I came away with plenty of cards so I can keep track of the shops that I liked, and I bought two items that I couldn’t pass up.
The first is this great deer antler piece from wunderkammer culture
And the second is this lovely feather print by Anna Tovar
And here’s some link love for some of the other shops that I really enjoyed:
Rachel Elise bags
Infinite Bluebird jewelry
Way back when Joey and I were discussing color choices for a grandpa cardigan I was planning on knitting for him, we decided upon a bright shade of turquoise. I knew in the back of my mind that a bright, eye-searing turquoise might not be the best choice but I went for it anyways because I am always up for something fun and a little different. The cardigan, which I knitted using Jared Flood’s Smokin pattern, came out really great and Joey received lots of compliments on it. (I’m quite sure it was due to the eye-searing shade that it was noticed and commented on so often.) Flash to three years later and that sweater has migrated its way to the back of the closet specifically because of that eye-searing shade of turquoise that we were once so excited about. It was in retrospect, perhaps a little too turquoise.
With thoughts of a more classic-looking grandpa cardigan in mind, I decided I would dye the sweater grey. After a very long hour spent stirring a lumpy mass in a pool of dingy grey water in my kitchen sink, I discovered that using grey dye on an eye-searing shade of turquoise does not result in a classic grey cardigan, it only results in a somewhat dingy-looking turquoise cardigan. And so a second dye was attempted, this time using black dye which resulted in the very nice, classic-looking navy blue that you see here.
And thus, the sweater has been saved from the depths of the closet as I can now see Joey wearing it much more often this winter. Also, I think I might need to go back and study my color theory a bit more because in all honesty I was expecting the sweater to come out black!
I’ve recently updated my Infinity Cowl pattern to have a cleaner layout and more detailed instructions and I hope you’ll take a peek because its FREE!
Download here
This is an easy pattern for a cute and quick cowl that can be highly customizable. If you want to take it beyond basic stockinette this pattern is a great jumping off point. You could knit it in a classy allover textured pattern stitch or even add some trendy stripes or a fun argyle!
I’m excited to say that I have another pattern coming soon that I have been working on behind the scenes. Something warm and cable-y.
On Sunday I met up with two girlfriends for brunch and knitting. Both ladies know how to knit but wanted to take things beyond just garter stitch, so I suggested my Infinity Cowl pattern as a pretty easy way to learn a new skill (circular knitting) that results in a cute wearable cowl. With our pattern agreed upon, I sent them out to pick out a bulky weight yarn and appropriately sized circular needles, and we giggled at brunch when we realized that they both picked out the exact same yarn in the exact same color!
I helped them out with the provisional cast on and then they both quickly took off knitting round after round of stockinette stitch while we enjoyed mimosas and chatted about recipes and painting. It was only after an hour or so that I looked over and noticed that Briana’s circular knitting was twisted and my heart sank as I realized that I must have twisted it when I was joining it in the round for her. Then I proceeded to rip it out and create a huge tangled mess of her yarn. I blame the mimosas….
It was such a fun afternoon with the ladies and we’re planning on meeting up again soon to share in each others progress.
Joey is recording the new Israel Nash Gripka album so we are out in Texas Hill Country for the week. There are eight of us holed up in a big ranch house surrounded by tree-covered hills and cacti for miles.
The cathedral-ceilinged living area has been turned into a recording studio, where the music goes late into the night. Last night I sat in a hammock on the patio and listened to the sounds and watched the moon rise.
I have some knitting- a simple slouchy hat- but like me, this knit is taking it easy this week. There are good times to be had, pools to swim in, trails to explore, and music to be made.
Love Is All You Knit 