Knit Lit....

Seems that I am on a knit lit kick these past few weeks. You know, literature with knitting as one of the contributing themes. I love the books that actually give you the characters discussed patterns at the end of the book. More projects to mull over and put on my list - always a good thing and I figure these patterns are basically free as I bought the book for the story not expecting the patterns. Is that a good rationalization???

Anyway, this week I've read the two Sweetgum: Knit Lit Society books, by Beth Pattillo. The second novel is The Sweetgum Ladies Knit For Love.  I read them both on my Knidle when I got into bed. Reading really helps me fall asleep and since I'm dealing with the vagaries of my own personal global warming these days, a good book can really help. These books were a bit on the romantic and Peyton Place side of literature for me, but none the less I enjoyed them. Ms. Pattillo can write a good story with interesting characters, she can definitely keep a reader intrigued to the end.

I usually like Brit Lit far better than some of the offerings from my fellow US authors, but I've only been able to find two books that were worth a read that fit the Brit Lit and Knit prerequisites. If anyone has any recommendations please pass them on, I'll be glad to give them a read. Since the British offerings are a bit scarce, I certainly don't wish to pass up any good book regardless of it's origins and the Sweetgum series has not disappointed. The novels are set in Sweetgum, Tennessee, USA.  A small town that makes you want to live in a place where everyone knows your name or at least it makes me want to live in that type of place. With all the bad and indifferent situations that can come from small town living, there are tremendous positives as well and Ms. Pattillo brings those out.

In the first book, the knit lit society reads a classic book from a pre-determined book list each month and knits a project that would go well with the story. In the second book, the society does basically the same thing, but they have a specific stitch that must be used for each month. I am thinking that I would love a book group of this nature. Sharing my passion for literature and knitting all in one setting with my friends. Tres' cool!

So, if you are still planning your summer reads, I'd recommend giving the ladies of the Sweetgum: Knit Lit Society a try. I think you'll enjoy the story and perhaps find some inspiration for further projects or for your own reading group.

Knit On, Read On.....
The Knitty Scribe

The Lazy Blogger...

It has come to my attention that I may have come down with the "lazy blogger" syndrome. No blogging for over a week. On the surface I am guilty as charged, but under the surface troubled waters churn and send their waves to crash against the tender walls of my brain. All that to say, the life has been getting ready for the season by using DH and I for spring training. However, what doesn't kill us makes us stronger or so I've heard and I"m not dead yet. Hurrah!!! 

So, in today's installment you're getting a 2-fer. Two reviews instead of one. One book, one toy insert from Simply Knitting Magazine. Ready - set - read....

The book in question was actually published in 2008 and I've owned it since then, but at that time I was hip deep in thesis research and personal reading was the lifestyle section of the NY Times on Sunday with coffee and DH at our local Starbucks. Anyway, the author I"m sure is well known to many of you, Debbie Macomber and the book is Twenty Wishes. It is part of her Blossom Street series and tells a lovely story of love lost, and love found for a woman yearning for a child and for a child in desperate need of a loving mother. It is easy to relate to the characters and for me it was a story of Seattle. The story is set in that Great Northwestern city and as a 21 year member of that citizenry, I can tell you that the independent neighborhoods in Seattle are for the most part as charming as Blossom Street is described in the book. And as with all of Debbie's Blossom Street books, knitting prevails as  it's own character within the book. If nothing else you certainly get your creative juices flowing and are ready to grab your needles and knit, knit, knit. After you have read this story, you will want to know that Debbie has published A Twenty-First Wish in an anthology titled The Knitting Diaries by Debbie Macomber, Susan Mallery, and Christina Skye. This short story is a nice rounding off to the original book.

Review Two goes to non other than toy creator extraordinaire - Alan Dart. I only started knitting toys back before this past holiday season. I wanted to gift a hand knit bear to a sweet little girl of 2 years. You can see Bella Bear on my Ravelry Projects page. Anyway, every month when my copy of Simply Knitting arrives there is invariably a toy pattern from Mr. Dart or pictures from other knitters that have made his patterns. Heavenly mercy ,but they are beautiful. I thought toy knitting would be difficult, but it's not actually - you make a bunch of sections and then work them together. Not bad at all. Well, in the May 2011 issue of Simply Knitting (issue 80) there is a free extra insert by Alan Dart - a complete chess set, including the board and it is spectacular. Even if you don't play chess the pieces can easily be adapted for other toys, but if you are looking to make the ultimate gift for your favorite chess champ - you won't go wrong with this set. And let me just say that the only way to get the complete instructions is to purchase the magazine for that month. On Alan's website you can purchase older patterns ans let's just say I've stocked up!!! You can find Alan's website at -  http://www.alandart.co.uk/. Some patterns are free downloads and some are sold at a nominal cost.

So, there you go - two more items to add to your summer fun to do list. I'd love to see pictures of any items that were knit from these selections. The chess set is on my holiday gift giving list for this coming year.

Read on, Knit on...
The Knitty Scribe.

No Knit, Knitting.....

Well I think spring might actually be here as the trees are blooming and I'm sneezing and working my way through tissues like I work through wool, but I think it's having a hard time deciding whether or not to stay. It was 90 on Saturday, 70 on Sunday and 35 this morning. If it would stick to that nice 70 range, I'd be ever so thankful!

We've had the windows open for the last few days and this morning it was so difficult to get out of bed. When DH left at 6:30am I went and made tea and grabbed a book and slid down under all the lovely comforters and blankets on the bed. It was one of those dreamy mornings when you feel so content under the covers that you can't decide whether to go back to sleep or get your lazy behind out of bed. The "out of bed" part won out, but not until 7:45am. The self debate was almost to great to overcome.

Part of the difficulty was actually the book that I am currently reading or should I say finished reading, The Beach Street Knitting Society and Yarn Club, by Gil McNeil. It's not a pattern book or an instructional book, but it's based on a little knitting shop in England and is full of funny and eccentric characters. So, I thought it a great time to do a little blog about a great knitting book that can be put on your list of beach reads for this spring and summer.

The main character is Jo, she is a widow with a twist (I shan't say just what that is as you may not be someone that reads the last page of a book first or someone that wants to know the details before you've read them for yourself.) I'll just say that Jo needs a new beginning with her two little boys and they find it when she goes to take over the running of her Gran's yarn shop. I think you'll find a character that you relate to and if you're at all like me, you find that you wish you had two extra pairs of arms as the book makes you want to knit several items at once.

The book is fairly quick read, which in my opinion makes it perfect for taking in my bag wherever I go. If for some reason I can't knit, I have to read and why not read something about knitting be it fiction or non. I have now moved on to the sequel, Needles and Pearls and I can say that it's well worth the time as well. New adventures abound for all the major and minor players. Just like a good sequel should, Needles and Pearls keeps you wanting more.

What's in your spring/summer (hand knit of course) book bag????

Knit on, Read on......
The Knitty Scribe

Here Comes the Bride....

The month of April is here (I'm not sure how we got here so fast, but c'est la vie). This month is a huge month for birthdays in my family and among my friends, including my own. This means a full month of parties and celebrations, but this year there is also another special celebration to take place. The Royal wedding of HRH Prince William and Miss Catherine Middleton on April 29th, 2011. Now for some this is no big deal and they feel that we are all getting into a tither for no good reason. Fine, be that as it may, for some it is very special and for numerous reasons. It is special to me for reasons I cannot adequately put into words, but I will give just a few similarities of my own life.

My DH, Dave and I were married in the same year as Prince Charles and Princess Diana.

Although I have always been nicknamed, De (came from my grandfather and means the word to me) after Charles and Diana were engaged, people thought it cute to call me Lady Di. Ha ha, but as I said they thought it cute and did it because they cared about me. That makes it a very good thing.

At my wedding, our niece, Elisabeth was a baby and she is marrying this summer in the same year as William and Kate. The Royal wedding will be more opulent and celebrated throughout the world, but the wedding of Nick and Beth will be the grandest event for our family this year.

And to top things off, we have a little Kate in our own family. She may only be 2 and half, but she is our little princess in every way.

So, I, Aunt Diana, the one that believes in having stories and mementos to pass down through ages of our family will be making little keepsake William and Kate dolls for both my girls. I want the girls to know that although William and Kate are to be celebrated by the world, Beth and Kate are celebrated by me, their aunt. That I love and care for them as if they were my own daughters and that they have just as special a place in history as the handsome young man of noble birth and his lovely bride.

That all being said, this week's book pick is Knit Your Own Royal Wedding by: Fiona Goble. Fiona has given us the couple in both their engagement and wedding clothes. Kate's dress is a guess as of this moment, but I'm sure there will be updated patterns of the actual dress once we've all seen it with our own eyes. Along with the couple are members of the royal family, footman and for some reason the Queen's dogs. Now, I know the Queen loves her dogs, but I would rather have had the brides parents included instead. I do believe I can pull this off by making some spare dolls and knitting up a few of the alternate dresses in the back of the book. For those of you that really want to display your royal wedding, there is a cardboard balcony in a sleeve in the back of the book. All in all the book is well done and the there is a bit of the royal romance story documented at the beginning along with a few of the known wedding plans.

If you don't knit, this might be a nice gift for someone that does or as a memento for someone that collects royal memorabilia. The cover price of the book is 17.99US/21.00Canadian, but I got my copy via Amazon.com for 10.85US. I looked today and it's selling for 12.15US. I am wondering if this price will increase as the wedding draws near??? The publisher is Andrews McMeel at www.andrewsmcmeel.com.

So, whether you have a physical or emotional connection to the royals, it might be fun to knit up a couple of these dolls and some general clothes for your own little princess to play with.

Knit on, Read on,
The Knitty Scribe

It's Child's Play....

This week I find myself needing to share the attributes of a magazine with you all. Again, not just a magazine, but one that you will put into a binder and keep for a lifetime. Creative Knitting Magazine has published a fantastic special addition, Child's Play and as it sounds it is all about the kiddies. According to the cover it will be on news-stands until April 29th. What a lovely addition to your own Easter basket.

Every design is made especially for toddlers to early teens - boys and girls. If you have a girl in the family that is wild for American Girl dolls, there are two designs that have matching patterns for the girls and their dolls. They have already been slated for a September birthday and a holiday gift for my niece and her doll. The boys are not left out in any way, at least half the magazine are items for boys, plus there are several toys for the wee ones.

I was thrilled to find this as I find it difficult to find patterns for children in the 2-4 age group. Lots of patterns above and below that age range, but few for the basic toddler+ set. Auntie Knitty Scribe is going to be very busy this summer. 

Some children hate out growing their favorite clothes, so with this issue you can make every size so that your special little one can grow-up with his favorite jumper or her favorite dress. If you want to make each size a little different, just knit them in different colors. Are you looking for quick and easy gifts for family and friends that are expecting their own little ones, I think you'll even find a few items in this magazine that will make cherished heirloom items. 

And remember it's just child's play.....

Knit on, Read on....
The Knitty Scribe

Tradition....

I do not usually recommend magazines, as I find that I love them all. Even the glossy ones with all the ads. I'm kind of addicted to the slippery pages and colorful pictures. I tend to find something to love about them all, so I don't recommend them as surely no one else has this same problem. They are asking for solid information and on this front I have a hard time being objective. However, I may have found something worth crowing about. Knitting Traditions - is a bi-monthly magazine from Piece Work, which is published by Interweave Press. Now, you will have noticed that I said this was a magazine and I suppose that it fits that description in that there are ads and glossy pictures, but it also so much more.

In the current issue that appears on new stands until mid-May, there is article after article about knitting from all over the world. I mean it is more like a knitting history book than a magazine. Not only will you learn about the people of the Dales in Yorkshire and how fathers, mothers, and children all knitted as a form of income, you'll get patterns as well. The patterns might be socks, mittens or lace and they are spectacular. Because there is a story along with the pattern, you feel like you're there with the very people in the story. It's an immense feeling!

Knitting Traditions is not just a magazine that you read, file a few pattern pages and forget about. It's a publication that envelopes you in the roots and history of our art form. It's a publication that you'll save in a pretty binder and bring out time and time again. It is like having your own knitting encyclopedia at your fingertips. It is a joy to read and it is fascinating to read the history of those knitters that came before us and to practice the skills that they themselves used.

So, I highly recommend that you pick-up a copy of this "magazine" and find yourself a quiet spot to sit with a cuppa and take a trip back in knitting time.

Knit on, Read on...
The Knitty Scribe.

T-Tiny Treats.....

Back during the holidays, I finally started knitting toys. I must say it's a bit addicting and so far Alan Dart is my supplier. Lately, I've been wanting to knit some little food items for a few children that are at the age of playing tea party. Well, yesterday while I was out running errands, I ran into the yarn store. Of course I ran into the yarn store, isn't that a mandatory stop on any shopping trip??? I thought so....

Well, I found a little book that not only has cakes and fruits and veggies, but it has these sweet little sushi and dim sum. The book is Yummi 'Gurumi, by: Christen Haden & Mariasosa Sala - published 2010.

 I'm still thinking that I might want to knit a plate of these little sushi and use them as table decor. I have a great teak wood plate that I've had for years and these little treats would look amazing on it and really spice up the kitchen table. This little book has really made my imagination start running away with itself.

So, if you want something new to knit for the afternoon tea party with your favorite little one, this book is a great way to introduce them to different foods and cultures. They are quick and easy to make and once again, a great way to use up the leftovers in the stash.

Wouldn't these be sweet little gifts to give at a birthday party or a wedding or baby shower???

If tea parties are not your little ones thing, what about a play date a pretend diner - with the famous BLT????


Knit on, Read on.....
The Knitty Scribe.