Category Archives: Travels

Quiet Japan

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I started to write a post as we were leaving for the airport, but since we got here there has been no wifi (waifai). I can't even get on in the Starbucks. The web page is in Japanese and alas, me no speakee... The room has intaa netto with a cable for ¥1260 a day. That works out to about $16.00!
UPDATE: How the heck did that happen?!? My post was posted! I had set it to post later and it did. I guess it used my cell data to publish. How do ya like that?
My search for yarn has all but evaporated. Nothing comes up on the Knitmap for Mihama-Ku or Chiba which is where we are staying. I went for a walk today in the surrounding neighborhood and I stumbled upon a small store called Cuore but they were closed.

:(

The first thing that caputured my attention was a scarf in the window:

Then I noticed the fabric and the yarn! But they were closed. :(

I will try again tomorrow. I'd be really happy if I found some Noro. For a good price. Most everything is quite expensive here and it's so weird because things are expressed in 100s or 1,000 Yen. It really sounds funny. Lunch for 4 at McDonald's was ¥3,400. And when we got cash from the ATM two bills came out for ¥10,000 each! It felt like we pulled out $40.00. In reality it was about $250.00. There don't seem to be yarn stores like we have in the states. They are more like general craft stores with yarn. Knit Map lists the closest ones in Tokyo which is about an hour away by train. I'm a little leery of going alone for the first time. I'm hoping that we can get Friday to do that or Saturday before we leave. Or I can just get the Noro at my LYS. Not as much fun though. This area of Chiba is really quiet. I was struck by how few people are around. At night my view out of the hotel window shows only one or two cars at a time on the road. In Amsterdam there are lots of people walking around or in cafes all throughout the day and night. I guess they are mostly at work here. This is a business/residential district. I haven't even seen any Tai-Chi groups. I was hoping to run while here, but I haven't seen anyone running, even in the park next to the hotel. I'm not entirely comfortable running around in my workout clothes with no one else doing it. I found some routes on runkeeper.com that I might try tomorrow if I get brave enough. Well see... We've had some really good sushi and sashimi. Supa fresh! The guys that have been taking us out feed us way too much! I'm getting hungry now waiting for the trade show to be over.

UFOs

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I have several UFOs in my queue. In a way they make me feel a little guilty. Here are some of them.

Click picture for more views on Ravelry.

Wakame Lace looks beautiful IMHO. I have the front of the sleeves to finish and the back sleeves. The top is worked in the round up to the armpits, then you hold the back stitches and work on the front sleeves. I'm not sure, but it looks like I  have only 2 or 3 more repeats to the shoulders. This poor dear keeps getting pushed aside for other projects. She's sweet, but time consuming. I love how the fabric is turning out. It is Fyberspates Scrumptious Lace in Oyster. It's merino and silk so it's soft with a gorgeous sheen. The original pattern was engineered for a sport weight yarn. I did a gauge swatch and determined that I needed 7 panels across the front and back and  3 on the bottom. I also added to the lace ground between the top and skirt. When I saw this yarn at I Knit London, I just knew it wanted to be Wakame Lace. It took me a while to recover the pattern from my stash. I couldn't quite remember the name, but I was sure of the edition of the magazine. It is from Interweave Knits Summer '08 magazine.

Click for Ravelry Info.

Palindrome - This scarf was supposed to be for my husband. I've been working on it for almost a year now! Yikes! Ravelry says I started in 12/10. The problem with this one is the yarn keeps getting so tangled as I'm knitting, so I have to constantly stop and untangle. I'm just so stubborn that I haven't put it on bobbins and I'm working off the balls. I got this yarn 2 years ago at I Knit London. It's also a bit scratchy since it is pure wool. I haven't been excited because I think it might not be fun to wear. I do like the two tone thing I've got going. The pattern itself is very easy when you're not using two colors.

Click for Ravelry Page

Ahh, Twist and Shout. I have been wanting to make this sweater ever since I saw it on the cover of Knitty Fall '08. I found the yarn in the bargain bin at Patricia Roberts Knitting in London. It was the same trip in 2010 that I bought the above yarn. It is also a pure wool, and I have gotten no farther than the picture. I hope the moths haven't found it yet. I'm not even sure that I have quite enough to finish the sweater. This may be destined for the frog pond. :(

Click for Ravelry Page

I called this "Lighter Than Air" because it is. It is super soft and floaty. It's made from Rowan Kidsilk Spray that I got in Amsterdam at De Afstap. I used the Large Rectangle in Leaf and Trellis Pattern with Trellis Border from Victorian Lace Today. The first thing that stopped me was the beads. I bought the beads from a street vendor in Waterlooplien and even though they are common seed beads, I have not been able to find the exact same kind. They have a metallic center that gives them a cool shine. The next thing that stopped me even after I found some beads that will do is (shame!) I ran out of yarn. I have been hunting down Kidsilk Spray in the Medici colorway ever since. I have many skeins now, but none quite the same shade as the one I left off with. The crazy thing is I bought 3 skeins at the same time in the same dye lot, but one of the balls was noticeably darker than the others. (I didn't notice till I got home though. Home in California. Yeah.) I refuse to frog this. Mostly because it's very difficult to frog mohair. I'm probably going to give in and use one of the closest skeins I have. Or if I get real brave and have nothing else to work on I might rip out the border and start it over with a more matchy-matchy skein. It really is lovely in person.

Click pic for updates. This one will finish.

Meet Maybe Mulberry. This is a take off on the Mulberry Scarf by Colinette. I am making it for Unwind Yarn. This one will finish. Soon. It is two rows of Luna and 2 rows of Stella by S. Charles. I examined all the photos on Ravelry and read some of the notes and determined that if has a twisted drop stitch. I did two rows of them. The original pattern appears to have one row. So it's different. Those are all the UFOs I have listed on Ravelry, but I know there are many more forgotten ones in my basket. (I have a big basket.) Tell me a little about your UFOs. ;)

Koigu

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I’ve just discovered wonderful Koigu yarn. I’m sure most of you are already aware of how beautiful it is. I had never knit with it until I was asked to do a sample shawl for Foxy Knits. Their online shop specializes in Koigu. Merilyn was doing a trunk show at Alamitos Bay Yarn Company and wanted one of Fickle Knitter’s designs worked up in the lovely Koigu. The pattern was the Wild Lettuce Lace Shawl. I was immediately taken with how springy the yarn is. The color that Merilyn sent me was a lovely golden yellow. In some lights it took on a greenish cast.

The lace worked up quickly on the recommended US 5 needles and was a joy to knit. I finished in 11 days! After blocking I really loved it and was reluctant to send it back! I used two + skeins. I was hoping to only have to use 2, but I needed just a little more to finish the edging. If I were to make it for myself I think that I would make the body larger. I’d want a bit more to wrap around as a shawl, but the pattern as written came out quite nice. Here are the details on Ravelry.

The trunk show was on August 27, and I went to see all the other lovely samples made in Koigu. There were lots of shawls and scarves, and a beautiful coat that looked like it was an adult surprise jacket. There were so many lovely colors to choose from. There were the solids and the wilder multicolor yarns. There was a mulberry silk that I was coveting, but decided that I’d better wait. It is exceptionally beautiful, but I had to restrain myself.  Then there were some speckled yarns. I decided to get a couple of skeins of these to knit a pattern that I had gotten while in London earlier this year. I didn’t realize it at the time, but the pattern was from a company in Washington. The idea was to only buy stuff from England, but I digress. The pattern is Barb’s Koigu Ruffle. You can order a kit at the link. I made it for my trip to Amsterdam.

Zaanse Schans, Netherlands

I got a couple more skeins in one of my favorite colors, a tonal hand painted mauve. I’m making socks from them. So far they feel super comfy. I can’t wait to wear them! They were my travel knitting in Amsterdam. The pattern is Khotan from Silk Road Socks by Hunter Hammersen. I swear I am going to make all the socks in this book! 2 ½ done so far! Speaking of Amsterdam, every time I knit in public I got comments and smiles. On the train a little girl of about 7 was so fascinated by what I was doing she had to bring her mother over to see. Either I don’t knit in public so much at home, or people keep more to themselves here.

Oosterpark, Amsterdam

Rainbows, and Waterfalls and Chickens, Oh My!

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I've just come home from Kauai. I am sad that the vacation is over and now it's back to work as usual... It was so beautiful there. The weather was perfect, even the passing rain didn't bother us. They say it's the wettest place on earth, and Mount Waialeale gets an average of 460 inches of rain a year! No matter. The snorkeling was great, food terrific and I hunted down the only yarn shop on the island, Hanalei Strings.

Hanalei Strings

Along with yarns you can find in most LYS, their specialty yarn is dyed with natural botanicals found on the island. I bought the only skein of Kauai Bamboo Silk in 'Olena. I couldn't resist the brilliant yellow with such a beautiful shine. It contains 50% Bamboo, 43% Superwash Merino Wool and 5% combed Silk.  I hope I can find a beautiful pattern to work this up. It is 200 yds per 100 g skein.   Not much, but I couldn't resist. I also bought 3 skeins of their Hanalei Hand Dyed Pima Cotton Bulky. It contains 105 yds per 50 g skein, and is 100% combed pima cotton. It is soooo soft! I got the color they describe as Banana Patch. I really wanted some ocean blue colors, but they only had one skein. There was a beautiful shawl on display that caught my eye. They said it is their most popular pattern but they were out at the moment. I looked it up on Ravelry. It's called the Swirl Shawl from JoJoLand.

Swirl Shawl at Hanalei Strings

I actually liked the one in the shop much better than the pictures I see online. Theirs was purple and blues and reminded me of the ocean. I figured that I would need 1000 yds to make it, so I couldn't buy that much yarn at once. In the Pima Cotton it would probably be a blanket. What a soft blanket though! I will try the pattern out of the cotton I got and see how far I get. Maybe it will be a swirl cowl. Or a swirl hat. Or... Coasters, er umm placemats! Napkins?

More strings!

Hanalei Strings does not only sell yarn. They also sell stringed instruments, ukes, guitars and other fun things. You can play or knit, whatever you wish!

Lu'au Kalamaku

So, for the touristy stuff, we went to a Lu'au at Lu'au Kalamaku. We think it was the best lu'au we've been to so far. It was done theatrically and the story line was of the ancient Polynesians who came to the new land. It was heart wrenching as the daughter is separated from her lover and her father. But the spirit of the wind shows her that she will be reunited with them. Exciting fire dancing and beautiful costumes. The food was great too though I still think poi tastes like Elmer's glue. There is also a train ride before the lu'au which takes you around the Kilohana Plantation. We stopped to feed the pigs at one point.

Playful dolphins

Spinners

On Saturday we took a boat ride to the Na Pali coast and snorkled. This area is only accessible on foot via an 11 mile hike. Much faster in a boat. The ride back was quite rough, but we thought it was always like that. Not so! We overheard the captain say it was the worst he's ever seen it and they cancelled the afternoon trip. On the way back we saw spinner dolphins. They were so fun. They seemed to be following us as they played and danced in the waves.
Sunday was a helicopter ride. Great sights that you can only see from above. We had the best luck with the weather. The sky was blue most of the time. At some points the clouds were hovering at the tops of the mountains, but it made great photos. Speaking of photos, we dropped the camera on one of the first days so the lens won't auto focus anymore. :( I had my trusty little point and shoot, and we still got an amazing number of shots. Come on over and we'll bore you with our vacation photos. Don't ya love digital cameras?!!! We snorkled at Tunnels Beach one day and at Prince Kuhio Beach another day. I got better pictures at Kuhio and we saw a giant honu there too. We found a place for sunset pu-pus at the Beach House at Kuhio, but the best was the last evening at St. Regis Princeville overlooking Hanalei Bay. We got a sudden downpour that ate the last bites of our pu-pus, but they had a champagne toast at sunset, and we sat talking to a couple from Switzerland for quite a while. It was a very romantic way to wind up the trip.

Sunset from Princeville Resort, North Shore

Aloha!

Ummm.... Why?

I ♥ London Knitting

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Wow! It's been a while since I've posted. Especially about knitting. In the meantime I had another birthday which was wonderful. We had a Super Bowl Birthday party. I got a $50.00 gift certificate to my favorite LYS, (Yippee!!!),  lots of gift cards and other cool stuff. The day was nice, my church choir sang Happy Birthday. That hasn't happened before. I'm sure I was blushing. Last week we were in London for the Broadcast Video Expo. I didn't work though, my DH did. We arrived a couple of days early to take in some sights. We took the tour of Windsor Castle, Stonehenge and Bath. It was a day-long trip and as our tour guide said it was only a taste of each place. We could easily spend the whole day in Windsor or Bath. The first day we went to Kensington Palace and took the tour. Right now they have an exhibit called the "Enchanted Palace." It was a bit Disney-esque, but fun. It was an historical and artistic account of each of the seven princesses who lived there. You were supposed to "discover" the names of the princesses.  Diana's dress was on display as well as Margaret's tiara and wedding gown. We visited the Victoria & Albert Museum. I had to go back a second day to check out the textile exhibits and spent half the day looking at amazing and incredibly intricate lace.
Collar made of bobbin lace - mid 17th century

Collar made of bobbin lace - mid 17th century

I never knew such techniques existed. The thread was so fine, it looked to be even finer than sewing thread. I was simply blown away by the artistry involved in making such pieces. There was a French fan that was a landscape scene with a sluice sending water into a pond where a duck was splashing on one side, and moving into a veranda with trees and flowers on the other side. I wish I could find the picture of that one. I was too chicken to take any pictures of my own. It doesn't seem to be allowed. Of course you can draw what you see, but I'm afraid it would just look like chicken scratch. The next three days I spent looking for local yarn stores. I pretty much struck out on day one. The two in Notting Hill that I tried were not really yarn stores, but stores that carried a few skeins and lots of other stuff. The yarn they carried was readily available at my local Michael's store. Not too exciting. The second store I tried actually turned out to be primarily a bead shop. I got a few items here and some blue rocaille beads to hopefully finish my "Lighter Than Air" shawl that I'm 3/4 of the way through. I got the yarn, Rowan Kidsilk Spray in Amsterdam several years ago. I also ran out of the yarn, so I've been collecting it as I see it come up on Ebay. So far I have not found the same colorway I started with and there is a wide variation. Tricolette Purchases The next day I tried a new shop near Abbey Road called Tricolette Yarns. A very cute shop. I liked the coziness of the place. She is very new, only open since October 2010. I was determined to only buy yarns that I can't get in the States, especially British wool. I also found some cute stitch markers and a button that I thought I would put on the hat I was making from last year's Wensleydale Longwool by Sheepshop. Yeah, I finally broke into that stash. Eh-Hemmm. I also made a pair of fingerless gloves for this trip from the pretty blue colorway. I walked from St. John's Wood over to Camden Lock by way of the canal running through Regent's Park. I found Penny Burdett's shop and bought a top from her. She is an original knitwear designer. Her designs are worked up on a machine. I also bought a few trinkets in the Indian shop and a couple of decorative lace scarves from some other vendors. I saw them last year and thought I could make them. Famous last words. This time I bought a couple. Now I can study them and make some.... yeah, right. From Camden I took the tube over to Islington to visit one of my favorite UK yarn stores, Loop. I bought some  more wool, a pattern which I discovered is from Washington State and a copy of Piecework Magazine. Yeah, not British at all. Oh well. I was intrigued by the work I saw and after my day at the V&A the history described in the articles was compelling. I may have to subscribe. Loop has moved since I last visited. Luckily it happened to be in this little antiques alley called Camden Passage which is right off the tube stop. It was very lucky because Camden Passage didn't even show in my map book. I think it may be a little old. After Loop, I visited my second favorite UKLYS, I Knit London. There I found a lovely shawl pin and an even cuter button for my hat. The hat is wearing it right now. I bought only one skein that day, but came back the next to buy waaaayyyy too much Fiberspates Lace weight. What was I thinking? I bought upwards of 4000 yards! I knew exactly what I wanted to make with it. I've been eyeing this pattern since I saw it in Interweave Summer 2008. It is the Wakame Lace Tunic. I finally found the pattern after two days of searching Ravelry and finally my magazines. What threw me was I remembered the picture, but the photo on Ravelry was a different color and the model was seated so I couldn't see the border. I thought I was going nuts! So.... This pattern calls for DK weight and 1120 yards. yeah. Perhaps I'll make some pretty scarves too. Oriel called for sport weight and I used a fingering weight. Wakame might require extra panels. I promise to swatch diligently. I'll let you know how it goes. Till next time, Knitter Ditter

Wednesday

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Day 3. Today dawned bright and sunny. I prayed the sun would hold out for a while and it did. It was gorgeous all day long. The weather had predicted rain for the rest of the week, so I was really blessed that I had such a wonderful day. And what a wonderful day! I spent waaayyyy too much money on clothes and yarn. Oops! I figured that I was not going to let my natural restraint take hold. I usually talk myself out of buying things for myself (except yarn), but I saw things that I never see anywhere at home. Ok, I don’t look for them, but I bought a fun sweater that was completely impulsive. It was ₤29.99. That doesn’t seem like much for such a cute sweater. I bought boots for ₤40.00 and gloves for ₤9.99. I was looking for the boots and gloves. I also bought 4 pasha mina scarves and a plaid scarf for Rex. I’m going to have to stay away from Oxford Road. I discovered Selfridges, a huge store with wonderful things. The kitchen section had these cool cutting boards and sieves in great colors that fold flat for storage. The same designer, Joseph Joseph http://www.josephjoseph.com/ made a pump whisk, and a pump potato masher. Innovative! I loved the window displays at this store. Gee, I wonder why? ;)
  

The yarn shop, Loop, www.loopknitting.com is in Islington, a cute little arts district northeast of the center of town. Loop is a teeny, tiny store. I missed it when I first walked down the street. It was standing room only. Check out the picture from their web site. That’s pretty much it. No comfy couches to sit and knit awhile, unless that’s downstairs. It looked to me like it was the storeroom. Despite that, I got some great yarns and the shopkeeper was great. I heard her talking to another patron about moving in June or July. I hope the new space will give them  room to grow. I loved the way she decorated the shop, hanging handspun yarns in the window and piled on the mantelpiece. I will definitely visit again if I come back to London.

I got 3 skeins of beautiful yummy yarn. Two of them I probably could have gotten in the States, although I have never seen them in person or been able to pet them before. One Be Sweet Magic Ball in the Oceans color way and
Handmaiden Laced Silk in a lovely blue.
The Be Sweet profits go to a good cause anyway. http://www.besweetproducts.com.

The other skein is The Knitting Goddess. www.theknittinggoddess.co.uk. It is a purpley blue. The shopkeeper asked if I was going to combine the three skeins because all the colors look great together. I hadn’t thought about it, but I might. So far I don’t have plans for these skeins. I know, dangerous. They could sit in the stash for a while before I figure it out. I just couldn’t resist. I also bought a Knit Kit which I had been wanting for quite a while. All your tools in one place. Perfect for travel.

I had to hurry back because we had tickets for We Will Rock You, a musical featuring the music of Queen and a tribute to Freddy Mercury. We had a great time. If you’re in London you’ve got to go see it.





Cheryl's London Adventure Day 2

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Day 2 was dreary and wet.
The morning started badly when I realized that I had lost one of my fingerless cashmere gloves. I t must have fallen  out of my purse when I pulled out my guide book. I had to keep getting my bearings, so it could be anywhere - in Hyde Park or on the train. Maybe even in the lovely pub I had lunch at. Who Knows? Anyway I  spent too much of the  morning planning my route and pouting. I didn’t really want to go out but who wants to spend the day in a hotel room?

I finally made my way to the train station en route to Pudley. Luckily I had the foresight to pack an umbrella. Stash yarns was my destination. I misread where the train let out and got a little confused about where I was. I was able to find my way to the shop though, through the puddles and my hat nearly blowing off when I crossed the Thames. Unfortunately, the shop has been closed down. What a disappointment! I passed a little resale shop on the way back and stopped inside. They had the cutest rain hat.

The next stop was I Knit London in Westminster. That’s a fair distance from Pudley. Completely across town, in fact. I finally got there, quite soggy, with another walk across the Thames. The wind kicks up over the water so I was cold as well as wet. I Knit was on a quiet little street a few blocks from Westminster station. I bought some lovely blue Wensleydale  wool to replace my fingerless gloves. I wear a lot of blue. It’s not cashmere but it is sooo soft. Now I want to go back and get another skein for a hat and maybe some for a scarf for Rex. Perhaps on Thursday.

As I came back from my day of frolicking in the rain, This scene greeted me outside of the train station. The 30th Annual Brit Awards. The crowds were out despite the rain. I suppose we do the same in Hollywood. This is the British version of the Grammy Awards. All the pop tarts - I mean stars were out. ;)  


After Rex and Kiki got done with work, we went out to the Troubadour Club for dinner and some music. This is such a cool bohemian spot for great food and music. Dylan and Hendrix played there. I'm sure many others, but that's who they advertise. Here's the door.
and the ceiling...


Hat Tuesday. Wear a had at dinner and get a free dessert!
 
Beer anyone? Bud looks different in Britain!


(the) Universal. Cool local music at the Troubadour Club.
psst... This is the Original Troubadour. Doug Weston's got nothing on this one!

Monday in London

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I walked my feet off today! I decided to walk rather than take the tube because there wasn't any rain predicted for today. By the end of the day I found out that I couldn't take the tube anyway because I had left my Oyster card in my other jacket pocket. The weather was great for the most part. A couple of times snow fell, but not enough to make any difference. By the end of the day it rained and I finally pulled out the umbrella. I was glad I had it!

My journey took me down Old Brompton Road, past Harrod's and into a quiet little street where I found Patricia Roberts Knitting. Don't throw tomatoes, but I had never heard of her until I looked up LYS in London. Turns out she's been a knitwear designer since 1962. The shop was filled with wonderful sweaters, scarves and mittens already hand knit. At first I was disappointed because I thought I had stumbled into the wrong kind of shop. I asked the woman at the counter if they sold yarn, and they did have some in the back. Whew! I found a bargain. 20 gorgeous skeins of beautiful lambswool for ₤30. It's in my favorite color, fushia. I see a sweater in my future. Mmmm.... perhaps this gorgeous one that I've been wanting to knit for soooo long?

Then it was across the street for lunch at the Wilton Arms. Shepherd's pie and tea for lunch. It was quite good.


Afterwards I took a walk through Hyde Park. It is HUMONGOUS! I had planned to run there this morning, but I didn't get out early enough. It looks like a great place for a run. If it's dry later in the week I might give it a try.

Tomorrow I'm going to try to find Loop. Maybe I'll hit some museums too.

Hello from London!

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(waving the Queen's wave)
We arrived in London yesterday, 2/14/10 or 14/2/10 as they say over here. It was a lovely Valentine's Day spent wandering the streets near the hotel, lunch at the Troubadour, window shopping, then dinner at Imli, an Indian restaurant off Oxford Street. We opted for the Valentine's Day special. I thought it was good, although Rex thought it was a little bland, and Kiki thought it was cold. Oh, well. For dessert, we had waffles at the Belgian Waffle stand. Yum! Then off for a pint at a pub down the street. I can't remember the name at the moment.

The Troubadour Club is the original, unlike it's counterpart in Hollywood. Bob Dylan and Jimi Hendrix played there among others. It looks like local bands play and they have poetry reading on Monday. I'd like to check it out if we get a chance. The food was great too.

Today I am off to find some yarn shops. Since it's not raining yet, I may visit some of the parks. I'd better get going before I waste the day away!

What I Did On My Summer Vacation

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It's about time I got back to my blog. I've been remiss about posting, but I have been knitting. More about that in due time... Last week my sweetie and I took a trip to Northern New York via the Finger Lakes and Niagara Falls. We did some wine tasting in the Finger Lakes wine country. (Didn't know they had a wine country in New York.) I have to say we are spoiled Californians. We didn't like the reds they offered at all. They all seemed a little thin to our taste, some were even medicinal. We like the bold and fruity wines, specifically Old Vine Zinfandel. No Zin in New York. The white wines were very nice, in fact we brought home some Pinot Grigio and Chardonnay. So back to the knitting. (Isn't that the point?!?) Of course I needed an airplane project. Conveniently enough my friend was having a baby shower a couple of days after I was coming home, so I thought, aha! A baby project! A quick look at my email and behold! My favorite LYS owner, Stephanie, had created a pattern for baby booties called "Angel Feet." They are made with Lorna's Laces "Angel." I rushed down to the store and picked up the pattern and some yummy Angel yarn in the Camouflage color. I couldn't leave well enough alone though. The booties would knit up quick and I felt like I needed more of a gift than that. I found the last skein of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sport in the color Envy. I bought it not knowing exactly what I would make with it. It's only 200 yards, so I couldn't exactly make a sweater even for baby. Maybe a vest or hat. Possibly a bib or wash cloth. I did a quick web search and up came the cutest baby cargo pants you ever saw on Bella Knitting. They only take 200 yards, so I printed up the pattern and packed it in my knitting bag. I'll bet you're wondering why I chose Camoflauge and Envy. You're not? Well I'll tell you anyway. The theme for the baby shower was Safari. There, you see? I think it worked. Her colors were green, brown & blue. I don't remember choosing colors for my baby shower when I had kids... Oh yeah, we didn't have a nursery. But I digress. LA to Cincinnati
As we waited to board the plane at LAX, I quickly cast on and for the booties. Sooo soft. This is the cuff.
and this is the first bootie...
By the time we landed in Cincinnati, I had two. So cute!
I need more practice with the picture taking. Forgive the bad lighting.
Syracuse to Niagara Falls via the Finger Lakes
The first night we spent at the Waterloo Holiday Inn near Seneca Falls. By the time we got there I had cast on the baby pants. Since it was dark I gave it a rest until morning.
The next day we got into our little PT Cruiser rental and cruised near Cayuga Lake. We had lunch at Knapp Winery. We immediately noticed how quiet it was. We are used to the roar of the city. You don't notice so much until you go to a very quiet place. Then your ears ring with the quiet and your body just relaxes and says, "aaahhhh."
We stopped at Goose Watch Winery, Cayuga Ridge Estate Winery and Hosmer Winery. Cayuga Ridge was in this old barn, and the young guy serving was playing Pink Floyd Meddle when we walked in. They had these great wine carrier purses. I wish I got one. They were round, just the size of a wine bottle and covered in fabric. I've never seen them before, but they could hold knitting needles when you're not using them for wine.
Ha! I found a picture here http://www.initialpresents.com/silkwinecarrier.html. Same price too. I might just have to order one. ;)
Niagara Falls
This is the scene from our window at the Embassy Suites Niagara Falls. You can't see this view from the American side so we spent the night in Canada. The baby pants are coming along. I couldn't get enough pictures of the falls, so here's another:

I've actually got some outdoor shots, but they're on the other camera which is currently in Amsterdam with DH. He flew directly from our vacation there for business.

We took the Maid of the Mist boat ride into the falls. It's pouring down so hard that you can't even open your eyes. Needless to say, I got soaked in spite of the plastic poncho.

From Niagara we had the Very. Long. Drive. in Friday evening traffic to Alexandria Bay in Northern New York. Did I mind? Not one Knit!

This is the whole point of the trip, the Alex Bay Blues Festival. Our friend who is also in DH's band was the MC. He comes from Watertown, NY. He spent summers in Alexandria Bay and the 1000 Islands. It's such a small town. Everyone knows everyone else. The locals wondered why we would come from California to Alex Bay. The weather of course! Apparently it got to about 113 over Labor Day in the SF Valley! Egads! We were very comfortable in 76 - 78 degree beautiful weather.

We had a great time at the Blues Festival. Music is everywhere in the small village. There is a main stage by the dock, and bands that aren't currently playing there are at one of the bars or restaurants. Kal David & the Real Deal featuring Lauri Bono were the headliner on Sunday. We were lucky enough to have dinner with them and our friend, Steve. What nice people.

On Monday the owner of Cavallario's Steakhouse got us a ride in his cousin's boat. We cruised around some of the 1000 Islands. We've got some great pictures on the other camera...

By the way, Cavallario's has the most delicious food if you're in the area.

My reading for the trip was Debbie Macomber's Between Friends.

This is getting really long and I'm tired, so I'll save the rest for tomorrow.