to everything there is a season

With a heavy heart I said a final farewell to my grandmother last week. She had been failing for a while, and we knew that her time was limited, so I booked a flight for last weekend to say good-bye. Sadly, this did not come to pass, and we ended up driving across the Wisconsin woods and Minnesota prairies for a funeral instead. I should have taken pictures of the fantastic icicles dripping down the bluffs along the Mississippi River, or the surreal image of hundreds of windmills dotting the prairie, or even the thick fog rolling across the snowy fields.

Seeing family and friends was a comfort, as was sharing favorite memories. Good-bye, Grandma Max -- we'll miss you, your ever-present smile, and the twinkle in your eye, but we know that you lived a good, long life.

She loved to make quilts, and she made a handmade quilt for each of her children, as well as her grandchildren. She also embroidered many towels. She enjoyed canning pickles. While a resident of Tuff Nursing Home, she enjoyed playing cards, especially “Kings in a Corner” with her daughter. She will be remembered by her family and friends for her delicious sugar cookies, as well as for her homemade lefse. 

Grandma Max was a hard worker, as all farmers are -- driving tractor, cleaning the cream separator, butchering chickens, feeding the barn cats, crocheting slippers, and baking up a storm. Her sugar cookie recipe truly is legendary. These cookies are short and crisp -- quite unlike garden-variety sugar cookie cut-outs.

Grandma Maxine's Sugar Cookies

1/2 cup white (granulated) sugar
1/2 cup powdered sugar
1 egg
1/2 cup butter
1/2 cup vegetable oil
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1/2 teaspoon soda
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon cream of tartar
2 cups + 1 tablespoon flour

- Cream sugars and butter; add eggs, then oil and vanilla.
- Sift dry ingredients and add to creamed mixture. Chill overnight.
- Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
- Roll spoonfuls into small balls, then drop on cookie sheet, and press with a glass that has been dipped in white sugar.
- Baking time depends on thickness of cookies. Don't let them get brown, just a hint at the edges!
- Makes about 3 dozen.

in the works

Another little design is in the works. I'm using a lovely shade of gold that has (sadly) been discontinued by Knit Picks. I'm off the semisolids and indie dyers lately... not sure what's up with that, but I'm loving the stitch definition of solid colored yarn, and I'm enjoying the soft, fuzzy heather blue-green of my Aidez cardigan.

Don't these shades of aqua, gold, and cream go beautifully together? I think this may be the perfect color palette for my study. Now to visit the paint store!

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Even though I'm spending more time wearing my editor hat rather than my researcher cap these days, I still get to work from home fairly often. Wow, is that great. I especially enjoy eating a healthy lunch at home while reading a good book. I tried this easy recipe for cornbread, and it is yummy. Basic, no frills, but delicious. Much better than the Jiffy corn muffin mixes of my childhood.

all wrapped up in handknits

Last Valentine's Day I gave Paul the promise of a Doctor Who scarf, something he had been requesting for years.

Many, many rows of garter stitch and eight skeins of yarn later, it is complete! I selected a rather more subtle palette of colors than the original and didn't make it nearly as long, as I wanted it to be something Paul would actually wear rather than a costume piece.

Doctor Who scarf

needles: US 6 Clover bamboo straights

yarn: Knit Picks Swish Worsted

cobblestone heather 

eggplant 

garnet heather 

gold 

lemongrass heather 

squirrel heather

truffle

my ravelry project page

notes:

I cast on 44 stitches and loosely followed this pattern until I ran out of yarn. One skein of each color, except for two skeins of squirrel heather. Paul's also sporting the Armando hat I knit for him.

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Rue kindly sent me a wee bit of ginger Madelintosh tosh merino light  so that I can bind off my live oak shawlette. Hooray! Many thanks, Rue.

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- Inc. has a thought-provoking piece on entrepreneurs in Norway (a country near and dear to my heart)

winter at last

Winter is finally here, blanketing Chicago in beautiful snow.

This afternoon I hung the suet feeder in my backyard, and I expect to be inundated with juncos, kinglets, siskens, tanagers, and titmice at any moment. These are just a few species of songbirds that Garfield's Energy Suet claims to attract.

Indeed. I'll keep you posted as to how that goes! One might guess that bird-watching and urban settings don't mix terribly well, but there are some pretty decent bird preserves along Lake Michigan (such as the Jarvis Migratory Bird Sanctuary), and this has been a record year for snowy owl sightings in Chicago.

The back of my Aidez cardigan is complete, and I've just done the ribbing for the left front! I have visions of wearing Aidez while sipping a mug of coffee and peacefully gazing upon my snowy backyard full of cheerful tanagers and titmice. A girl can dream...

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in the kitchen

Alicia recently highlighted this curried lentil soup recipe, so I gave it a try. Delicious! Hearty and substantial, with plenty of flavor but not too spicy. This is one of those lentil soups that gets a little mushy (if you don't like that quality, you could substitute French lentils). I really appreciate that this is different from our standby curried lentil soup recipe, which has lots of tomatoes and balsamic vinegar to make it tangy. (I use chicken stock instead of water and add a couple of carrots, diced, to that recipe.)

Aidez

I spent part of the weekend curled up with my knitting needles and many cups of coffee from my new bestie, the Nespresso machine. Blissful! Aidez is coming along quite nicely. The first few rows juggling the cable patterns were tough going, but it became easier with practice, as most things do. I *know* I'm doing one of the narrow cross-stitch cables wrong (they're supposed to be mirrored), but I wasn't about to change my methods midstream. I'm certainly not picky enough to rip way back and make them perfect (so not the point of knitting for me).

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in the kitchen

- Curried tofu with tomatoes, with coconut rice

- My buffalo chicken chili recipe is a part of Pottery Barn's latest theme party feature, Big Game Party!

hello, 2012!

New year, fresh start. 2011 had its strikes and gutters, ups and downs, and I for one am very happy to be moving forward. Don't get me wrong -- there were good things about 2011, like my new position at the Press and our terrific new digs, but overall there was a certain too-muchness. We spent New Year's Eve with friends, the first time with little ones in tow, and it was delightful. I made Heidi's recipe for gougères, which were delicious but difficult to pronounce.

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2011's diagonal box-stitch afghan is still growing:

The stitch pattern has become second nature, and the superwash merino wool is soft and cushy (which is good, since I'm on my ninth skein of the stuff). If only the crochet hook hadn't fallen behind a heavy dresser yesterday! Note to self: must enlist Paul's help in moving that behemoth.

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There's a new project for 2012 in the works, too:

 

I cast on for Aidez at knit night, and the ribbing is going swimmingly. The cross-stitch cable instructions, however, aren't for the faint of heart, so I'm pleased that we're doing it as a knitalong

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I'm not really one for setting goals with my hobbies. For me the point is to relax and go with the flow. I get stressed out enough already -- no need for extra anxiety. I suppose one goal is to use the supplies I have! We're at maximum crafty storage capacity at the moment. I'd also like to finish my sadly neglected Shalder cardigan, knit Aidez in time to wear it this winter, finish a quilt that's been on the back burner far too long... oh wait, that's a whole bunch of goals. Onward and upward!

May health, happiness, and good times greet you each day of the new year.

post-Christmas caffeine rush

Paul delighted me with a fancy Nespresso machine for Christmas. It's very quick and easy, and the espresso is fantastic! I have some lingering qualms about the wastefulness and expense of the little Nespresso capsules, but overall it's terrific and fun to use. The Nespresso booklets and website, however, are pretentious to the point that it's amusing (capsules can be couriered to you posthaste in case of a dire espresso shortage!). I have a feeling that T-Mos would love using this gizmo just before reciting lines from the Inferno in Italian.

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I've sweet-talked the girls in my knitting group into a knit-along for the new year:

Aidez, a free pattern by Cirilia Rose for Berroco

I rustled through my stash and rounded up some Cascade Eco Plus in a lovely shade of light blue:

#9452 Summer Sky Heather

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I've been on a reading kick lately, and my goal for this long weekend is to spend some more quality time with a good book (or four), sip espresso, and do some knitting. 

Some recent recommendations:

 Chosen by a Horse, by Susan Richards 

I'm not usually one for nonfiction or "feel good" memoirs, but this book really spoke to me. Richards writes about adopting a neglected horse and how it helped her reconsider her own life and dare to trust and take risks. Rescuing horses is one of my dreams for "when my ship comes in," and I'm one of those who got hooked on horses after a childhood spent immersed in Misty of Chincoteague.

Bossypants, by Tina Fey

Fey is funny, warm, and genuine in this book about her path from Pennsylvania to 30 Rock. It's a book that seems very real -- not like something cooked up by a ghostwriter to cash in. Some parts are humorous, others talk candidly about being a woman, both in comedy and in society in general.

What I'm reading now:

Wildwood, by Colin Meloy and Carson Ellis

So far it's charming, but wow, does Meloy love adjectives... this runs the risk of being overly precious, so we'll see how it goes...

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Back with crafty photos soon, I hope. Camera research is underway, though I may have to break down and start using Paul's tablet gizmo's camera feature in the meantime.

so drink your gin and tonica...

It's time for Hannukah, Festivus, and all the other wintry holiday celebrations. Ah, the immortal words of Adam Sandler.

The tree is trimmed, the cards are (mostly) written, and cookies have been baked. Sadly, my digital camera just bit the dust so I have no tree or knitting photos to share. Time to start researching cameras!

We're hosting a second holiday family gathering at our place on the 26th. I'm going with a mostly Scandinavian theme -- gløgg, pickled herring, gjetost, Norwegian and Swedish baked goods. I couldn't bring myself to make lutefisk (dried cod treated with lye) though -- so gelatinous and disgusting. Now we just need some snow!

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Looking for some holiday music that's not run of the mill? We've now exhausted our steady rotation of Low, Vince Guaraldi, and Sarah McLachlan.

Check out all the mixes over at I Am Fuel, You are Friends, or listen to my wintry mix:

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No, this is not Capricha! A feline visitor bunked with us last week while her owner was away. Lewes is essentially Capricha's (thinner, longer-tailed) doppelgänger. Lewes occupied the front half of our flat, while Capricha stuck to the back -- they seemed surprisingly oblivious about each other's presence. (P.S. This is the last photo from my poor camera...)

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 Last December Paul introduced me to one of his childhood holiday favorites, Emmet Otter's Jug-Band Christmas. It's pretty much the sweetest, funniest holiday special. The muppets are adorable and kind of primitive, the story is a thoughtful take on "The Gift of the Magi," and there's a lot of great (and hilarious) music.  Apparently we're not alone in loving Emmet Otter! Here are some recent shout-outs from the folks at NPR and the Onion.

in which I exhibit some wisdom

So, I resolved to be smart about unventing the scallop-edge garter stitch throw. Not only did I check my gauge, but I also did some math and took a long, careful look at the fabric I was getting with the lovely Quince & Co. Puffin yarn. And then I carefully wound up the yarn and shoved it back in my knitting basket. :( This was, however, a good learning experience:

a) I would have run out of yarn.
b) The fabric didn't have enough drape.
c) It was very, very heavy on the needles.

Some of the puffin yarn is destined to become a State Street Cowl (thanks, ifandany, for highlighting the pattern the other day!).

To make up for NOT knitting myself that cozy (but sure to be ill-fated) throw, I instead started crocheting like a madwoman. This is the easy-peasy diagonal box stitch, worked corner-to-corner, which I love, since one avoids making a foundation chain. (Mine are often too tight.) I'm using a very affordable superwash wool -- Knit Picks Bare Swish Worsted. Very soft and cozy, and the undyed version comes in nice long 220-yard skeins.

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in the kitchen

I hosted a low-key crafty afternoon for the girls from my knitting group this afternoon. Such a great, relaxing way to start off the holiday season! I tried not to go too overboard with the menu this time, but I did make a few things:

- brie en croute with brown sugar, bourbon, and pecans (holy smokes, this was awesome)

- my family's recipe for Norwegian cookies 
- easy mulled wine (next time I'd fortify it with Cointreau or maybe brandy)
- "the best" pumpkin bread (pretty good, but not as terrific as my mom's recipe, which I need to track down)

sofa city, sweetheart

I managed to catch a nasty cold while spending far too much time at doctor's offices last week. Blech! The upside? Lots of knitting/tv time, plus Paul tended to many of my (increasingly crazy) whims. As much as I am a homebody, too much time spent housebound makes me nuts. Paul does make a pretty terrific hot toddy (a family cold remedy on my mum's side).

Good thing that True Blood has strong healing properties. So trashy, but so addictive...

I knit two of these cozy Armando hats -- red for me, charcoal grey for Paul. I love the texture! The pattern is easy to follow. I knit 7.5 repeats of the "lace" pattern (manliest lace I've ever seen, btw, but it does feature yarnovers and thus does technically qualify, I suppose).  Using smaller needles (US 7)  was a good choice. I'll definitely knit more of these, especially since the holidays are just around the corner.

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The Oatmeal Pullover has been frogged, and these lovely balls of Puffin are ready for me to unvent the Pottery Barn scallop-knit throw.

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Capricha is taking over Kylie's old job as clean-laundry tester. So cute, but I'll have to rewash that towel...

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linkety

- knitting behind bars
- a bookshelf that's bigger on the inside

holidazed

I found these sweet mercury glass owls at West Elm, and one is now perched at the top of our built-in bookcases, wisely surveying the living-room realm.

Don't they remind you a bit of Bubo from Clash of the Titans?

Very classy. And shiny. Because those two qualities go hand in hand.

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I'm also in love with these flannel sheets that my mum gave me for early Christmas:

What a cheery fair isle motif!

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I spotted this beautiful, cozy throw at Pottery Barn:

Now that's a pattern that I can unvent! A garter stitch blanket with a crochet shell edging? Easy as pie. I may frog my overly bulky (and unflattering) Oatmeal Pullover and use the beautiful bird's egg Quince & Co. yarn for this. The PB version is knit in acrylic, of course, so Quince & Co. wool would be about a thousand steps up.

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What did we spot on our drive back to Chicago?

In Wisconsin Dells, on a Jeep, of course. <3

Thanksgiving training

We're slowly but surely getting settled into our new digs. I'm loving the built-in bookcases (especially since our bookshelves couldn't make it out of the basement in our last place -- yeah, that's an unexpected downside to assembling three tall bookcases in situ).

Most of my knitting supplies are still inaccessible. At first I was excited about the challenge of being creative about using the yarn I actually could reach. Then I finished the main section of this cozy crochet baby blanket, only to discover that I couldn't find the contrast yarn for the edging... Doh!  Unpacking and organizing the craft stuff is on the agenda for after Thanksgiving. 

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Speaking of Thanksgiving, I'm in training today -- savory pumpkin pie and cranberry juice for lunch. Yum! OK, it's really more like a quiche.

 

savory pumpkin and onion quiche

caramelized onions
1-2 T. olive or vegetable oil
 4 C. thinly sliced onions
1/2 tsp. salt
1/2 tsp. sugar
1 tsp. dried thyme

9" pie crust -- I follow Martha's instructions, but you could easily use a premade crust
1 C. grated Gruyere cheese
1 C. milk
3 large eggs
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 tsp. ground pepper
1/4 tsp. ground nutmeg
1/8 tsp. ground dry mustard
1 C. pumpkin puree (I use canned)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. In a dutch oven or heavy skillet, heat the oil on med-low heat. Add onions and saute for 15 min., stirring frequently. Stir in salt, sugar, and thyme. Lower the heat, cover the pan, and cook for about 15 more minutes, until the onions are caramelized --- they should be golden and sweet, nearly falling apart. Add the pepper and saute another 5 min.

Spread onions across bottom of pie crust. Sprinkle cheese on top of the onions. Whisk together milk through dry mustard. Blend in pumpkin. Pour mixture over cheese in crust.

Bake 10 minutes. Reduce heat to 350 degrees F, and bake 45-50 min. more, or until pie filling has set and tester comes out clean. Cool 10 minutes before serving.

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PSA for Chicago 'peeps

Wishing each and every one of you a very happy (and relaxing) Thanksgiving!

going great guns

Oodles of knitting have taken place around these parts in the last few days -- partly because I did something funny to my foot and had to stay off of it for a little while, and partly because this chilly weather called for some serious sofa-tea-yarn-cat snuggling-tv time.

Finally blocked the Whirligig Shrug!  This is a baby shower gift, though I'm a bit nervous that the yarn bled so much when I washed it. The pattern is very fun, and the finishing is fairly minimal, which I love. Without a model, the back looks a little cuter than the front, but all the modeled versions on Ravelry look absolutely adorable.

pattern: whirligig shrug, by Stefanie Japel

yarn: the plucky knitter mcn lite, "pretty pretty pola," 1 skein (230 yds)

needles: Clover US 5 bamboo circs

size: 6 months

my ravelry project page

Speaking of Stefanie Japel... she has a new pattern as a bonus in the Deep Fall 2011 issue of Knitty -- the shapely boyfriend cardigan. I'm not too fond of the name (as it sounds as if your boyfriend's the shapely one, which just seems wrong somehow), but the cardigan looks very versatile and practical. Plus it calls for O-Wool Classic, which I just happen to have in the stash (in a lovely shade of blue, to boot).

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The puerperium cardigan is not just off the needles, but already blocked!

Now to find the perfect buttons. I'm torn between bright red buttons that would make quite the impact and dark brown wooden buttons, the classier and more subtle option. I need 7 of them, so this necessitates a shopping trip, as there's no chance that my button jar is up for the task.

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Last night I joyfully knit the last row of the live oak shawlette only to discover that it's highly unlikely that I'll have enough yarn to bind off. Déjà vu...

We'll see how long it takes me to trek to a yarn store to find another skein of Tosh Merino Light in ginger... I predict that this will linger in ye olde knitting basket for a while, as these next couple of weeks are going to be busy.

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in the kitchen

Two recent recipe successes!

- pumpkin pie oatmeal  

Yum! The perfect autumn breakfast. I threw in 1/4 C. of raisins and dried cranberries with the oats, and I put the whole batch into a medium-sized casserole dish and didn't bother with ramekins.

- leslie's snicker-doodle brownies
I upped the baking time and they were still a little underdone, but otherwise quite delicious and awesome.

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material world

I am seriously jonesing after the elton chair from West Elm. I'm not sure that it's practical (hello! haven't I learned any lessons from my cut velvet sofa?), but I love the lines, the tufted back, and how it manages to be whimsical yet casual yet sophisticated. Plus it comes in both peacock blue and light steel blue...

Anyone have experience with West Elm furniture? Is it fairly well made and durable? (I think Paul would be thrilled to hear you say that it's cheap, rickety crap, since this chair is more up my alley than his.)

cute winter hats from anthro:

katja cap

mixed stitch beanie

It may be time to "unvent" a pattern or two...

lazy Sunday

"Falling back" has led to a day of perfect relaxation. I started off my lazy Sunday by casting off a puerperium cardigan (pictures soon!), then meeting friends for brunch at Milk & Honey Cafe, my favorite brunch spot in Chicago. Something about that place reminds me of Madison -- maybe it's the low-key vibe?

I just may have stopped by Nina and picked up a skein of this:

 (madelinetosh merino light in ginger)

and the fall 2011 issue of knitscene to make one of these:

(live oak shawlette, by Romi Hill)

as well as some buttons for my mum's Shalom cardigan:

Not only that, but I'm in the midst of a blocking frenzy. I predict a plethora of FO posts in the near future...

Friday fluff -- no knitting involved

Enjoy anthropologie's boho style but scoff at the "made in china" labels and the ridiculous price tags?  Me too. Anthroparodie may be right up your alley, as well (tip o' the hat to better living through literature).

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I'm 100% not a member of the hair-and-nails set (nor do I "read" People or Us Weekly, ugh), but I've recently discovered a few things that drastically improve my everyday life. After the rough past month, I'm happy to take delight in whatever I can.

The Wet Brush is revolutionizing my morning routine. I have long, straight, tangle-prone hair -- it used to take me AGES to detangle in the morning. This brush is awesome -- it plows right through all the tangles in record time, leaving my hair shiny and bouncy. I suspect that the Wet Brush is the same as the Regency Magic Brush that Mindy Kaling blogged about recently -- just branded differently and priced more reasonably.

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Smashbox Photo Op Under Eye Brightener is amazing. I'm pretty low-maintenance, but I do usually wear some make-up, with the goal of looking like I'm not wearing make-up, but looking better than I would if I really didn't wear make-up. Most under-eye concealers have a yucky texture, irritate my sensitive skin, or look funny. Photo Op actually makes it looks as if I got a full night's sleep and am ready to take on the world!  Smashbox's Photo Finish makeup primer is terrific, too -- it leaves your skin velvety and prevents make-up from caking or collecting in your laugh lines or eye crinkles.

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Whole Foods Pomegranate Orange lip balm moisturizes, smells great, and is incredibly affordable (under $2, I think). You know how some lip balms seem refreshing at first, but then dry out and leave your lips feeling even worse?  This doesn't do that. It actually works!