I exchange gifts with a number of friends around the country. This is supposed to be a Christmas exchange, but sometimes, things get delayed. It’s fine, because it’s so much fun getting a fun package in January.
Vivian is from Texas, got to love Texas, Texans are full of state pride.
What I really love is the shawl she knit me. Not only did she knit it, she also dyed the yarn. She is now my source for hand-dyed yarn, Hillview Yarns.
January in LA means the Camellias are blooming. I have one bush, but my neighbors’ bushes always show off with a riot of color.
I happen to be wearing a sweater I knit that matches this shawl perfectly. How cool is that?
Then there is the gift I made. Shannon Fabrics has put out a very easy pattern for this blanket, using both their double gauze fabric and their super soft cuddle.
I didn’t pre-wash the fabrics, just threw it into the machine after I put it together, it came out great.
Eyal likes it.
He sure is getting big. Very serious right here, although these days, he has that wonderful baby smile – where his whole face lights up. I was too busy enjoying the smiles to worry about getting a picture.
Leah
This is a sight to see. For years we were forbidden to call it The May Company – it became LACMA west and the language police were very strict with anyone connected to the museum, especially the docents. Then a deal was made and it will become a Hollywood museum and now one can call this the May Company again. I wonder if this museum will deal with the abuse of women and children that goes on in the industry or if it will be another puff piece that shows us the unreal veneer of the industry.
It is amazing to see what becomes an icon. These lampposts have certainly become iconic. Not so sure about the floating rock, we never even went to check it out. 
The Chagall exhibit was bright, colorful and fun. Shira said that she loves this costume and wants to wear it. That in my book in a big success.
Aytan wanted to go visit the Japanese pavilion. He really likes these pots, go figure, one would think that he’d be interested in big bombastic things. But no, it’s the pots. Then I got smart and I gave him my phone. He ran around and took pictures of everything, here are just a few.
It is wonderful seeing something from a different angle. From my point of view I see the god more than the dwarf. I didn’t check out the label, but to me this looks like the Japanese version of Siva stamping out the dwarf of ignorance.
I cropped this a little, what I didn’t crop out is the person, because it was part of the picture that Aytan took.
He took this picture again, without the person, he was going for the ceramic vase. I love how he captured this man as well.
Another image I love, just because I’d never take this, but he did.
There was a special exhibit on Japanese cloisonne, what interested Aytan was taking pictures of the catalog, these are just two, but he did take quite a few.
As well as many pictures of the painted panels. I think the theme is the atmosphere. Even in this image, that waterfall is incredible, IRL it is all the more so.
I think these are rocks, I may be wrong, they may be made of fabric. For me, this visit was all about letting Atyan lead the way. It wasn’t about reading labels.
Laying out the quilt, I like breaking the symmetry.
Here is the final top, you’ll notice that I have a section of the background in the gazelle block. I love that secondary design and it only showed up once, so I encroached on the gazelle.
Here is the result, nice clean ruler work, but what would happen when I go home and work on actual patchwork? Eyals’ quilt was the testing ground.
See how nice and straight the outline is? I’m showing the back here, because the quilting is invisible on the print fabric I used.
It wasn’t all ruler work, on the animals, I tried to highlight their shapes and then echo around them.
Using the quilting to emphasize the owls’ eyes.
On the dark brown chevrons, you can actually see the ruler work, on the green diamonds you can’t even see the quilting.
Finished! Well, except for a label that I need to embroider.
How cute is the back? I used up a lot of my animal prints, a whole forest back there.
I showed the quilt to the Dads and put Eyal on it, he is still small, it will be fun to take pictures of him on it periodically. Right now, I need to make a label, show it off at my guilds, and then give it to Eyal.
Three years, ever since they got married they have been trying to get a baby and now they have their son. He is a preemie, so is still in the hospital in OH and I won’t meet him in person for a few weeks. Which is very hard, but he is here and adorable and healthy and before you know it I’ll have him in my arms.
He is home! He is precious! He still doesn’t have a name. Well, all the officials know his name, but not the rest of us.
It started out ok, I wasn’t thrilled with how the pattern was written, but I worked through it. Off the bat one of my problems was the complexity of the cable. I guess I’m just not into knitting complicated cables where I really have to pay attention to the chart. When the two cables are mirror image it is even harder to try and memorize the cable pattern.
I kept at it, the yarn is Sweet Georgia and it is a delight to knit with.
I finished the body, sure unblocked it doesn’t look very good.
It’s not the irregularities in the cable pattern that bother me so much. (There are plenty of mistakes, I can assure you). It how low the back of the neck is. I’m not young, all the heat escapes from my body through the neck and back of shoulders. Which is why I have so many shawls. But I don’t want a low neck on a wool sweater.
I’ve knit Joel a few hats. Aytan wanted to be like his Saba and wear one of the hats. Knitting a child’s hat out of bulky yarn is easy to do, so overnight, I made a hat.
It is nice warm wool, good for when he goes skiing in December.
I put in my label, which is something of a problem, since he tells me it’s now my hat. Even though it’s too small for me.
One happy Aytan. (and Saba Joel)
Having a granddaughter who really wants dresses is amazing. Doesn’t get better than this.
Showing off the dress, I think she was giving a curtsy, Sophia the First was a favorite show for a while.
Shira also announced that she only wants fabric with flowers. Luckily I have some that fits the bill.
She is so photogenic it is scary. She told me she likes eating the rosemary right off the bush. Ok, I like to use it as seasoning.
The pattern was for a party dress, I removed some of the fullness from the skirt, she is going to wear this on a daily basis until I make her another dress.
The cumberbund detail adds some flair.
It is lovely, tiny wale and very lightweight.
A dress with pockets! Always a good thing.
Now, onto sewing some skirts and tops.
I found one! I ordered it from an etsy seller, but latter I saw that Simplicity still prints this one. I can highly recommend it. Together we went to Joan’s and Aytan chose the fabric, green of course.
He is an impatient little fellow, he thought I could wip it up in an hour. Of course he was happy to help stuff the tail. He was unhappy to go home without the costume.
The scales are made from felt, I added strong interfacing, I really want them to stand on their own.
A very well designed costume. with claws on the feet and a seperate hood. There also are gloves, but I skipped those. He will need the use of his hands.
It was a hot summer day when I finished this. Let’s hope it is cool on Halloween.
A very happy Aytan! He immediately put it on and started roaring. Saba Joel does a good job roaring even without the costume.
First it was a run around the yard.
Then he took his matching dinosaur puppet and we had to go for a walk to the park.
People stopped and looked, which was fine. Aytan just told them that it’s not dark yet, but soon it will be and it will be Halloween.
I like the elastic under the shoe, it did help the foot stay in place.
I just love this dinosaur proudly walking around.
We have great beaches in Los Angeles, even if I’m not much of a beach person, and certainly not one to go into our frigid waters.
I’m happy to go and be the photographer, while the young uns have fun.
This year Cameron is in Mommy’s arms, by next year he’ll be right there in the water with his brother.
This needs to be on a greeting card.
Ok, I wasn’t even here, I took the pictures from my Dils feed. But it’s a great picture of grandma and Shira heading to the ocean.
While Atyan plays in the sand.
I did go the the beach with Yish and Yoch, we just walked along the water. And burned our feet on the sand during the 1/4 mile hike down to the waters edge. Not only are LA beaches beautiful white sand, for the most part they are pretty wide. Not sure how they prevented development right up to waters edge, but in Santa Monica they succeeded.
Santa Monica Pier on a hot July weekend. We rode the new Expo line from Palms to Santa Monica, it was lovely. The train was full of weekend beach goers.
Somebody got very creative. I understand someone does this on a large scale up in Ventura.
What a balance, not only in the structure, but in the shape and textures of the rocks. Better than many an art piece I’d find in a museum or gallery.
Sometimes it’s nature that provides all the beauty all on it’s own.
I’ve had the fabric in my stash for a while and enough trim left over from the skirt I made for myself.
Even from the back it’s cute. I’m never quite sure which way to overlap the fabric when installing the zipper, oh well.
Ok, maybe not sticking out her tounge.
But this kind of joy and exuberance.
Oh yes, this kind of appreciation will guarantee many more cute dresses.
Nose is a little sharper. Also gave him a bandana, which he will probably lose as soon as the baby gets its hands on him.
This is an improvement but I”m still calling him a fox-bear because he is simply too bear like. I looked at the photo on the pattern and realize that so be it. Their version looks very similar. I was so excited to find this fox pattern I didn’t look closely to see that it wasn’t that fox-like.
This little fox, who looks foxy got his bandana.
The shape of the head, the ears. I should just stick with her patterns.
Two friends, now, I’m thinking that the bandanas need to be a tad larger.
Raccoon is in the works! I have sewed something as well, that will be for another post. Not sure what I’ll do with all of these when the lunch is over. I may keep a few, I have a feeling the older grandkids may want some of them. That is yet to be determined. Meanwhile, it’s back to knitting!