Words fail.....

I have been a fan of Alicia Paulson's blog for years. We never met, but had email exchanges over the years.
She had shared rough times and I shared mine with hers and always appreciated our mutual friendship and support.

Now Alicia and her husband Andy, need support themselves.
They had been planning to adopt a baby girl and when her blog was silent recently, I was hoping it was because she was too busy with the baby to update. That was not the case.

Here is Alicia's latest post which tells of the devastating turn of events that led to the adoption falling apart. It's the saddest thing and I can't even begin to imagine how Alicia and Andy are holding up after this.

Think good thoughts for these wonderful people. It will take time for them to heal and every good thought helps.

Oh my poor neglected blog

I cannot believe I haven't been here in so long. I have been devoting my blog time over at the Times-Union, so please check-in over there to see the latest and greatest in the fiber arts world.

All you have to do is click right here.

Thanks!

Just One Stitch


I'm at weird place in my knitting right now. After working really hard on a complicated sweater, I have found myself craving super simple projects. I spend a bit of time on commuter trains, so something portable with little or not pattern also perfectly fits my current knitting state of mind.

Now this isn't a novel idea. Back in 2002, designer Sally Melville wrote The Knit Stitch. Every project from scarves to sweaters to the incredibly popular Einstein Coat, are all made with just the knit stitch.


I even designed a simple scarf for the first Stitch 'N Bitch called Coney Island Fireworks which is all knit stitch but looks way more complicated.

Knitting every row is called garter stitch, when knit flat. There's something very calming to just knit, knit, knit and watch your fabric grow. Different yarns produce very different looks and that's what keeps it interesting for me. Ready to see what's on my needles? Here we go:

This is the Nolita Scarf/Shawl made with Tahki Ripple. It's super fast on 15's.


Soft, sparkly and light as a feather, here's Scaruffle, made with one skein of Art Yarns Silk Cashmere Glitter:


The Super Simple Triangle Shawl made with Mountain Colors Wool Crepe, is one of my sister-in-law's favorite projects. Every time someone sees it, they have to make it. Me, too!


How about you? Do you have a favorite garter stitch project when you need to be knitting, but don't want anything fussy to deal with?

Happy Mother's Day to every maternal person in your lives!

Where have I been?

Wow, has it really been that many months since I've posted here? Guess so!

I'm still a fiber arts blogger and that's why I haven't been around. Been missing my old friend here, though and want to fill this space once again.

In the meantime, if you're a knitter, crocheter, spinner or have any interest in the fiber arts, I'd love your help for a new feature I'm working on called Ask the Fiber Tarts.

It's kind of like a Dear Abby for all things fiber-related, serious and whimsical and everything in between.
This feature appears every Wednesday and it promises to be informative, funny and sometimes controversial.

Please send any questions you'd like us to answer to: fiberartsblog@hotmail.com

Tell your friends, too!

Be back soon.

Thanks For The Calories!

Bye bye scraper. Thinking about all of the cookies, brownies, breads and other fabulous baked goods we've made together over the years.

We were a great team and I'll miss you!

Come On Over

I've been busy blogging elsewhere, so check me out here.

Stop by. Say hi. Leave a comment.

See ya there!

Charity Begins At......

Have you heard of Regretsy? April Winchell started Regretsy which celebrates the scariest items on Etsy and believe me, there is lots to choose from.
I've been a fan of April's for years. I discovered her about nine years ago when I was living in L.A. and recovering from neck surgery. She had a radio show that was so hilarious, but unfortunately didn't last too long.


A few months ago someone sent April a photograph of these horrifically scary ski masks:



It was from a magazine and actually included the knitting patterns for these. April came up with a brilliant idea. I'll let you read the whole story here.

So I volunteered to be one of the knitters and I am so happy to be part of this effort to raise money to help Aidan and his family get through this difficult time.

Want to see my contribution? Follow this link.

I have to say this is the creepiest thing I have ever knit. Actually, it's the only creepy thing I have knit.
Shudder!!

My Fair Faire




World Maker Faire NYC was a week ago!! I can't believe it.

I just got around to blogging about it and you can read all about it here.

Wordless Wednesday-Cinema Style!

Happy Friday, Fiber Friends!

After I wrote about Quince and Co.recently, I couldn't resist and ordered some of their Lark and Chickadee yarns. I also bought the Gillian Beret pattern and cast on as soon as the yarn arrived. Lark was a dream to work with and I finished the hat in just a few days. Here's a shot of it blocking on a dinner plate.



I think I'll call this my Raspberry Beret, because in person, the Rosa Rugosa colorway really does look a bunch of luscious berries.

I've got a lot on my plate these days (not just berets!), so today's post will be a brief one.

Wishing everyone a lovely weekend and for those who observe Rosh Hashanah, a very happy and healthy New Year!

Let's Hear It For The Boys

From T-U fiber arts blogger Aaron of Men Who Knit, to Drew Emborsky, The Crochet Dude, to knitting designer/cookbook author Bruce Weinstein and Jared Flood of Brooklyn Tweed, it's apparent that men's presence in the contemporary knitting scene is abundant.

As you may know, the Waldorf school method of education incorporates knitting into their curriculum and many young boys are learning and loving it. This class in Hawaii sure proves that.



As Ms. Altwies states in the video, knitting has so many benefits and it's great that Waldorf-schooled kids are exposed to them at such a young age. I think it's cool the two boys who were interviewed were into their sports, but also enjoyed knitting.

Here's an interesting piece of New York State history, circa 1918. This is a photo of a group of boys from Cooperstown High School, who are knitting on behalf of the Red Cross, for the soldiers on the frontlines in WWl.



The school sent the photo to the Red Cross. They received this letter from the Superintendent of Knitting (can you imagine?) congratulating the "splendid" and "manly" boys on their knitting efforts.


(click on photos for close-up view)


Wishing all of you who come visit here each week a happy and safe Labor Day weekend!

Video Courtesy of Hawaii News Now, Images Courtesy of New York State Archives

Knitting With The Stars

I'm always fascinated to hear which celebrities or well-known people knit or crochet. It's just fun to know people who we admire or enjoy share our hobby. The funny thing is, it's been impossibly difficult to find any photos of these folks actually knitting or crocheting.

I decided to give it another try and my powers of Internet sleuthing uncovered these gems.


Oooh, Mommie Knittest. I wonder if she insisted that her knitting match the decor?


I love Audrey. You don't think she's knitting a ranch house, do you?


Gosh, isn't she gorgeous? I wonder how good a knitter she was.


Isn't this cool? Both Bette Davis and her stand-in knitting between takes.


It's true. SJP knits and here's proof. I wonder if she also made her hat.


Guess there was lots of waiting around the set. Kristin made good use of her time.

Oh and here's something fun. I am working on a secret knitting project for a celebrity. All will be revealed in time. I can't wait!

Have a wonderful weekend everyone!

School's out for summer, almost....

Check out this great story about a knitting class that's actually on the curriculum in a high school in Los Angeles.

Click here.

A blog to visit

Hi all,

While I've been busy over at the Times Union Fiber Arts blog , I do still read others.

One I've found recently that's so interesting is Wisdom Begins In Wonder. Andrea's an alpaca breeder and fiber artist and has the most interesting stories connected with her daily life.

So go check out her out!

Blog?

Yes, it's been a while since I've been here.

That's because I've been busy over here .

Check it out and let me know what you think.

Graph content below....

I've always been interested in graph knitting, since my mom made many sweaters in that style for me, my brother and years later, for my daughter, too.

Mary Maxim and Knit-O-Graf were the biggest companies publishing those designs back in the day. Today, MM sells kits for their original patterns.




If you'd like to know a little bit more about this, check out this fiber arts blog post, written by yours truly.

Don't you love this?



Here's the making of:

One more time!

Bored with my bread photos?
I am having too much fun doing this.

This latest one is the best one yet.



Jim Lahey's book, My Bread has the master recipe and variations.

Not much else I feel like posting about. Still knitting. Wishing Spring would arrive.

Later.

Another cold weekend. Another warm bread.



Both of the breads were made using Jim Lahey's no-knead method that was the hit of the web a few years back. He recently wrote a great cookbook with that original recipe and lots more. Check it out here.

What else you can do when it's cold outside.