knitting — Page 2

Low-Key is Just Fine With Me

April 17, 2017 at 10:09 am by Claudia

A low-key day yesterday – just me, myself and I.

Since I was so pooped from the air conditioner/mowing saga on Saturday, I took the opportunity to relax. It was very, very warm outside and, as seems to be the case when it gets too warm too early, the winds picked up in the late afternoon, getting stronger and stronger until a storm finally came through.

Now it’s twenty degrees cooler.

I watched my man Fred Astaire in Easter Parade on TCM. I own the movie, but love it when I come upon it unexpectedly. Fred Astaire, Judy Garland, Ann Miller, Peter Lawford – wonderful cast, beautiful Irving Berlin songs, “Steppin Out With My Baby” – what could be better?

The blue jay that kept squawking at the mourning doves. From his perch in this tree behind the kitchen, he had a perfect view of the birdbath.

The maples are budding.

I saw this bag at my local yarn shop. It’s made by the same company that made my new pencil bag – they’re out of Pittsfield, Massachusetts. I thought it would be perfect for Mabel the Featherweight. Even though I made a cover for Mabel, because of the way it’s made, dust creeps in at the sides of the cover. I don’t want to put Mabel back in her original case because, like most Featherweight cases, it is musty after years of being stowed in someone’s attic.

Isn’t it cute? I’d secretly love an aqua sewing machine, but I already have two sewing machines, so I think I have to let that idea go.

The bunny egg cozy so far:

Body and arms. I’m using tiny needles – number 2 – and have to keep looking up how to execute a stitch or an increase or a decrease because I haven’t knitted in a long time. My bunny will be white, simply because that’s what was available at Michael’s. I wasn’t about to use expensive yarn for this experiment!

Anastasia opens a week from today. Yesterday, while HGTV was on as background noise when I was knitting, I heard the opening notes to Journey to the Past and my head shot up. Yay! It was the commercial for Anastasia, which has just started airing. Christy’s glorious voice singing and very simple and powerful – I’m very proud to have been a small part of this show. And it is a small part, given how much goes into producing a big musical. I’ll be going to the opening and I think I’ll try to book a hotel room in the city for Monday night.

Speaking of HGTV, despite my unhappiness with most of the programming, I do have a fondness for Erin and Ben, the couple behind Home Town. I’ve read Erin’s blog for years, so I’ve been pulling for them as this opportunity came their way. They’re just so genuine – not an ounce of slickness or artifice – and I really like the fact that Erin’s decorating style honors the house they are rehabbing and isn’t something she imposes on the house, if you know what I mean.

Okay. At some point this week, I have to find shoes to wear for opening night and when you’re someone who lives in sneakers and hates heels, that is a challenge.

Happy Monday.

Grandma’s Quilt

September 16, 2012 at 9:31 am by Claudia

This basket in our den holds various throws and shawls. I ignore it most of the summer. But the mornings are much cooler now and I find myself throwing on the shawl or grabbing a throw when I want to take a nap on the sofa. In that basket, you can see one of the quilts my grandmother made me.

Grandma grew up on a farm in Canada. She knew how to sew, to embroider, to tat, to crochet and to quilt. She carried those skills with her as she made a home in Michigan. Every winter, she made one quilt. Maybe two. I had a Sunbonnet Sue quilt when I was very young and I have no idea where that one ended up. I suspect it was passed on to one of my sisters and where it went from there…I have no idea. This particular quilt covered my twin sized bed.

Hand appliqued, hand quilted and made from her fabric scraps. Those same scraps were used to make clothes for my dolls. Don’t you love these fabrics? I wish I had her scrap bag. I used to spend hours sorting through the material, loving all the various patterns.

Grandma’s quilts were heavy, much heavier than any of the quilts I’ve made. I think she used heavy cotton blankets as the center of the quilt sandwich. Whatever she used, the weight is substantial – perfect for Michigan winters and, now, for New York winters.

It needs some repair. I wonder if those green flowers were once much brighter? Take a peek at the backing fabric:

It’s a fairly bright green. And oh, those perfect, even stitches.

I vaguely remember Grandma sitting in a chair, quilting. But only vaguely. Certainly I had no interest in it myself until much later in my life, long after Grandma had left us. I often think she would have been so happy to see me quilting. She would have loved the fact that Meredith knits, crochets and weaves. And that I knit, crochet, embroider and quilt.

It’s so important to pass these skills on to the next generation. Meredith taught my niece Elizabeth how to knit. Perhaps Elizabeth will teach her daughters to wield a knitting needle. I remember Grandma trying to teach me how to crochet with white thread, the kind she used in her pillowcase edgings. My mom taught me how to knit – a skill I promptly forgot until Meredith reintroduced it to me in 2001. (We had moved to a town on the Hudson River, just north of Manhattan, two months before 9-11. I needed the comfort that knitting can give.)

I love this generational sharing. My grandmother, my mother, my sister, my niece, me.

Did someone in your life pass a creative art on to you?

Linking to Elaine’s Sunny Simple Sundays.

Happy Sunday.

White Barn Farm Sheep & Wool

December 3, 2010 at 6:26 pm by Claudia

I promised you photos of our new local yarn shop and I try very hard to keep my promises. The landscape around MHC is dotted with old homes, farms and barns. I’m very used to seeing them as I drive around. In fact, I’d seen this white barn countless times as I was out and about. One day, as I was tooling along, I almost slammed on the brakes when I saw a sign in front of the barn that said White Barn Farm Sheep & Wool. What??? Could it be? I wasn’t doing any crocheting or knitting at the time and life was busy so I didn’t make it there until very recently. (It’s only been open for a few months.) Since I was on the hunt for yarn with which to crochet my obsession scarf, I thought I should shop local first. I was looking for Mochi but wasn’t counting on the store carrying it. Well, I was wrong. There it was. And there was this lovely shop and its owner, Paula. Would you like to see some photos?

Gosh darn it! I went out on a sunny day to take photos and while I was out it turned cloudy. This is the barn. I love the green door and if I could, I would spirit those Adirondack chairs away to my front lawn. This is a close-up of the tree you see on the right.

Yarn balls as Christmas balls – perfect. As you step inside, you see this:

A gorgeous sheep with a hat. Paula raises sheep, by the way. To the right there is an old door leading to another part of the barn.

I know all you fans of weathered, old and chippy are drooling over this beauty. I was, too.

The yarn is displayed in baskets which are attached to the walls. Over to the left is the Mochi Plus.

Paula carries well-known brands of wool as well as local wool and roving. She offers classes and a knit local cafe where knitters can gather to work on their projects. Every time I’ve been in, there have been several customers in the store. I’m so glad she is here; and by the traffic I see going in and out of the store, so are many, many residents of the Hudson Valley.

Low-Key is Just Fine With Me

Grandma’s Quilt

White Barn Farm Sheep & Wool

Lambs Like to Party

A Note

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