Knitting and Hollywood

This weekend was rather gloomy and I was at our lake cabin stuck indoors with my granddaughter Laura. She is 15 months old and is so close to speaking, and one of her favorite words is doggy, she absolutely adores my destructive dog Rocky (see earlier blogs regarding his escapades) and any other dog no matter what shape or size. Our cabin is in a time warp and we only have a tiny t.v. with no reception and a crazy collection of VHS tapes. We decided to watch Lady and the Tramp and I must say it was so fun to watch this endearing tale involving dogs, babies, crazy cats, and parents that did not give one thought to leaving their infant in the care of an eccentric old maid!

What I loved most about this movie was seeing the mother announcing her impending birth by knitting baby bootees on a set of double pointed needles, I guess Disney thought you may not say the word pregnant.

Other movies that I have noticed with knitting in them are Breakfast at Tiffany's, Holly doesn't know if she is knitting the Pampas or a sweater, Wallace and Gromit, you gotta love a knitting dog, it is a stress reducer for him! A variety of Jane Austen type movies and the most odd one is The Repo Man, in this movie it is a man that is quite a gruff character and he is knitting a scarf with alot of texture to it.

Some of my favorite shows I am currently following have knitting in them as well, in True Blood the main stars Grandmother was a knitter, and in Hung which is a series about a male prostitute (very entertaining because he has the equipment but not the business sense), his pimp is a knitter, I am not sure what she knits but she has the stuff lying around.

To me the knitting is not just a prop but a little glimpse into a person, for example if you look in my knitting bags, you will see such a variety of projects. Sweaters for different family members, a couple of sweaters for myself, a skirt for my Laura, Fair Isle pouches that are possible bridesmaids gifts, and lots of yarn that is waiting to be knit up into all sorts of things.

If Hollywood needs a professional knitter to be the yarn wrangler I am at their service!

Hooray for Woodstock!

So I kind of do the Facebook thing and had a little time to kill so I did one of those crazy quiz type things that give you some insight as to what you are all about and surprise I most identify with the 60's. My formative years were during the 70's but I had always wished I grew up in the 60's.I loved the idea of being a full out hippie living off the land, growing my own food, exchanging chores with others and teaching my kids through life experience rather than in a formal classroom.

Well, what the hell was I thinking? There are pieces of my life that are 60's ish, I had my kids at home, I didn't know you could buy spaghetti sauce in a jar (thank you co-op moms), I ground wheat for my homemade bread...entertained homeschooling for about 5 minutes. But I am not cut out for all the hard work that would entail real communal living, I don't like dirt, I love my kids but need me time. The crafts that I have always pursued have always given me the time that I need to recharge and reenergize my soul.

I love all the music from the 60's and the idea that we should all get together and love one another right now, but there is nothing like scoring the cutest shoes ever at Nordstrom rack!

Obsessive Compulsive

I have been absolutely obsessed with a sweater I am knitting for my Jehrbar, it is a ski sweater in the most gorgeously subtle hues of cream, charcoal, and brown. The yarn is by Green Mountain Spinnery from Vermont, these lambkins are raised organically and their wool is mixed with mohair. The lanolin in the yarn is like getting a massage as you work with it, the yarn has bits of VM (vegetable matter) in it which I actually love because it makes me feel closer to the source. The pattern is an Elizabeth Zimmerman design from the 70's, I promise to post pics of the finished, maybe unfinished piece as well. I feel like I dont want to do anything except knit even though it is 90 degrees out. I will quickly do some housework and then back to the sweater!

Happy 4th of July!!!

I am always feeling so rushed, harried, unorganized and worried when a BIG holiday comes around. I always want to be all to everyone and want everyone to have a grand old time...and I want to do it all by myself. Why do I do this to myself? People don't even care that I set up adorable ice cream sundaes with all sorts of red, white, and blue accoutrements. Do you know how hard it is to chip off light blue rock candy off of sticks? It really is only sugar!!!

Well this year I will be better I only let one of our guest familys bring bacon, eggs, and a salad to share for the entire weekend...am I asking too much?

Recession Be Damned

I spent a lovely afternoon with my pal Barb, we went on an "inspiration" tour of the Garland district. We started with lunch at Ferguson's and then visited Mocking Bird, The Ruby Slipper, TinMan Gallery, ( I just made the connection that these places were inspired by the Wizard of Oz), Topstitch, and finally Rocket Bakery.

Unfortunately the Mocking Bird is going out of business, such cute togs for babes but in today's climate it is hard to spend $80 on an outfit for the little tyke in your life.

When I knit something and it costs $80 it seems like the value I gain is so worth the expense, the great feeling I get with needles in hand, the adrenaline rush of excitement over the new project, the happiness in making a gift for that special person; and yes that sometimes is myself.

Recession be damned, my sanity is worth untold dollars...isn't it?

My Knitting Muse

I sadly came to the conclusion that my little knitting muse aka Laura has polar bear or Inuit running through her veins...this would explain her aversion to having anything knitted close to her head, feet, arms, or body.

I always fussed over her head not being covered, her tummy showing, and that her feet are always bare. Now I get it this little one runs hot, just like her Daddy, he was one of those kids that wore shorts during sub-zero weather and would never wear a coat.

Oh well, maybe my next grandchild will be chilly all the time and I will enfold them in many layers of knitted swag.

I am excited to announce that I posted Laura's Picot Party Dress pattern on Etsy...at least she is smiling for the photo.

Rocky the Wonderful Destroyer

Well I am back from a great visit with my family, exhausted but happy. I did get some knitting done but not much.

Today was an errand day with my husband we were gone for perhaps 45 minutes. When we walked in the house I literally gasped from the shock of what was waiting for us...my giant boxer/mix decided to destroy one of the sections of an antique couch that belonged to my husbands grandma.

This dog is quite the character, he is so sweet and knows he is being bad but like an addicted being he can't stop. This incident almost put him in the pound but I love him so accept his antics. Jerry suggested a muzzle, he forgot that I tried that but as I put it on Rocky he did a Hannibal Lectheresque move and was free with the shreds of the muzzle hanging under his chin.

The irony of the day is that one of the errands was to the library to pay for a you guessed it...book destroyed by Rocky.