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Ubercool!

Cooperative Press is an independent publisher that is publishing a new series called Fresh Designs, that features emerging designers. I am so excited to have been selected to be a part of this project. Part of those stealth projects that I worked so diligently on will be appearing in the soon-to-be released books. The publication dates are getting nearer now.

To make the books the best they can possibly be, Shannon Oakey, the owner of Cooperative Press, has started a Kickstart program to help raise some of the up front expenses of independent publishing. As part of this drive, there are some cool rewards that you can get if you choose to make a donation.

Here is the video that does a much better job of explaining the program.

The coolest thing is that one of my designs is featured there. Anybody want to hazard a guess as to which one is mine? You do understand that I won’t be able to tell you if you are right or wrong yet, but it will be fun hearing everyone’s guess. And just to make it interesting, how about a contest. Leave a comment telling me which of the featured patterns you think is my design, one person will be chosen at random to receive one a $20.00 coupon good toward the purchase of any of my patterns or ebooks.

Here are a few clues to help you out:
1. My pattern is knit.
2. My pattern features a fantastic yarn.
3. My pattern is a design I really love.

That should be enough clues for you to guess it with no problems.

In the spring a young girl’s fancy…

…lightly turns to thoughts of lace.

~Alfred Lord Tennyson (if he had been a knitter)

Yes, lace is a veritable obsession with me lately. I have lace on every one of my needles. Okay, maybe not that many but I do have a LOT of projects cast on. Some of them I will wait to share with you later but I want to share these because I want to share the new yarns I am trying out.

First up is The Crafts Meow Ice Cream Sundae Sock in Cherries Jubilee colorway.

The yarn is a firmly twisted fingering weight 75% merino, 25% nylon. I like the tight twist. It makes the yarn an excellent choice for lace. It took the yarn a bit before it decided what it wanted to be but finally we decided that it was perfectly suited for a fun and lacy shawl.

Next is Knit Picks Chroma in Mesa colorway.

Chroma is a single ply yarn that reminds me a lot of handspun. Because of that it tends to have a bit of fuzz when you knit it so it takes a little time to get used to. The coolest thing about it is the color. It is one of the yarns with long color repeats. It transitions beautifully from one color to the next.

Finally, is some BFL lace from Meadowalake Arts in Phoenix Tail colorway.

This one is on the needles but I haven’t bothered to take a photo of it yet since it is only big enough for a Barbie right now. I did get a photo of the yarn. The yarn is soft and light laceweight that will be perfect for warding off the chill from the air conditioner.

The design is inspired by one of my favorite characters from The Hobbit, that I have been reading for Tolkien Reading Day. Because I am feeling rather nostalgic about all things middle earth, I have a special treat for you. Enter the code TH.HobbitKAL into the “use coupon code” box of your shopping cart, any you will get a 15% discount on all my Lord of the Rings themed patterns (the patterns in the Arwen and Aragorn series). You should see the discount applied before you go to check out. This code is good until midnight 31 March 2011.

Happy Spring and happy knitting.

Cooking with tabitha

A number of you have asked for a couple of recipes that my family has liked lately so I thought I would post those before I forgot how I made them.

Miracle Chinese Vegetable Soup

This soup was inspired by a fantastic soup that was served by a family-owned Chinese restaurant in a town where a used to live. We jokingly called it miracle chicken soup because it seemed to cure the common cold. I always crave this yummy soup when I am getting a little sick. This recipe is my attempt to recreate that delicious and healthy soup.

1 cup Chinese rice sticks (also called rice noodles or rice vermicelli)
1 tsp olive oil
2 chicken breasts, sliced in bite-sized pieces
2 qts chicken or vegetable stock
1 teaspoon ground ginger or 1 tablespoon fresh ginger
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon Oriental five-spice powder, to suit your taste
2 Tablespoon soy sauce
1 cup mushrooms, sliced
1/2 cup baby corn
1 cup celery, slicked diagonally
1 cup carrots, sliced diagonally
1 cup onions, chopped
1 cup fresh green beans, snapped
1 cup fresh broccoli florets
1 cup garbanzo beans, cooked
1 cup snow peas
1 cup bok choy, pak choy or some of each, sliced diagonally
1 tsp sesame oil

Soak rice sticks in hot water for 10 minutes. While rice sticks are soaking, saute chicken in olive oil until no longer pink. Add small amount of stock and deglaze pan. Add remaining stock, ginger, soy sauce and five spice powder. Bring to boil. Drain and rinse noodles and add to stock. Reduce heat to simmer and simmer until chicken is tender (about 5 minutes). Add all vegetables except bok choy and cook until bright in color and almost tender (5 minutes) Add bok choy and cook for 3 more minutes until all vegetables are just tender and bright in color. Remove from heat and stir in sesame oil.

Black Beans of Complete and Total Awesomeness

Dried beans are a real budget saver. I am aways looking for new ways to cook them. Inspired by the savory flavors of Cuban black beans, I designed this recipe for the crock pot. It is delicious served with brown rice. My kids liked it so much they named the recipe.

1 pound Dried black beans (turtle beans)
1 large onion, chopped coarsely
3 large cloves garlic, sliced
1 cupk celery, chopped coarsely
1 large sweet green or red pepper, chopped coarsely
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
3- 4 cups broth
1.5 cups salsa
4 – 5 chicken breasts

Soak black beans overnight (or do quick soak*). Drain and rinse beans and add to 6 qt or larger crock pot. Top with onion, garlic, celery and bay leaf. Add broth and enough extra water to bring liquid level almost to the top of beans. Top with half the salsa. layer chicken breasts on top of beans. Top with remaining salsa. Cook on high for 4- 5 hours, on low for 6 – 8 hours or until chicken and beans are tender and chicken juices run clear. Serve with brown rice.

* Quick soak for beans – Rinse beans. Place in medium stock pot and add enough water to equal twice the depth of beans (1 pound of beans will take a minimum of 6 cups of water). Bring to a boil and boil for one minute. Cover, turn off heat but leave pot on the burner. Leave beans to soak for 1 – 2 hours. Drain and rinse beans and cook as described above.


Now lest you think you have stumbled upon a cooking blog, here is my latest knitting. My latest pattern is one that I created for Sanguine Gryphon.

May I introduce you to Tess?


Tess of the D’Urbervilles follows the life of its tragic herione from maiden to mother to milkmaid to mistress to murderer. This corset-styled vest adorned with a delicate, crocheted lace edging is something I can imagine Tess wearing. The neckline is a flattering U-shape and the waist is shaped with ribbing for a snug but comfortable fit.


This vest is knit in one piece from the bottom up. Part of the waist shaping will be done with 1×1 ribbing, to reduce the number of decreases and increases necessary. This will allow a little more flexibility in the waist sizing.


The pattern is available from Sanguine Gryphon.

For a limited time, Sanguine Gryphon is offering a 10% discount if you purchase the pattern and yarn together. And as a bonus, I have a couple of copies Tess to give away. So let’s have a blog contest. Since the theme of the Sanguine Gryphon winter line was literature, leave a comment and tell me about your favorite book. To give you even more chances to win, if you mention this contest on your blog, Facebook or Twitter, I will add your name to the hat another time. Just leave another comment here telling me about each place you mentioned the contest – include a link to your blog, or tag me from Twitter or Facebook (I am @tabithaknits on Twitter and @Tabithas Heart on Facebook). I will draw one winner at random to receive a copy of the Tess pattern along with another of my patterns of your choice. Winner will be chosen on Valentine’s Day.

A Week Later

..and this white stuff is still on the ground. This may be the first time in my life I’ve seen snow remain on the ground for an entire week. How do you people who have snow on the ground all winter stand it? And the cold. I am absolutely not accustomed to winter being this cold. 12 degrees is just plain ridiculous unless you are a frozen turkey. I am ready for spring now. Pleeeeeeeeeeeeeease.

One good thing about being snowed in is that I got lots of knitting time. I am still knitting hats like crazy. They are quick to knit; rather like knitting instant gratification. I am especially enjoying stranded colorwork hats because it is so fun to watch the pattern emerge.

And I have done a lot of pattern writing. I currently have 2 patterns in testing and four for which I am lining up testers. This year has started off with a bang.

Last week, I introduced you to my first pattern of 2011. Today, I would like you to meet the second pattern for 2011.

Dirty Double Crosser


This deceptively simple cabled hat uses an easy-to-memorize cable pattern that is attractive but quick-to- knit. It looks good with the brim rolled up or down. The hat makes a great gift for guys or gals.

Pattern is suitable for advanced beginner to intermediate knitters who can knit in the round, have basic cable experience, knit, purl and work basic decreases. Instructions included for customizable brim length. Pattern includes 2 sizes which fit heads from 20 – 24 inches which will cover larger children through adults. Written and charted instructions included. Available as a download through Ravelry.

$5.00

This doesn’t bode well


Winter isn’t even a month old and this is our second snow. I really hope this isn’t starting to be a pattern. I suppose since it has been 10 years since we have seen this much snow I probably shoudn’t complain though.

This snow is mixed pretty thoroughly with sleet so it is hard and crunchy but not very good for making snowballs or snowmen but the kids are still enjoying the novelty. Our yard is covered in a blanket of 3.5 – 4.5 inches of snow. It makes everything look like a Christmas card or in SmallFry’s description, a movie.

Even the covered porch had 2 inches of snow on it. Like my house shoes and fluffy PJs? The kids say that pair is spun from fluffy unicorn fur straight from the Sisters of Radiant Farms.

The thing that always amazes me about snow is how quiet it makes everything. I don’t really live in a highly populated area but still there is a good deal of noise from the leaves rustling, the animals moving and so forth. You don’t really notice just how noisy the country is until it’s completely quiet. The snow gave me a rare moment of complete solitude this morning. For that I am quite thankful.

Another good thing about being snowed in is that it gives plenty of opportunity for knitting. So I am bundled up in my unicorn fur PJs and my Doctor Who scarf with a lap full of wool and a cup of tea on the bedside table. True bliss.

Speaking of knitting, I have been meaning to share my latest pattern with you

This is Athyrium Beret.
This stylish spiral lace beret is named for the graceful fronds of the lady fern that gently bend in the breeze. The hat looks great on the wrong side too. You get twice the wardrobe enhancement for half the knitting. In cotton, it’s a cool, clever summer hat; in wool or alpaca it’s a surprisingly warm but fun winter hat. You might want a hat that is a bit warmer on a day like today but this one is fun for indoor winter wear.


Available as a download through Ravelry.
$5.00

I have been in a hat mood lately so you will be seeing lots more hats in the coming weeks. Now if you will excuse me I need to supervise my kids who are currently attempting to design show shoes using cardboard and duck tape.