:: forever and ever ::

hello dear friends, if anyone is out there still...thank you dearly for reading...so much catching up to do, my poor blog. but this happened last weekend!! 27 june, 2015 my youngest, my hannah rose, was married. she and matt came here, back home and said their vows at the salt marsh nature preserve, my middle son officiating, with family and closest friends in attendance. also, there were clouds and fog and wind and even a bit of rain fell. and then at dusk, a rainbow. i believe that all wanted to see the magic that was taking place. the LOVE. more photos coming soon. i hope you are all well!!
xoxo lori

south : : north

back again! i hope you are well and enjoying the season! it is truly autumn here, after a (too warm) spell, we've finally settled on perfect shawl wearing weather. i've taken a couple adventures, met lovely friends, saw amazing things, would you like to come along? again, no camera, only iphone photos were taken. maybe it has been all the travel of late, but the need to go light came first....

i am on the pacific surfliner train, heading almost six hours south to san diego

sitting + watching + knitting + coffee = BLISS

california agriculture

the reason i am in san diego

my girl {and her love} we now live in the same time zone.

we worked all the day, stopping for beach breaks and an occasional meal (YUM!)

 her commute has changed some. 

these two. they drove me back home. and also, hannah taught matt to knit.

we had my girls baby shower, i made her a sleeping sack and gave her a small book that was her own as a child. 

time to pack for the next adventure. going north {my current work in progress still on the needles}. 

met lovely friends, kathy, karen, gudrun

we shopped {homestead seattle}

glassybaby

salish lodge

we ate delicious meals and drank delicious drinks {photo of my own personal shoulder singer courtesy of gudrun} :)

and froze

and visited tolt yarn & wool!

celebrating tolt's one year anniversary. on saturday morning there was a line down the street, happy knitters waiting for the shop to open. it was an experience unlike any i've had before. the beauty of place, the warmth, kindness of people, welcoming atmosphere...left me near tears

{it was incredible to meet so many beautiful friends from blogging and instagram}

rachel, an instagram friend and 'tolt' ~tia! 

{photo by kathy cadigan}

 lovely anna dianich, owner and proprietress of tolt and veronika of yoth {yarn on the house} in the middle. it seems that living in washington makes one beautiful sweet and extremely kind.

{photo by kathy cadigan}

karen and i with the charming and delightful tif ~ dottie angel

 sweet lisa and her bunny (wearing it's own mini hap shawl) she made

and paula works here too! hi paula! ((((hug)))) we were roomies in shetland :)

thank you miss kathy for all the incredible hospitality {puff cloud x 10}

so glad i did not set off your alarm {#sorrynotsorry}

thank you anna

and now no more traveling for a bit, waiting for my new grandbaby 

to land on earth, any minute now!!

thank you for coming along, and always for leaving such kind words,

xxx lori

woolly bottoms

our baby is coming soon! 

i've been making woolly diaper covers

from a pattern found in a vintage book.

they are so simple

and so fun to make, i wanted to share. 

perhaps you have a baby to knit for too!

below modifications and the 'recipe'.

using worsted weight wool and size 6 needles, cast on 100 stitches.

knit 2, purl 2, for approximately 6 rows.

then work an eyelet row:

k2, p2, k2, yo, p2 tog, repeat to the end of the row.

work 6 more rows of rib.

change to garter stitch and begin decrease as follows:

k2, k2tog, knit to the last 4 stitches of the row, k2 tog, k2.

continue decreasing every other row until all stitches are used.

fold together like this

sew ribbing together

then seam the point until half the space is

 left for the leg openings.

 crochet or icord a chain, drawing through the eyelet holes

 done! 

i made tiny knitted leaves for this pair, for another pair, pom poms.

these bottoms measure 7 x 9 inches. i don't think any of the numbers

are terribly important, but i think the cast on amount needs to be divisible by 2 (for the ribbing)

i made a very small newborn pair and cast on 84 stitches. as soon as baby arrives,

i'll have a better idea of how these fit! for now it's fun to experiment.

(leaf pattern found here)

 we're here in mendocino still. i'm happy to have finished this pair so 

i could take photos on our 'driftwood cottage' table. 

and have time to start making another. :)

xxx lori

traveling

hello from california's central (and northern) coast! we are traveling, on a road trip (and boat trip). this adventure is a bit different (for us) and is actually three adventures in one. part one and two are complete (mission accomplished!) and so the most fun part, part three is left, which we are on right now!

part one ~ 

a few hours up the coast, san simeon ~ we spend the evening watching the surf, the sunset and eating fish and chips, and waiting for friends to arrive.

next morning, we all head north to big sur

 in big sur, we cart and carry one kayak, two paddleboards, paddles and several days of equipment and food over a mile down to the beach

making preparations

there they go, can you see the 3 of them out at sea? i watched and made my wishes for nearly an hour, and then slowly began the hike back alone.


part two ~

on my own in big sur i went to my favorite place, nepenthe. such a beautiful day! i ate lunch, knit and watched three acorn woodpeckers and one stellar's jay in the tree directly in front of me!

this is the bathroom at nepenthe. the art painted on the walls is so lovely, everytime i see it it's a thrill. 

 went to the henry miller memorial library next

found a couple books and a tote

 at the hotel (one of the books, and the tote, and knitting!)

 another day i went to hearst castle

 even though i've taken all the tours a few times, i could take the upstairs tour a dozen more (or even more!). the library is amazing. each guide offers something a bit different too, different stories and anecdotes. this time i learned that first lady grace coolidge was once trapped in the elevator. when she was finally found and asked if she were okay, she answered yes, she could yodel and she had her knitting.

part two and a half ~

the adventurers arrive! they'd kayaked and standup paddleboarded 36 miles of big sur coast. returning safe, healthy and happy = successful adventure.


part three ~

patrick and will head back to their homes and families

and now, time for chucks and my adventure together. we spend time with the elephant seals

central coast zebras, and then head north...

to san francisco

then marin county

our bed and breakfast came with chickens  :)

this place!

heading further north still, point reyes seashore

point arena lighthouse, mendocino (we are in the top of the lighthouse!)

and because this happened nine years ago today, we are staying at our favorite place on the entire california coast to celebrate...

here. we'll be back soon, there is so much to share about mendocino and magical alegria!

thank you, as always, for coming along! xxx lori