Etsy

I have a love for pretty much anything vintage, but I especially love things from the 50s, 60s and 70s. I enjoy hunting for these little treasures when I am vacationing in Maine and I have accumulated quite a large collection of items.



I always had it in the back of my mind that it would be fun to have an Etsy Shop. Finally this little dream has come to fruition. I opened my shop this week.




I'll be adding more things each week. It has been fun and I'm a little nervous, but I'm also very excited about it and wanted to share my news with you.


Enjoy your weekend!

Signs of Spring...

Finally, some signs of Spring are appearing. Mother Nature wasn't too pleased with my apology. She thought it wasn't sincere enough, so she punished me with four more weeks of rain. Really. I thought that we were going to have to build an ark. It was that bad around here.

All of that is forgotten today. It is beautiful and sunny and dry and not a cloud in the sky.



See what I mean? Beautiful.

On the craft front, I covered a not so pretty vase with the sleeve of an old sweater. It's incredibly easy to do. You just cut the sleeve off an old sweater and slip it around a vase. There are some great sweater vase tutorials on the Internet. I think it would be beautiful in fair isle, and look at this cute cable one Kim made.



And my favorite sign of Spring is:

hanging with my peeps!

Happy Spring!

A Letter to the Mutha

February 24, 2010

Dearest Mutha F Mother Nature,

Just a little note to check in with you and see how you are doing. I know I haven't written in a long time, but I feel that we are at a bit of a crossroads. I'm thinking that I may have unknowingly offended you at some point. You know with all this snow, sleet ,rain , and yet another school delay just when I was feeling hope could see bare ground again. I thought maybe you were sending me a not so subtle message that you were less than pleased with my actions. Was my offense in the Fall when I didn't prune the bushes and mulch the gardens? Did you know I moved away from that house? I thought the new owners should find out what they bought into might enjoy spending some quality time in the yard. Or maybe it was that time I walked past the dirty Kleenex on the sidewalk without picking it up. I know you are into the whole "go green" thing, but in my defense, I was worried about contracting H1N1. There was a lot of media hype about how important it is to keep your hands clean. There are some new Spring knits I'd like to start, but I just can't wrap my head around them until I see some signs of fairer weather. I want you to know I am deeply apologetic and I humbly ask for your forgiveness. I hope this letter will suffice, but if necessary I can call a media conference and read my heartfelt apology publicly. Thank you in advance for your understanding in this matter.

Respectfully Yours,

Mary

P.S. I know this is none of my business, but maybe it would help if you got out a little more. Maybe you could join a social networking group. I hear Facebook is fun. I'm sure there are other more healthy ways to vent your frustrations.

P.S.S. Looking forward to seeing your bright and sunny face at the Summer Reunion Picnic.

Good Tidings to You...

...where ever you are. Good tidings for Christmas and a Happy New Year!

Better late than never.

Although there was not one hand knit gift given, I still enjoyed Christmas. I did receive the Arwen Keyhole Scarf in a beautiful blue color from my good friend Cindy. It is my new favorite scarf.

I found this mistletoe hairpin tutorial from Matsutake. This is my kind of project - quick and sweet. It is made with wool felt and beads, and you never have to look for mistletoe, because it is always right there above you - actually attached to your head. Perfect really.

One of my New Years resolutions is to spend more time here. I've really missed this place.

I wish you peace and joy in the New Year!

xox

Mary

P.S. Here is the vintage clip art link.

The Eye of the Storm

It feels like I am in the eye of the storm right now. We have been through the most difficult part of the storm, putting our house on the market, keeping it clean for showings, offers, counter offers, counter to the counter offers, inspections, repairs, contingencies, appraisal, and now the calm before the big move at the end of the month. which is when the tail of the storm will come whipping through, so I thought I'd take this opportunity to post. Let you know that I'm still here. Please forgive me for I haven't been able to keep up with comments on your blogs, but I am enjoying reading them whenever I get a chance. What is most disturbing to me is I have not picked up the knitting needles in several weeks. Soon, soon things will be back to normal, or what I call normal.



I did have a chance to knit Damson a few weeks back. Ysolda Teague's latest shawl pattern. She is so clever. I love how the edge looks like crochet, but it is all knit stitches.



Damson by Ysolda Teague
String Theory Yarn - T.O.E. 100% superwash merino wool, 385 yds/sk
Color - Dark Star
US size 6 needles
Mods on Ravelry

WANTED: Photographer, one who is committed to taking creative close up shots, will tell me when I should fix my shirt, knows how to use photoshop, and doesn't sigh when asked to work. Do you know anyone?

and the winner is...

The lovely Amanda is the winner of the giveaway. My son picked the name this morning before school. Thanks everyone for all the wonderful comments. You really know how to make my day!

It has been really crazy around here lately. We are selling our house, and this Sunday is the Open House. I've been cleaning, painting, weeding, planting, de-cluttering, packing, etc. I'm so tired, but my house has never been this organized and clean. Wish us well on Sunday. I don't think I can keep this cleaning gig up and knit and craft too.

One Year!

Thank you for all the sweet comments on the summer dress. I actually blushed a few times while reading them. You are the best!

One year ago I started this little blog. I like to blame it all on MadMad, because she showed me how to get started. It has been so much fun to share ideas, thoughts and creations with you all. I really appreciate every comment I receive. They always put a smile on my face and make my day!

I'm having a little giveaway to celebrate this joyous occasion. I wish I could send you all something, but one lucky winner will receive a copy of the Debbie Bliss Spring/Summer Magazine, some knitting needles, a ball of Classic Elite Silky Alpaca Lace, and a bag made by me in the Amy Butler Madison pattern. All you need to do is leave a comment by Thursday, June 11 at midnight est, and I will pick a name on Friday. Thank you again for visiting!

(We actually lit a candle and had cupcakes at 10:00 last night. Photos are courtesy of Son, who just wanted to go to bed.)

Help...please

May 22, 2009

Ministry of Knitting Mojo
Department of Fiber Arts
Knitting Division

To Whom it May Concern:

I'm writing this letter to inform of a deep concern I have regarding my knitting mojo. As you know, I am a one (maybe two) project at a time knitter. I knit almost everyday to reduce hormone levels stress. Quite recently, the last three weeks to be exact, I have noticed a decrease in my knitting mojo. Well, a decrease would be an inaccurate description. I lost it totally. I did not even work one kyok in 1 stitch on Cherry Fizz which is very disturbing considering this is a spring scarf and it is almost summer. Then last night, to my surprise, I found myself surrounded by five projects with yarn for a sixth. I don't have to tell you that this is completely unacceptable and quite embarrassing, if I'm to be totally honest. Especially since one of the projects is crochet and I don't know how to crochet. Whatever were you thinking when you put this in my head? Clearly, I'm due for some kind of focus adjustment. I can only hope that this adjustment is of the minor tweaking and not a major overhaul as I have a blog with readers that enjoy knitting content. I would appreciate your prompt attention to this matter.

Sincerely,

Lucky Knitter

P.S. Have a nice weekend! ; D

The Week from...

You know that place that is terribly hot and has lots of fire. Yeah, my week was terrible. It started on Sunday. I was driving home from Maine with a fever and chills and I stopped at our usual rest stop (the one with nice clean bathrooms and a Starbucks coffee shop), and somehow locked my keys, purse, phone, money and dog in the car! After an hour and a half, a tow truck came and opened up the car for my son and I, in about twenty seconds. I was hoping I only had one of those 24 hour bugs, but no, it was a four day event, and I was having Realtors come to look at our house, so I still had to clean the entire house. So you get the idea. It was really bad. Well, on Friday I had the afternoon to myself, and decided to use it for some sewing. I made a new knitting bag. The pattern is from Anna Maria Horner's new book, Seams to Me. The pattern is called the I'll Have One of Everything Bag. You can use scraps of fabric for this bag which is great. I used fabric from Anna Maria Horner's Good Folks line. The fabric is so pretty in person. It is a quick project. I love the results. I have the elusive Tangled Yoke Cardigan inside it now. I finished the second sleeve, now onto the yoke. Have a wonderful weekend!

My Conspiracy Theory

It's the Girl Scouts. They are conspiring against me. It's a great organization. I was one once, and I learned a lot of different crafts at the meetings, but they are out to get me. I don't know why. I was a good Girl Scout.

Every year on New Year's Eve I make a resolution to eat healthier, more fruits and vegetables, less sugar and sweets. It probably has to do with all the Christmas gluttony I experience for the whole month of December. Then, for two weeks I eat nothing but healthy food. Cottage cheese on Ezekiel bread (because it is a vegetable, it's in the freezer section) and clementines for breakfast.


Salads for dinner or lunch, and lots of chicken.



I finally detox off the sugar. I don't even crave it anymore, and then they come. The Girl Scouts. They are everywhere. They don't just come to my door anymore, because they were on to me hiding behind the sofa, and pretending I was not home. Now, they stalk me. They know when I am going grocery shopping, so they set up their little trap for me at the exit. Pandering Trefoils and Thin Mints with cute smiles and big beautiful eyes. It's like selling drugs outside a rehab center. I'm onto their little tricks, so I stayed strong, didn't look them in the eye, kept walking past them, ignoring them. I got in the car, wiped the sweat off my brow, and drove straight home, relieved that I had survived the first of many attempts to get me hooked on sugar again.

I arrived home with the groceries and there on the counter are two boxes of Girl Scout cookies. I stayed calm and asked my husband if someone at work was selling them, and he said, " No, I went to Lowes and the Girl Scouts ganged up on me when I was leaving. Wouldn't let me leave without buying some."

That just confirms my whole conspiracy theory. I just didn't realize how deep it went.

It's beginning to look a little like Christmas.

I finally learned how to do a mosaic! I used bighugelabs.com, and it worked great. I have always wanted to learn how to do this.

We don't have a tree yet. Next weekend we will put it up. I finally got around to putting a few decorations around the house today.

The cookie swap was fun. Lots of laughs. I helped my mother with her cookies on Friday and cut my finger on the blender blade. Silly me. I ended up with seven stitches, but no cookies were harmed in the process. It is slowing my knitting down though.

This is only half of the cookies - I'm sending them into my husbands work.

50th Post Giveaway

I know you've probably been wondering where I've been. It has just been really busy around here lately. Every fall my cousins, and aunts, my sister and mother and I go away for a weekend together for some female family bonding. It is so much fun. We eat really well, always have a lot of laughs, and sometimes a tear or two when we reminisce about the ones who aren't with us any more. It is a wonderful tradition that we all look forward to each fall. It happened to be last weekend. Then this past week I painted a bathroom one day and went on a hike another day. The hike was something my friends and I have been wanting to do for a while. We had a two hour drive to Mount Major in Laconia, New Hampshire, a two hour hike up the mountain, lunch, a two hour hike back down, and then a two hour ride home, so it was a long day. The views were spectacular and I would recommend this hike. The trails were well marked and you have a choice of a more challenging trail that is shorter or a less challenging trail that is a little longer. We had such a nice time that we want to try to hike once each month. There was one point in the hike were I was out of breath and needed a rest, and this cute, little 85 year old man flew past me with his walking sticks. I was really impressed, but of course completely humiliated!

I have not felt inspired to knit lately. I've been cruising Ravelry for some inspiration, but nothing! I finally settled in on making Kyra. It's a free pattern from Berroco. The sweater looks really comfortable and warm. I'm just not feeling it though. Although I do love the Keltic yarn I'm knitting with.


This is my 50th post, and I have to say I really enjoy blogging. I've corresponded with so many people from all over the United States to Europe and as far as Australia and New Zealand. I really appreciate every one's comments. They really make my day. As a thank you, I wanted to do something fun which I've seen on other blogs, and have a giveaway. So please leave a comment before midnight (EST) Thursday, October 2nd, and you will have a chance at winning the following: An Amy Butler Chelsea Bag made in Amy Butler fabrics by me, and a 450 yard skein of hand dyed sock yarn from Pagewood Farm in a really pretty color they call Mississippi Mud, and a few surprises too. The yarn would make a pretty scarf or hat for those of you who are not addicted to socks (yet)! So, please leave a comment and good luck to everyone!

P.S.: If you are not linked to a blog, just leave an email contact in your message, so that I will be able to let you know if you are the winner.

Six Random Things about Me:

I was tagged for a 'Six Random Things about Me' meme by Amanda. I wasn't sure I could come up with six things, but here it goes.

The rules are as follows:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.
2. Post the rules on your blog.
3. Write six random things about yourself.
4. Tag six people at the end of your post.
5. Let each person know that they have been tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.
6. Let the tagger know your entry is up.

Here are my six random facts:

1. My father wanted to name me Nancy and my mother wanted to name me Mary. My mother won. Everywhere I have ever lived, I've always had a good friend named Nancy.

2. I'm still best friends with my elementary school friend, Nancy, after 35 years.

3. I meet my husband at a New Years Eve party that we both almost didn't go to.

4. I have two brothers and one sister and together we have given my parents five grandsons. My sister in-law is pregnant and we are really hoping for a little girl to spoil.

5. My favorite food is salad - any kind.

6. My family called me Mary Beth until I was entering Junior High and I decided that two names were too childish. Now, I love the name Mary Beth.

I'm tagging:
Elliebelle

Juicy Bits

Sweetp

At Home Mommy Knits

The Knitting Den

Philigry

It's just for fun. Don't worry, I won't feel bad if you choose not to play!

I have been very busy lately, but I have found some time to knit each day. I'm currently working on Ingenue. I just have the sleeves left to work on.

Tribute to Jane Brocket

I received Jane Brocket's new book The Gentle Art of Domesticity from Amazon the other day. I immediately made myself a cup of tea and sat down and flipped through the book. It is filled with lots of inspiration. As always the photos are beautiful, and the whole book is filled with heaps of color. There are a few recipes in the book too. The Fairy Bun recipe, that she posts a lot about on her blog Yarnstorm, is one that I've always wanted to try. The recipe called for self-rising flour, superfine sugar, lemons and food color paste. She was very specific about it being paste and not liquid, because liquid will water down the frosting, and the paste will make a richer color. So I made my list and off I went to the market. Hmmm, my local market did not carry self-rising flour, superfine sugar, or food color paste, but they did have lemons! So I used my creative skills and came up with a plan (nothing could stop me now).

My solution: boxed cake mix and liquid food color (I'll just use less lemon juice.)

And so that became this:

Close but no cigar as they used to say back in the day. I do think Jane would be quite proud of me anyway, because really she is all about just enjoying the simple pleasures of home, and that is exactly what I did. They taste really good too!

I am working on some fingerless mitts. The pattern is the Daisy Stitch Hand Warmers by the Purl Bee. I'm using Classic Elite Waterlily.

I'm off for some tea and a faux Fairy Bun.

Tomato Pie

Tomato Pie

I'm really not known for my cooking, but every once in a while I find a recipe that everyone loves. Last summer, I had some of my very good friends over for lunch, and I made this Tomato Pie. Everyone loved it and wanted a copy of the recipe. (A sure sign that they really did like it.) I made this recipe a lot last summer, but then put it in the recipe box and forgot about it until my dear friend reminded me of it a few days ago. It is really easy and a great way to use up all those tomatoes that are coming off the vines right now. We had it with some soup and it was surprisingly hearty.

Recipe:

1 refrigerated Pie crust
1 1/2 cups Shredded Mozzarella cheese, divided
5 tomatoes
1 Cup loosely packed fresh Basil leaves
4 cloves garlic
1/2 Cup Mayonnaise
1/2 Cup grated Parmesan cheese
1/8 tsp. ground pepper

Unroll pie crust into a glass or ceramic pie plate / quiche dish. Press edges and use fork to poke holes in bottom of crust before baking. Bake as directed.
Meanwhile - cut tomatoes into 1/2 thick slices and drain on a paper towel.

Take Basil leaves and garlic and use chopper / processor to coarsely chop together.

Mix mayo, grated Parm, 1 cup of Mozzarella, pepper and basil mixture in a mixing bowl, and set aside.

When crust comes out of oven, sprinkle 1/2 cup of the shredded Mozzarella on the bottom of the hot crust, and let melt.

( now turn down oven to 375 Degrees )

Arrange tomato slices on bottom of crust. Pile them up. More is better! Spread Mayo/cheese mix over entire top -trying to completely cover.

Bake for 35 -40 minutes - should be nicely browned and bubbling when you take it out. Let cool for at least 5 minutes. Cut and serve warm. There will be NO leftovers !

Hope everyone enjoyed their nice long weekend! I'm making progress on the second Spiral Boot Sock. I'm almost to the heel flap!

Kids say the funniest things!

When son was 18 months old, he called peas - balls.

When son was 4, we took him to a fancy restaurant and he ordered a cheese burger. When it arrived garnished with pretty kale leaves and tomatoes and radishes cut into flower shapes, he said, "I didn't order THIS!"

When son was 6, we were at another restaurant, and he kept putting his straw in his nose and giggling. HM said, "Don't do that!" Son said, "It's just a joke Dad."

Fast forward to yesterday:

Son (15 years old) said, "Mom, I was wondering if you could take me to a parking lot and let me drive around."

Ha, he must be joking!

Son driving at 18 months!

Crazy Dog?

Is it just my crazy dog who would prefer to sleep on the freshly vacuumed rug instead of her expensive L.L.Bean bed with comfy fleece cover? What do you think she is trying to tell me?

Dos and Don'ts of Knitting Complicated Sock Patterns:

I chose the Spiral Boot Sock pattern because it was rated easy. What I didn't realize is that "easy" for a sock pattern can still be complicated because you have to follow one pattern and do another while decreasing every other row, repeat 8 times, blah, blah, blah. The pattern is well written. It's not the pattern. It's the knitter (me) who has the problem. So I made myself a list of Dos and Don'ts to follow while knitting knee socks in a 12 row pattern that I'd like to share with you.

• Do have a piece of paper and pencil by your side at all times for diligent note taking.


• Do use a row counter (or see above).


• Do knit in a well lit area - preferably natural daylight.


• Do knit at your most alert time of day and when no one will be asking you lots of questions you don't know the answers to - like "What's for dinner?"


• Do keep a positive attitude if you notice a dropped stitch 40 rows below the current row you are working on because you didn't follow the natural daylight rule.


• Do not panic and start ripping back, instead just darn it with a sewing needle and matching thread and move on.


• Do take as many notes as possible about the first sock you knit, because it may be a while before you forget the pain of the first sock knit the second sock and you want them to at least look similar.


• Do not drink more than one ounce of alcohol per hour while knitting "complicated" sock patterns, because then you could easily "forget" what row you are on even if you are in the middle of it!


• Do not rely on your memory for where you are in the pattern even if you are stopping for just one minute to let the dog in/out. You have good intentions, but there are so many distractions along the way that it could easily be hours or days before you get back to it.

• Do not knit late at night without note paper while drinking wine and the only light in the room is the glare of the TV. This is a recipe for disaster. (See dropped stitch above.)

Now if I can just follow these simple rules, the socks will turn out beautifully. But, no one will see them under my pants and inside my boots, so they don't have to be perfect, right?

Oh Happy Day!

I had Saturday all to myself. HM was at an all day golf tournament, and Son was at a friends birthday party for the day. I really enjoyed my day. I didn't cook. I ate salad for dinner. I love salad. HM and Son would not consider salad a very good meal! I had chocolate for dessert. I watched recorded episodes of The Office on the "good" TV, and of course did some sewing and knitting. It's really nice to have a day like that every once in while.

One of the things I made was a flower pincushion. It's a pattern from Better Homes and Gardens written by Anna Maria Horner. She designs beautiful fabric, and has a sewing book, Seams to Me, coming out this fall. She has a wonderful blog where she shares free patterns, and lots of great pictures. I made the pincushion out of some Amy Butler scraps I had left over from another project, but I intend to pick up some of Anna Maria Horner's Garden Party fabric just as soon as I can.



I started the Spiral Boot Socks by Veronik Avery from the Interweave Knits Summer 2007 issue. It is considered an "easy" pattern, which I'm sure it is, but I'll have more on that later.



Flair still needs sleeves. It's just too darn hot to knit a sweater out of worsted weight Malabrigo wool at the moment.

Today my nephew is coming to visit for a few days, so I baked some cupcakes for the occasion.

Just a Betty Crocker mix, but I did make real butter cream frosting. I better try one to make sure they are okay! ; )

Inspiration

I received a new Anthropologie catalogue a few weeks ago and found plenty of inspiration inside the pages. I love that catalogue. It is made out of nice paper and is full of beautiful pictures. I can't wear or afford many of their clothes, but the few that I have bought I really love. It inspired me to make an embellished cardigan. It's a top down seamless raglan v-neck cardigan (Say that ten times fast!). I could not find any patterns for one on Ravelry, so I'm making up my own. I hope it works out. I'll will share the pattern with you when I'm done.