Only in Key West will you see a duck, an Ibis, an Iguana, a chicken and a Seagull all within 5 feet of each other. I wish I had my camera for that. To the 50 year old man on Duval Street wearing a black leather biker jacket, a black tutu and combat boots - you really should have shaved your le...

My brother in law is moving to Austen Texas in 18 days. In 18 days I'm confiscating the room before Stonewall gets any ideas and will begin to transform it into my very own Knit Lounge! Zoe and George are very excited about this up coming event. They have grown weary of sharing the bedroom with...

Remember that I spent an obscene amount of money for a single knitting pattern? Well that is only the begining my dear friends. The pattern calls for 2,133 yards of sport weight yarn. Lovely. Off I went to Knit Picks for the best prices on merino wool. Are you sitting down for this? And may I a...

Being absolutely disgusted with one knitting project means that one can redirect ones attention to another project. Thus, I knit the first sleeve for Pole this weekend. The upper arm was a breeze with round after round of lovely stockinette stitch. When I arrived at the cuff I found that the ...

Well it's been four months since Stonewall Jackson presented me with the Kindle with a fancy Red Cover and I have to say that I enjoy it even more than before. It wonderfuly portable and contains 582 books that are ready and waiting for me at the flip of a switch. And 99.5 % percent of them wer...

Taking things from concept to reality can be a real trick. I had to knit the first neckline three times before I got the stitch placement and details right. Reproducing the second one was a breeze. Then it took a long time to sew the shoulder seams properly. That was a total hassle to say the le...

Year after year Anthropologie consistently designs fabulous knit wear at breathtaking prices. For example this $98.00 cotton ivory cape, with a pretty fluted edge. I need to add this to my wardrobe right away. Its a good thing that I'm a knitter. The shape is simple enough and I think I ca...

The Salvation Army thrift store in Key West is perhaps the dreariest and dumpiest one that I have ever seen. The walls are a dingy yellow that is almost sickly in appearance. The air conditioning is practically non-existent on a good day. I can only be in there for a short time in the summer ...

Well I did it and I knit the sweater in six days. I would have been done a day sooner but I enjoyed a day off to visit with friends. I think my mentors Elizabeth Zimmerman and Barbara Walker would be delighted that I took matters into my own hands and applied thier invaluable lessons to own my...

I have had great lust in my heart for this sweater from Joji Locatelli from the first time my little eyes spied it in Ravelry. The style is trendy and yet classic, which can be dressed up with slacks or casual when paired with demin. I especially like the curvy shape that is well suited for gals...

Barbara Walker was the first knitter to document this stunningly simple method of knitting in a sleeve from the top down and I always use it. It's definitely worth the time to learn. No lumps, bumps, or seaming and no complicated math. The best part is that it fits every single time without fai...

I finished off Hybrid on Friday evening though I did not care for the ending it was a good read. Don't Breathe a Word by Jennifer Mcmahon was next in my que because the description caught my attention. "On a soft summer night in Vermont, twelve-year-old Lisa went into the woods behind h...

SCAPES It's a crazy time of year. I'm learning, as we head into our sixth summer on this property, that June and October are the craziest months of the year on the ol' homestead. Not much spinning or knitting because I don't sit down, except at work, from 5 a.m.-10 p.m. Tired. But in a good way...

This week went by so very fast that I shall recap in bullet fashion.... * Stonewall Jackson and I quietly celebrated our 20th wedding anniversary. I am amazed - that's a whole lot of crazy shared between two people. I want 20 more. Yeah! I like him that much! * By a strange course of events I m...

Like I said I've been doing my best to stay away from Ross because I really don't need another thing. My closet is beginning to bulge. Well last week I had to go in there because a *Client of mine needed a few things from there. As I was walking toward the check out line I spotted a terrific dre...

So we have a lot of tall black locust trees in our yard. Last week they came into bloom. They get white flowers that smell absolutely wonderful. And the bumblebees love them. Some years, we get thousands of bumblebees all bumping around in the trees and the sound is so loud at first you can't ...

I do enjoy a good medical tale especially when it involves bizarre mutating viruses and the CDC. Hybrid fits nicely into this category and so far it has been a good read that was free at one point. As soon as I finish that I'm going on an Indian Jones type of adventure by reading Elisha's B...

I am thoroughly convinced that Key West is permanently encased in a twisted time warp continuum. Very few things get done around here quickly or efficiently because Islanders have a very relaxed and casual attitude about everything. Personally, I think its the relentless and constant heat that ...

In my last post, I shared pictures of a beautiful white Romney fleece I had recently acquired, though I do not want for fleece. The very next weekend, at our annual perennial swap, the previous owner of that fleece brought along another, to share in lieu of plants. I was the only taker. This i...

I survived graduation. The weather was so muggy and hot that it kept my mind distracted from the realization that my baby has grown up though I did tear up during the National Anthem. My camera decided that today of all days that is was not going to cooperate and this is the only picture I have....

Somehow or another my only baby is graduating High School later on this evening. I really don't know how it happened. The other day he was an annoying middle school brat who really made me nuts then he somehow transformed into a pleasant responsible young man. He looks like Neo from the movie ...

Ask anyone who knows me personally, what is my signature color is and they will tell you without hesitation, Red. Not that orangey red but a true proper British Redcoat Red. With that being said I've been trying to avoid Ross because I almost always find something fabby there in my signature c...