Thursday Tab- Whitman Statuette Dolls, #985, 1946

Whitman's Statuette Dolls , #985, published in 1946, came to me in rough shape, and it has a mysterious partial 5th page. I don't know if there is a missing 6th page to this book, or if the partial page came from a different set altogether and was just stuck in with this one.

The dolls are heavy cardboard die-cut dolls, that were affixed to the cover. They're no longer affixed to my cover, but I did scan them in place just to show how they would have looked. The book, and the clothes pages are cheap pulp paper, but the outfits are very nicely drawn, though a couple of them are purely hideous (the Mother Goose Evening Gown in particular).

Whitman had a couple of other Statuette Dolls books, published around the same time, with different dolls, and I assume, different clothes.

Click on images to enlarge, right click to save as jpgs, print clothes on plain paper, dolls on cardstock.

Wednesday Mystery Tab

I don't know if I'll buy these, and I can't post them even if I do buy, but they're surely interesting...
http://www.doverpublications.com/pd08/1a/

I Am Not a Yarn Snob

In fact, I get a little annoyed when knitters make that *ick, acrylic* face around me. But I don't knit with acrylics much, except maybe when I'm in novelty-eyelash-scarf mode. I just prefer the feel of animal fibers (and have never really liked knitting with cotton), without assuming that my preference is a proof of superiority.

But I have a granddaughter who, from a very early age, has been extremely and consistently picky about socks. Long before she knew what a seam was, she would cry and tug at her store-bought socks because the seam bothered her toes. I was delighted to knit her pair after pair of seamless socks, but she wouldn't wear them either- always saying (once she got old enough to articulate the thought) that they were itchy, even when made of 100% merino.

She's 7 now, and loves to look at my yarns, and she often claims skeins for projects for herself, but since she is reluctant to wear what I knit if it itches at all, I haven't made much for her lately. I think I may have found a compromise- acrylic sock yarn. I found some Cervinia Amalfi yarn from Italy (the yarn is from Italy, the seller was in the US) in one of her favorite shades. I'm going to try a pair of lace socks with this yarn (it looks and feels soft, without that *squeaky-ness* that acrylic sometimes has) and see if she'll wear them (without telling her that there is no wool- just in case the aversion is psychological and not physical).

On the Mitered-Square-Leftover Socks, I'm past the cuff and down on the instep. I have 4 rows of 3 squares to do, and then the sole, toes and ribbings. These have been fun to do, though totally fiddly. I was very careful to make sure that the squares matched on the cuffs but I forgot to make them mirror images. The socks will still match, but one seam will be on the outside of the foot, and the other will be on the inside. Oh well.

And I started spinning Ianto, which is hand-painted Finn roving from Yummy Yarns. It's coming out beautifully. I need to have my bobbins clear for Friday, and the beginning of Ravelympics (and that other sporty thing that's happening in China), so I may not get all 4 ounces spun and plied without interruption. I'm not trying to match the beautiful deep purples and blacks or anything, I'll just let the patterning happen however it happens.

I finished spinning/plying the rainbow-dyed Shetland from Winderwood Farms. It's a 3-ply and a light sport weight. I ended up with 220 yds, and lord help me, I think I'm going to knit gloves with it.

I never learn.

Healthy Recipe- Hamburger Chimichanga

These, especially when made with La Tortilla Factory's whole wheat, low carb garlic and herb tortillas, are fantastic. Since there are 8 tortillas in a package, the recipe calls for making up all 8, with the calorie/carb listing for a single assembled tortilla. You can decide if one is enough, or if you want 1 1/2 or even 2. They can be eaten out of hand plain, or you can top them with the usual sour cream/lettuce/tomatoes/olives (my husband prefers Lite Ranch Dressing to Sour Cream). Either way, they're delicious. The unfried chimicangas freeze well, so it's nice to make up all 8 and then thaw and fry them as needed.

You can substitute shredded cooked chicken for the hamburger (about the same calories and carbs), or skip the meat altogether.

Sorry for the bad pic.

Hamburger Chimichanga- Makes 8

8 La Tortilla Factory Whole Wheat Low-Carb Garlic and Herb Tortillas

1lb browned 94% fat free hamburger

1 can refried beans (check the labels- beans vary widely in calorie and carb count)

4 ozs shredded Pepper Jack Cheese

Hot Sauce or Pepper Relish of your choice

2 tbsp Vegetable Oil

Divide and spread the refried beans on the 8 tortillas, covering the entire tortilla. Divide the hamburger evenly, and spread down the center of each tortilla. Sprinkle with a bit of Pepper Jack Cheese, and the hot sauce or pepper relish of your choice. Roll the tortillas, placing them seam down.

Heat the oil in a skillet, place the rolled, filled tortillas seam-down in the hot oil. Fry for several minutes, or until the tortilla is crispy and brown. Turn over and repeat. Remove from pan and drain on paper towels for a minute before serving.

Serve plain, sprinkled with the rest of the Pepper Jack cheese, or top with 1 tbsp Lite Sour Cream, Shredded Lettuce, Diced Tomatoes, and 4 sliced olives.

Fried Chimichanga Plain: 292 calories, 9.5 gr carb @

Fried Chimichanga Topped: 372 calories, 15.5 gr carb @

The Roar of Engines

It's that time of year again- the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally (during which the population of the state increases by about 50%) begins this weekend. Since Sturgis is a good 300 miles east, you'd think that we would not be affected. You would be wrong. We live on one North/South Interstate Highway, and very near the confluence of an East/West highway, and the roar of engines is constant, as real bikers make their pilgrimage to Mecca (play-bikers drive pretty pickup trucks with their matching bikes on matching trailers, and then only ride the last 50 miles or so- there are lots of them driving through as well). Sunup to sundown- it's motorcycles all day.

But I can knit and spin to the sound of Harleys. It's sort of comforting. I made another Bulky Handspun Christmas Hat yesterday- since I'm enamored with mitered squares lately, I tried some on a hat. It turned out well, though I didn't have enough white yarn to make all of the squares bi-colored. I think this hat needs a big red button somewhere.

And I am nearly done with the cuffs of the mitered-square leftover socks. Just one more 6-square row to complete, and then it's on to the insteps (4 rows of 3 squares). These are going to be amusing socks.

I finished spinning the rainbow dyed Shetland roving, and will ply it today, no doubt to the roar of engines.

In Which I Take on Yet Another Deadline

...though this one is for fun. I bottomed out on the Sock Knitters Pentathalon, though not because I wanted to. I just could not pause in the last month of the sock book design/write/go totally insane stage to knit complex socks for fun. I missed the 2nd sock deadline and was disqualified. I still intend to knit the socks, but I am out of the running for a Completion Badge.

But I'm done with the book now (well, not done, but done with the 24/7 knitting and designing), and can therefore (I'm not sure how it happened) be Co-Captain of the Ravelympics Twisted team (for people who are besotted with yarns and rovings from Twisted Fiberarts- and if besottedness is all it takes to be co-captain, hell, I can be the Empress). The team members will knit or spin something from Twisted Fiberarts (or not, we're not exactly strict about our requirements) during the Bejing Olympics. I have entered an event called Handspun Heptathalon, and my personal event/challenge/project is to spin 4 ozs of Twisted roving into a 2-ply laceweight yarn, design a beaded lace scarf pattern, and knit the scarf- to be started and completed between the Opening and Closing Ceremonies.

I'm going to spin this beautiful 100% Merino roving, dyed in a new colorway called Minstrel. Isn't it gorgeous? And though I won't even think about the lace design (much) until I start spinning, I am going to choose my beads in advance. That's not cheating, that's gathering my supplies.

And speaking of Twisted, here are some other new stash additions: The above mentioned Minstrel in roving, and Kabam (wool/bamboo) sock yarn, Firefly BFL roving and Playful superwash Merino sock yarn (I used another braid of Firefly Merino to spin and knit the gloves), and Teacake BFLroving and PLayful superwash Merino sock yarn. All totally gorgeous.

Foot forecast: purple with a chance of green

In Which We Talk About Feet A Lot More Than Usual

Did you know that you can stub your foot into your granddaughter's heel while going up the stairs at the water slide at the city pool, chasing after your 4 year old grandson who is apt to go down the slide without waiting (which is not A Good Thing because he only thinks he can swim and the water is 3' deep at the bottom), register that it hurt like hell but continue chasing after the little one, notice that your little toe is sticking out from the rest of your foot at a 45 degree angle and that you can't move or flex it at all, realize that the kid is still barrelling up the steps intent on hitting the water alone, reach down and push the wandering toe back into line, and then continue with your afternoon (you're in public in a swimsuit, your dignity is already gone, you're going down a water slide with your grandkids and having a marvelous time), and not understand that you actually dislocated your little toe, and then relocated it yourself.

And did you know that a few hours later, you will be very much aware of that last bit????

So I spent much of the rest of the visit shoeless, but busy. I finished a picot-hem ankle sock knit from Twisted Fiberarts Kabam yarn (superwash merino and bamboo) in the Giles Colorway. The texture pattern is super simple (Rnd 1: *K 2 tog, YO*, rep around, Rnd 2: K, knitting each YO as a stitch, Rnds3-7: K) and it complimients the striping very well. As with all of Twisted yarns, the quality of this yarn is top notch. The mate has already been cast on.

And I worked on a fun project- a pair of mitered-square socks, made entirely from leftover sock yarn (all the heavier fingering weight- Socks that Rock, Koigu, Sui Bui, Monarch Fly, and probably some Twisted Playful eventually). I'm going to knit the pair flat, and run the patchworking down the instep, with a solid (or maybe striped, I'm using up leftovers after all) sole. I'll pick up along the upper edge and knit some ribbing eventually.

I'll take pics as I progress, which will probably move a bit quicker than usual, since I won't be running or doing any other exercise that involves standing up, for a few days.

p.s. I had a shot of the bruised foot uploaded but deleted it- it was just too ooky