Granny Squares

I spent a few days playing around with my yarn stash of ordinary kitchen cotton yarn. I thought I’d make something unusual and very cool. Like large roses in wild colors sewn together in a mock Irish Crochet. My prototypes turned out to be ugly and kitchy rather than cool. Then it occurred to me

Kitty Scratch + Alpaca Mess = Japanese Feather Shawlette

The cat played with my skein of alpaca lace yarn, which appeared unscathed until I started knitting. That’s when I discovered that the cat’s nails had sliced the skein in various places causing the yarn to break every so many yards. I salvaged about 600 yards of the ~1000. I used the ~ 600 yards

Grandmother’s Geraniums

Grandmother Emma, my Italian grandmother from Calabria, started painting late in life. Well, I don’t know that for certain.  She may have painted as a child, or may have painted as an adult while raising seven children. I just don’t know. But, I knew her to be a painter in her eighties. She had an easel topped with

Lima Bean Crochet Trellis Pattern

Ohh, how does my garden grow With lima beans And crochet string Up the way it goes! I needed a trellis for my lima bean plant. After pricing several trellises out at the local Home Depot, I decided they were too ugly and too expensive to buy. I bought a ~ 2000 yard cone of

Your my dog’s best friend…. & my tipsy proof summer knitting project.

Yes, that is my Skylar with her best friend Stella. You can just imagine what those two girls are a scheming. Or are they dreaming of summer since the snow has finally thawed. Now that the weather is warming, it is time to pull out from the closet my  “As-Large-as-it-Goes” garter stitch cotton blanket. It sleeps

Pet Proof Terrarium

My cats’ Kingston and Roxy pee in my plants. I’ve tried to put tin foil, and other irritating materials around the base of my house plants but they still pee in my plants. I do love having plants in the house but the cat pee smell is horrible. I went without houseplants for awhile until

Dog Days of Winter

I purchased proper clothing from REI to allow me to walk Skylar during below freezing days. Today was certainly below freezing. I never thought I would see a river freeze over but our Severn River has turned to a solid sheet of ice. Skylar loves the snow. I let Skylar off her leash when we

Garden Pea and Sorrel Soup

Garden Pea and Sorrel Soup Saturday, I shopped the farmer’s market located in the parking lot of the MTA Park and Ride off Route 2 in Severna Park, Maryland. One farm stand offered peas in their pod. I bought a basket and a pint combination and shucked on Sunday. I grow two twelve inch terracotta

Skylar and I cool off at the beach and dream about lace knitting.

It is a steamy day in Annapolis, Maryland. My dog, Skylar, and I walked to the Winchester Beach to cool off.  The Winchester Beach is located on the North Shore of the Severn River – a tributary of the Chesapeake Bay. Skylar snacked on discarded Chesapeake crab carcasses in the tall grass. I daydreamed of

Tomato Boucle’ Stash Yarn Raglan

  Free Yarn Stash Boucle’ Raglan Pattern