Ezmaralda the Art Journaling Cat

My animals are all weird.

Wonder if that is a reflection on ME? (hunh)

I caught her doing it... making her mark in my journal, the "Book of Madness and Dreams"...

Sorry for the bad photos, but the lighting was horrible and I really wanted proof.

She chewed the corner off and made some pretty funky bite marks.

Here is a shot of the entire book... I love my cat.

Rockwell's Baby Sweater 2012

My first baby sweater!

Knit for Rockwell Santino Potts~

I do not have a photo of him wearing it yet because he is still in here...

until May. This is the lovely Katie.

Pattern is "Tulips, A Colorful Cardigan" by Lindsay Pekny.

Size 12 months, since Rockwell is due to join our world in spring.

I made it a size larger so it fits him once the weather is colder.

Yarn is, of course, Miss Babs Yowza, Whatta Skein! worsted 

in Light Clematis, Moss and Starling.

I added my hand here for scale...

Fun to knit. I wanted to use non-traditional baby colors, 

since momma and papa are non-traditional themselves... Love that.

Anxious to meet sweet Rockwell, and I will add photos of him wearing his sweater once he arrives.

xo

Ravelry Link

Ann's Earflap Hat 2012~

Every year I make my girls a new hat.

This year Ann requested an earflap hat.

I selected a delicious handspun from my stash (spun by Therese of Jump Sheep).

This yarn was two separate colors, so I knit a fibonacci stripe to blend them.

Intriguing pattern. The Earflap Hat Generator by Lucia Liljegren

Added braided tails and some squishy pom poms.

Great Hat!

Ravelry Link

Zoe's Earflap Hat 2012

Our friend Zoe wanted a hat this year.

Being seven years old(!), she was very clear about what she wanted. 

Earflaps, bright colors and "nothing scratchy"!!

Pattern is Thorpe by Kirsten Kapur~ (Ravelry pattern link)

I used a fibonacci stripe for the top of the hat.

Knit from leftovers from my hand dyed yarns (in scarlet red and acid moss green) and a soft purple alpaca by Debbie Stoller (Stitch n' Bitch Yarn).
Complete with pom-poms and braids.

Warm hat for an active girl!

(Ravelry Link)

Alton and His Friends~ Video by Eve

Our yard rabbit, Alton Brown, loves his chickens.

When we let the hens out to run and play,
he gets very excited and runs in circles around them.

Eve compiled this cute and hilarious short video of him and his friends.

Song credit~ "Life's a Happy Song" The Muppets (Original Soundtrack) 2011 Walt Disney Records

Video © 2012 Eve Hanlin~

Cross posted from our Farm Blog at Peculiar Ambitions~

Cowl Mania~

At any given time I usually have at least 5-6 projects on the needles. Great plan for an easily distracted knitter, because my mood and situation determine what I can knit...

There are those projects that take serious brain involvement, and they are my favorite. Original designs, or complicated modifications to sweater designs... Right now I have two sweaters on the needles, but neither are visually exciting enough to photograph... they resemble blobs of knit fabric right now... I am taking copious notes and will share them with you once they are more photogenic.

My most frequent go-to quick knit right now is the cowl.
Pattern is the Dragonfly Fire Cowl by Mia Valcarcel~  (Here is the Ravelry Link)

I think I have made about 10 of these (not all shown here), they make awesome gifts!
For a man version I eliminated the yarn over rounds, making them plain stockinette except for the edges.

The pattern calls for double stranded fingering weight sock yarn, which is perfect for those of us who are not fans of knitting socks. Gives us a great reason to buy yummy sock yarn!
I have also used a straight worsted, which makes a more fluid fabric cowl, but works up beautifully, especially in a painted yarn.

Details following each picture... click image to see a larger version~

Red Cowl (Ravelry Link)

Red Cowl is knit from yarn by The Alpaca Yarn Co.~ Paca-Ped fingering weight sock yarn...

this skein is one of their one-of semi-solids. 

Liz's Cowl (Ravelry Link)

Liz's Cowl is also knit from yarn by The Alpaca Yarn Co.~ Paca-Ped fingering weight sock yarn...

this skein is also one of their one-of semi-solids. 

Purple Alpaca Cowl (Ravelry Link)

This cowl is thick as it was knit from worsted weight alpaca by Debbie Stoller (Stitch n' Bitch yarn)

I only cast on 80 st for this cowl and used a size 9 needle.

This was the first cowl I made using this pattern.

(Ravelry Link)

Knit from Miss Babs Superwash Sock yarn in "jazz club"

Last is the Silk Tree Cowl (Ravelry Link)

I am beyond in love with this color way, but alas, sigh... it is no more.

A one-of batch from Miss Babs and I only ordered one. doh!

Yowza! What a Skein worsted yarn by MissBabs.com~

Used about a third of a skein... Yowza's are huge- 560 yards per skein.

Phew!

That is all for now...

This photo is entitled "My Mom Knits".. haha

Ann is wearing the Red Cowl and Eve the Purple Alpaca Cowl~

I think my next cowl will be knit from handspun that I have in my stash~ yum.

Eve's Seeded Rib Ponytail Hat 2012~

Update: 

This pattern is now available for sale on my Ravelry designer page here~ 

 http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/plant-a-seed-hat
Or on etsy here: http://www.PeculiarAmbitions.com/shop

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Each year I make my girls a new hat
Eve's new hat is an original design by me. 

Complete with a ponytail hole.

The most gorgeous yarn I have seen in a while...

Yowza! What a Skein worsted yarn by MissBabs.com~

In a one-of-a-kind color way... of which there is no more (boo!)

Used about a third of a skein... Yowza's are huge- 560 yards per skein.

Band is seed stitch and hat is a seeded rib stitch ... 

the seed stitch shows off the color changes so nicely.

Complete with a ponytail hole! Perfect greenhouse hat.

Update: November 2014~

This pattern is now available for sale on my Ravelry designer page here~ 

 http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/plant-a-seed-hat

Or on my website here~

 http://peculiar-ambitions.myshopify.com/collections/knit-patterns/products/plant-a-seed-ponytail-hat

Dad's Giant Head Hat~

~Finally, some finished knitting that I can share! Most things I finish are for gifts, so I don;t want to post and spoil the surprise, then I forget to get photos after they are gifted.

Introducing.... the Giant Head Hat I made for my dad. 

It's a 24 inch circumference around the brim.

Big. Hat.

(insert photo here, of my handsome dad, grinning and wearing his spectacular new hat)

He lives 3,000 miles from me, so I am depending on him to send me a photo... ahem. hint hint.

Thanks for the photos Dad!

He has the brim all rolled up, like a Monmouth Hat...

Made from Miss Babs Yowza in Black Walnut.

Yowza is my favorite, favorite yarn right now. 

I am using it on the majority of things currently on the needles~ 

Go buy some from her.  

It's yummy, and washable, and the skeins are huge... and her colorways? drool.

OK, enough yarn pimping...

This hat was designed by me, combining basic hat knitting with custom features for my dad.
Here are my notes...
Used half a skein of Yowza (which are 560 yard skeins), so about one standard skein of worsted weight yarn (which usually run about 220 yards).
*Yarn held double*... so the gauge is really a chunky yarn, one strand of chunky = two strands of worsted held together.
Size 9 needles...
~ Cast on 88
~ K2P2 rib for 4 inches
~ Knit in round normally for 5 more inches (9 total inches from cast on edge)
~ Divide into 4 sections (22 st each) and place markers
~ Begin decrease... *k2tog, knit to 2 st before marker, ssk, sm, k2tog*... repeat around
~ Knit 1 normal round between each decrease round until 8 st remain
~ Cut yarn, thread through remaining 8 stitches, secure and weave in ends.

Ribbed brim either gives the hat extra length or can be folded up for super thickness over ears.
K- Dad... send me a photo?
xo

Artsy Fartsy Heart Buntings~

It's soon Valentine's Day...

In honor of the day, I have been creating some banners of "LOVE" (read as if Barry White said it) to decorate our nest.

Banners or Buntings, whichever you prefer to call them (I call them either in rotation, but not an equal and exact rotation)... OR I call them Garlands. Depends on the brain that day.

These buntings were inspired by the great and ever magnificently inspiring dottieangel...

but I am no where near as granny chic as she...

I am Reenie, and I am loud.

In life as well as my creations... I am loud.... I LIKE HOT PINK.

and even though I attempt to be more demure, the HOT PINK in me always fights through.

Learning to embrace that about myself, rather than tame it. Saves me a TON of energy.

You can see Bunting #1 HERE... made with Jackie.

Bunting #2...

Made from torn up text pages from an old craft book and prints of my artwork.

All sewn together and hung in my "in-progress", old, partially remodeled farm kitchen. 

Ignore the ugly walls please. They have become invisible to me until I take photos. ugh-o.

Also ignore the dirty dishes.

That is what happens when you work in the studio instead of the kitchen.

I ignore them frequently. (what dishes?)

Bunting #3... 

Wanted to be much louder, and so they were. 

More of my art than book pages. 

Our personal favorite lovey phrases written on where it seemed appropriate.

Sewn together over the perfect tacky novelty yarn (from my tacky yarn hoard).

(that's my actual heart in that print... from a CT scan)

 Here they are hanging in my living room... 

over the studio entryway and the bucket of wine-in-progress.

Bunting #4... wanted to be ROUND.  

So round it is... they also wanted more texture, so I added bits of lace before sewing them together.

While making this I decided upon the name for this post. 

Adding neon pink lace to a project warrants an artsy fartsy title. Hence the name of this blog post.

Here they are hanging over the hallway entry. 

This did not work with a tall, tall man in the house.

So they were moved over the slider door.  They work really well there.

Next? Making notecards. 

Will post more on those after tomorrow, when I have an artsy day planned with Michelle. 

Excited to see the heartsy fartsy art that comes from playtime with her... 

Stay tuned my fartsy friends...