High Tea Holidays

High Tea with Hailey

Mamacat and I made our annual pilgrimage to the Heathman Hotel for holiday tea:

Terez by the Tree

It might be after December 25th but the decorations were just as lovely, and the real tree we were seated near scented the air delightfully.

Treat Tower

The menu didn't change too much this year--old friends: opera cakes, scones with marscapone cheese, smoked salmon and chicken salad and cucumber sandwiches were back. As were our favorite treats, the mini jam and honey jars:

Mini Marmalade

We had to box up the top layer of desserts and bring it home.

Pink Dishes and Pearls

My niece is just old enough to be enchanted by the idea of a tea party. We decided to have our own this morning, complete with jam sandwiches, shredded wheat biscuits and tangerines:

Tea for Three

Lily Belle isn't quite ready to drink out of her own cup but next year I predict we'll have another one at our table.

Cheers!

XO and happy new year!

Terez

Mamacat's Palette

Mamacat's Palette

I hope she lets me take the Mt. Hood study!
XO Terez

Christmas 2011

Stitched by Mamacat, 1989

Merry Christmas, all!
XOXO Terez

Saturday Stroll

Starling Sitting

Lunch Buddies

Canadian Invasion Formation

Too Shy for the Camera

After finishing some Christmas errands I decided to walk from Park Street to Hynes through the Common and Public Garden. I was treated to a show of starlings gobbling up red berries and Canadian Geese participating in a glamorous synchronized swimming performance. The ice skaters cutting away at the Frog Pond looked a little out of place with the green grass and balmy temps. Will we have another record snowfall this year? {I hope not!}

XO Terez

Old Shale

Old Shale Stitch

For as long as I've been stitching, I've wanted to make a chevron or ripple blanket. I have tried, many, many times to learn to crochet properly because I thought it was the only way to make one of these fascinating yarn-stash-busters:

Great Grandma Ripple Blanket Modeled by Anna Cat Bebe

But behold, the knitting pattern Old Shale:

Hail the Old Shale

This is my first attempt. I read about it on Ravelry. I knew I could do it--I knew it.

The pattern is so easy--it's just a repeat of four simple rows:
Cast on 20 stitches
Row One: K 20
Row Two: K 1, P 18, K1
Row Three: K 1, [K2 Tog] 3 times, [K1, YO] 6 times, [K2 Tog] 3 times, K1
Row Four: K 20

That's it! It's just the right combination of mindless knitting and purling for three rows and one row of increasing and decreasing. It's worked in multiples of 18--I added the single knit stitch at the beginning and ending of each row to help decrease curling. I watched a very helpful YouTube video by iknitwithcatfur (??) that helped me get the groove going.

Corner Curve

I have 840 yards of Malabrigo Worsted Noviembre yarn that I'm thinking of doing a tiny shawl or wrap with in this pattern:

Malabrigo Noviembre Test Shale

I knitted up a test swatch this afternoon and I think it will work nicely.

But first: I must finish Christmas sewing. There are not enough hours in the day.

XO!
TEREZ