Behind the scenes of Swink!

When the Knitty surprise came out last week with my newest pattern, Swink!, I was in the wilds of rural Alaska getting ready to go on a 4-day rafting trip with my daughter Selma. We had a little bit of

Modular Crochet Returns…

Astute commenter “ddkayton” tracked down an old post of mine today from 2006 (!) to let me know that Judith Copeland’s wonderful 1978 book “Modular Crochet” is back in print. When I started designing, I began to accumulate a small collection

Oh, Stella…

I have a new crush. I haven’t been talking about her because I didn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings (Ukuleles can be so sensitive!). Her name is Stella, and while we’ve been living together for a few months, we’re just

Worm’s-Eye View

Worm’s-Eye View “Things are changing too fast,” says the grandmother, 73. “She doesn’t have to use the new things,” says the daughter, 15, digital native, born in the third month of a new millennium. The Thinkers say we’ve progressed as much

Eleven Things I Did Not Write a Poem About

Eleven things I did not write a poem about The leak in my bathroom The new squeak from my car Sunshine or ukuleles The angst of adolescence Airplanes My mountains of laundry Moonrise over the mountain Peeps Red plastic cups in

Deep Thoughts from the Back Seat (A Haiku)

“I think,” the boy said “Many decisions for kids start with candy.”(Day Two of the National Poetry Month challenge.)

Broken Pastry

Broken Pastry

Broken Pastry My grandmother’s pie crusts were perfect. Fragile containers holding the sweet fruits of her small hands’ hard work. My own crusts were hard and tough as I experimented and strayed from tradition. Until someone taught me a method I could master. Cold fat.

Hanging in there…

Hanging in there…

The last couple weeks I got some stuff done (like I had an article published an article in the Capital City Weekly), and made progress on other stuff, but not without the obligatory productive procrastinating. For instance, I finally made

Fire and Fiber Break the Ice

For the month of March, my students from my latest artist in the schools residency at Juneau Douglas High School are exhibiting their work in the gift shop at the Juneau Arts and Culture Center. The lovely folks at the

Please Use Me

This is my favorite find from a recent trip to Anchorage. I was wondering through a sweet little shop downtown called Balliwick. The shop is small and well-curated with a sense of humor. And the last time I was there