At the request of some friends, and at the risk of offending some of you, I'm posting some photos of me and Mr. Jones last Halloween. We went as the Irwin Family. Halloween is about celebrating the dead, right?
I went as Terri Irwin, trying to save Bindi from a croc attack.
Mr. Jones was Steve, attacked by a stingray.
We found matching shirts at the thrift shop for $5., which kicked off the whole idea.
Mr. Jones picked out the perfect Mom jeans for me at the Goodwill, and the best thing anyone said to me all night was, "Holly, you are SO BRAVE TO WEAR THOSE JEANS". That, and lots of comments on how I had the perfect hair. Long live The Irwins!
I think I mentioned that I'm not celebrating Halloween this year. I don't have any English parties to go to, and frankly it's not that fun over here. So instead, I offered to make a costume for my favorite 2 year-old (ish) New Yorker. Inspired by her madly curly hair, her mom and I decided she should be a certain orphan.
I finished the costume here in London on Monday, and Fedexed it on Tuesday. Her mom bought the shoes and socks yesterday, and she's all ready to go for tomorrow! Getting this photo today was incredibly rewarding, and even more fun than making my usual Halloween outfit, a laborious process that usually begins around August.
Happy Halloween everyone! I hope, whereever you are, you can enjoy it as much as I have already. Even if you're not dressing up!
I've been working on my quiche recipe, adapting it to a smaller variety I call quichelettes. They're quick to make, quicker to eat, and you probably have all the ingredients in your fridge right now. I made them for brunch one Sunday, and they were a nice change from omlettes and toast, though they have all the same ingredients.
Here's a recipe; it makes 6:
3 eggs
1/2 cup broccoli, chopped1/2 cup cheese, grated1/2 cup onion, diced12 sheets of filo pastry (bought from grocery store)1 cup lowfat milk1 teaspoon salt1 teaspoon grated pepper1/2 teaspoon nutmeg1 muffin tin1/2 stick of butter, plus more for greasing
1. Preheat oven to 325F.
2. Combine onion and broccoli in a bowl and set aside.3. Melt butter and leave to cool slightly.4. Grate cheese and set aside.5. Combine milk, eggs, salt, pepper, and nutmet. Beat well, and set aside.6. Grease muffin tin well. Place 2 sheets of filo pastry in each muffin holder, with edges flapping over the side.5. Fill parcels with broccoli/onion mixture, then grated cheese, distributing evenly.
6. Pour eggy milky mixture over other ingredients, distributing evenly.7. Fold over filo to encapsulate parcels, and brush each one with melted butter.8. Bake in 325 degree oven for 40ish minutes, or until the pastry is golden on top.9. Pop quichelettes out of muffin tin, serve, and enjoy!
Hi! I'm excited to be included in this calendar. It's called "Sewing Calendar 2010: More than 100 new sewing projects with detailed instructions" by Accord Publishing. My ice cream cone pattern is on July 19th.
I thought it might be the kind of calendar that you often find at those strange book clearance stores in American strip malls. You know the kind? Instead, it's designed really nicely, includes pattern pieces, and lists websites from each project, so I can find many more crafters in the new year. I'm so happy to be published among them!
It's also highly endorsed by half-blind poodles, who are very crafty in their own right.
This is my most ambitious kniting project to date. It's the Bessie (girls) Sweater, and it literally took me months.
I took a fair isle class. I was feeling confident. I made my own charted colors, I changed the pattern so I could knit it in the round, and I started. And it all became very difficult. I think I unraveled 1 in every 6 rows I knitted. Maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind? In the end, I learned a lot, but I'm not sure (with the knitting and the blocking and the finishing) that the proportions are at all correct.
I guess I'll have to wait for the recipient's mom to send me a photo of the special girl in this sweater. Tiny sleaves, a big body, a gaping neck, it's all very possible. And yet, now as I write this, I'm thinking of my next fair isle project, this time for myself! It's amazing how the burn of a creative project wears right off with new inspiration...
I'd like to have a giveaway here once a month. How does that sound? Sometimes it'll be something I've made, sometimes it'll be from my own collection of things. To kick it off, I'm lessening my vintage craft book collection by one, and giving away "The Complete Book of Sewing" from 1972, by Larry Eisinger. 
It's a great book: part instructional, part conversational. Chapters include "Making Curtains", "It's Best to Baste" and "Know Your Stitches". My favorite chapter is called "Teaching Your Daughters To Sew", and reads "Our daughters live in a machine age and want streamlined speed. To them, samplers and and long-drawn-out routines vanished with the horse and buggy." Too true!
Not only are there amazingly fashionable pictures, but there's great instructional drawings, teaching different hems, how to install zippers and sleaves, etc.
You can win this book by leaving a comment on this blog post. I'll use a random number generator to pick a winner by the end of October, and post the next giveaway at the beginning of November!
This contest is now closed.
The random number generator has chosen Gram as the winner of the craft book. Congrats! Email me your name and address, and I'll be happy to send it along.
Now you can make a hat to wear to your next Prince concert (and you should definitely go to one at some point in your life). This hat takes intermediate knitting skills, including knitting in the round, double pointed knitting, Intarsia and chart-reading skills.
I took inspiration from Whitney's 70s ski hat, and included a soft alpaca lining, so you won't have any wool itch on your forehead when wearing it.
You can download my free pattern BY CLICKING HERE. I warn you that the pattern gets a bit loose toward the end, requesting that you try the hat on and customize it to the height you would like. Charts and instructions are all included.
I hope you'll make one and wear it, even if you don't go to a Prince show (like Ingrid, Mr. Jones, and me, circa 2003). The funny thing about this photo is that when we got to Madison Sq. Garden we didn't see one other person dressed up. Ah well, it never stopped up before, and certainly hasn't since!
When I came back from Bristol, my sewing machine was in a corner of the apartment getting dusty. I couldn't really place blame; I was gone for 5 weeks and I wouldn't expect it to retain valuable space on our few tables. But it bothered me that it was collecting dust, seemingly unloved. So last week I took 2 days to make a sewing machine cover for my Bernina, which I purchased used, without any kind of case.
I had no pattern, just used a familiar theme, took some basic measurements, and used scraps I have here at home. The best thing about it is that it's reversible, so if I get sick of the house, a lovely sewing-themed print lies beneath.
Now my machine sits proudly on my craft shelf, warm and dust free in its new home. Hoorah!
I went as Terri Irwin, trying to save Bindi from a croc attack.
Mr. Jones was Steve, attacked by a stingray.
We found matching shirts at the thrift shop for $5., which kicked off the whole idea.
Mr. Jones picked out the perfect Mom jeans for me at the Goodwill, and the best thing anyone said to me all night was, "Holly, you are SO BRAVE TO WEAR THOSE JEANS". That, and lots of comments on how I had the perfect hair. Long live The Irwins!
I finished the costume here in London on Monday, and Fedexed it on Tuesday. Her mom bought the shoes and socks yesterday, and she's all ready to go for tomorrow! Getting this photo today was incredibly rewarding, and even more fun than making my usual Halloween outfit, a laborious process that usually begins around August.
Happy Halloween everyone! I hope, whereever you are, you can enjoy it as much as I have already. Even if you're not dressing up!
3 eggs
6. Pour eggy milky mixture over other ingredients, distributing evenly.
I loved this onesy in the corner, as I'm a sucker for any pattern with buttons at the shoulders. The best part of the book is that the patterns are called "recipes", and the needle recommendations are old English sizes. Good thing I know the difference from working in a knitting shop!
Here it is, made up, in cotton I got from the John Lewis sale. I think the entire project cost about £4, and I'm so please with it. The recipe was perfect!
P.S. This is the last week to enter this month's giveaway. I'll be choosing a winner on Saturday, and posting a November's contest next week. Good luck!
I took a fair isle class. I was feeling confident. I made my own charted colors, I changed the pattern so I could knit it in the round, and I started. And it all became very difficult. I think I unraveled 1 in every 6 rows I knitted. Maybe I just wasn't in the right frame of mind? In the end, I learned a lot, but I'm not sure (with the knitting and the blocking and the finishing) that the proportions are at all correct.
I guess I'll have to wait for the recipient's mom to send me a photo of the special girl in this sweater. Tiny sleaves, a big body, a gaping neck, it's all very possible. And yet, now as I write this, I'm thinking of my next fair isle project, this time for myself! It's amazing how the burn of a creative project wears right off with new inspiration...
It's a great book: part instructional, part conversational. Chapters include "Making Curtains", "It's Best to Baste" and "Know Your Stitches". My favorite chapter is called "Teaching Your Daughters To Sew", and reads "Our daughters live in a machine age and want streamlined speed. To them, samplers and and long-drawn-out routines vanished with the horse and buggy." Too true!
Not only are there amazingly fashionable pictures, but there's great instructional drawings, teaching different hems, how to install zippers and sleaves, etc.
You can win this book by leaving a comment on this blog post. I'll use a random number generator to pick a winner by the end of October, and post the next giveaway at the beginning of November!
Now you can make a hat to wear to your next Prince concert (and you should definitely go to one at some point in your life). This hat takes intermediate knitting skills, including knitting in the round, double pointed knitting, Intarsia and chart-reading skills.
I took inspiration from Whitney's 70s ski hat, and included a soft alpaca lining, so you won't have any wool itch on your forehead when wearing it.
I hope you'll make one and wear it, even if you don't go to a Prince show (like Ingrid, Mr. Jones, and me, circa 2003). The funny thing about this photo is that when we got to Madison Sq. Garden we didn't see one other person dressed up. Ah well, it never stopped up before, and certainly hasn't since!
I had no pattern, just used a familiar theme, took some basic measurements, and used scraps I have here at home. The best thing about it is that it's reversible, so if I get sick of the house, a lovely sewing-themed print lies beneath.
Now my machine sits proudly on my craft shelf, warm and dust free in its new home. Hoorah!
