If you’re anything like me, you probably have a love / hate relationship with bugs. I say bugs because for me it includes all manner of creepy crawlies, with or without wings and regardless of how many legs. (Except for spiders – spiders are not bugs; they’re spiders.) Most bugs don’t bug me. I love to see bees and dragonflies, hovering in the garden, ladybugs on flowers and hear the drone of cicadas. But then I will mercilessly end the life of mosquitoes, flies or wasps if t

If its Black – Fight back If its Brown – Lie down If its White – Say Goodnight! Aurora Bear mittens I always loved this little poem from my childhood. It’s simplistic, as a meeting with a bear in the wild can have complex variables, what kind of bear? where are you? is it a momma with cubs? are you holding a tasty salmon? Raised in the country in Southern Ontario, black bears were a common site, especially in the fall in an abandoned apple orchard near our home, feasting on f

Beer Pint Mittens - Why not? Because I wanted to keep my designs fresh and challenge myself, I asked my kids (young adults actually) what they would want to see.  Much to my surprise they gave me quite an extensive list of possibilities. Some I expected, but many were amazing things I doubt I ever would have thought of. Beer mittens is one of them. It piqued my curiosity and challenge accepted I started doing research. First was searching the internet to see what other people

Sunflower and Bumblebee Sunflowers are magic. In a single season they can grow a towering 10ft tall from a seed smaller than your pinkie fingernail with flowers that bloom the size of dinner plates. Their bright yellow and rich brown faces follow the sun, which yes, many flowers do, but with sunflower blooms being so large you can almost see them move. And of course there is also their special relationship with bees. Sunflowers seem to not only lure many bees to hang out on

Once upon a time there was a little boy who loved pirates. Now this is not really odd nowadays but we are talking pre-POTC here. So although the other kids got to wear t-shirts and backpacks with their favorite superheroes, firetrucks, ponies or princesses, it was really hard to find anything with pirates. We got really good at making do with paper eye patches, cardboard swords, striped t-shirts, bandannas and painted on moustaches. When winter came and the pirate obsessio

Gardening has been a part of my life for as long as I can remember. My first garden-centric memories are of my Grandpa and his very...

Knit up a pair of these Strawberry Cow Fingerless gloves and be prepared for everyone you know to go "WOW!!!"

Such a great quote.  I agree completely.   I found a fairly recent survey on the internet listing the top 25 answers to that age old...

Some of my favorite things in this world are a good story, and labyrinths. The Minotaur of Greek mythos captures both perfectly. Its...

Dragons have captivated human imagination for centuries. Believed to be real until fairly recently in human history, they continue to...

How Medieval Knights and Heraldry inspired me to create Sir Gauntlet, Crusader Knight mitten pattern

Ever wonder where Unicorns come from? Well with a little research I found the answer.

My thoughts on castles and how they inspired me to design the Castle Mitten knitting pattern which inspires me to see more castles.

The Viking Age may have ended over a thousand years ago but those seafaring warrior pirates continue to capture our imagination to this...

Colorful Jellyfish Mitten Knitting Pattern almost as cool as real jellyfish and much less dangerous

Seahorses are awesome.  I will admit some disappointment when I saw my first live seahorse in an aquarium as a kid.  Wow, its so pretty...

My thoughts on Mermaids

How I was inspired to create my Kraken / Octopus mitten knitting pattern

How Sharks inspired me to create a hammerhead shark mitten knitting pattern

It's September, one of my favorite times of the year. Kids are back in school. The leaves are just starting to change. The days are...