Its all true, the boogie girl is real, and you've found her. She knits, sews, spins, does pottery and writes it all down in this blog.
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Crazy Boogie
Husbeast was really sick on Turkey day. Poor guy laid in bed with his throat all sore and scratchy. He didn't make it to dinner but he got a good pile of leftovers. He swears that Gram's fried cabbage cured him. I'll get the recipe just in case any of you get sick. Gram's cabbage can cure unless gas is your problem then you need to avoid the cabbage.
Luckily, I made it through the holiday but was struck down Sunday afternoon. Whatever this is walloped me good. This week, all I've wanted to do is lay down and take a nap.
Don't they look comfy? Don't you just want to push them on the floor and wake them up? Yesterday, I took the last 2 hours of work off and sat in the comfy chair with my knitting in my lap. There I was sitting in my chair with a snoring doggie at my side. All of a sudden
MOMMA ARE YOU ASLEEP? Cuz if you're asleep I'm a big girl and I can watch my little sister and take care of you too, I know you're sick, how're you feeling, do you want to sleep, were you going to fall asleep, can I have a snack, I can get my own snack, are you going to fall asleep, I'm good at watching Baby Boogie.....
You may notice there were no periods in that paragraph. That happens to be the way GirlBeast talks. Those of you that have met her, you know this is true. The fact was, I had started to doze off. The two girls had taken a brief pause in their constant chatter and it was just long enough to let me start to doze.
You don't have to worry, they didn't stop talking/chattering/fighting for the rest of the day and evening. The dog even got in on the act. No one can be left out. There was no chance of me sleeping anymore. Now do you want to go shove them off the couch?
Somehow I still managed to finish my sweater project.
Sorry, that is all you can see at the moment. I need to take pictures now. I don't know how I'm going to model this thing with my red nose and my generally haggard appearance. Husbeast says I look how he felt last week. Be afraid. Be very afraid of the pictures to come.
Here's 2 of the holiday projects I'm working on now:
BoogieBabe's sweater. The sleeves have been re-done and are correct this time and I've got about 3-4 inches of the body done. 
This is a very bad picture of Dad's sock. I did not mean for it to have a phallic appearance (or is that just my sleepy sick eyes making that up). It was the last picture I took and I couldn't do any better at that point.Still, as yucky as I've felt, I'm pretty happy with the progress. Not that any holiday gifts are complete. I'll either get them done or not. I'm not sweating it, but I'll still try.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
Happy Mittens
Happy Holidays y'all
Or at least for Dee because she asked for it.
Go make some mittens for the short ones you love:
Bulky Kids Mitts Pattern
Monday, November 27, 2006
Eating Monday
I forgot to mention last week one of the most important parts of my family's holiday dinner table. I don't know how I forgot to mention stuffed mushrooms. Really, I don't know how I could have forgotten them. Every holiday, there they are. Only, it's not lika the fruitcake that so many families insist on having at the table but no one touches. These mushrooms are inhaled when brought to my family's gatherings.
2 flats of stufing mushrooms.
1/2 loaf of bread cubed or shredded
1 pk (10 or 12 links I can't rememeber) of Boca Veggie breakfast sausage.
1 can of Veggie broth
1 medium onion chopped.
2-4 garlic cloves minced
Preheat oven to 350F
Wash all the mushrooms removing the stems. Place the mushrooms, top down, in a backing dish. Chop all the stems.
Saute the onions, garlic, and mushrooms stems in a large pan. When they've cooked down, remove from the heat, add in the bread and 1/2 the can of broth. Mix it all up and throw on top or the mushrooms.
Typically you're supposed to fill each mushroom individually. This dish is eaten so fast, why bother. It's also why we don't have a picture. They aren't the prettiest but they taste amazing. If you have time, definitely fill them all individually.
Put the rest of the can of broth in the bottom of the pan around the mushrooms. We don't put the broth in first because the mushrooms will float making it a pain to cathch the little suckers for filling.
Cover with foil, bake for about 25 minutes, uncover and bake for 10 more just to crisp up the bread. yum yum.
The Living Room Tour
She's mostly done! I say moslty because I still ahve boxes of books, DVD's and CD's to sort through. Some will go into storage and others will go back on shelves. We really have limited space and had stacks of things here and there, we're trying avoid that now. This is my big Living room window with the proof of all the boxes and junk that needs a home.
I mostly took this picture of the window because I promised Lady Bean a better view of it.Before I get into it any further my Dad read the blog and he wanted me to be sure to tell you that the flooring took 3.5 hours. I was wrong saying it took longer than it actually did. I said it was 4.5 hours and obviously my math was wrong. My Dad is super speedy and lays an excellent floor too. Is that better?
The paint was done over the weekend and it's gorgeous. I love the color and Dad did a killer job. He did way better than I would have done. He even did 2 coats! Thank you Dad!
Why couldn't I be bothered to finish putting the living room together. I worked on the Magknits sweater a bunch and then because I know the cold weather is upon us, I finished these:
Mittens for the GirlBeast made with Gummi Bears bulky handspun yarn.
Friday, November 24, 2006
Let's get giftie! and an UPDATE
I had to put UPDATE in huge letters because it's a huge UPDATE
Fibers and yarns and kits, oh my. Including a new kit and a new sport sock yarn.Happy fibering Everyone!
Onto the Giftie thing:
If you were around last year, I did a gift guide. I basically pimped the products I knew and loved. Well, I'm going to do that again this year. I'm starting today and I'll do it for the next 3 Fridays as well.
Before I get to the guide I want to show you the Wish List, if you don't already know about it. You can choose anything from the web to be in your wishlist, not just the stuff they have on their site. You keep this icon in your bookmark file, when you click it, a window pops up with the page info and space for you to make notes to Santa. Handy thing that is.
Today's guide is all about Yarn and fiber.
Indie yarns or small business yarns are the best. Spunky Eclectic, Pippi Knee Socks, and Hello Yarn. Sure one of those companies is mine and the other 2 are friends. I know my yarn and how hard I work on it and I know these ladies do the same. It's good stuff.
If you're into the commercial yarns then I have a few favorite places outside of my LYS:
Wool needle work has the best prices on Noro that I've found. The shipping is slow to the US so buy now if you want to get a giftie in time. I wouldn't say no to 10 balls or so of silk garden.
Peace Fleece has great yarn, fantastic kits and a wonderful philosophy. Not to mention they're here in Maine.; But beyond their location, the yarn is amazing. I want a sweater in each color.
Simply Sock yarn has the sock market all sewn up. If you want cool commercial sock yarns, this is where you need to go. great stock with fantastic service. Always a good place to shop.
Onto the FIBER
Again I mention us Spunky Eclectic, Pippi Knee Socks, and Hello Yarn. You know why. But we each have different spindles too. So if you're looking for new equipment then check it out. Hello Yarn also carries Louet wheels. Spunky Carries Louet and Fricke wheels.
Big companies with lots of products to choose from....
Halcyon Yarn has a great selection of wheels. They also really do have some amazing service. They're well worth looking at.
While I haven't purchased from them myself, The Woolery has a great reputation and everyone seems very pleased with their purchase from them.
Want something unique? The Merlin Tree has that sewn up with the old/new wheels and the cute little hitchiker.
If you're looking for a deal or that one of a kind wheel you can't find elsewhere, Check spinners and weavers housecleaning pages and check it often. I found my gem of a bulky wheel there.
Shop early and shop often. I love that phrase when I'm in a spendy mood. But seriously, some of these places need to time to drop ship you the big stuff and if you want custom items, order nwo so you get it in time.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Giving Thanks
I'm so thankful to have all my family and that includes all my wonderful friends that are now a part of my family. Yeah, you think you can escape that "family" title ladies but you're a part of my extended crazy family now.
I'm thankful for my business and the people that buy the product that I work so hard to make. I thank you all for supporting me and helping me make a living. I'm obviously so very thankful for yarns and fibers, to be able to knit and spin.
Because it's been a hard year in so many other ways (and I know it has been the same for many others), I'm thankful there is only 38 more days until the new year.
Last but not least. I'm thankful I'm not a turkey.
And something for the kids (or childish adults like me)...Turkey Mad lib
Monday, November 20, 2006
Eating Monday
Here in the US, Thursday is our Thanksgiving. My job is usually to cook some sort of vegan alternative. I'm the only vegan so I only have to please myself. Still, I try to make something that others will also like. When people are willing to try them, they usually like the dishes that aren't beyond the absolute same tradition. This is one that I'll be making on Thursday:
T-day Rice
2 cups brown rice
2Tbs Wild Rice
1 cup Peas
1 red onion chopped
1/2 block x-firn tofu
1 cup chopped mushrooms
Press the Tofu to extra the excess water and to make it so it will fry up good. You need about 30 minutes to 1 hour to get the excess water out. Then crumble up the tofu into smallish pieces.
Cook the rices together with 4.5 cups of water or Vegetable broth.
While the rice is cooking;
Saute the onion until translucent. Add the mushrooms and saute. Add the Tofu and saute until all are cooked well and the tofu is a little crispy. Add the precooked peas and warm. Combine all of this with the rice and serve hot.
This Apple crisp is a new recipe that I haven't tried yet. I talked about Apple crisps with Jen last week and what I've come up with for my version is as follows:Preheat oven to 350F
2 Granny Smith Apples
2 Pears
2 McIntosh Apples
Peal, core, slice, lay in the bottom of baking dish.
1/4 cup Brown Rice Syrup
1/2 cup Sliced Almonds
1/2 cup unsweetend Coconut Flakes (toast them lightly before mixing in)
1/2 cup Rice flour
Mix this all together. If it's not holding together just a bit then add a touch of water until it's the right consistency to crumble over your fruit.
Cover with foil - and cook for 30 minutes or until the fruit has cooke down. Uncover and cook 15 minutes more to crisp up the crumble topping.
Come and Go
The knitting comes and goes.
The sleeves were done and then they were wrong. I'm sure when I knit them they were right but then I redid my math/pattern and they were wrong. The thing to do, you'd think, would be to work the math so the sleeves were right. That wouldn't really be right. Right?Right.
So I reworked the math and started to do the sleeves again. Which also meant ripping and restarting the sweater for the GirlBeast too. Slowly but surely....
Friday, November 17, 2006
Commitment to Finishing
I, Boogie, take you, UFO's and WIP's, to be my project, loving what I know of you, and trusting what I do not yet know. I eagerly anticipate the chance to knit together, getting to know the project you will become, and falling in love a little more every day. I promise to love and cherish you through whatever knitting may bring us.
I'm promising to work on only the items that have currently been cast on. It's a lot. It's not like I'll be bored or that there isn't plenty to choose from. This is only a trial marriage and with provisions. I'm trying this until I can't take it anymore and then it's divorce court.
To make this an easier transition, I made sure that more stuff was cast on.
Socks for SuperDad
Yarn: Boogie DK SuperwashPattern: Plain ribbed toe up socks
Needles: US3
I already have socks cast on for SuperMom. I think my Mom reads here time to time so I'm not giving up which socks in the WIP pile are hers. Sorry Mom, I know you like to snoop, no luck today.
Baby Boogie's Xmas Sweater and Girl Beast's *New Year's Sweater
*I'm a realist, there is slim chance both are getting done for Christmas
Yarn: NoroPattern: Boogie
Needles: US6
Mittens for me. It was hard putting these down after 4 rounds. Texas yarn kicks butt. I want to knit so much more on these but I'm trying to get those girls sweaters done.
Yarn: Texas in almost Almost Solid Lettuce and Cranberry (not shown yet)Pattern: Boogie for Spunky Eclectic
Needles: US 2 and 3
Girl Beast Mittens. I started on these last week. It took a while to get her to settle on a yarn. Since her sweater this year will not be handspun, she chose that for her mittens.
Yarn: Handspun 2 ply Bulky - Gummi Bear colorwayPattern: Simple Mittens
Needles: US5
There, that was the full disclosure. I still have an adult sweater that is half done that needs to be completed by the end of the month. That one will be on my lap more than anything. Still, this finishing up is a good thing, even if I had to add to the WIP list.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
It's Done!
Without the flash which really shows the tattoo well.
But I took a second of the tattoo with a flash so you could see the incredible colors.
If ever you're in Maine and want a tattoo, I so highly recommend Jennifer. She's a fantastic artist and a great person. I really enjoyed my day spent there.
Tuesday, November 14, 2006
Fetching
I was thinking of making Mitts as a gift for a friend but the lacy ones I had created a pattern for just didn't seem right for her. Fetching fit the bill perfectly.
They were done using Paton's Classic and US4 needles. I really like them and think they're a beautiful pattern. Still, I wish they were softer. That's when I remembered I had some Alpaca Wool blend that I had in the shop. It's about the same gauge only softer. 
I used My Alpaca Wool and US3 needles. I had a bunch of the Alpaca wool yarn left over. So I would have easily made a longer pair of mitts. I know some people like them long but I think they're better squat for when it's freezing indoors and you want to work around the house, and not turn up the heat.I know everyone in blogland is making these. But there is a reason. I did a pair in 2 days. They are so fast and incredibly easy. I could knit tons of these. But some people want mitts that cover the fingers and so I've switched to full mittens for a time. Including some that I've designed over the summer. I designed them for this yarn:
I know that's a lot of colors. I couldn't stop dyeing and I just loved all the colors. Decisions decisions. I have several patterns all graphed but the pair I chose to do first I wanted to use the Almost Solids yarn:
It's the Texas wool and mohair blend. I don't know if you can really know how fantastic this yarn is without actually touching it. These are my mittens. Don't even think that anyone else is getting their grubby little fingers on them.And go look at Crafty Vera. She made a Fake Isle hat and it's gorgeous!
Monday, November 13, 2006
Eating Monday
Miso in love with Miso.
ok that was bad. But I really do love Miso and I could eat it almost every day. I have a really super quick recipe.
3 tsp Barley miso (or some other Miso if you want it to be gluten free)
3 cups water
1/2 cup sliced onion
1/3 package of cubed tofu
1-2 good handfulls of sliced mushrooms.
I just throw it all into a sauce pot without the Miso. Cook it up until everything is soft. Take soem of the hot water and mix it into the MISO paste to dissolve then add that into the pot. It's ready then. Thank you Faith for reminding me not to boil my Miso Easy. It also leaves a lot of room for changes. You can have it plain, without any of the "stuff" in it - just Miso and water. You can replace the tofu with chicken. Baby Boogie loves the tofu from the Miso soup, the flavor is really good even all by itself.
The Floor
Dad is so fast that the floor was done in about 4-5 hours. Incredible. What's even more incredible is that he offered (or rather my Mom offered for my Dad) to paint our walls for us. Since construction is his occupation, and he's really really good at what he does, I'm thrilled that he'll be painting my walls. I guarantee he'll do a better job. I'm not just saying this because he's my Dad and I love him, it's true. He works with a crew that is in high demand. They're usually booking the big jobs 6 months or more in advance and then fitting the small jobs (like painting someones living room) when they can.This means things stay in boxes a little while longer, but it will be worth it in the long run. I promise to take some good pictures once it's all done. We haven't picked the wall color but right now we're leaning towards something called red clay or a grey mauve-ish color. But for right now, we're dancing happy that we have a new floor.
The Knitting
I'm busting butt to get a few designs done. Somethings for the shop, something for Magknits, and something for each of my girlies. I swear I have way too many designs running around my head and written on paper stuffed into my notebook. I must write out the patterns for 3 times as many items as I actually get to knit. One of these days I'll be able to sit on my butt and knit all day.Until that day I'll plug along stitch by stitch...
Friday, November 10, 2006
Cleaning = Disturbing
Several of you are agreeing with that statement without even knowing what is disturbing me at the moment about the cleaning.
1. Just the act of cleaning. Of course we all know the act of cleaning is disturbing in and of itself. I get shivers just thinking about it. I'm digging in corners and going through things I hadn't thought about it in years. *ick
2. Putting all of my knitting books into boxes. I like to look at them. More than that though, I like to know that I can get at them when I need/want to. The majority of them are in boxes under other boxes. It's a sad sad thing.
3. I finally have a real visual of all the WIP's. Well, sort of. I have that WIP page but it's nothing like seeing all the bags in one place. I have a bucket full of the smaller project bags that I didn't take a picture of but I have all my big bags in one place too. These are the bags of doom:
What's in them? 1=Socks and yarn for mittens. 2=A handspun sweater and yarn that I started 2 years ago. 3=Baltic. 4=Yarn for mittens and one pair of mittens in progress. 5=Thrummed mittens and a pair of socks in progress 6=Klaralund. 7=Sweater for Magknits. And we're going to ignore that I added another one that I had in the bedroom with Kepler in it. I really need to finish this stuff.4. This is what the living room looks like right now.
Bare subfloor that I swear I'm going to get splinters from. Things are scattered all over in other rooms and hallways. The fishtank needs to be cleaned and to be moved today. Fingers are crossed that the room will look much prettier after the weekend. A couple of things make it to the not so disturbing pile.
Finished socks.
Knitty's RPM
Spunky Sport weight yarn in the "Gunsmoke" colorway. Yes, there are 2 different lots there. I bet Dad won't even notice it.
US 2 needles.
I made the smallest size and since I changed the guage by using sport weight yarn, they're the perfect size for my dad.
She got up early to READ!
I know she still looks asleep but she's reading. Last night when we got the books from the library, she started to read in the car and wouldn't put it down until it was done. That Junie B must be some good stuff.The sky is gorgeous and we're suppose to have a nice day today.
Although I suspect I'll be working and then finishing up the living room. We're even talking about painting while the furniture is moved. I think that's just insanity because that means we'll be getting paint and starting that today if we so decide. yipes.I hope everyone else has a more relaxing weekend.
Wednesday, November 08, 2006
Last Update for a while
I swear I'm not doing this every week.
This will be it until November 24th.
Unless of course you empty the shop then I'll have to add some to tide it over.
Alpaca, Silk, BFL, Wool Blend, Merino, Romney Superwash merino....
Bulky Yarns including a new Bulky yarn
I restocked the Lichen Fingering weight yarn
Sport weight yarns including more Texas - get going on those mittens!
Worsted weight Alpaca yarns have been added
Thank you for all your voting comments. Hopefully we won't have to be fighting for our own right to vote. We're having to fight for so amny other rights these days, I'm hoping we don't lose any. You all rock for getting out there and voting.
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
VOTE
You have no idea what impact your vote/your voice will have unless you use it. People fought so we'd have the right to vote. People are still fighting in other countries so that they may have the right.
I intend to use my voice, I hope you use yours.
Monday, November 06, 2006
Eating Monday
I think I might have posted this before and I'll probably post this again. I get asked for this recipe all the time. It's an Irish Soda Bread Recipe that I've gotten out of Moosewood Restaurant Low-fat Favorites cookbook. But I've altered it a bit and for a change, I'm not the only one that loves it.
Boogies Irish Soda Bread
3C whole Wheat flour
2T Vegetable oil
1C Soymilk
1 tsp salt
1 tsp baking soda
2 Tbs packed brown Sugar
1 cup dried Cranberries
Preheat oven to 350F
Mix it all up. the dough shouldn't be liquidy or crumbly. It should be all moistened and a big mass. You form onto the pan like so:
Obviously the picture is after cooking. I usually bake it for 30-40 minutes. I know it seems like a long time to wait for something so good, but it's worth it.Here at Boogieland
I don't imagine I'll be getting much knitting time this week. We're finally putting our noses to the grindstone and we'll be cleaning out the living room in preperation for new flooring. The flooring has been in our garage since the summer of 2005. We're just really good at procrastinating.
Procrastinating no more. I'm excited at the idea of getting rid of these nasty icky carpets. Still, I need to finish Dad's socks. Dad's birthday is Friday and he'll be working so nicely on our house so he most definitely needs those socks. Luckily I finished the whole 2nd leg at a hockey game this past weekend. I love hockey knitting. Of course, I forgot to take a picture of the progress. I'm almost done witht he second sock and then because I did afterthought heels, I'll need go back and do both of those. I can do it.
Friday, November 03, 2006
Grammy's Afghans
First, thank you all who are interested. Grammy was so excited yesterday when I told her. Just the thought that people will love and appreciate her work has made her so happy.
That's a picture I took of Boogie Baby and a tiny afghan Gram made her so she can carry it around without trippig. If you've been following the blog, you know Gram has had a stroke. She can't read anymore and has had to give up many of her other activities. Thankfully she can still crochet. So crochet she does. When I visited her to take these photos, there were at least 40 of them on the shelf in her stash closet. Gram worked up until her stroke this spring so now her days are filled with a few tasks she's still abel to do for my Mom but mostly she crochets. I know she misses earning some of her money herself. If you have use for a Grammy made afghan you can order HERE.
As for myself....
I haven't had time for much. I even had a SpinOff sitting on my table for 3 days, unopened. I know, that's crazy, simply insane. Yesterday while I was having lunch I figured I could flip through it quickly before I had to do something for the girls and I saw this:
How uncanny I thought. That looks so much like the wheel I bought 2 years ago. Even the picture with the wooded background, it looks like the picture the owner of the wheel had sent me when I first inquired about it. How interesting that there are 2 wheels that were taken with photos the same way.I didn't say I was quick on the uptake.
Of course I had to read on. Indeed it is my wheel. I'm guessing the article is an old one that is being re-run. Anita is the really sweet lady who sold me that wheel 2 years ago. I love that wheel. I used it quite a bit and am working on making modifications so it can be used more. I thought of selling it, but there is something making me hang on to it. Still, if does get sold it's going to Miss Anj so I know it won't be far.
I have been spinning, just not on that wheel. I can't believe I forgot to post my yarn from the October Club. You people really need to keep me to task.
So there it is. I know, the fiber was wild. I've avoided the bright crazy colors with club for the most part. I figured though, that the club is about stretching our horizons and it would be good to have something different. Different it was.
I started out doing a single ply thick and thin. I was thinking that these would make good quick mittens for the kidlets. But then I changed my mind. I finished off half the roving in the thick and thin, I'll use it for an edging on a hat or mittens.
I decided to take the second half of the roving and spin it thin, then ply with black. I'd like to say to you that for the black ply I used a single of my black Merino. I cheated. I've had this black lace weight yarn in my stash forever. I was moving it around the other day for the umpteenth time and decided I needed to do something with it. So there's my little secret. The 2 ply yarn is 1 ply Falkland Monster Mash while the other is some annonymous black yarn. the good thing about the black yarn is that it's a wool and nylon blend. This will now be perfect for socks. And because of the way it's spun, it will stripe. Yay socks! They might be more of the Stella socks once I get the pattern rewritten.
Click HERE You can watch my progress. It's half done. I just need to finish up with the toe and heel.
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Drowning no more
So much wool. I'll still update on November 8th as planned but I need to fill the poor little empty shop and get some of this out of my way so I can dye more.
Alpaca, Corriedale, Silk Merino, BFL, Wool Blend, Merino, Superwash merino....
Lace and Mohair
Fingering weight yarns
Sport weight yarns including new ALPACA
Worsted weight yarns
Remember this little diddy?:
Finally you can get the PATTERN and the YARN to make it.
For another free pattern of mine - Please ignore the SharPei attached to my neck
Tomorrow I'll post some of Grammy's afghans and info on ordering so those that are interested can get one. You all are so wonderful. You don't know how happy you've made my Gram. You all rock.