I see a white wall and I want it painted . . .

Mint green!



And aubergine!


Blogless Annie came over today to impart her vast knowledge of painting (She has painted her entire three-storey house. She knows a thing or two about painting walls.). We started first thing this morning and finished the kitchen by supper time! All the walls in the house were stark white when we moved in. I knew right away that I wanted to do some painting, but I thought it would be hard. Guess what? It's not hard at all!

Next up, painting the living room.

Happy Easter/Joyeuses Pâques

Easter egg cake recipe from Nigella Lawson's Feast.

*I just realized I made this same cake last year.

Six pack

Brenda tagged me for this "six random facts" meme. I have so many quirks, it's kind of tough to narrow it down to six!

1. My arms are incredibly long. They span nearly six feet . . . and I'm 5'5". This is why I think I may run out of yarn before I finish my Hourglass Sweater.

I love you this much!

2. As stated in a previous post, I yodel.

3. I'm allergic to kiwi, pineapple, all citrus fruits and most other tropical fruits. Yeah. Deathly allergic.

Don't worry, Mum! This isn't a real lemon.

4. I'm not a vegetarian, I'm just a picky eater. I don't like red meat and I haven't eaten any since Grade 8.

5. I can touch my elbows behind my back. It's supposed to be humanly impossible. Why can I do this? See quirk #1.

Freakish.

6. I am accident prone. As I type this, I have Band-Aids on two fingers. I seem to break my big toe yearly (I'm due for another break either this month or next, so watch out!) and I've dislocated both of my shoulders (not at the same time). I could go on and on . . .

I'm not going to tag anyone, but please, share some of your freakish quirks in the comments!

Pillow talk

When I ordered the fabric for Andrea's backpack, I may have ordered a couple half yards of some pink Joel Dewberry prints to make throw pillows for the bedroom. This weekend, I had the chance to make those pillows -- my first foray into patchwork. I think it went well.


I bought a couple of pillow forms at Michaels and loosely followed this tutorial to make these. I think they look quite happy nestled on the bed with the original big pillow made out of those place mats Sherrie gave me.


I haven't left knitting by the wayside! I've been diligently working away at an Hourglass sweater (ravelry link) in chocolate brown Noro Cash Iroha. It's so much fun knitting with this yarn. Mmmmm.


And I think my mitten mojo is coming back. I felt the urge to finally knit that second Birdie mitten the other day. I know, winter is almost over, but it would be nice to have two mittens. I'm just sayin'.

Like a teddy bear on heroin*

That's how cute this backpack is. I promised my cousin Andrea that I'd make her anything she wanted from Lotta Jansdotter's Simple Sewing for her birthday. She chose the simple drawstring backpack and she said it could be in any colour, as long as it's not pink (she's hardly a girlie-girl).


I ordered some fabric from purl and decided to splurge on an Echino print since it's her birthday.


I love the way it turned out! It is painfully cute and I'm sure she'll like it. I sort of think I need one for myself . . . it's a good thing I ordered extra fabric.


And what am I toting around in this backpack? I'm strangely in love with this record. I had a thing for Robert Plant when I was about 5 years old. For some reason, I really liked his solo stuff from the 80s . . . even though it was absolutely dreadful. Back then, I had never heard of Led Zepplin and I loved this song. Then again, when I was 5, I also thought my Dad was John Lennon and Freddie Mercury was my best friend.

Yeah. I was an awesome kid.

*lyric from this tune.

She's got the look

New bangs for the weekend! Have a good one!

FO: Mary Jane slippers

I definitely needed a break after knitting the Bird In Hand mitt, so I decided to indulge in some Artyarns Supermerino and knit myself the cutest slippers ever.


Pattern: Mary Jane Slippers by Whitney van Nes
Source: the purl bee
Materials: 1.2 skeins of Artyarns Supermerino in colour #127 and bits of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Victorian Pink
Needles: US 6/4mm and US 5/3.75mm circular needles
Started: February 13, 2008
Finished: February 19, 2008

I love these. The toe looks a little funny because the sole peeks out a bit on top, but that doesn't bother me. I think it actually looks sort of neat. What can I say? It's a super pattern teamed up with super yarn.


And here's a gratuitous Moustache shot -- he's angry that I've turned his ball of supermerino into slippers.

1/2 FO: Bird In Hand mitt

As soon as I saw the Bird In Hand pattern, I knew I had to knit it. I had some red Briggs and Little yarn on hand that Sherrie picked up for $3.99/skein, which fits perfectly into Project Spectrum's fire theme. I've never tried colourwork before, but it was one of my goals for 2008. I'm happy to say I can cross that goal off my list!


I had visions of taking a photo like this, but torrential rains melted away all the snow yesterday, leaving only this tiny patch of dirty snow on our lawn. Sigh.


And, of course, here's the birdie!


You'll note there's only one mitten. Yeah. I will knit the second one soon, but I need a little break first. I'm sorry to say, this was not a fun knit. I used worsted weight yarn (as per the pattern) with 3.25 mm dpns and got gauge, but the fabric is so tight and was really hard on my fingers. The braid was a huge challenge for me. It took me an hour to work each braid. Maybe I'm slow, I dunno, but I found those three braids really friggin' tedious (they look great, though!). Also (this is my last complaint, I promise), the mitten was so lumpy, bumpy and ugly after I finished it, I almost frogged the whole thing but I decided to try blocking it before giving up entirely -- I'm glad I did! A very rigorous block was just the trick and I'm happy with the way it looks now.

But I'm still not ready to knit the second mitten yet.

Oh! and Happy Valentine's Day!

Generosity

I was the lucky winner of a couple of books on Alison's blog (Thanks again!) and they arrived in my mailbox today!


I must say, I really like Classic Knits at Home, but Glamour Knits at Home is a little too frilly for my taste. There are a couple of patterns I like, but most of them are too fussy for me. Nevertheless, both books are filled with beautiful photographs.

Alison also included a couple of bookplates, which I love.


I casually mentioned to Blogless Annie how deeply I love the way rosemary and mint smell together, as in the Aveda shampoo. She surprised me by whipping up a batch of Mintmary soap! Folks, I wish this was a scratch and sniff blog because this soap smells divine. I want to keep a bar in my pocket at all times, just to take a whiff every few minutes. Mmmm . . .


I still have a few pieces of cake leftover. Who says you can't have cake for breakfast?


P.S. I am still knitting. I have a fiery WIP for Project Spectrum to show you soon!

When it's a blinding blizzard outside,

it's the perfect day to hunker down and bake a cake!


This is my all-time favourite cake. It's Nigella's Chocolate Raspberry Heart from Feast. I could eat this entire cake by myself, but I think I'll take it over to Sherrie's for knitting group tonight.

Oh yeah, and I also made the local rag last week. Yup. That's me, yodeling up a storm.

Antique sale find

Sherrie, Blogless Annie and I went to a antique sale this morning and I came home with a pink glass bedside water carafe. Here it is with the cover on:


And with the cover, which doubles as a glass, off:


I always have a glass of water on my bedside table, but it inevitably gathers dust on the surface overnight. This little carafe solves that problem and looks pretty darn cute too!

FO: The Hubby Hat

Jesse has never wanted anything hand knit. On occasion, I'll show him patterns I think he'd like (Cobblestone, anyone?), but he always scrunches up his face and shakes his head. So, you can understand why I was so surprised when he asked me to knit him a hat. What kind of hat? He didn't know. I showed him a few patterns, all of which got the same response as Cobblestone, until one day when we were driving in Halifax I spotted a pedestrian sporting a ribbed hat with two stripes. Do you want one like that? Yes, he said. So, I started searching Ravelry for a nice pattern. He approved this one:


Pattern: The Boyfriend Hat by Stephanie Nicole
Source: Stephanie Likes to Knit
Materials: 2.25 skeins of Mission Falls 1824 wool in Ink and scraps of the same yarn in Stone
Needles: US 8/5 mm bamboo dpns
Started: February 2, 2008
Finished: February 5, 2008

Mods: I knit the hat one inch longer, so it covers his ears.

Check out those decreases! They're the reason I chose this pattern. I just love the way they look.

Jesse models his hat while Moustache looks on

The hat is a hit with its new owner. He couldn't model it outside today because it's raining, but he says he's looking forward to wearing it while skating on the lake.

FO: Monkey socks

I can just barely hear my feet sigh when I slip on these socks. They're lovely. I've been wanting to knit a pair of Monkeys for a while and they were a joy to knit -- 3683 Ravelers don't lie.


Pattern: Monkey by Cookie A.
Source: knitty
Materials: 2 skeins of Oceanwind Knits merino in blu
Needles: US 1.5/2.5 mm Addi Turbos
Started: January 23, 2008
Finished: February 1, 2008

Mods: The cuff. I hate knitting through the back loop, so I just knit a standard 1x1 rib.


The yarn: I fell for this yarn when I knit Mum's Hedgerows. People! This yarn is perfect! Squishy, soft, shiny, bouncy, the perfect semi-solid colourways -- I can't say enough about it. I sincerely hope it wears well, because I want to wear these socks everyday.


The pattern: One word: addictive. It took me 10 days to knit these and I'm not the speediest knitter, but I couldn't put these socks down. The pattern is easy to memorize, which is nice because it looks impressive, but it's not hard at all.

Verdict: I don't want to take them off of my feet.

FO: Un-cashmere neckwarmer

ETA: Sherrie has since posted some new photos of her wearing the neckwarmer properly!

Sherrie e-mailed me a link for an "un-cowl" that she thought was cute, so I sat down an knit it for her and surprised her with it last Friday night. She posted a photo of it on her blog, but I don't think she's wearing it right (she knows -- I told her). I think it should be flipped over so the toggle is toward the bottom of the scarf instead of at the top. But, whatever. It's hers and she can wear it any way she wants!

It took me a morning to knit. Here are the specs:

Pattern: Cashmere Neckwarmer by Kim
Source: Yarn Abuse
Materials: leftover bits of Manos del Uruguay 100 per cent wool in Natural and Green
Needles: US 11/9 mm
Started: January 25, 2008
Finished: January 25, 2008

Fugly to fun

I changed my mind about what to do with those Frenchy's place mats. We haven't done anything to our bedroom, decorating-wise, and I thought those place mats would be a good springboard to start a bedroom theme. Here's the very plain bed and fugly curtain (belonging to the former owner of our house) before:



And after:



It's a start. I still need to paint the walls someday (and decide on a colour), but right now, I'm happy with the way it looks.

FO: Manos mitts and cowl

I've gone too long without proper mittens and the recent cold snap reminded me once again that I am in dire need of warm, woolly mittens. With the Manos yarn that Blogless Annie gave me for Christmas, I finally knit myself those mitts I so desperately needed.


Pattern: I used this pattern as a guide, but I changed so many things that it might as well be my own pattern.
Materials: 1 skein of Manos del Uruguay 100 per cent wool in colour #114 (Bramble)
Needles: US 8/5 mm dpns
Started: January 18, 2008
Finished: January 21, 2008

Notes: They are warm and look oh-so snazzy with my turquoise jacket. They've already started to pill because I've worn them so much in three days, but that doesn't bother me.


I needed a scarf to match the mitts, but I didn't have enough yarn for a full-length one, so I decided to knit a cowl. I just cast on 75 stitches with US 10 circulars and knit until I ran out of yarn. I also got to use that great bind-off method again. It may be more time consuming that the traditional bind-off, but it makes such a nice finished product.


Here's a happy gal with her new winter gear! However, you'll notice now that I'm finally properly outfitted for winter, the snow is all gone and the sun is shining. My timing sucks.

Frenchy's finds

Last weekend Sherrie, Blogless Annie, Phillip and I spent an afternoon rooting through the bins at Frenchy's. I scored this skirt that Annie found in the costumes bin (is this really a costume?). I thought it was the cutest thing in the world. Rick-rack and an appliquéd bird? Yes please.


I removed some ugly "pearls" from the bird's neck (really? Do birds wear pearls?) and now it's perfect. I love it!

And this morning I scored an even better Frenchy's find without even visiting Frenchy's! After my traditional Saturday morning visit to a local cafe and bakery, I decided to stop at Sherrie's house for a visit. Little did I know she was searching for my phone number at that very instant to tell me she found these glorious oversize place mats for me! Eeeeeee! I won't use them as place mats, but I will cut them up to make other things. I'm thinking another handbag . . . a girl can never have too many handbags, right?


I also have a new obsession. I spent all day yesterday listening to Sia. She's friggin' nuts, but she has the most incredible voice I have ever heard. And then when Jesse came home from work he had picked up her new album for me!

Phillip's sweater

Last night I finished the seemingly never ending seaming of Phillip's "can de pois" sweater (the colour is very reminiscent of canned peas, hence the nickname). Since it's a gift for his first birthday, which is in June (I know, I'm a keener), I'm not going to post a full shot of the sweater. I want it to be somewhat of a surprise for his Mum and Dad.


Pattern: Shawl Collar Sweater by Debbie Bliss
Source: Essential Baby by Debbie Bliss
Materials: 6.25 skeins of Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran in 210 lime
Needles: US 8/5 mm and US 7/4.5 mm circulars
Started: December 29, 2007
Finished: January 17, 2008

Notes: It's a pretty straightforward sweater. The only weird bit is that it says to put the uppermost back stitches on a holder while you work the front and sleeves, then you pick up the held back stitches and work the collar. Why not just work the collar as soon as you finish the back, and skip the holder altogether? I dunno.

I also used a new-to-me bind off for the collar to make it stretchier: Zimmermann's Better Bind Off. It worked really well. This would be an ideal bind off for toe-up socks. You can sort of see how it looks in the photo below.


The yarn is very nice. I like it better than Cashmerino Aran because it seems to pill less and it's equally soft. It's also superwash merino, which makes it ideal for a baby who will most likely drool and spit up on it from time to time.

Now I have to hide the sweater from Sherrie until June!

FO: Simple Bag

Blogless (Blog-free? Which do you prefer?) Annie borrowed Last-Minuted Patchwork + Quilted Gifts from the library and she was kind enough to loan it to me while she's away. I love this book. There are so many great patterns in here. So, with a tummy full of my favourite salad, I sat down and made the Simple Bag while watching cooking shows on PBS.


I used some floral fabric from my Gramie's stash and some linen that I picked up at Le's Fashion this morning.


I love the way the straps use both fabrics.


And here's a shot of the bag's interior. I love everything about this bag! I can't wait to try out some more patterns from this book.

Favourite salad

I've been making this salad for lunch everyday this week. It was inspired by a salad I used to eat at a restaurant in Moncton. One day, I told the chef that he should never change that salad because it was so good. Of course, the next time I went in for a salad, they had changed their menu and eliminated my favourite salad. I experimented in the kitchen to try and recreate the dressing, and this is what I've come up with. It's my take on a Greek salad.


Get yourself some lettuce (any kind, I like romaine), tomatoes (I know, it's stupid to buy tomatoes in January, but they were at the grocery store and I brought them home. They actually taste really good), cucumber, feta and Kalamata olives (I happen to have run out of olives).


Make the dressing. I use a few splashes of balsamic vinegar, the same amount of olive oil, a drop of honey and a couple of pinches of dried oregano (rub it between your fingers to crush it up a bit).


Whisk it up.


Drizzle your dressing over your salad, and you have Ingrid's favourite salad. Yum.