December's Blurry Flurry

December was a blur to be sure. In fact the last few weeks were so filled with activity that I didn't even have time to breath, let alone blog.

So, how about we play a bit of catch up, eh? Oh, and let's set our little catch-up session to a bit of music.

Sound good?

Okay, here's my December...events, travels, gifties, eating, drinking, making merriment...dancing around...

Sing it with me peeps!

...A partridge in a pear tree!

On the first day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

An Ashford Knitters Loom!



Yep, about three weeks before the sparkling 25th day of the month, I encountered the hubs splayed out on the living room floor watching some sporting event on the tube and inquired as to his plans for my Christmas pressie. He looked at me with an expression that can only be categorized as blanc de blanc and answered, "I dunno." So as is my way, ever the organized visionary, I explained to him that I knew of the perfect pressie for moi and would be happy to facilitate his acquisition of said holiday magic. Needless to say he agreed and handed me his credit card. A week and a half later my lovely Ashford Knitters Loom arrived at our mailbox!

Hey, a girl's gotta do what a girl's gotta do.

On the second day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

Two wonderfully woolly scarves!







The first example of scarfdom was created for me by my yarn-lovin' buddy, Ellen. Ellen's got a thang for Noro, which she used to crochet this beauty. Stunning eh?

The second example of scarfdom was created for me by my beautiful daughter. She even needle felted a little flower to adorn this lovely turquoise wonder. Stunning times two.

I love both of these scarves so much. Thanks girls!

On the third day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A ginormous Christmas tree!



We encountered this tree in San Francisco's Palace Hotel while simultaneously consuming copious amounts of breakfast buffet fare a few weeks ago.

On the fourth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

Handfuls of homemade cookies!


Sugar cookies ready for the oven.


Oatmeal infused rancher cookies.


Always a crowd-pleaser, a plethora of ginger snaps.


German sour cream twists, my favorite cookies since girlhood.

The first weekend of December was spent with my sister, Stephanie, and our mother baking cookies from recipes found in my maternal grandmother's recipe box. Plentiful bounty resulted from this drawing of the three.

On the fifth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

An all expenses paid cruise to Alcatraz!


A view from the ship.


I took this shot at the beginning of out tour. We took the night tour by the way. So cool!


My daughter's cell. LOL

I am a native Californian and unbelievable as it may seem this was my first trip to The Rock. I definitely recommend taking this excursion should you ever find yourself in the Bay Area.

On the sixth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

Time to design two new patterns for Crochet Today magazine!

Barely enough time, but I tackled the challenge of designing two projects during December anyway.

Yes, this would be further confirmation that I'm nuts.

On the seventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

Lots and lots of ballerina crotch!



Note to self...never ever sit in the front row of theater while attending a performance of the Nutcracker.

Um, yeah.

Did you know that ballerinas wear ruffled panties?

Sorry, I got nuthin' on the toe shoe front.

On the eighth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

The San Francisco skyline at night!



How beautiful is that?

On the ninth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

Perfect pecan and pumpkin pies!



Yes, I baked a lot this month.

On the tenth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

A smile on my surly daughter's face!



Them smiles are hard to come by when one is inhabiting the teen years.

On the eleventh day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

The Raiders losing to the Colts!



I know. So what else is new?

On the twelfth day of Christmas my true love gave to me...

The blessing of being able to share this holiday season with family and friends!

It just doesn't get much better than that!!

Happy New Year Everyone!

No More Martinis For You!

Office Holiday Party Pic
Originally uploaded by ladylinoleum

This is an example of what happens when I've had more than a few martinis at the office holiday party.

Ahem.

I make a pretty good Bones though eh???

San Francisco

I'm in SF for the next couple of days folks. Saw the Raiders lose today. Though they played a good game. I've got to give them that. Tomorrow there will be shopping and a trip to Alcatraz. Hopefully a little yarn exploration too!

Singular Tee

Singular Tee
Originally uploaded by ladylinoleum

My newest sweater design for Knitscene mag! It's crocheted in a supremely soft cotton, Halycon Casco Bay Sport. I hadn't worked with this yarn before, but it was a good fit for the design, which happens to be my take on a "my first sweater" type of pattern.

I'm definitely making one of these for my daughter. Oh hell, and one for myself too!

Digit Puppets!

Finger Puppets
Originally uploaded by ladylinoleum

Got a hankering to crochet up a few finger puppets (my latest patterns in print)? Then you need to pick up the January/February '08 issue of Crochet Today mag.

I expect to see everyone sporting these around town...

Craftember

December is such a nutty time of year. There just aren’t enough hours in the day for me to accomplish all that I’d like. Be that as it may, I still give it the ole college try each and every 12th month of the year!

Saturday began early with a blast of animated crafty reorganization. I’ve acquired a few new tools in recent months (okay, more than a few) and, well, such acquisitions have required me to do a little spatial rehab of my living room (read: too much crap, too little square footage). Currently my communal living space is home to a couple of large looms, myriad small looms, knitting, crochet and embroidery implements, needle-felting weaponry and yes, a brand new spinning wheel (and all of the stuff that comes with it)! This is in addition to the usual type of living room fare: home electronics; comfy arse-supporting furnishings; computer; all the impedimenta a couch jockey could want or need…you know the drill. Fortunately hubs and kid don’t hassle me about my stuff taking up residence in there. They’re both very tolerant and I am very thankful for their sensitivity to my fiber dominion.

Here’s the new Fiber Shui, which currently radiates outward from my favorite chair…



The small bookshelf, a legacy item which sits adjacent to my chair, is just perfect for my spinning tools, ball winder, swift and stitch dictionaries.

Freshly wound balls of newly spun yarn sit atop the shelf…



Around the backside of my chair and below an antique school desk is a smattering of knitting, crocheting and weaving supplies…



Adjacent the opposite arm of my chair is my little sewing cabinet and my brand new spinning wheel! Love my Lendrum!



After the organization spree I was ready to get down to some serious fiber play where I found myself mid-shawl on my tri-loom…



Using a very nice hand-dyed boucle that I purchased at a yarn show last year…



Completed a little hand-dying of my own. More fingering weight burgundy to pink goodness…



Also did a little spinnin’. Definitely just cutting my teeth on the wheel. Still haven’t learned to control the spin factor yet, but I do have moments of spinning clarity where I do see improvement in my technique. Here’s a batch of gently washed hanks…



And a bobbin loaded with newly spun wool…



Really, what an improvement from my first batches! Plying is still a bit of a painful process, but I am making strides on that front too, however small.

Sunday I found myself equally busy. Hit the PCC Flea Market in the a.m., followed by my art group in the afternoon. We are, thankfully, almost finished with our current project, which we’ve been working on for almost two years. Most of the group is anxious to begin something new. The evening consisted of more personal crafty exploration while indulging in a little Tin Man on the Sci Fi Channel. All in all, not a bad way to blow a few days!

This week will see the beginning of two new patterns for Crochet Today mag as well as completion of a few holiday gifts for family and friends. December just keeps moving along! That’s okay, I’ll rest in January.

Have a wonderfully productive week everyone!