happie holidays to you!

Dobby's socks, from Charmed Knits, in Knit Picks Comfy Fingering, in red and green, complete with broomsticks and snitches.  In the spirit of giving and friendship of the season.

Happy holiday wishes to you my friends, and blessings for an awesome new year.

big snowy owl

Two good friends of mine recently got a house, and immediately made it their own with a purple accent wall, a tree of art, and a reading corner with a shag rug.  In the reading corner, on a tree of shelves, sit some little owls, which they said were inspired by the owl fireplace at my Grandma's Ranch.  So, when I saw this pattern, I cast on to knit if for them before even stopping to think.

In Wool-Ease Thick and Quick on two circular 13s, this went together quickly and beautify.  Just give this guy a big squeeze and try not to smile.  It's impossible.

this winter morning

 late sun.  early frost.  gift knits. 

 

Checkers and Chess, for my Grandpa, to match the Asherton Scarf I made him last year, in Lion Brand heathers and twists, Chestnut Heather.

the great christmas tree hunt

The Christmas tree is a long (and tall) standing tradition, and finding it is serious business.  Every year after Thanksgiving, the whole family (Mom, Dad, brother, SOs, cousins, Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents) makes the trek into the high country National Forest.  We enter the park with our tree ticket, choose our path carefully, and then set out on foot in our epic quest.  Every year, we come home with an 18-20ft tree.  It is no easy task; selecting the right size tree, with a good face of full branches, as close to the road as possible.  When we have finally found the one, the men set to work swinging the axe to bring the tree down.  Then, we all help to carry it back to the truck and load in on the trailer.  Our prize in tow, we head down to the fireman's station to support the local community and buy steaming plates of chili cheese hot dogs and soda, greatly enjoying the awed looks of fellow tree hunters as they view our grand tree.  This hat and gloves are to honor this, one of my favorite Christmas traditions.

The hat is a Norwegian Star Earflap hat, knit from the top down with a garter st brim, and the gloves are made using the Cigar pattern, but I knit all the fingers to the top.  These are both excellent patterns, and turned out great using Lion's Brand Loden.

What are some of your favorite Holiday traditions?
Happy Holiday knitting!

cowls

I have two cowl patterns to share with you today. 

The first I am calling coffee grounds: a sophisticated pattern with just enough visual interest, perfect for the casual wearer.  The pattern is Basalt, and it knits up quickly in Lion Brand's Jiffy Caffe.

If you are feeling a bit more funk, then I recommend the next pattern: Wonky.  Also in Jiffy, this pattern is fast, fun, and a little silly; a much less serious version of the Basalt. 

Whichever you choose, your neck will be warm and cozy!   The high is 18 degrees here today, with more snow on the way again.  Is it cold where you are?  Stay warm, and have a happy Monday!

PS: Let's go wander in the woods.... 

falling snow

The pattern is Falling Water, and is available on Ravelry as a free pattern download.  It's a lace pattern, but I wanted a warmer scarf, so I chose a thicker yarn, one of my Lion Brand favorites. The pattern came out wonderful, but required some serious blocking.

Winter is in full swing, and so are the Christmas knitting projects!  I will show you more as they become FOs....

More bad weather on the way!

san isabel

The pattern is Forbes Forest, from the wonderful book Scarf Style, and made with Knit Pick's Wool of the Andes, which is the perfect soft wool for a winter scarf.

The winter season is fast approaching!  Can you believe it's almost Thanksgiving?  I will be headed down to spend time with all the family, and with me I will take my new recipes for gluten free pumpkin bread and stuffing, and my next knitting project for the football and parade watching. 

What are your plans for the holiday?  Do you have a favorite recipe to share?

flowers and a puppy

There now, don't you feel better?  Happy Friday!

Flowers for me from the DH, just because.  Did I mention I love being married?  I love my husband!  Soca loves him too.  And the flowers.  You might notice someone's nose in the bottom of the right picture.  

superb soup

This weekend a long anticipated event took place; The Yeti Party.  There was snow and sledding and yetiing and solving puzzles in the yeti mansion.  And there was superb soup.  It was ... superb.

Superb Soup
Feeds: 4.  Hands on time: 45 minutes.  Total time: 3 hours.

You will need:

• 1 small-medium sized pumpkin
• 1 medium onion, chopped
• 2-3 garlic gloves, chopped
• 2 Tbs butter
• 2 Tbs oil
• 4 Tbs flour
• 4 cups of veggie broth
• 1/2 cup of creamy goat cheese
• 1/2 cup of heaving whipping cream
• 1 lb of fresh halibut fish
• Salt and pepper to taste

What to do:

1. Roast the pumpkin.  Preheat oven to 400C. Cut the pumpkin in half, and scoop out all the seeds and gunk.  Set both pieces cut side down on a baking sheet.  Bake for about 2hours, or until fork tender. Allow to cool, then scoop out all the pumpkin flesh.
2. Bake the fish.  Turn oven down to 350C.  Place your fish in the center of a large piece of tin foil with the skin down, and fold the edges up around it.  Add some oil, salt and pepper, then fold the top piece of foil over to make an insulated tent.  Bake for 35-40 minutes, or until fish flakes away with a fork.
3. Meanwhile, begin the soup.  To a large pot on medium heat, add the butter.  When melted, add the onion and oil. Cook until the onion is tender, ~5min.  Then add the garlic, cook until tender, ~2min.  To this add the flour, and stir to make a roue.  Cook another 2 minutes.
4. Add the broth and about 1lb of mashed pumpkin, 4-5 cups.  Bring to a boil, then simmer for 30-40 minutes, until completely cooked and smooth.  
5. Add the goat cheese in small chunks while stirring, allowing it to melt.
6. Add the cream and stir, return to a boil.
7. Flake the fish into large chunks and discard the skin.  Add to soup. 
8. Adjust seasonings with salt and pepper to taste.
9. Serve hot, with garlic bread.

To warm the heart of the coldest Yeti.  Enjoy ~

SNOW

first snow of the season!  Soca's first snow!

At first, she was unsure.  Then, I couldn't get her to come inside and stop running madly about the yard.  We also played chase and tackle, and got very wet and cold.  So we went inside for cookies and coca!

First snow always means homemade cookies.  I made MONSTER COOKIES which turned out awesome.  Gluten free, easy, delicious!  I love snow.

the good yarn

Here is something to make your day.  Knitters around the world are rallying to make sweaters for penguins after an oil spill in New Zealand.  The sweaters help to keep them warm as they recover, and keep them from eating the poisons in their feathers if they try to prune themselves.  Read the full article here.  Do you knit for charity, or donate your time?  Want to knit a penguin sweater?  Instructions are here.  Knitting can be such a force for good!

Happy Friday ~

blustery

The weather is temprimental.  Let's go outside...

We have adventures planned for the weekend.  The pup the DH and I will be headed for the snowy mountains for a stay at the ranch.  I'll be taking my knitting with me and I'm looking for a new book to start.  What are you knitting or working on?  Can you recommend a good read?

all who wander

Dreaming of places I'd love to explore.   Scotland.  Norway.  Iceland.

Reading the Hobbit.  Looking for yarn to knit this sweater in white.

The pattern was not available in English, but a fellow knitter sent me her copy for free, because she got a free scanned copy of the whole book of patterns from an awesome knitter in Canada.  I want to share it with you too; find it here. 

Not all who wander are lost ...

mountain wedding throw

For Adrienne and Ben and the start of their new lives together 

Made from the Brooklyn Tweed Girasole pattern in KnitPicks Comfy Worsted Blackberry.  Started in January and completed just after the wedding in September.  Almost 2,000 yards of yarn, 9 months of knitting, 8ft in diameter, and so much love.

comfort food

This time of year, comfort food is all I put on the menu.  Here are some of my favorites:


Butternut squash mac and cheese. 
To save time: use BNS soup instead of a squash and broth.

Bacon-Gruyere Meat Loaf
I like to use elk sausage instead of bacon, but the gruyere is key.

Roasted Tomato Soup with Broiled Cheddar
With farm fresh tomatoes, so delicious

Biscuit Crust Chicken Pot Pie
Easy to make gluten free and so hearty

Colorado Green Chile

I use elk, white hominy, and let it sit in the crock pot all day

And for dessert:

Apple Fritters

With the baking apples from my backyard

Pumpkin Bread

I use less oil and more milk, and it doesn't need the chocolate chips

Spiced Applesauce Cake

Easy to make gluten free, and so moist 

What are your go-to fall recipes? 

I would love to try some of your favorites~!

cozy afternoon

It's the season for making tea and curling up under a blanket with a good book or some knitting.  Lucky for us, our friends and family gave us some wonderful gifts I thought I would share with you today.

 

On the left, a quilt from our my Grandma, "Flowers in the Cabin", which she commissioned for our wedding day.  On the right, Kivrin enjoying the hand knit blanket made by DH's aunt.  She apparently started this project before she knew I was a knitter and worried what I would think.  But as I told her, crafters appreciate these kinds of gifts even more; we know the love and effort that went into them.  

Here's wishing you a cozy afternoon ~!

cabin in the woods

Fall is in the air... and so is love.  I was off in the woods this weekend, staying at a cabin on a ranch in the mountains for a magnificent and awesome event.  My best friend/cousin is now married and I feel as though I have helped accomplish something big and wonderful.

There was food and friends and family.  There were farm animals and puppies and flowers and dresses, and many many things to take care of.   There was some little time for knitting by the fire,  there was sitting in the hots springs, there was rain and mist on the mountains and glorious fall leaves and sunshine.  There was a marriage, and the start of two new lives together.  There was joy.

mushroom ravioli

gluten free wild mushroom ravioli with lemon thyme cream sauce and balsamic reduction

My first homemade pasta~

The ravioli recipe was from The Gluten Free Italian Cookbook, which not only has wonderful dough, pasta, and filling recipes but also has excellent tips for the whole process.  Make the dough, kneed in the kitchen stand, let rest in fridge for 30 min.  Meanwhile, make the filling; I used local farm mushrooms, whipped eggs, cream, and Parmesan.

Then roll out the dough using a pasta maker and let the strips dry for 30 minutes.  Add your filling, lay dough strips on top, press down to secure, then cut apart.  Cook for 7-10 minutes.

For the sauce, I used 2 Tbs butter and some rice flour to make a roue, then added 1 cup of cream, some parmesan, thyme, a little lemon juice, salt and pepper and cooked until thickened.  This recipe is very similar to what I did.  The reduction is very easy- just put balsamic vinaigrette in a pot on low heat, and stir until reduced by half.

Dobertec!

the architecture of landscape

dreaming of fall

The temperature here scooped low this weekend, and so I spent my time admiring the apples on our backyard, and thinking about the approaching season...

I made some chai this weekend- it was wonderful.  We are also planning to make our own cider this year. 

Fall is tree planting season- we just bought a Norwegian Sunset Maple for our yard, which has me thinking landscaping...

and I've been dreaming of the new fall yarn collection, a new knitting bag, a sweater to wear, a watch, a book on architecture to read, and for dinner, beer mac and cheese.

I'm trying to figure out how to architecture my surroundings, how to landscape and design myself to match the beauty of the season unfolding.

a weekend in palisade, co

Four hours into the mountains under the plateau of Grand Mesa, there is a little town buried within vineyards, peach orchards, and dirty hippies. Welcome to Colorado Wine Country.



Stay at the Wine Vally Inn. Right in the middle of town, reasonable rates, free breakfast on the wrap around porch in the morning.



By Bike, in town:

• 2 minutes up the road, visit St. Kathryn and the Confre Cellars, in the same building, offer a variety of sweet and interesting wines. Be sure to try the Lavender White.
• Just behind it, the Grande River Vineyards : try the Coat D' Roan and Havin' a Cow Reds.
• The Plum Creek winery is a must see just a short ways down a farm road south of town,
• Then be sure to go to the Maison la Belle Vie, which just opened a beautiful tasting room.

By Car, atop the Mesa:

• The Carlson Vineyards has an amazing assortment of desert wines: try the hot peach maple syrup, the cherry with chocolate, and the raspberry wine lemonade.
• Whitewater Hill has beautiful views of the valley and some good dark reds and a sweet ice wine.
• Then be sure to visit Reeder Mesa; off of 50 and on a road winding into the hills on switchbacks, it is 8 miles to the top of the mesa. You will think you are lost, but instead you will be rewarded with wonderful views of the whole countryside, and a double gold Cab Franc.

In the evening:

• Back in the town of Palisade, go over to the Palisade Brewery on Peach St. Try out their homemade BBQ (Get the pulled pork Nachos), and the Dirty Hippie Beer. In peach season, be sure to try the Fuzzy Peach, and the No Belay IPA is also a must.
• If you're planning to keep the party going, head over to the Peach Street Distillers, and try their creative gin and brandies, and be sure to get one of their famous bloody marys.

Enjoy!

market bag

for Wendy in the last days of last summer


The summer is winding down with unusual force, and it's too hot for knitting or really doing much of anything except maybe drinking beer on the patio while the puppies play, or making limonchello, or ice cream sandwiches, or a picnic, or a trip to the farmer's market.

So I thought I would share with you the last of the summer knits, which I gifted to my now MIL, which she keeps her knitting in and takes to the beach. The pattern is the Market Tote by KnitPicks, made with CotLin which is the most wonderful of summer yarn.

How are you spending the last dog days of summer? I'll be spending them with my dog, but I'm ready for this heat to end, please!

Soca

The newest addition to our family!

This is Soca (pronounced SOh-ChA), she is named after the river in Slovenia that Ben and I took our epic bike trip along. My parents adopted her sister, and are calling her Sasha.

She is a cutie but quite a handful! I'm not really sure we were prepared, but we're doing the best we can to train her up and hopefully someday she will be the best little dog. We love her so much already.

beach house

For Carrie and John

Water color and ink. Based on a photo Carrie took of an old beach house near her family's property in Road Island, which is also where they are getting married! I am quite excited for them, and I've owed them a painting for quite some time now. Happy Engagement!

jump

life list: jump off of a cliff into water

On a trip to Aspen this past weekend, I jumped from that far ledge into the "Devil's Punchbowl" some 30ft below.

This turned out to be a poor life choice, as I had no idea what I was doing. I hit the water fine (no rocks), but went too deep, didn't breathe out correctly coming up, and messed up the pressure in my ears. I came to the surface dizzy and with a terrible headache that didn't let up for a day. Rest assured, I did finally get all the water out of my ear canals, and (fingers crossed), no infection.

What's life without some life lessons? Here's the correct way to jump off a cliff into water:

1. make sure you know where to jump from the ledge, and scout the water before jumping.
   
2. jump with your legs together, and plug your nose.
   
3. as soon as you hit the water, splay your limbs to prevent going too far down.
4. as you re-surface, breathe a steady stream of air out of your nose.

Now you know! Have fun!