Comfort

There has been a little too much comfort food this week. First I read Pozy Gets Cozy and became obsessed with her Coconut Custard. I have never baked a custard before--can it be done and still jiggle abit? Apparently, yes...

Turns out that it sets up after being out of the oven for a bit. (Its so good to have an aunt who is a cooking whiz!) The recipe is easy-peasy and really yummy. Bake up a bit of comfort for yourself.

Wednesday for dins, the girls and I went to Devil's Alley. I indulged in their mac and cheese. So so fabulous...my arteries are clicking shut just thinking about it. The crowning touch to their mac and cheese is tomato jam. I know a lot of people serve stewed tomatoes with theirs, but I often find the tomatos really acidic. This was sweet yummy bliss.

And because I cannot seem to get enough coconut this week, I had to stop at Brown Betty Petite and get a cupcake...chocolate with cream cheese icing and coconut. Somebody please stop me.

Fortunately not all comforting things this week were food related. I knit up this cozy hat using some of the alpaca from the visit to Southwind Farms. The pattern is Felicity (Rav link) by Wanette Clyde. Super quick knit, nothing tricky--my only suggestion is that it seems to run a bit on the small side. I got gauge (I know!) but ended up ripping it out and going up a needle size so the hat wouldn't shoot off the back of my head. I might give this another go, adjust for a chunkier yarn and add a little more length in the top to give it more slouch.

Oh MY!!!!

David has a huge unit!

(giggle, giggle)

Cuckoo for Cowls

They are everywhere, everyone is knitting them, and Ravelry has a zillion patterns. What could be better for a quick, cozy Christmas gift? Oh yeah, and an excellent stash busting exercise as well!

Here is Sherry, modeling the Tamarind Cowl (Ravelry link). I knit this using one skein of Manos del Uruguay. This is a free pattern download! Loved knitting this, very easy, quick and visually interesting. The recipient loved its lipstick red color...Philly in the winter needs some punchy color.

Cowl number two was knit with one skein of Manos as well. The pics of this, not so good. This is the Darkside Cowl (Ravelry link). Not a bad knit, but I am not certain that this was the right pattern for the right yarn. Love the color, but it might have needed a yarn with less substance and more drape than the Manos.

This is the Aibhlinn, knit with some modifications. The original pattern is for a very loose drapey cowl that you could pull up over your head, like a smoke ring. I cast on only 101 stitches to make a much closer fitting cowl. The yarn is from the fabulous alpacas of Southwind Farms, that I scored on last year's New England road trip with the girls. It is so soft and smooshie, I have started knitting a hat with some other yarn I got there. The other thing that I love about this cowl is the bobbles...my very first! Now I am almost as much of a bobble fan as Marissa. Okay, maybe not quite as bobble-crazed, but I am working on it.

Having knit three for girlfriends, I decided that I needed some for myself. This is the Stacked Eyelet Cowl. I bought this skein of medium weight Socks that Rock in the Hard Rock colorway several years ago. We had a love/hate relationship...so ugly that surely it was cool. I couldn't visualize this as socks and had no brilliant ideas on how to use it. Then this cowl came along and it looked like the design would hold up well to a high contrast yarn. I zipped through this one, and really love the results with one small catch. When I washed it, all umph left the yarn and now I have a yarn necklace rather than cowl. I'll be ripping this back and taking about 2 1/2 inches out of the circumference. There was a ton of yarn left over, so I made myself some wrist warmers to match. They have been a big hit since I have the heat turned down low.

This week's cowl is a modification of the Bubbles & Cables Cowl (Ravelry link), knit in Plymouth Suri Merino. The color....why Lisa Blue...of course! I have been wearing this all week. LOVE IT! Alpaca, Lisa Blue and bobbles, what is there not to love?

I don't think this is the end of my cowl kick. There are way too many great patterns out there, and lots of yarn in my stash. And right now I can use some instant gratification in my life.