Those Mason-Dixon gals are at it again

Fellow knitters, check this out. It's from my knitting idols and friends Ann Shayne (who incidentally took that photo of me on the tractor) and Kay Gardiner, the Mason-Dixon Knitting gals (who have a super-duper book out this fall: Mason-Dixon Knitting Outside the Lines). They are priceless.

I heart Tina Fey

The impersonation is getting seriously eerie.

Tutorial: Make a cuticle cream

My cuticle cream tutorial is up on CraftStylish. It only takes a few ingredients and a double boiler and the little tins make super stocking stuffers.

Duck fat is the new bacon fat

I went to a Basque wine tasting/food pairing last night at European Vine Selections with my foodie friend Elise. The wines were great and the food was bananas. Check out the menu:

• Sliced Green Pears with Flor de Sel
• Salad of Bitter Greens with Truffle Vinaigrette
• Seared Muscovy Duck Breast with Caramel-Vinegar Sauce
• Wilted Red Cabbage with Chestnuts & Watercress
• Sarlat Potatoes with Hachis
• Stewed Quince with Bay-Scented Cream

The chef from Feast was just wonderful, adding fresh fennel seeds from a plant she found at 19th & Roy to the pears. Several dishes were cooked in the duck fat from the breasts she served and it was beyond decadent. The stewed quince with cream filled my mouth with fall and I'm eager to whip up a harvest crisp now.

I highly recommend looking into these informal events at European Vine Selections. It was a small, friendly crowd talking food and politics; I can't wait to go back.

Leaf-Motif Earrings tutorial up

My tutorial for making a pair of leafy, viney earrings is up on CraftStylish. Check it out.

Goodness/DGH concert coming up

My favorite (and defunct) Seattle band Goodness (fronted by Carrie Akre) is doing a couple final reunion shows at the Tractor Tavern on November 21 and 22. My talented friend Daniel G. Harmann is going to be kicking things off on the 21st so I encourage you to check out what will assuredly be a rockin' show.

It's like peanut butter has met chocolate in a perfect combination of Seattle music.

Tickets are going quickly, and they're available for purchase online. You can get them via TicketWeb.com and also at all Sonic Boom Record locations.

I did the Puyallup

I love fairs of all kinds but I particularly fancy the Puyallup Fair. I moseyed down there last night with my crafty friend Michaela of CraftStylish, her boyfriend Greg, and his daughter Elliott. As you can see, we did it up right, playing games, cruising through the Hobby Hall, going on rides (well, they went on rides while I played with the settings on my camera), and ate more than we should. Michaela, who has Coney Island as her frame of reference for carnivals and rides, was more than a bit blown away by the fair's cleanliness and courtesy. While I took photos of moving rides, she snapped shots of the Hand Wash Station and the clean eating area.

Regardless, we both brought home a bag of the fair's famous scones. I'm munching on one right now and to paraphrase Jean Girard from Talladega Nights, it tastes of America.

The fair runs through Sept. 21.

Shrink-plastic ring tutorial up on CraftStylish

My latest tutorial is up on CraftStylish. Learn to make a cool shrink-plastic ring.

HIGH-larious

Enter CraftStylish's flower power challenge!

Craftanistas, check out the Flower Power Challenge that CraftStylish is running through the end of the month.

Create a pretty flower in your own crafty style, post a picture, and you could bloom as one of four lucky winners. Four winners will receive the ultimate embellishment package: an assortment from the new Crafty Chica Craft product line, the fab Crafty Chica book, The Crafty Chica Collection: Beautiful Ideas for Crafts, Home Decorations and Shrines from the Queen of Latina Style, and a copy of the smokin' hot premiere issue of CraftStylish Quick Gifts to Make.

Click here for more details.