The Olive Plan

What started out as a Valentine for my beloved, has progressed to something bigger and better for the whole beloved world. Miss Em-En from I Like Lemons, has created the best project of the new year using my knitted olive pattern. In her words:

I intend to knit at least one olive every week this year. Why olives? Well, olive trees/branches/fruit symbolize peace, prosperity and love ("olive you"). By the end of the year I should have a jar full goodness. Ok, ok. So I also need to use up some yarn, but with each olive I knit I'll be reminded of the things I wish for myself and the people I care about.
..and..
I think some black olives will be knit to represent naughty and mischievous wishes. The giant olives will be for the most important and biggest wishes.

What a wonderful, thought provoking idea. Visit her blog to see the giant olive she's developed and the chubby jar she intends to collect the peace olives in; there are even more olives on her flickr page, where she reveals:

While knitting the black one this week, I was trying to think of a particular person, but ended up craving olive and mushroom pizza instead.

If I can find the right shade of reddish-purple yarn, I might try to make some kalamatas too. :)

Oh happy day! I love it when things like this happen. For me, there is no greater gift, than the validation of one's own work by someone who has given it wings, to take off in a new direction. Oh happy blogesphere!

Winter White Sunday

It has been a lovely week of winter white, taking pictures and looking at everyone else's. Thanks for being a great hostess Shari.

Winter White Saturday

Glorious Saturday. Home Sweet Home.

Winter White Friday

pretty pretty bowls, by one of my oldest dearest friends Kristin, you must visit her studio and see her lovely wares. When she's not making treasured objects she's paddling the world, all the way around Labrador once, with close encounters with polar bears, fast swimmers, those bears.





I have been tagged or rather nominated by the ever creative Gudrun, of Shetland Trader. Gudrun, daughter of a knitting designer, is a talented inventive knitwear designer herself. Her work and blog never fail to inspire me. Thank You, Tak så Myket, Mérci!
The rules are as follows:
Give the award to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel happy about blogland. Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so they can pass it on. Beware you may get the award several times."
Petula
KriKri
Megan
Amber
Jenny
Alison
Santos
Shula
Julia
Jen

Too hard to choose, but here are ten of my first-reads, still favorites and happily friends and new friends! there are so many others, it'll be a miracle if I've gotten the links right as it is.

Winter White Thursday

The winter white of a yarn shop dear to my heart.
Unique One, Camden, Maine.
Been there 30 years, at least.
Sweet curvy building, once a plumbing or hardware store, the peg-board is still on the walls.
Nicest yarn ladies ever.
Ever.
No really.
Loads of Shetland wool too.
Visit, I'll join you.
Beth, the owner has a knitting cruise on a schooner in the summer, and offers knitting weekends in March. I'm teaching a tam-design class this winter.








Some little birdies told me the Interweave Knits Spring Preview is up. I am delighted with the picture of my Peasant Blouse. I'm always a little fearful of the first look...but no worries this time. My inspiration was the traditional peasant blouse which required little cutting and no waste of precious cloth. The excellent book Cut My Cote by Dorothy K. Burnham includes a great example, as well as other traditional garments in which a key element of design, is the width of the loom used to weave the cloth.

And "hello" to all the Winter White visitors, thanks for visiting!

PS:The Interweave link is broken now...if any one knows how to find it again, please tell!

Winter White Wednseday

Even thinking about my passport photo makes me long to go back to sleep. I procrastinated so long, that when I finally got the umph to do it, it was wham! bam! who cares about the horrid photo! Today I regret. A passport lasts for 10 years.

perhaps a glass of water is what I need.

Winter White Week

I'm joining the short and sweet Winter White Week hosted by Shari, at Glass Doorknob, who has an interesting and inspiring blog. I seemed to be gravitating in that direction anyway, so why not make it official. I heard about this week of white from one of my daily reads Knitting Iris, whom you all read too! The deadline is tonight, so hurry over and join.

PS: I don't think you actually have to live in a winter wonderland like some of us are lucky (yes lucky) enough to do, there are many flickr groups which specialize in these things, Shades of White and Non Colours in Color are two; and you can make beautiful mosaics just so long as you credit the original artist. Artwork is also acceptable, so don't be shy, join in the fun.

Snow Day

I was able to stay home and inside during the snowstorm on Monday; happy with a little knitting and a delicious read: Winter World, a collection of essays on the ways animals survive the winter, by Bernd Heinrich. Amazing stories and lovely illustrations by the author, a man passionate about his subject. I was able to tromp through the wintry woods, without leaving the woodstove! And today, when I did snowshoe around the woods and field, to take pictures, I was alert, spotting den entrances here and there, thinking about torpor vs. shivering to stay warm, and listening for chickadees.

Handknit Socks

All you flickr. junkies already know about these socks. Not much
to say about them really. Regia left with a wee bit of silver
glitz; in the middle I am wearing little rubber shoes...c'mon, it was
sunny, it seemed so cheery...I later switched to sensible boots;
and today, it warmed up enough (January thaw) to get mud
on the floor at work.

Swatching

I have been knitting bits and bobs. On the left is swatching with a fuzzy brain, woggly diamonds, stretching up. On the right, your basic "peaks" (in Shetlandese). I love the Shetland names for things, I'm dying to know which pattern is called "creepies". There is one I'm told. Just don't know which.

Crenelations

At times one seems to need the fortifications of a castle, to keep on keeping on. Maybe it's because I forgot to eat black-eyed-peas on New Year's Day....I did have grits....I don't suppose that counts.

Happy New Year

May yours be the best ever!
Thank you all, for your kind friendship and lovely comments this past year!

Love

MJ