March 31, 2013

Easter Sunday

 
 
 
 
Menù
 
L'ANTIPASTO
Asparagus spears wrapped in prosciutto and phyllo pastry with optional horseradish/caper sauce
IL PRIMO
 Vegetable lasagne
IL SECONDO
Lamb chops rubbed with fresh rosemary and garlic olive oil
 IL CONTORNO
 Mixed green salad with arugula and blue cheese
 IL DOLCE
 Banana Cream Pie
 Buon appetito


 
 
 
 

March 30, 2013

Birthday Greetings From Nora

 
Nora was happy to be able to send birthday greetings to Apolline.
 
 
But then
 
 
things
 
 
started
 

going horribly wrong...
 
Luckily, Teddy kept his arm and hopes Apolline will come visit again and give him a ride in his little stroller.
 

 
 
 

Happy Birthday, Apolline!




 
A is for Apolline
Happy Birthday, Darling Girl!

March 24, 2013

Making Good Use of Leftover Yarn

 
 
Designer: Dana Gibbons
Size: 3 to 6 months
Yarn: Sirdar Crofter DK
Color: 0033
Needles: Circular - 3.75 mm and 3.25 mm
 
 
Designer: Justine Turner
Size: 3 to 6 months
Yarn: Sirdar Crofter DK
Color: 0033
Needles: Circular - 3.75 mm and 3.25 mm
 
I made the little cardigan once before for Apolline. It is a sweet pattern, knit from the top down. I had enough yarn leftover to make another little one, and a cap as well. It makes me feel virtuous to use something from the yarn drawer as opposed to responding to the call of the Yarn Siren, who is best heard from the shores of Mahone Bay through the windows of Have A Yarn, surely one of the best yarn stores in eastern Canada.
 
We were driving around the area yesterday, looking at houses for sale and generally getting the feel of the communities along the back roads etc. I stopped in at Have A Yarn's new location - just next door to their previous one - and was, as always, overwhelmed by the amount and variety of truly gorgeous yarns. They have more variety than ever before and the store has a warm, homey, welcoming feel to it. I could easily spend an entire day there.
 
 

 

 

March 15, 2013

Happy Birthday, Isabelle!








 
Nora is recovering from surgery this week but still felt it was important to personally wish Isa a  very Happy Birthday.
 
Isabelle is our French Connection, our organizer supreme, our travel planner, and our instructor in the nuances of the French culture. Intelligent, capable and well read.

Happy Birthday from all of us. We are all better for knowing you.









March 11, 2013

Ruffles for Apolline Complete


Pattern: Bolero Cardigan #1992 (Sirdar)
Yarn: Cascade Yarns Ultra Pima Cotton
Color: 3728 (white)
Needles: Circular - 4.5 mm and 3.75 mm
 
I could have finished the project in half the time but I made a number of modifications on this little bolero as I went along. I changed the location of increases and decreases - bringing them all one stitch in from the edge of the garment. I found it made a much neater finish along the fronts and back when it came time to pick up stitches for the ruffle.
I had a hard time sewing the little shoulder seams together. They were originally cast off in steps. So I did a little research, frogged the shoulders back to the start of the cast off rows, knit them using a short row approach, following Nancie Wiseman's technique in The Knitter's Book of Finishing Techniques, and attached the fronts and back using a three needle bind off.
 
This is the first time I have used the Ultra Pima cotton and I really like it. Heather, at Have A Yarn, is always most helpful and tells me that she can order any number of other colors so I can see more little cotton cardigans in the future!
 
Cotton has drawbacks - it is not as elastic as wool and therefore doesn't have the memory. The ends are a little harder to weave in. But cotton is sometimes a good choice for these little French girls, who have warmer weather much longer than we do here in Canada.
 

March 06, 2013

Ruffles For Apolline

 
 
I have not had a lot of knitting satisfaction lately. Here it is March, and the only project that has truly satisfied me since Christmas is the pair of  blue waffle rib socks that I sent to my sister in British Columbia.
I have been struggling this week with the finish work on this little bolero and though the seaming has really been a headache, it may - just may - turn out to be something really sweet! Time will tell.