Nethercutt Collection

This place is amazing*. Ok, show of hands - has anybody out there ever heard of this museum? Or of J.B. Nethercutt? I sure hadn't. Turns out J.B. Nethercutt and his aunt, Merle Nethercutt Norman, co-founded the Merle Norman cosmetics empire. Dick found this place a few months ago and couldn't wait to take me there today.

This fairly nondescript building in Sylmar holds a portion of one of the largest collections of restored "antique, vintage, black iron, and classic" automobiles in the world. And this is the smaller building.

We started our tour in the basement of the larger five story building across the street. You walk down a driveway into a room filled with fully restored, key-in-the-ignition, ready-to-drive vehicles, mechanical music players, and other treasures. (Please pardon the quality of the photos; flash photography wasn't allowed and the lighting was fairly dim, so the focus isn't the best.) The objects are wonderful, but the room is plain - white walls, red carpet, roll-up garage doors. You're impressed, but not overwhelmed. Then you walk upstairs to this . . . . . pure opulence. The main salon is styled after automobile showrooms from the '20's & '30's, but it made me think of European opera houses or 5-star hotels. Soaring ceilings, three types of marble, hand-cut crystal chandeliers (made by the same company that made the lights for the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion in L.A.), detailed trim and wrought-iron stair railings. And cars. The collection has over 320 fabulous automobiles, all carefully restored to their original elegance. Rolls-Royce, Bugatti, Duesenberg, Mercedes, Pierce-Arrow, Dort, Franklin (the car, not one of my favorite bloggers) - if you can think of an elegant auto, you can bet there is at least one in this collection.

Up the stairs, past the reproducing piano, (different from a player piano - reproducing pianos can capture 90% of the original artist's expression and dynamics where player pianos only capture the notes) is the mezzanine level and the Nethercutt's enormous collection of car mascots and hood ornaments.

And then there's the fourth floor. Definitely my favorite. Cars are ok (sorry, Dick) but mechanical musical instruments? Very large, hand made, incredible theater-sized pipe organs and orchestrions and nickelodeons, phonograph players, electric banjo players, and more? Be still my heart. (Sorry there's not more detail in the photo. It was so dark, none of the other photos from this level are usable. Want to see more and actually hear the instruments play? Go here and click on "San Sylmar" at the top, then "Instruments".)

Our tour guide played five or six different instruments for us, including the theater organ whose pipes are spread throughout seven or eight different sections of the room's walls.

The newest addition to the museum is a fully restored, exactly as it came off the factory floor, 1912 Pullman Private Car once owned by Clara Baldwin Stocker, eldest daughter of "Lucky" Baldwin (founder of Santa Anita racetrack; Baldwin Hills is named after him, among other things). Clara's "California" car is the equivalent of owning a private jet today. The furnishings, wood paneling (Cuban mahogany for the family, quarter-sawn oak for the servants), and stained glass windows (for the family; the servants quarters had frosted glass) are amazing.

The museum also has a 1937 Canadian Pacific Royal Hudson locomotive on display.
And just to prove I was really there - here's the only picture of me that wasn't totally out of focus. We'll let Dick continue to believe it was the poor lighting and not his photography skills that are to blame.

*And it's all FREE. The museum and train exhibit are open to the public; reservations are required for the 2-hour, guided tour of the Collection. Monthly concerts are also free; reservations are required. We're definitely going back for the concerts.

Tax Day

We had our taxes done today. Not pretty. But a LOT better than the - better sit down here - $30,000 that hubby thought we might owe.

That's a lot of zeros, people.

Bad news? We'll have to pay Uncle Sam and Cousin Arnold again this year. The good news? I can still afford sock yarn! Hooray!

My Helper - and a favor

Oreo follows me around the house like a dog, just waiting for me to sit down so she can get in my lap. But this was a first. Think I can get her to fold the laundry while she's there?

Here's the favor - is anyone besides V having trouble leaving comments? I can't tell if the problem is on my end or hers. If y'all could try to leave a comment - "hi" or "cute cat" or whatever - I'd appreciate it. If you have trouble, would you drop me a line at epspinsATgmailDOTcom? Thanks a bunch.

Sping Is Here

I know, because the iris are blooming and yard improvements have begun again.

Dick took a break during the poor excuse for a winter we had in So. Cal. Since it doesn't look like we're going to get any more rain, and the weather is heating up, he's back at work finishing the front yard.

Earlier this week he set rebar and staked bender board around the front walk.
And today we got to pour cement! Oh, the excitement! And did you notice the "we"? Cementing is not, unfortunately, a one-person job. It is, however, a fairly fast job, since you have to get the cement out of the trailer and into the forms before it sets up and starts to dry out. Dick picked up the trailer just before 8 and was on his way to return it by 11.

This is the foundation for a wall and seating around the fountain we have planned for the front yard. Dick wanted to pour the cement around the front walk today, but it was a little too hot and I'm not the fastest helper, so that will have to wait for another day. Instead, we now have a cement pad behind the garage for the trash cans. Dick had planned on pouring that later, but since he had enough cement it got done today. Pretty, yes?

Low Tech

Dick is a surprisingly low-tech kind of guy. Surprising, because he's always been interested in new technology. He was a "Beta" guy before VHS took over the video market. From the time personal computers first became available, we've had a computer in the house. In the '80's, he ordered a custom-built, top-of-the-line, smokin' DOS machine from two friends who were in the business - and he knew the specs for all the various bits and bytes.

But over the years, I've gradually become the family techie. Dick would much rather cut wood or smash things with a hammer than defrag a hard drive or set up a wireless network. He can read his email, he's good at eBay-ing (much to my benefit!), and he knows how to Google.

Take date days, for example. Over the years, we've visited a lot of the higher profile places that come to mind when you think day-trip. So each week, Dick breaks out his laptop, fires up Google, and starts looking for something new, something we haven't seen before. And he always comes up with something interesting, like this week's trip to William S. Hart Park in Newhall. (Lots of baby bison - fiber-on-the-hoof!)

But the map and directions for getting there? Definitely low-tech.

FiberWoods

Dick finished the first batch of 'for sale' crochet hooks. Each is made individually by hand and polished to a high gloss. The handles are made from various hardwoods and the thumbpads are carved from ivory. These hooks are similar in style to the Clover Soft Touch hooks, which I find more comfortable than traditional round hooks. The three white hooks in the middle of the photo are hand carved from (pre-ban) elephant ivory.

From left to right: Imbuya (SOLD), size "H"; Canarywood and Ebony (SOLD), size "H"; Padauk with Ivory hook, size "D"; Bloodwood with Ivory hook (SOLD), size "G"; Purpleheart with Ivory hook, size "D"; Bolivian Rosewood (SOLD), size "G-7" (4.5mm); Bloodwood, size "H"; Zebrawood, size "G" (SOLD); and Tulipwood (SOLD), size "G-7" (4.5mm).

All-wood crochet hooks - $35 each; Ivory hook with wood handle - $55 each.
Don't see the size you need or the wood you want? Custom requests cheerfully considered.

Padauk with Ivory hook, size "D" - $55

Bloodwood with Ivory hook, size "G" - $55 (SOLD)

Purpleheart with Ivory hook, size "D" - $55

Stupid Cat

AJ loves boxes, the smaller the better. She has her own box with a thick layer of wool batts. It didn't start out as hers - she appropriated it while I was trying to spin said batts. She looked so comfy that I gave it to her without a fight. And she's been very happy with it. Until tonight.

I heard rustling in my studio earlier, and after about 5 minutes, my curiosity won out over my laziness. I found AJ pushing and kneading and adjusting the tissue paper in this very small shoe box. I'm not sure exactly how she managed it, but she finally got her entire body in the box. And she's been sound asleep like that for hours. Stupid cat.

Cute Toes

I admit, this is a blatant attempt to win yarn. But Addy's toes - and fingers and ears - are so cute, I'd probably have done it sooner or later anyway. I love the comparison between Baby Addy monkey toes and Uncle Gary monkey toes. You can tell these two are related!

Funniest Cat Story Ever

A friend sent me this story. I thought it was hilarious. Once the tears dried and my sides stopped aching, I thought I'd share it with you. Jack Jack has a history of being, uhmmm, "adventuresome". We loves him but, like most kids, he can be a royal pain some days.

I'm having some people over tonight, so before I went to bed last night I took a pack of frozen chicken breasts and other various meats out so they could defrost. I was very responsible about it and put a plate under everything so water would not get everywhere and I even put a towel over the frozen stuff so that Jack Jack would be less inclined to bother with it. Yeah.

I woke up this morning, walked into the kitchen and discovered two, now defrosted, chicken breasts sitting on the kitchen floor and one in the sink. Ew. Somehow, with no claws and without leaving teeth marks, Jack Jack put a perfectly symmetrical hole in the pack of chicken. I'm assuming he pulled everything out with his teeth (?) but the breasts were pretty big so I really have no idea how he managed to do this so quietly during the night. And there were four missing so he must have been at this for hours. This was all gross and annoying enough until I realized that FOUR were missing, not three. So where's the missing breast?

I walked around the apt looking for it and could not find it. I had ruled out the idea that he may have eaten it because they are fairly large and Jack Jack barely eats anything. So now I'm totally grossed out. There's a decomposing chicken somewhere in my apt and I can't find it! I finally ran across the street and knocked on the door of one of the younger guys who lives near me to see if he'd help. (If he had any doubts that I was completely insane, he doesn't anymore.) Honestly, I think he thought this was some highly elaborate scheme to hit on him, but he obliged and came over. After 20 minutes neither one of us could find it. He was laughing. I was not.

But do you know where it was? Where the disgusting, mushy, decomposing chicken breast was?












Swat was sleeping on it in their tree!! WHAT IS WRONG WITH THESE CATS? And now they're covering for one another!

2 FO's - 2 Swatches

And guess what? Neither of the swatches is for the christening gown. I still have six weeks, so what's the rush, right? And besides, I've always worked better to a very-close, breathing-down-my-neck, stay-up-all-night-for-a-week deadline. (Take a deep breath, Rach; it will be OK. Trust me.) Plus, I need a take-along project and there is no.way. I'm taking white silk to tomorrow's dentist appointment.

I've wanted to make myself a sweater for awhile now. While digging through my pattern stash for the CG, I found several possibilities. So, I pulled some yarn out of the stash (see? I'm stash busting!) and swatched for 2 different sweaters. And both swatches are exactly on gauge - which I'm taking as a sign that this was meant to be. These will both be experiments to see what fits and what I like and don't like, so I'm not using the really good yarn. But wouldn't it be great if I end up loving them both?

And the FO's? The first is a KNIT finished object. This is a basic stockinette scarf in bulky alpaca from Blue Sky Alpacas. I blocked it last night, but the edges still roll inward. I'd rather it was flat, but a tube scarf is OK. And it's for ME!

This one's for Dick. I finished it several weeks ago, except for the official weaving in of ends. This is 600 yards (that's six football fields!) of angora wool by Elizabeth Lavold in a basketweave pattern. Very warm, very heavy - and he loves it. Sure hope we get more rain and some cold weather so he can wear it this year.

So, which do I prefer - crochet or knitting? Crochet is (much) faster and more relaxing since I know what I'm doing. And although I've been doing it for years, it can still be a challenge. I like that I can predict how a project will turn out and make changes to patterns on the fly.

But knitting - now that I understand how to do it - is so satisfying. Throwing the yarn over the needle and pulling it into place on the knit stitch gives such as satisfying 'pop'. Purling still isn't as much fun, but after making a 6-foot scarf with knit-a-row, purl-a-row I'm comfortable with both stitches. I've fixed some mistakes, cast on several times and figured out how to bind off all by myself. (With a little help from KnittingHelp.com.)

So I asked an unbiased third party which was better. Oreo votes for crochet.

Addy's Christening

I have the pattern (Leisure Arts 'Baby Layettes, Book2'):
I have the yarn (Debbie Bliss 'Pure Silk'):I have the model:
And I have the (tentative) deadline.

Saturday, April 14.

Wish me luck!

Yarn Crawl

I didn't think much about it at the time, but Dick spent most of last night on the computer. He's a night-time TV guy, so it was pretty unusual for him to adjourn to the den with his laptop. Turns out he was searching for high end or unusual yarn shops between here and Long Beach for us to visit today. My very own, customized yarn crawl. Am I lucky or what?

First up was Jennifer Knits in Brentwood. This was the smallest store and, until Dick told me the 'back story', I thought it was the most run-of-the-mill (by that I mean most like other higher-end yarn stores I've visited.) Turns out the owner is a published author and will design custom patterns for customers. You send her a picture or describe what you want and she'll make the pattern. For free. You just have to buy the yarn there. Very cool.

Next up - wildFiber in Santa Monica. O.M.G. The store is huge - go look at the picture on their website, I'll wait. - and has an amazing selection of luxury and unusual fibers. I found a must-have crochet coat pattern from Oat Couture (the Monet Jacket) and the softest, most gorgeous Chinese cashmere and silk yarn I've ever seen. The previous owner was Mel Clark who wrote 'Knit 2 Together' with Tracey Ullman. We're talking serious knitting store here.

Then there was Alamitos Bay Yarn. A good sized store located right on the water in Long Beach. I spent the most time here. They have a good selection of crochet books and some amazing yarn. I ended up buying a sweater book by Melissa Leapman and a skein of Mountain Colors merino and silk yarn. (Hey, it's not my fault. I had to do my part to support our independent yarn stores.) They had Lily Chin's book Knit and Crochet with Beads. This was the first chance I've had to look through it. The Leapman book beat it into my shopping bag by a thread, (ewww - sorry!) but Beads is definitely next up on my most coveted books list.

Why was Long Beach Dick's final destination? So we could end the day at Acres of Books. "California's largest second-hand bookstore with over one million books in stock." And not a single knitting book on the premises. I found the shelf where the knitting and crochet books should have been; 2 very sad crochet books were all they had. I was hoping to pick up a used Alice Starmore or Elizabeth Zimmerman tome. No luck, but I'll keep looking. Searching is half the fun, right?

Driving home, we almost literally ran into the Pt. Fermin Lighthouse in San Pedro. Built on a bluff overlooking San Pedro Harbor, the lighthouse went into operation on December 15 (!), 1874 and remained active until December 9, 1941. The ornate Victorian beauty underwent an extensive renovation in 2004. The building was closed by the time we got there, but we were able to walk around the outside and admire the ocean view and the gorgeous flowers blooming all around the fence. A very nice end to a very nice day. (Well, almost the end. We hit the 405 just before 7 pm and it was still a parking lot. It took over an hour to get from LAX to the 101 interchange. I am so thankful we don't commute to LA everyday.)