Fall Is Coming

When I left for San Francisco I swear it was still summer in New York. And I know “they” say that it will be in the 80s by this weekend, but even on this 75 degree day, in a sleeveless dress and a medium-weight cardigan, it feels a little chilly. Which concerns me a little because not only do I not have much in the way of winter clothing, but I have so many things on my Crafting For Other People list (and this excludes holiday gift-making!) that I’m absolutely convinced this will be the winter I freeze to death.

Even though fall brings with it the fear of freezing, it also ushers in some lovely food items: pumpkins, squash and lovely pears (you’ll note the absence of apples . . . is it OK to admit that, other than Macouns, I’m mostly tired of apples). Below I’ve put some of the season’s best to tasty breakfast purposes:

Even though I halved the sugar in Isa’s The Best Pumpkin Muffins and used brown sugar instead of regular, I can see how, unaltered, these would be The Best muffins. What I really wanted was “the best to hold up to a liberal slathering of Earth Balance,” though, which is why I cut back on the sugar. In my next round, I’ll probably sub applesauce for the oil so I can justify an even larger slathering of EB. The quinoa pudding turned out well, too. I really wanted to use pears instead of apples, but I wake up before most of my neighborhood on Sunday mornings, so I had to make do with what I could find.

Later in the day, I was able to take my new Anthropologie capelet variation for a ride. I finished it as my flight was taking off in New York. It’s photographed here at the lovely boutique hotel, Hotel California, which houses the Millennium Restaurant:

Herringbone Lace and Seed Stitch Detailing

Leaf Tie

Instead of using a pin closure, I went for some icord ties with a leaf at each end. It almost makes up for the fact that I abandoned the thought of using a nice leafy lace pattern for this version. I’m still looking for a nice pattern for the claret, though. That one excites me most, because I should have enough yarn for long sleeves, which will be nice for the winter. And, since the pattern knits up fairly quickly, it may serve as my singular item of winter clothing until all gift giving is complete.

Especially as I seem particularly dedicated to the concept of starting a One Sock museum (as opposed to knitting a nice, warm set of knee highs, for instance). At least I’m on my second one of these. I think my idea of the perfect swap would be to knit one sock, send it and the pattern to a second knitter who knits the second sock and keeps the set, who in turn knits a different sock and sends it and the pattern along to a third knitter . . .