Bella's Mittens

I finally finished the Bella's Mittens I made for Joyce. Aren't they lovely? I really liked making these and was reminded of how much I like doing cables. Patrick saw these and wants a pair. I'm sure he'd like a pair to match his Spongebob pajamas you see here in the photo.
We're having a major snowstorm here and New Yorkers have lost they damn minds. They've had "snow coverage" on the local channels here since 8:00 am and it's now noon. They even have some schmuck out in Jersey with a yardstick measuring the snowfall. I guess they don't realize we have windows and can look outside to see the snowfall. Thank goodness for DVR!
No Olympic coverage so far today which has me bumming. I've been thoroughly enjoying the Olympics and am quite taken with Vancouver. If I didn't have such a dreadful fear of flying, that would be our next vacation spot.
Currently knitting the Old Shale Scarf and a pair of easy ribbed socks. Nice knits both but I think I may get started on another pair of the Bella's.

Several Uses For a $78 Cowl

It may have cost almost eighty bucks but it's not just a cowl!
First we have the snood:



Next we have a muff:



Then we have, of course, the cowl:




And lastly we have the tube top:



Granted for that last one you have to be about 5'3'' and 105 lbs.

After knitting my lovely cowl, I seem to have some leftover yarn.



For $25 it can be yours.
I'd like to thank my almost unwilling son Patrick for doing this for me. I didn't even have to pay him. Much.

A Bit Of A Dilemma

I'm having a bit of a problem writing this post. How do you write a bad review about something you like?
Here's the dealio. We went to the City Bakery gathering the other night which was sponsored by several yarn shops. One of the yarn shops, Wool & The Gang, came in with these gorgeous girls wearing these gigantic cowls. They were really cute and funky and I wanted one. It seems that their idea is geared toward beginner knitters and their packages are all inclusive. You get a bag containing the pattern you want, the yarn you need and the needles with which to knit said project. You can get the yarn and the pattern with no needles or just the yarn but the store is geared toward new knitters and giving them the whole package.
The next day Glenn and I decided to take a walk in Soho, check out this store and pick up the yarn and pattern for this cowl. I had a 15% off coupon so I was excited that I'd be getting something I wanted at a sale price. This is what I got:



Isn't it gorgeous? It's soft and pink and gigantic. The dilemma? That plus the seed stitch pattern was $78.00. I had the coupon so it was $66.00. I understand that they're selling a concept in that almost all their sales are kits but $78 for two skeins of yarn? Granted 100% Peruvian super soft, uber chunky yarn but $78?? The store is lovely, the girls very sweet but I just think that instead of encouraging new knitters to knit, it may dissuade newer knitters because it is so expensive and they don't carry less expensive options. I felt the need to write about it because nothing is openly priced and some may go in not realizing they'll be spending so much money. It's a lovely store, very Euro boutique, and a great idea and I wish them the best of luck but I think next time I'll be taking my business elsewhere.

Our City Bakery Knitting Night

Is it possible to have a chocolate hangover? If so that's exactly what I have. The three glasses of wine I had have nothing to do with it I'm sure.
So Al and I got to City Bakery early so we could hang out a bit together before the event started. We got medium sized hot chocolates and the flavor of the day was dark chocolate. It was killah. Dark and thick with a homemade marshmallow planted in the middle of it. Delish! They closed up shop at 5:30 to set up for the doors to open at 7. When we told the management that we'd come early because of my surgery, they were nice enough to let us sit quietly and knit while they set up! How cool is that?
The doors opened at 7 and the line of knitters, that began a half our before, streamed in. We were seated in front and watched all the woolie goodies on parade.
There were several stores there that set up classes to make hats, cozies and cowls. One store had a spinning demo which was awesome.
Then there was the food. The food! There was mac & cheese, fried chicken, pizzas, roasted veggies, salad and a veggie curry that was lovely. The people working there came around with little chocolate goodies and carafes of hot chocolate during the whole evening. I think there were ten different hot chocolates and we got to sample a good bit of them.
We met a couple of women who were new knitters. Even newer than me! Lovely ladies who sat and chatted with us. We left at about 9:30 with a bag of goodies including a bag from Knitty City and several coupons for 10% & 15% off our next purchases from several stores. Oh there were chocolate cookies in there but Patrick made off with them as soon as I pulled them out of my goodie bag.
All in all it was a great night. Good food, a little knitting envy (there were some amazing projects being made) and wonderful company. Can't wait till next time!

Hat Trick

Glenn named this post and, in light of the Olympics, I decided that it was a cute name for a post about a trio of hats.
These are the three hat's I've knit for my niece's baby. They're two patterns I found on Ravelry in three different sizes. Quick knits, not even a full day for each.
We found out this week she's having a girl so I'll have another goddaughter! Now that I know this, I'm going to have to find some lovely cashmere blend pink yarn. I love pink but don't have many reasons to knit pink things. Let me rephrase. I didn't have many reasons to knit pink things but I do now!
I've been knitting other things while watching the Olympics these last few days. I'm an Olympicaholic and a damn proud one. I have fallen in love with Vancouver these past few days. I don't know much about it but it looks like a laid back, cleaner Manhattan. I loved kd Lang's rendition of Leonard Cohen's Hallelujah which she sang during the opening ceremonies. She brought me to tears with her beautiful voice. I've been watching as many events as I can and I'm really enjoying the whole experience. What am I knitting while watching, you ask? Well I'll tell ya. My mommy-to-be niece is a Twilight fan and I decided to make Bella's Mittens for her. I'm really enjoying making them even though I used the wrong size needles initially and had to rip one down. My mistake and I'm over it. They're going to be gorgeous when they're done. I'll post a photo as soon as I complete one.
Ok gotta run. Snowboarding's starting soon and I gotta get my Shaun White fix on.

Hot Chocolate & Knitting? I'm in!

Doesn't that look like a mouthful of joy?

City Bakery is a famous bakery here in Manhattan. The first time I had ever heard of it was on Martha Stewart's show. I haven't been there. Yet.
City Bakery is having their 18th Annual Hot Chocolate Festival. I'm a lifelong New Yawkah and had never heard of this festival of deliciousness. The only reason I heard about it this time around is because Al called and told me they're having a hot chocolate and knitting night. Someone at City Bakery is brilliant. I'm sure that more than one person at CB is brilliant but whoever thought of knitting and hot chocolate night is the most brilliant!
Several yarn shops will be represented including Downtown Yarns, Brooklyn General and Knitty City. Each store will be hosting a workshop like Intro to Knitting, Marshmallow Man and Hot Chocolate Mug Cozy. There will also be a spinning demonstration. How fun does that sound?
Al got us tickets and I called Ria so she'd get a ticket and join us that night. I was so happy that we'd be a trio of chocolate drinking knitting buddies! Ria just told me she couldn't get a ticket and they've sold out. Bumming. Totally. I know Al and I will have a great time but I was hoping Ria could join us.
So if anyone has an extra ticket or finds they can't make it, lemme know. I have a buyer for ya.

Mom's Baby Hats

I know I've mentioned, probably several times, that my mother taught me how to knit. This week my sister sent me up a few baby hats my mother had made for my niece, Bean. I gave the hats to Al because, not only is she a good friend, but she's also a brilliant knitter. She's going to write up patterns for each of the hats for me! How cool is that? She was very impressed with the hats and said it shouldn't be a problem to get patterns written.
I'm not sure if my mom made up these patterns or got them from someplace. I do know that she used to go to a store called Belle's on the lower east side. She'd shop there and the woman who either ran or owned (or both) the store was a wonderful knitter who could write patterns.









Aren't they adorable? They're made from acrylic which, I think, was the norm for baby things to be knit in back then. These were made in 1982, the year Bean was born. They've kept their shape and stitch definition beautifully. The only difference I'm going to make is making icords instead of the ribbons to tie under the chin.
I was really excited to get these because I don't have much of my mother's knits. I figure I'll use these as my "signature" baby knit for family and friends. I just wish I could give her a call and have her help me out with this.
I'm having surgery next week so I may not be around much. Little scared but it could be worse. I can ALWAYS be worse, right?