Strawberry Tea 2011

 A Strawberry Tea Party!

This summer all over the UK,

 ladies are having fundraising Strawberry Tea Parties. 

British ladies are baking, canning and knitting all for the wonderful effort to raise money for Breast Cancer Care.  I love this campaign!  How wonderful...

 tea parties with a cause!

 Strawberries & Cream Cupcakes

For more information, have a look the UK's Breast Cancer Care website. 

I love their Top Tea Party Tips, Recipes and, of course,

 their Strawberry Tea Cosy.
 

The adorable tea cosy is a free pattern, thanks to knitwear designer Libby Tomey who supports this cause.  Knitters knit up Strawberry Tea Cosies and then raffle them off at Strawberry Teas.  I love this idea! 

I found a delicious recipe for Strawberries & Cream Cupcakes in Cupcakes by Janet Smith.  (Yes, it's even a British cook book.) 

So, now I'm ready for a Strawberry Tea Party!

I do hope this idea takes off here in America...

 for one of our Breast Cancer charities. 

In the meantime,

 it's a nice reminder to make a donation to one's favorite charity.  

(In the photos:  Emma Bridgewater Hearts Tea Cups and Plates and Blue Toast & Marmalade Teapot.)

Knitting Daily TV

Make Time for Yarn Everyday!

I have exciting news for all knitters in the Sacramento region...

our local PBS station finally picked up the show Knitting Daily TV on KVIE (Comcast channel 7). It airs on Tuesday mornings at 9:30am.

The first series began today with episode #101 Lux & Luscious. Next week episode #102 Sweater features designer Michelle Rose Orne author of Inspired to Knit.

Each show features these segments: Getting Started, Designer Spotlight, How-To, You Asked It and Knit Along.

Juliet Scarf and Flower Pin

I can't wait for episode #103 Amazing Lace and the Designer Spotlight segment with my favorite British knitting designer, Louisa Harding. She will share with us her inspiration for her book Knitting Little Luxuries (yes, I own it) and will teach us how to make a knit flower pin for her pretty Juliet lace scarf.

Knitting Daily TV

The Knitting Daily TV slogan says it all...

Make Time for Yarn Everyday!

Let's keep Knitting Daily TV airing in our region. Be sure to spread the word and tell all of your fiber friends to watch or TiVo it. You can also visit the show's website for free pattern downloads!

Boutique Knits

Boutique Knits

They say "you can't judge a book by it's cover"...yet I can already tell that I am going to love this book Boutique Knits just by it's cover!

I love this Side Slip Cloche hat in the cover photo. It reminds me of the hats that my Grandma Margaret wore in the 1920's & 1930's. I even have Rowan's Soft Lux yarn in my yarn stash that the designer recommends knitting this hat in!

This book is hot off the press. It just came out in October. MFLY (my favorite local yarn store) Knitique sold out of this new book right away. Recently there was just one copy left and another knitter beat me to it. I am now patiently awaiting Knitique's next book shipment to snag this book and start knitting!

Teak Bittersweet Gauntlets

You can see a sneak peak of the book on Interweave Press. I absolutely love all the vintage inspired patterns by author/designer Laura Irwin. I think these Victorian inspired smocked gauntlet gloves are gorgeous!

Accessories like scarves and hats are my favorite knitting projects. I can't wait to get my own copy and start knitting a few of these 20 + must have knit accessories!

How about you? Are you anxious to knit these vintage inspired accessories, too?

Thrown Together by Kim Hargreaves

Aimee Poncho

This is not your Grandmother's knitting!

Did you know that there is a big revival in the needle arts? My favorite needle art is knitting.

I learned to knit, like most knitters, as a young girl from my Great Grandmother. I knit in the 1970's when crafting was really big. Then I quit knitting. I don't know why.

Robin classic beret

It wasn't until I was in my forties that I picked up the knitting needles again. While traveling to England I fell in love with British yarns and British knitting designers.

When I tell people that I am obsessed with knitting, I know what they are thinking...how grandmotherly! Unless your are a knitter, most people seem to conjure up some grandmotherly image of old-fashioned, home-made knitting. Let me tell you, this is not your Grandmother's knitting. Knitting is quite couture today.

Robin Beret

All of these images are fabulous designs by British designer Kim Hargreaves. The photos certainly look like they could have stepped right out of Vogue fashion magazine!

These examples are from her collection and new book for Autumn "Thrown Together". Her concept with the collection is to mix it up, throw your clothes together and have fun.

Thrown Together

I would love to knit the Aimee poncho and the Robin beret. How about you?

Fall 2008 Knit Scarf Report

Scarf Style throwback to the 1970's!

Attention all knitters. Knit scarves are all the rage for the Fall 2008 season. Plan to buy more yarn this year because the skinny scarf is gone. This fall season scarves are longer and wider.

Here are some photos from the Fall 2008 Runway Collections to inspire your knitting projects. Notice there is a bit of a throwback to the glam and hippie looks of the 1970's and 1980's this season. Some knitters, who have been knitting long enough, may already have some older vintage patterns to knit up these fashion trendy scarves for fall.

Retro Brown is Back!

1980's Glam Mix Scarf

1970's Revival in Grey

I've been collecting vintage knitting patterns so I already have a pattern in mind to knit a longer scarf for fall. How about you?

Will you follow the trend and knit a longer and wider scarf for fall?

Anthropologie Vintage-Pretty Sweaters

Daisy Day Vest

Speckled Knit with a Trio of Daisy Flowers

Okay, I am in trouble. I live only 12 miles away from the new Fountains Shopping Center in Roseville, CA where the new Anthropologie store just opened!

I went shopping in Roseville yesterday. I hit the big Nordstrom Anniversary sale . Can you believe, I left Nordstrom empty handed? I didn't leave Anthropologie empty handed though!

I couldn't wait to go back to the new Fountains shopping center. Not all of the stores are open there yet. I noticed though when I went to the Anthropologie grand opening party that Sur La Table was about to open. On my list was to check out Sur La Tab but (truth be known) I actually couldn't wait to get back to Anthropologie!

Stepping into an Anthropologie store just makes you feel good! It is a visual feast for the eyes...everywhere you turn and look there are pretty things. There is such a groovy vintage vibe with the hip music playing and the aromatherapy candles burning. I love this store!

I adore the pretty vintage-inspired sweaters the most at Anthropologie. I suppose that is because I am a knitter. Their designs inspire me to get creative and add pretty embellishments to garments already in my closet. I am also inspired to add vintage inspired appliques and details to knits that I make in the future.

Here are some pretty sweater knits that I can't help but adore!

Japonica Cardigan

Would this not be adorable with a black and white polka dot skirt for Paris!

Sweet Blossoms in the Tea Cup Pocket!

I love tea so I naturally love this tea cup pocket detail!

Cardigan with Felted Flowers

This design inspires me
for all those thrift store wool sweaters I have felted.

Felted Flowers Applique

I am going to give felted flower appliques a try!
I will probably use this idea on a pre-made made sweater
or a thrift store wool sweater felted.

Novella Shrug

Ooh, la, la! Okay, this one I could not resist to buy!
Gorgeous peacock blue wool shrug.
Reminds me of vintage Parisian scroll wallpaper.
I had to have this for my next trip to Paris!

Anthropologie
Fountains at Roseville
1182 Roseville Parkway
Roseville, CA 95678
(916) 789-9100

Are you as inspired as me at Anthropologie?

Let me know what inspires you?

Scribble Lace Moss Scarf

Scribble Lace Moss Scarf

I have been wanting to try Scribble Lace knitting for quite awhile now. Debbie New, author of Unexpected Knitting is credited with it's unique design. It is a funky knit concept using a very thin yarn combined with a chunky yarn which creates a scribbly lace effect. There is a pattern for it in the Mason Dixon Knitting book and a free pattern called Loopy & Luscious by Natalie Wilson on http://www.knitty.com/.

I had the perfect yarns in my yarn stash for this scarf project. Colinette Point 5 is a thick chunky pure wool yarn from Wales and Rowan's Kidsilk Haze is a super fine thin yarn from England. They are a perfect combination for scribble lace knitting.

Scribble Lace is a very easy basic knit/pearl pattern. I knew it would be a perfect travel project for our trip to Newport, Oregon. I selected the yarn colors to make my Mother a scarf. She loves mossy green.

Moss Rock at Newport Beach, Oregon

I named the scarf the Scribble Lace Moss Scarf because it looks so much like the mossy green rocks that I saw on the beach at Newport, OR. The finished scarf also resembles the fishing nets that I saw all over Newport's bayside buildings, too.

I modified two patterns to make my scarf from one skein of each yarn. I used #15 needles and did a 27 stitch cast on. My scarf turned out to be 8" by 60". I added 11" fringe in the Colinette Point 5 yarn. I am going to add some beads to the fringe to give it a "hippie" look!

My Mother loves it!