Monday, May 17th, 2010
One afternoon we walked to The Cup & Crumpet in Woodstock, VA for lunch and tea. We ordered a Pot for Two of their house blend loose tea. It was delicious and well brewed with no bitter taste. The tea was served with the proper equipment – tea strainer with holder, cream pitcher, and sugar bowl. The Asian floral Kup Kap was my tea equipment!
We ordered a hot bowl of tasty tomato bisque soup with chunks of tomatoes and onions floating in it. I felt adventurous and ate the sardine quiche. It was a nice blend of flavors and very moist with a flaky crust. Soups and quiche are made from scratch on site with the owners’ grown vegetables or bought organic vegetables.
Our tea was still hot when we ate our desserts because it was served in a teapot covered by a tea cozy. This was a real treat because tea cozies are rarely used in tea shops or restaurants. The desserts change daily and are baked on site. I enjoyed a piece of Hummingbird Cake, a popular southern cake which may have originated from Jamaica. It’s a frosted banana cake filled with pineapple chunks and layered with cream cheese filling. Perry loved the traditional Bread pudding with rum sauce, one of his favorite desserts!
I experienced a second dessert when I walked into the next set of rooms and found a yarn shop called Fibersmyth. There is always room in the suitcase to take home new yarns!
Posted in Beverage accessories, Cities to visit, Coffee & Tea shops, Great places to dine, Knitting, Kup Kap, Tea, Tea Tabard, Tisane | No Comments »
Monday, March 8th, 2010
Photo: Kup Kap on glass mug.
Knitting a scarf with yarn from Windsor Button in Boston, MA is a great way to celebrate St. Patrick’s Day thoughout March!
After an online search for Boston yarn shops, I found Windsor Button within walking distance of our hotel. It opened in 1936 and sells sewing, craft, and knitting supplies. Entering the shop, I saw a wall of drawers that reminded me how buttons were sold before they were displayed on wall hooks and rotating racks.
I walked the long wall gazing in awe at the unique buttons attached to the fronts of the drawers. Because I’m a sewer, beautiful buttons are as fascinating to me as precious stones are to a jeweler! I’ve spent hours looking for the perfect buttons to complement my sewing projects.
Near the front of the store was a huge box filled with thousands of buttons. The sign read “Bulk Buttons 25 cents each or $5.00 per box. I wondered how long it would take to count all those buttons!
A unique shopper in a unique store!
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Friday, June 26th, 2009
I’ve enjoyed knitting on airplanes for four years with no problems. I received a stern look from a flight attendant only once while knitting in an exit row. She asked for my verbal agreement that I was willing to open the emergency door. I replied, “Yes, as soon as I knit to the end of the row!” I learned not to joke about emergency procedures!
I carry two knitting projects with me. One project is easy so that I can put it away quickly without concern for picking it up again. The other is more difficult for knitting in airports. Both projects are on circular needles with 2-3 rows knitted. I put each in a clear, zippered plastic bag along with a copy of the pattern directions. The only tool I carry on board is a crochet hook. The rest of the yarn and tools are packed in my checked luggage.
With the plastic bags in the outside pocket of my roller backpack, it’s easy to take a project out. With the yarn in the pocket, I can knit sitting or standing.
After buckling in, I’m very careful not to bother my seat mates. I choose small projects, knit scarves lengthwise, and use no more than two different yarns. I use circular needles because it’s very difficult trying to find a single needle dropped on a plane floor while not elbowing your seatmate!
I put my knitting and water bottle with a Kup Kollar (cup sleeve) on it in the seat pocket.
As a side note, I’m wearing one of my pairs of Skechers shoes because they’re very comfortable and stylish. I have walked many miles in my Skechers after reaching my destination!
I stopped knitting to play with my new Sony Cyber-shot DSC-H50 camera.
This photo reminds me of a conversation with a 2 year old on a previous flight. The toddler told me he could see a big plane outside his window. I was really hoping he couldn’t! Excitedly, he pointed out his window at the wing of our plane saying, “See! See the big plane!”
Tags:bottles, cardboard, coffee, cold, cosy, cover, cozies, cozy, cup, drinks, eco, friendly, hot, insulated, knitters, knitting, Koffee, Kompanions, mug, needles, paper, plastic, recyclable, scarf, sleeve, take-out, tea, Thinsulate, travel, warmers, water, wool, wrap, yarn
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Saturday, January 31st, 2009
When we decided to walk into one of the animal houses to warm up, we discovered giraffes eating their dinner from a very high feed trough. No offense to the giraffes, but their home didn’t smell very good!
We went to the zoo café to buy hot drinks while we waited until time to walk to the bus stop. Sean and Colleen did a bit of texting while sipping their drinks kept warm with their holiday Kup Kollars (cups sleeves).
Pam pulled out her knitting. I’ve seen this focused expression many times!
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Wednesday, January 28th, 2009
Colleen and Pam tried to stay warm in 3 degree weather. Pam said we looked like the Family of Hand Knits because she had knitted the two hats, her mittens, and scarf. I knitted Colleen’s scarf. Their Kup Kollars (cup sleeves) aren’t knitted but are insulated with Thinsulate insulation used in jackets!
We walked over to watch the elephant light display because it had movement. First they were standing in a row.
Next, one elephant lifted her trunk and sprayed the elephant standing nearby! We didn’t stay long because we had to keep moving to stay warm!
Posted in Cities to visit, Denver, Entertainment/Events, Knitting, Kup Kollar | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 28th, 2008
Knitters usually have a mug or glass of something to drink while they enjoy their habit or in my case obsession! Knitters need Kup Kaps (cup lids) and Kup Kollars (cup sleeves) because they’ll keep beverages hotter or colder, longer while they sit and click.
Your favorite knitter will love these gifts! I used curling ribbon to tie a Kup Kap on Margaret E. Fisher’s excellent new knitting book “Seven Things that can Make or Break a Sweater”. The pint frogged glass is available on Ravelry. I filled the glass with yarn, slipped on a Kup Kollar, and tied a ribbon around the knitting needles.
Posted in Coffee, Gift Ideas, Knitting, Kup Kap, Kup Kollar, Tea, Tisane | No Comments »
Saturday, October 25th, 2008
During Margaret’s knitting class “Amazing Accessories: Knit a Headband” held at The Textile Museum in Washington DC, she had her students share things about themselves and their knitting. She joined in with her own interesting stories.
On one break, Margaret told us about her first knitting book that was coming out soon called “Seven Things that can Make or Break a Sweater”. It was fun hearing about her book writing experiences. A short time later, I was pleased to read a great review in my newsletter from Knitter’s Review about her book!
While I’m knitting, I enjoy a glass of iced tisane. The yarn skeins Kup Kollar (cup sleeve) is appropriate to use on the pint glass which I bought in the Ravelry web store. Margaret’s book will help me avoid having to “rip it, rip it”!
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Wednesday, October 22nd, 2008
Perry and I were traveling to Washington DC so I googled yarn shops. Much to my delight, I found knitting classes at The Textile Museum the day after we arrived! I signed up for Margaret E. Fisher’s class “Amazing Accessories: Knit a Headband”. I loved every minute of the 3 hour class! Margaret, a Knitting Guild Association Master Knitter, is an excellent teacher who is patient, interesting, skilled at teaching the technique, and very good at getting the knitters involved in the class!
Along with Margaret’s list of supplies for the class, I packed my knitting print Kup Kollar (cup sleeve). The night before the class, I put a water bottle into the hotel room’s freezer. The day of the knitting class, I slipped my Kup Kollar onto the water bottle and enjoyed refreshing cold water during the class.
After class, Margaret was kind enough to pose for a blog photo. She’s holding her headband knitted with three colors of yarn. I apologized to Margaret for the “alien” eyes!
Using Margaret’s technique, there were only 6 tails to weave in when I finished knitting my headband! I can adapt this technique to change the width and length of the headband. I can also use it for a purse project.
The Textile Museum in DC has classes, tours, and exhibits.
This beautiful garden is behind The Textile Museum!
What was Perry doing while I was in the knitting class? He explored the neighborhood and found this unique bear statue almost five feet high!
Later, Perry found this park bench with a plaque on it that said “In memory of Patricia Susan Feldman and her commitment to ensuring that people could read” where he sat and edited. The beautiful park was located near The Textile Museum on S Street, NW.
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Sunday, August 10th, 2008
Throughout the day Pam and I returned to the vendors’ building several times at the Estes Park Wool Market. It was a paradise of beautiful fibers and yarns which all began as bags of hair from animals!
And when those hair fibers are spun into yarn, you can knit a stylish purse! I knitted this one with 5 different yarns. Of course, it had to have a color coordinated Kup Kollar (cup wrap) for hot and cold drinks!
Posted in Colorado, Entertainment/Events, Knitting, Kup Kollar | No Comments »
Thursday, August 7th, 2008
Pam and I went to the arena to watch the llamas at the Estes Park Wool Market. They were competing for best pack animal. The judge explained the strengths and weaknesses of each animal when she gave out the 6 ribbons. The llama in the photo won the blue ribbon. While watching, I ate a snack and drank cool water thanks to my Kup Kollar (bottle wrap) on the bottle!
Next we watched the Llama Limbo. The owners led the llamas to the cross pole and tried to get them to go under. The cross pole was moved down a notch each time the group finished a round. If the llama knocked the cross pole off, it was eliminated. Some of the llamas dropped to their knees and slowly scooted under. One llama trotted up to the cross pole as if it were going under but stopped short and put its chin on the pole!
In the next game the llamas had to jump over the cross pole with the same rules as above. As the pole was placed higher, it became harder for the owners to leap over the pole than the llamas!
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