Frozen treats of doubtful authenticity

"Like as to make our appetites more keen" a new gadget has arrived in time for weekend experiments. I'm going to implement that "use what you have" strategy so successful in the Iron Chefs' ice cream makers. I'm looking through the cabinets and thinking tea-flavored sorbets and candied fruit and nut frozen custards (herbal teas from flu season and leftover Easter ingredients).

Roofs of Avignon

I ended up buying Provence - Quilts and Cuisine for this page. There are three alternate layouts for the quilt. The quilting is done in the shape of roof tiles. I love the dark teal and warm reds. I could make this.

Seducing Dr. Lewis

Netflix suggested this dvd - I think because I liked Waking Ned Devine (small village pulls together) and Slings and Arrows (Canadian comedy). The knitting was good - esp. a gansey Germain wears in an oatmeal color with bits of rust in it - I would use Blackwater Abbey's bracken worsted weight.

I've been looking at the Hanami stoles on Ravelry and thinking I could manage a scarf version. The cherry blossoms make me think of carbonation bubbles or fermentation bubbles as in a rootbeer scarf, or lemon mint soda scarf. Aha! I've just downloaded the pattern and in Melanie's notes section I see she discusses champagne bubbles and rain and gives directions for just bubbles and drops! I'm there.

Flavored teas and Haiku scarves

I used a skein of Alchemy's Haiku for the Wisp scarf from Knitty. I am so surprised by the power of a small blue cobweb to keep my neck so nice. Whenever I take it off I feel so chilly and vulnerable! I feel a Summer addiction coming on: flavored ice teas and Haiku scarves. Perhaps I should pair the flavor I am working on with the color? That would make a nice gift, a jar of syrup with a poof of a lace scarf folded on top - hibiscus, lime, ginger, mint, Meyer lemon, grapefruit, orange - rose, lavender?

Ginger syrup

I love this idea of making ginger syrup from the current Country Home. This would be wonderful in ice tea! I have to get a grease pencil so I can label all my jars easily.

A tie idea

This is a drawing of a star-nosed blue mole. I'm going to try a little tie in this dark brown/purple Yorkshire tweed. I'm going to knit it and then back it with fabric.

Bed jacket

I'm making progress on my jacket. I would like to embroider it with some blue silk. I would also like one of these in a very light and shiny blue-gray and another in a deep red!

Cranford knitting and The Little House

This month's Vogue had two articles that caught my eye - a short blurb on the Cranford series on PBS and an article on Virginia Lee Burton's textile designs. I'm very late to the Cranford party. I just caught the last episode on Sunday night. I immediately googled the knitting of Cranford and was happy to find this and this.

I have always loved Burton's The Little House and would love to see more examples of her work. I like the idea of printing some napkins with green hills and the Little House herself.

Ice tea in a jar

I was so happy to see the Summer drinks ideas in the new Living this weekend. I've also been studying my Lemonade book, but this weekend's drink was a mish mash of leftovers: iced Earl Grey with a shot of lime!

Rosemary in a jar

This is a large jar half full of rosemary bush clippings and filled with vinegar. I'm going to leave it in the sun and give it a shake whenever I pass. Hopefully after 3 weeks or so I will have a lovely hair rinse (I usually dilute it 1 part vinegar to 6 parts water). This is from Rosemary Gladstar's Family Herbal. This weekend I need to work on ice tea mixtures.

Recycled denim

This was a denim sweater that didn't work out. I am reknitting it into the bed jacket from Knitting Lingerie Style. I don't know if this is going to work, but I can always re-knit it as something else.

Jars of Summer

I'm running out of jars - jars for lime syrup and jars for rosewater and jars for yogurt and jars for ice tea mixtures and jars for vinegar hair rinse. A slight heat wave is headed our way reminding me of what Summer really feels like. This year I am going to try to keep Summer in a jar.

All done

I'm quite pleased with this. I'm trying to decide what to make next.

Summer list

I'm starting a new page in my idea book for Summer. First on my list is: make more concoctions - like body lotion, hair rinse and rose water. Second is finish my WIPs. Third is paint portraits and linen napkins.

Nature Wool socks

This is Nature Wool's sock yarn. I love the many colors of jade in these. I used the Monkey socks pattern on Knitty for these with a little Cat Bordhi shaping thrown in to avoid a gusset.

Tuscany socks

Jitterbug sock yarn is still my favorite. I prefer the semi-solids, but these multi-colored ones are great little lessons in color. As I knit these I'm always thinking, "look at the dark green next to the burnt orange, the bright blue". These are combinations that don't come easily to me. I think of my sock projects as color classes. I'm wearing my hand knit socks about once a week, washing them on cold and throwing them over the railing to dry.

Crochet purse

I've started setting aside granny squares out of leftover linen for this one. Mr. Lear picked this book up in Singapore for me a while ago. Although it's called Knit Work, it's all crochet.

Almost done

Almost a whole sleeve finished. I think I'll make this again, maybe with some leftover denim or a silky blue.

Barbie crochet

The young Miss Lear has been making crochet accessories for Barbie because she does not have the patients to make hats and scarves for herself. Making doll clothes can be so rewarding, so much quicker than baby things, and Barbie never grows out of them!