FO's!

First up, the scarf I made from the silk/tencel yarn I bought at Morro Fleece Works during our mini-vacation. The best thing about this scarf is that I discovered I can crochet on road trips, as long as I don't have to be really precise in my hook placement. Give me a big, open pattern and time in the car just flies. The pattern is your basic "V" stitch; with the lumpy-bumpy nature of the yarn, it's really hard to see individual stitches. I still love the yarn but the further I got into the skein, the thicker and thicker the white silk strand became. I'm choosing to believe that was what the spinner intended . . . and not that this was their first effort. (a possibility)

This is the most accurate color.

I'm a bit behind in getting samples to the shop for my crochet block-a-month class. This is September's block, which I'll be teaching in less than 2 weeks. It's a thread crochet pattern from 1946 that I tweaked a little. I love how it looks. This one was made with Misti Alpaca Worsted (100% baby alpaca) in color #4388 (a plumy-purple) using an "H" hook.
And this is Addy's version in Bernat CottonTots 100% cotton, also with an "H" hook. The colors in this photo are really dark but it shows the pattern best, I think. I have 8 blocks done for Addy's blankie. I hope to get 4 more done and the blanket pieced together before she arrives on September 6. Anybody want to take that bet?

More Vacation

I'm cleaning my "studio" today - moving all my scrapbooking stuff out and into storage so I'll have even. more. room. for fiber - so this will be short.

Day Two of the Our Last Kid's Finally An Adult* adventure took us to the Monterey Aquarium. This place is wonderful and ranks high on my list of favorites. They've made it even better since the last time we visited by adding a whole new wing to house Jellies!

This pic is from my cell phone; not bad, eh?

They had big jellies and little jellies, purple jellies and clear jellies. About the only marine thingee I like better than jellies are sea dragons. Have to go to the Long Beach aquarium for those though. If you like otters or penguins, be sure to check out Monterey's live web cams.

Lunch was at the Fish Hopper, about a block down from the aquarium. We'd never tried this one before and were a little nervous - some touristy restaurants, especially fish ones, can leave very bad, very painful memories. But this was excellent. The food was good and we were seated right by a window overlooking Monterey Bay. For entertainment, we had seals lazing on rocks, seagulls, kayakers, and more, almost within touching distance. Very memorable experience.

That afternoon we drove up the coast to Santa Cruz and beyond. We found the Natural Bridges State Beach by accident. The pictures are dark but can you see the caves in the rocks? The website has a better photo where you can see all the way through the caves. We hit rush hour traffic on the way back to Pacific Grove; just goes to show LA isn't the only place with icky traffic. At least Monterey has better views will you sit.

Wednesday morning we started south through Seventeen Mile Drive

Obligatory Lone Cypress photo

and Carmel. Dick took a side road to avoid yet another traffic jam (dang tourists!) and I spotted a sign for the Carmel Mission - officially the San Carlos Borromeo de Carmelo Mission, founded in 1771. I didn't realize that this is the burial site for Father Junipero Serra. The mission and its grounds are beautiful; very peaceful and serene. Flowers were plentiful (are these zinnias?) and so were the bees. The honeybee in the first photo and the bumblebee in the second ended up on the same flower. Guess which one came out the winner after that little discussion? We had forgotten that the Pebble Beach Tour d'Elegance was scheduled two days after we left the area. We remembered when we started seeing Ferraris, Maserati's, Lamborghinis, Bentleys, and more driving en mass up Hwy 1. "En mass" as in nine Lamborghinis, one behind the other, powering through the turns toward us.

We lost count at about 40 Lambors - no exaggeration - which included a white one with black graffiti-type writing all over it. I thought Dick was going to cry. By the time we stopped for lunch at 3, it was almost - almost - to the point of "ho hum, there's another one".

* We arrived back home to find Gary sick with a cough. Coughs tend to settle in his chest, make themselves at home, and stay awhile. We broke out the usual medications, with minimal success.

Friday night he got us up no less than 5 times - remember he's 18 not 8 - looking for medicine or for sympathy. Dick and I were both up for an hour at 3:30 - I hadn't gotten to sleep yet and Dick had been awakened so many times he couldn't go back to sleep. By then it was Saturday and, of course, all the doctor's offices and urgent care clinics were closed. It's a nice, healthy cough (he sounds like a seal) but it's Just. A. Cough.

He's had that towel on his head all day.

It's a good thing this isn't a 3-day weekend. I'm not sure he'd survive. And I'm not talkin' about that blasted cough.

Vacation Update

I meant to write this earlier, but I made the mistake of checking in on Ravelry . . . . two three several hours later I still haven't posted. That place is dangerous addictive.

Dick has had a bad case of the "gotta go's", aka the travel bug, for awhile now. But with Gary in summer school and not yet 18, we were kinda stuck at home. Both of those issues resolved themselves the first week of August; Dick's been pacing the driveway ever since. So Monday we made a quick stop to pick up my Fair entries, ribbons and check (for $13!) before hitting the road.

Our goal was to drive up the coast until we got tired or found something interesting. Dick thought we'd spend the night in San Luis Obispo, but neither of us was ready to stop when we hit the city limits at 4:00. Our first stop of the day was here. Hey, it's not my fault. We needed fuel and it just happened to be next to the gas station. Honest!

I've seen Shari at various shows - and have one of her felted rugs in my house - but I'd never been to her shop. She doesn't have a lot of yarn or fiber for sale but what she has is very nice. I found 3 skeins of a blue 50/50 wool/silk blend that I think will make a nice felted scarf or shawl. And a skein of one ply Tussah silk and one ply Tencel - in green and white of all colors - that really spoke to me. It's obviously hand-spun and all lumpy-bumpy, but it's so shiny and soft that I just had to have it. (Sorry for the crummy cell phone photo. It's hard to focus in a moving car.) I couldn't just leave the yarn in the bag, so I improvised a swift (my knees) and wound yarn while we traveled.
Dick put the baby car through its paces up Hwy 1, stopping occasionally for the views - and when the slow-poke, scardy-cat drivers in front of us got on his nerves. The stretch between Morro Bay and Big Sur has got to be one of the most beautiful drives in the world.

We ended up in Pacific Grove, just south of Monterey. We'd stayed here before, right after Dick retired in 2005, and really liked the area. It's August, top tourist season in a top tourist destination. No reservation, no problem, right? We really lucked out - the Inn at Seventeen Mile Drive, where we stayed before, (go check out the photos, I'll wait. The place is gorgeous) had one room available for the two nights we wanted - and only those 2 nights for the month previous and the two months following. And not just a room - a stand-alone cottage with a king-size bed and a fireplace. Heaven.

Pacific Grove started out as a religious retreat but has grown into an upscale "village" with some excellent restaurants and a biking/walking path right along the ocean. We've already picked out the B&B where we're going to stay on our next visit . . . a gorgeous Victorian mansion with several cottages that's just across the street from the ocean. And this time we'll make sure we have reservations.

Did You Miss Me?

Where in the world have I been for the last 3 days, you ask? Any guesses?

Wedding Photos

ahem. I didn't take a single photo of the bride and groom. We left the camera in the car during the ceremony and there were SO MANY cameras at the reception, I didn't think to point mine at the happy couple. Carolyn's photos will be better than mine anyway - she's a professional wedding photographer - so I'll just steal borrow some after she uploads them.

Lookin' good! The groom's parents - Vickie (Dick's sister) and Rich

The ceremony was here, overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Perfect weather, with just a light breeze to keep everything cool. The deacon who officiated was hilarious, which was a good thing. Jen looked beautiful but terrified when she walked down the aisle. The deacon had her smiling and relaxed in minutes. The ceremony was beautiful and I've never seen Scott look happier.

We finished with family photos about 12:30 and since the reception didn't start until 5, we took Bill and Caroline to the Sawdust Festival in Laguna Beach. We probably looked a bit out of place in our wedding finery, but who cares?

Carolyn and I celebrate my getting to wear the shawl for about 10 minutes

The guys took off their ties,

Can you tell these two are brothers?

Marie put a shirt over her dress, grabbed her tennis shoes (she was prepared for anything), and we wandered for a couple of hours.

Traffic getting to the reception on Balboa Island was horrible - think LA beach traffic on a beautiful, summer Saturday night. The reception was worth the hassle, though. The setting was beautiful - right on the water overlooking Newport Beach - the food was good and we got to spend time with family members we don't get to see as often as we'd like.

Two-year-old William, the ring bearer, was the evening's best entertainment. He cried during the ceremony - he was not happy being separated from mommy, who was a bridesmaid - but was the life of the party after being reunited with mom and having an afternoon nap. He flirted with all the girls - the four and five-year old flower girls and 22 year-old Marie were his favorites - danced with Grandma, and played with the table decorations. Overall, a long but wonderful day. Congratulations, Scott and Jennifer!

Long Day

The wedding was very nice but it was a long day. We left at 9 this morning and arrived back home just a smidge before 10:45 p.m.

The shawl received several compliments - at least that's what Marie told me. She wore it during the wedding ceremony cause she was cold . . . . and somehow managed to hang on to it for the rest of the day. It's super soft and deliciously drapey. If I can pry it away from Marie, I think this is going to be one of my all-time favorite shawls.

Done!

I finished this at midnight and had it blocked by 12:30. (The color isn't accurate. It's much lighter.) We have to be up at 7 and on the road to the wedding by 8:30. Cutting it close, as usual. Tech specs: organic Fox Fiber softball cotton, size E hook, unknown yardage. The yarn was on a cone so I'll have to figure out how much I used. Pattern was based on this oval doily pattern.

Fair Day

Wednesday was my third and F.I.N.A.L. day at this year's fair. It was also dollar day - $1 admission until 3 pm - and it was ridiculously busy. I tried to get into the parking lot at noon, one hour after the fair opened, and it was already jammed, packed full. Everybody and their eleventy-six kids was either in line at the box office or crammed into the midway. Please, please remind me not to sign up to work dollar day next year.

But the good news was that we had lots of traffic at our LYS's table in the Home Arts building. One of my favorite things was the yarn tasting - balls of various yarns in fancy (plastic) glasses with needles and hooks ready for people to try. Lois does this at the shop for various events and it's always a hit.

So what did I accomplish during my two hour stint? Two crocheted star warshcloths. An easy, mindless project that I could stop and start while talking to people. One has already been gifted to Marie's friend Jen. The other may be for me . . . or for donating . . . or something.

We Have A Winner

This is the one Rachel chose for her wedding shawl - the same one I would have chosen. Marie liked this one best also. It always amazes me when my kids and I like the same things; something to do with the generation gap, ya know?

Rachel picked out her gown and it's lovely. I'll post a picture when (if?) it's OK with her. She texted the photo to me while she was still in the store; it was almost as good as being there.

Decorating Den

When we redecorated the family/TV room, it looked kind of . . . low. The new couch and most everything else in the room is about the same height. There was no visual interest. Dick and I both thought a screen would solve the problem, with the added benefit of camouflaging part of my weaving area.

Dick found this screen at World Market. It's wrought iron - so it's stable and heavy enough to stand on its own and to withstand accidental onslaughts by the cats - with cloth panels stretched tight from top to bottom. I like the look and it adds the interest we wanted. But the real reason we bought it? Hanging racks on the back. I can drape my weaving samples, future warps, or color ideas and study them while I weave. How clever is that!

I've Got The Blues

Blue Fair ribbons, that is.

Baby Christening Outfit (3 pieces) Felted Shawl

One Red -

Cotton Scarf

And three White.

Woven Shawl Sock Yarn Shawl Crocheted Socks

I love the Fair!

Sheep 2 Shawl

Today was the guild's annual Sheep To Shawl event at the Fair. It was also Kid's Day and we had lots of children and adults watching and asking questions. My favorite was the dad who took his (about) 4 year old son to each wheel, squatted down so they were at eye level, and explained in detail how each one worked. They were there at least 30 minutes; we were enchanted. Silvia had us well organized this year. We had 2 non-spinners carding batts and 2 spinners plying the finished singles together. That left twelve of us to spin the weft - Romney fleece in a mix of brown, purple, orange and green - while the lone weaver warped the loom with brown Romney spun from a fleece purchased at last year's Fair. The shawl is a mix of huck lace and plain weave. When I left about 4:15, Chris had woven 60" with at least another yard of warp still on the loom. And enough spun weft-yarn left to make at least one more shawl. The finished shawl was to be auctioned off tonight at a barbecue with the sheep people.

There were a few fleece available for sale today*; most are on hold until Sunday when the prize winners will go up for silent auction. I bought a beautiful 3 pound white and silver Karakul lamb fleece (for $8/pound) - and I got the best deal of the day - a drop-dead gorgeous black and silver adult Karakul fleece for only $10.

Notice the cat in the foreground. Oreo blends in perfectly with the Karakul.**

Karakuls are a coarse breed that's mostly used for rugs; it doesn't command the same price as a next-to-the-skin soft fleece like Merino. But I think it's one of the most beautiful fleece out there. The silver in this one just gleams. I can't stop touching it. I'm planning to make a woven wall-hanging or rug with this fleece. I'll warp the loom with black wool, then lay the washed, slightly flicked locks in the shed, and beat it fairly firmly. Something like what's described in this book. No idea how it will turn out but I'm looking forward to the learning process.

* My friend Paula - the one who, when she joined the Guild, said she only wanted to be a weaver and had no interest in spinning - bought a beautiful, silky-soft, one-pound cinnamon baby alpaca fleece (with only a little bit of encouragement from me. OK, a lot of encouragement. But that fleece was a treasure!) And she's narrowed her choices for a spinning wheel down to a Lendrum folding wheel and an Ashford Traveler.


** Dick came home from the movies to a living room floor covered in fleece. His only reaction was to open the windows - wide - before sitting down to hear all about "the most beautiful fleece and the most amazing deal." I love that man.

Heaven Help Me

Got my Ravelry invite this morning.
I'm going in.
If you don't hear from me in a week, send help.