Ahhhhh ... Boston!!!

Recently we spent some time with my sister who lives a stones throw away from Boston. I lived in NYC growing up and since moving to CT, a much more rural area, I have longed for the hustle and bustle of city life. Since my sister arrived at Tufts to get her Masters in OT (so proud!!) she has been asking us to come visit, so we finally did. (She's so cute!!, but what happened to me? yikes ... I have no eyes!!!)

Although not directly in Boston, this area nearby was enough of a city to satisfy my longing. People walking every where, very little parking (not necessarily pleasant, but very city-like), dogs enjoying a nice walk with their owners on real sidewalks that didn't just randomly start and stop (you'd have to visit our area to know what I mean!!). It was great!! We ate at this cute little place the morning we left called Mr. Crepe, I got the Nutella stuffed one below, it was delicious!! I'm glad that my sister shared some of it with me, I'm starting to grow a fanny pack.



Here's the crepe maker on the left, he was so quick, every single one looked great ... you also can get an idea as to how huge the crepe's are in this picture, yum!! My sister making a silly face (somehow it's a family trait), Gman's getting his coffee fix ... it was such a cool spot, like a cafe/crêperie where you can hang out and eat or study, perfect for the college setting.

On the needles: I've been working on an English Driving Cap for a friend for what seams like a year, after multiple froggings it seemed like defeat, but I borrowed a store-bought version of the hat I'd like to make to use as a visual ... I think I'll get it this time (that is if the yarn can hold up to another knit and frogging). I'm also working on a beautiful blanket called the Hemlock Ring Blanket, it's like a huge gauge doily, totally awesome!! Also still working on some shawls, lace shawls, but I think I've just come to the conclusion that I just have no patience for lace knitting. I do, however, want to start the Whisper Cardigan by Hannah Fettig in the Spring Interweave Knits Mag (I just haven't received mine in the mail yet, harrumph). So maybe I'll use the lace yarn in my stash for the Cardigan, sounds like a nice compromise!!!

Entrelac & a Hannah Fettig Knit

Entrelac is one of my latest endeavors and, so far, the most interesting type of knitting I've done yet. It doesn't hurt my brain like some lace knitting does, and once you have the general concept of the pattern down you're golden. It's a pretty straight forward way to make something really beautiful and multidimensional without much complexity. I LOVE IT!!!!

I used a free Entrelac Scarf pattern online and just started knitting. I decided to do something a little smaller to start, and since my friend's baby boy has been, let's say, rejecting some of his formula recently, I thought this would be a pretty and functional way to get started with Entrelac. Using some washable and relatively cheap (b/c of baby puke and all) worsted weight cotton yarn, it took very little time, although that's not saying much since the piece is no more than a 4x6" rectangle. Regardless it was a great intro to this great way of knitting and fun too!! I thought it would be really lumpy, you'll know what I mean if you try it, but it blocked surprisingly easily and very flat!! Here it is ...

I have also started and finished (another quick one!) one of the patterns in Hannah Fettig's book Closely Knit, the Bird's Nest Pin Cushion. The nest itself was a little challenging for me, but I realized it was because my dpn's were too small (I found this out because my nest only fit four eggs ... it should have fit at least five ... ooops!!). The yarn I used was Sirdar Eco Wool and the eggs were some left-over periwinkle 'Cloud 9' from Cascade. My mom loves it and I hope she will be able to use it soon!!