Life is a bowl of cherries!

I bought two bags of cherries--sweet bing and Ranier --at Weis before I left yesterday. The gadget on the left is my Good Grips cherry pitter. I love that thing! I can pit the cherries and pack them in a zip lock bag for lunch! DH refers to me as the cherry fairy when I put pitted cherries in his lunch! My trip was uneventful. I ended up actually getting on the road about 4 p.m. I was in my hotel at 11:45 p.m. I would have gotten here sooner but I had to stop a few times as I was drowsy. That's very unusual for me when traveling late in the day. I stayed up too late the night before and got up too early. I ended up not being able to go to sleep last night until around 3 a.m. this morning. I got up at 9 so I'm pretty tired. I will actually go to bed at a "reasonable" hour tonight.

First and foremost, I need to share my FO's. First I have one of the sewing variety:


This is Simplicity 4076. I bought enough of this cotton/spandex knit to make another one with long belled sleeves. I was pleased with this. I had to make a couple of modifications. First, I stitched the center front seam about a half inch higher. I tried it on after stitching the side and shoulder seams. The neck was still way too low so I pulled up the shoulder seams about an inch. It was perfect after that! Comfy too!

The second FO is Labyrinth:


Here are the details:
Pattern: Labyrinth by Wendy Bernard for Stitch Diva, Size XS
Yarn: Handmaiden Double Sea, 3 skeins Topaz, 1 skein Ivory
Needles: Addi Turbo size 6 and size 4 (for sleeve ribbing)
Modifications: I increased the number of hip increases. The pattern called for increases to be done every 8th row 6 times. I did them every 5 rows 8 times. I also added 32 rows to the sleeves and increased the total stitch count by 11 inches. I did the sleeve increases every third row over 18 rows. I then decreased back to the original count for the cuff and knit the ribbing on smaller needles. I also added a couple of rows of ribbing. My intent was to have a loose, blousy sleeve which went to my elbow and it worked out well! Short sleeves are very unflattering on my flabby middle-aged arms! The neck ribbing stretched after blocking so I'm not sure if I'll be able to wear it without a cami. I may try to weave some clear elastic through it for support.

Today, I did some work in the NEHGS library then took a stroll through the city park where I ate my lunch.




The city park is incredibly beautiful and it is always busy! People sit around and read or they lounge in the sun. There are strollers and dogs and street musicians. No roller blading or skateboarding. It is just a pleasant place to spend an afternoon. Sometimes I bring a small knitting project and just sit there and chill for a while.

Next I visited:

I'd heard about this place! It's been open since the 1930's. They have an incredible selection of buttons as well as notions, needlework supplies and knitting stuff. I bought the new Norah Gaughan booklet and some Czech glass buttons for the wool coat I hope to make this winter. I hadn't been able to find any buttons that I loved, settling for some plastic ones that looked vintage. These are much nicer. I will photograph them tomorrow.

I took some other photos of the area which I will share tomorrow. I must share this one. This blouse was in the window of the Chanel store and it took my breath away!

I don't know how well you can see the pointed pleats that cover the front and the sleeves but this blouse is simply spectacular!

Newbury Street in the Back Bay is a fashionista's paradise! In a 4 or 5 block span you have the following boutiques: Chanel, Georgio Armani, Donna Karan, Max Mara, Ralph Lauren, Valentino, Kate Spade, Marc Jacobs, Nanette Lepore, Betsey Johnson, and the list goes on! There are also these specialty stores: Louis Vuitton, Cartier, Bliss, Kiehl, to name just a few. One could spend hours window shopping! There are also a lot of trendy restaurants with outdoor seating. The weather is in the 70's so there were all kinds of people sitting outside enjoying the cool breeze!

More on Beantown tomorrow!

Bushism of the day:
"I tell people, let's don't fear the future, let's shape it." --George W. Bush, Omaha, Neb., June 7, 2006

Kitty cam: Mikey loves to watch when I clean the floors!