Chickenlips Knitting

It's so dadburn hot here that all I've been able to do is sit in front of the floor fan, watch TV and knit!




Here is a sock I designed last year, but since I was just starting out as a dyer, I wasn't doing semisolids yet. And this stitch pattern needs a semi-solid colorway to show it off. It's called "Chain Lightning" and is an easy peasy chain rib stitch you can do while watching TV, reading Twitter-pated posts or what have you. The sample is knit in Stitchjones 100% merino sock yarn, although Titanium Sock would work well too. I used size 2 needles and zipped through this sucker in just a few days, where it normally takes me at least a week to finish a sock.

Both patterns are available as Ravelry downloads, they're dirt cheap at just $4. They are also in the Etsy shop, along with Magic Judy in Titanium Sock.

But the pretty colored FO's don't stop there! Here is a Diagonal Baby Blanket, made with 11 oz. of cuddly Cormo wool in neon green from Dayspring Farm in Corvallis, Oregon. (Yarn was purchased from Bellwether Wool Co. at Black Sheep Gathering.)

I haven't washed and blocked it yet--just folded it up and put away for now. When the weather cools off, I'll wash it. I've decided to keep this for the grandbabies I might someday have. I've also bought other yarn and picked out baby items to knit this fall and winter, to add to the collection. Not that I'm in any hurry to be a grandma; I want Michelle to finish college and have the hit TV show she's already writing before she becomes a mom! If and when the day comes, though, this Nana will be prepared.

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OK now, brace yourself. Here is a photo of Noel Fielding of the hit BBC comedy show The Mighty Boosh, in character as "Tony Harrison".

Yeah I know, "WTF"? I mean, "WTF-ing F!?"

I share this with you my friends, because ever since I first saw Monty Python's Flying Circus I have loved British comedy. My daughter has a big crush on Noel and is obsessed with his show. The first time I saw this whack character, (who talks like an upperclass twit by the way,) I couldn't stop laughing. I even bought some pepto-bismol pink yarn and tried to knit a stuffed toy of Tony Harrison. It so happens Michelle is flying down to L.A. on Tuesday to meet Noel at a personal appearance! She'll be accompanied by her dad, who will already be down there on business. Lucky girl, eh?

My idea was to knit a stuffed-toy version of this character for Michelle to give to Noel when she meets him. However, even though a designer friend was helping me figure it out, I just didn't have the mojo. I got discouraged when I realized I'd have to make all those tentacles, then sew the whole thing up--and I hate sewing!

As I get older I'm becoming more scatterbrained, a la Lucy and Ethel hair-brained schemes. My heart is still in the right place, though...no matter what you may have heard!

Yes, I'm talkin' Risotto. Creamy texture, firm individual grains of Italian rice...flavorful and comforting. Typically a side dish but just as good by itself. Perfect for cold weather. Never mind that it was near 90 today and the temp is supposed to be up into the triple digits next few days...I have a hankering for Risotto!! I probably won't make it during the heat wave though; it needs constant attention and it's just too hot to stand at the stove that long.

I made a batch about 2 weeks ago, and like a dumbbell I didn't take any pictures. However, for a long time I've been meaning to write out all my favorite recipes. Here, then, is my good ol' basic down-home Risotto; a nod to my Italian-American roots.

Risotto a la Chickenlips

Ingredients

1 cup short-grain Arborio rice (can also be found as Risotto rice)
2 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons butter
1/2 cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 cup grated fresh Parmesan cheese

Directions

Heat a large saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil and butter. When butter starts to sizzle, add rice. Cook and stir for about 5 minutes, or until rice grains turn translucent. Add onion and garlic. Continue stirring a few more minutes, until onion softens and rice grains turn pale golden in color.

Add broth gradually; about 1/3 cup at a time. After each addition, stir until rice mixture absorbs the liquid. (The whole process will take almost 15 minutes or so.) When the last of the liquid has been added and almost all liquid is absorbed into the rice, remove mixture from heat and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Cover and let stand 5 minutes. Mangia!

Some nice variations: use beef broth instead of chicken broth, and add fresh sliced mushrooms when adding the onion and garlic. Or add cooked vegetables cut in 1" pieces to finished dish, such as broccoli, green beans, asparagus, carrots, for Primavera. Cooked shrimp or other shellfish is lovely in Risotto, too. I usually make mine plain, just as written, and have it as a side dish with chicken--or by itself!

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I re-worked one of my sock patterns and finished knitting the sample this afternoon. It's drying on a sock blocker right now, so I'll get a photo when it's dry. I'm planning to display it at Sock Summit and offer the pattern for sale (cheap!) only $4.

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Before I sign off, I want to direct you to Yarnhog's blog. Ms. Yarnhog recently rescued a dog and her litter of puppies from a horribly abusive "shelter"; there is a link to an online petition to put a stop to the cruelty being perpetrated at this shelter, and there are also adorable pictures of the puppies getting their first baths. I signed the petition and encourage you all to sign it, too. The poor dog's story is appalling. We can put a stop to this kind of treatment, though.

Thanks, everybody. Stay cool in the heat.

This is my original pattern, Traffic Stoppin' Boot Sock (link to free pattern). I'm at the toe of the second sock--these are knit top down. They're for Mr. Stitchjones, so for the photo I got to use my real fake foot! The yarn is On Line Merino & Silk, which is soft and wonderful and lovely and shiny--although I can tell it's going to be pilly as all getout. No worries, the socks I most enjoy making are those for mah man. As long as he keeps wearing 'em I'll keep knitting 'em. My sock yarn stash contains an excellent selection of guy colors.

Speaking of guy colors (or unisex colors) in sock yarn, here is a goodie I made a while back as a special request for a fellow Rush fan. I made a couple more in Titanium Sock.

This colorway is called "Fly By Night". It's good to have some quieter, more mellow selections in my high-octane inventory.

Mommy is so happy!

Michelle landed herself a summer job! She will be a receptionist at her dad's company all next month, which is the busiest month of the year for them. I know she'll do great at it, and she'll even have a few weeks to decompress before starting classes at PCC. One of the things I loved about being a PCC student was the late start to the fall quarter; those breaks were really nice too. Anyway, I am extremely relieved at this news, not only because she'll earn some money for herself, but also because when you're trying to work at home and your 18 year old and her friends are in the house all day, you start to go a little nuts. In fact, I had to minimize the screen just now, because she came into the room. Arrgh...

Another thing that makes me happy as a mother is that she is no longer involved with the local cast of Rocky Horror Picture Show. I know she loved playing Magenta, and when she was put in positions of responsibility and worked her way up to Director, that was good experience for her. But I know I was also pushing the limits of responsible parenting by letting her participate in a midnight show for the past few years, it wasn't good for her health-wise and we'd also have a complete grouch on our hands all day Sunday after a Rocky Saturday because she wasn't getting proper rest. Even when I didn't have to drive her anymore because she could drive herself, it wasn't like I was able to go to sleep until I knew she was safely home. So this is something we made it through as a family, and I'm relieved that, for various reasons, she's no longer interested in participating.

I started writing this post Friday night, and now it's Saturday afternoon and shaping up to be another hot day. I'm gonna get back to making lots of pretty, fun sock yarns to send to Australia. Fair dinkum!

I have always loved naming things, so my line of veil-dyed colorways is called "Shock Treatment". There will be a couple more for Sock Summit.

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Feet Don't Fail Me Now!

Bobbie of Tiggywinkle Knits told me of this awesome place called Portland Store Fixtures where I could get mannequin feet to show off handknit socks in Stitchjones yarns. Went there last Tuesday with Mr. Stitchjones, and we got two mannequin feet for a very reasonable price. The only glitch is that they are men's sizes; that's all the store had in stock that day. This Vinnland sock from The Anticraft, which was sent to me by the lovely Andrea in New Mexico, is stretched out a little bit but I think it looks good, you can really see the pattern. I saw lots of cool stuff that I want to go back for, not only for the Stitchjones booth but also for me! If I'm going to design, I need a torso. They have zaftig ones, and I also learned that putting a bra on a man-torso will work great for displaying plus size fashions. So go crazy and cross-dress those mannequins!

Last Tuesday turned out to be a lovely day for me and the spousal unit. He took the day off, and after we went shopping for mannequin parts, we went to Chinatown for a dim sum lunch. Fong Chong Teahouse rocks! I could eat pork shumai and shrimp-spinach dumplings until they come out my ears.

That's about it, my doves. I'll be back when my Svale top is a shiny new FO.

This is all I can show you of a painstaking design I'm cooking up, with Dale of Norway Svale in Chinese red. I am nearly half finished with this summer garment, which means that by summer's end it should be a FO. Even though it just looks like miles of unexplored knot stitch, I think it's gonna be pretty sweet if I can keep plugging at it.

That's it--have a happy, safe and cool Fourth, no matter how you spend it. It's a very hot day, so I think I'll head into the kitchen/family room for an iced beverage and some knitting.