Spin Me Right Round...........

Well....I said a few weeks ago that "I think I may see a spinning wheel in my future!" Well, my future recently arrived in the mail. I heard the doorbell ring, which does not happen very often. I thought to myself "who could that be?". I had completely forgotten that the wheel would be arriving soon, even sooner than I had expected. So, I opened the front door and the most magnificent thing was sitting right there! Jeff immediately put it together for me...but, it took him about 2 hours. There are so many parts to a spinning wheel! It is so easy to operate though. I have been hesitant to purchase one because I have always thought there was so much more to it but to my surprise, it is a cinch! Well, I may not be the best at it yet but, I think I know what I am doing and am certainly getting the hang of it. Can you see the cute little birdie on the right treadle?







I have spun some the turquoise roving that I purchase at the Taos Sunflower. I can't wait to spin some more and not to mention knit with it! That will be so gratifying! There is a great magazine called Spin Off by Interweave Press that you must check out. If you are a knitting lover, you will really love this magazine. I feel like a shameless promoter or something. I swear I do not work for Interweave Knits. :-) There is also a fantastic book that has really helped me learn about my wheel and about the art of spinning. It is certainly a must read for any knitting artist. It is called, Teach Yourself Visually: Handspinning. I am very much a visual learner and need pictures to figure things out. This book did the trick!

In the spirit of knitting, here are a few cool knitting websites you should check out:

*Check out Ashley over at: http://www.neauveau.com/

*Taos Sunflower has a blog too: http://blog.taossunflower.com/

*Vicki Howell always knows how to keep it real when it comes to knitting: http://vickiehowell.blogspot.com/

*If you are into knitting, sign up for the Lion Brand newsletter: http://www.lionbrand.com/

*Vogue knitting brings the Chic back to knitting: http://www.vogueknitting.com/

*Check out blissful knitting over at Debbie Bliss' web page: http://www.debbieblissonline.com/

*Need a little therapy, Knit Therapy? You can get some right over here: http://needknittherapy.blogspot.com/

Ah, my love of fiber arts is never ending.


Right now I am reminiscing about our little wonderful parties on the patio in Santa Fe and want some of Daddy's fantastic guacamole!

I leave you with a little guacamole appetizer recipe:

2 avocados peeled and seeded

chopped tomatoes, to taste

chopped garlic, to taste

kosher salt and ground pepper, to taste

chopped onion, to taste

jalapeno pepper, to taste

chopped cilantro, to taste

*Mix it all up and dive in! Tostitos Whole Grain Tortilla Chips are mighty tasty!

Cheers!

Oh, P.S. you gotta check out my sister's blog!

Time To Head Back Home

Bye Bye happy little place :-) I hope to see you again soon.

Wrapping Things Up

Today is our last day here in Santa Fe. It has been a wonderful trip. Santa Fe is a very diverse and friendly place, everything that I like. We took it easy today. I slept in, read a book on the balcony (where I managed to produce the most uncomfortable sunburn), took a nice relaxing bath listening to the birds singing. I did a little research after lunch and discovered the Santa Fe School of Weaving. Within the School of Weaving there is a shop called Miriam's Well. The nicest lady of course, named Miriam, owns the shop. I called her up to find out if she sells spinning wheels. She told me all about a spinning wheel that she loves called "Kiwi", an Ashford spinning wheel. She told me that it is great to learn on. So, We got in the car and drove over to her shop.









She lives in the upstairs part of her shop. It is in a great location so she really has the best of both worlds, a home and shop all located in a fantastic area. She has the most lovely garden as you walk up. I wanted to take a picture of the front door and the flowers around it and just as I did she walked out with big pot full of geraniums! Mariam was born in Denmark and then, later in life, moved to Jerusalem to learn about weaving.

So, today, from Mariam...I purchased my first spinning wheel. I purchased her favorite little "Kiwi". She is having it shipped to me and I should have it in about 5-7 business days! I can't wait and what better way to purchase my first wheel other than in Santa Fe!

Cheers!

Taos Trip

Today we ventured out to Taos. We went to the Taos Pueblo. It is amazing to see buildings that are one thousand years old. The youngest building in the Pueblo was constructed in the 1800's! We had a tour of the Pueblo and after the tour we met the cutest lady who was selling blue corn bread. She said that she grew up in the Pueblo. She still owns the Pueblo she grew up in and also owns a house about 7 blocks away from the Pueblo. She said that she and her brothers and sisters would dance for the tourists when they were children. I think we ate about 6 pieces of her blue corn bread, it was delicious! In the Pueblo, people sell their hand made artifacts. I went to the Pueblo the last time I visited Taos, which was about 15 or so years ago. My dad took me and I remember being fascinated with it. I purchased a beautiful piece of pottery then. There are so many gifted people that live in the Pueblo and they make such beautiful things.

After the Pueblo we drove to Arroyo Seco and ate at the cutest little place called The Maverick County Cafe. I had a bit of hummus and shared a curried chicken salad sandwich with my mom. We also had the best herbal raspberry tea.

After we ate lunch we went to the Taos Sunflower. This has to be the best yarn shop I have ever been in. There is so much to choose from and the prices are so reasonable. What makes it a great shop is that they sell locally hand spun yarn and locally hand dyed roving. It really is wonderful!

I walked away with about 3 different colors of woving and hand spun yarn. I think I am going to make a purse and felt it and then needle felt some sort of design on it. I just love wool. Someday I just may end up with my very own sheep. Maybe I will name her Sunflower? Who knows. I could just name her Mable, the name my dad has given his GPS system, which has gotten us lost a few times. Well, I guess nothing is perfect, but for the most part she has been reliable!

After Arroyo Seco, we went to the Taos Plaza and did a bit more shopping. Taos is a lovely place. The mountains are magnificent. It has a bit of a different feel than Santa Fe but I have to say, I prefer Santa Fe a bit more. Of course, I would not mind staying at either place! The area is just so beautiful.

We went to the Taos Country Club where my dad purchased a golf t-shirt and where we also had a few drinks. We chatted up our bartender who was just the nicest person ever. She was a graphic designer who lived in Boston for a while and lead the corporate lifestyle for a while. Then she moved to the Taos area and left all of that behind. Now she has her own studio in Taos where she paints and also is a metal artist. How fabulous to be able to work on your art for a living.

The Taos Country Club does not have a shabby view either. Can you see all the adobe houses in the picture? I love it!

That mountain view is just unreal! I so want to live in the mountains. Texas is just too hot and flat. Tomorrow is our last day. I am getting sad. I have really enjoyed the visit. We have had such a good time and have met such nice people. Hopefully it will not be another 15 years before I return!

Just Another Day in Santa Fe

Today, we slept in. I slept with the back door open and woke up to the clean air, breeze, and the birds singing.

We went to do a little more shopping. I stopped in a little dog bakery called Teca Tu and picked up a little surprise for my doggies. They are taking their vacation at our Vet's place for the next several days. They deserve a treat...I hope they have been good!

Millie and Luna this is waiting for you, little cactus dog bones! Oh, and of course you will have to share one with your cousin Max!

After our shopping we went to La Boca, I was waiting to go back there! We went for their half price tapas hour. The tapas are delicious...we also had a little sangria to go with it. I wish I had a menu so I could say more about the tapas we ate. I guess you will just have to go and taste it for yourself.

Here is a little peak at what we ate. Of course, it is mostly half eaten. I was so excited about the food that I forgot to take a shot of it before we dived in. Its nice because they bring the tapas out one at a time and everyone shares so we pretty much got a little taste of everything. The happy hour prices are great too. So, make sure to go between 3 and 5pm. Many of the restaurants close between that time so La Boca has really got something going on by staying open and offering happy hour prices.

My mom ordered the dish that was featured on Giada's Weekend Getaways. It is pasta stuffed with crab (I think) with a wonderful cream sauce. It was to die for!

I think the thing that I love most about Santa Fe is the architecture. It has been maybe about...15 years since I have visited here. Now that is hard to believe and makes me feel rather old. I was probably a freshman in high school and I really do not remember the fantastic architecture. There are fabulous adobe houses and adobe churches. Well, I guess everything here is adobe. Shopping malls, grocery stores, gas stations, houses, restaurants...everything is adobe. That, I did not realize and I think it is just wonderful!

Tomorrow, we are driving to Taos. There is a place that sells hand spun yard. They may even have spinning wheels for sale. I think I may see a spinning wheel in my future!

Cheers!

I Love Jewelry and Candy

One of the most wonderful things about coming to Santa Fe is all of the wonderful Native American jewelry. I love silver and turquoise, so I guess that I am in the right place for it. I like unusual jewelry...and it has to be big, I wonder if that is the "Texas" in me, that is probably the only "Texas" in me. So, on my quest for big and unusual jewelry, I happened across this from the Rocki Gorman Studio.

I think it is the most beautiful ring. It is exactly what I was looking for but did not know it. Thank you Mama.

Here is my collection of jewelry so far...I am very proud of it. Thank you Mama and Daddy!

Today we did some shopping. A few of the places I went to were Santa Fe Hemp, where I purchased the shoulder bag from Nepal. I also went to the pinkoyote, where I bought one of their signature pinkoyote t-shirts.

The place that I was looking the most forward to was Todos Santos, the most fabulous chocolates and confections store in Santa Fe, with a Dia De Los Muertos theme. It is so charming and a must see if you are in Santa Fe.

I will certainly go back at least once before we leave. The candy is so unusual and cute, have you ever seen a chocolate lady bug? She is made of dark chocolate and raspberry. The mushroom is full of caramel, and the square is a toffee bar. The stick is caramel with a chocolate and nut coating. I am eating the toffee bar right now and have already bitten the head of the lady bug!

Well, stay tuned for more of my vacation experiences!

Cheers!

Santa Fe!

I am having so much fun in Santa Fe. My parents and I drove up here on Saturday. We arrived right about 3:00pm after an 11 hour drive. We are staying at the Sky Island Casitas. When we got here we were so taken by the fantastic casita that we were going to stay in for a week. We walked all through the casita and ended up on the upper level balcony, however, we also ended up locking ourselves out up there. In the end, my dad ended up scaling a wall to free us, so...it has been quite an adventure! The view is absolutely amazing!

This is the balcony we managed to lock ourselves out on but, with a view like we have here, how could you even care?

The view is even more spectacular at night. The clouds are so light and fluffy and the colors of the sunset are unbelievable.

We have a great little patio, where we plan to have many a party on the patio.

On Sunday we had brunch at The Chocolate Maven. I saw this on Giada's Weekend Getaways and had to go! I had the great start breakfast. It is plain yogurt, their wonderful homemade granola, and fresh fruit. It was so yummy that we purchased some of their granola and then went to Trader Joe's to get the other ingredients. After breakfast we went to the Museum of International Folk Art to see the Needles and Pins Exhibit. This was a wonderful exhibit with sewing, stitching, and knitting artifacts from over 100 years ago. After that, we attended what we thought was going to be a demonstration on how to make marbleised paper, boy were we ever wrong! Now, for my disclaimer, let me say that I have nothing against those that like marbleised paper or those that even are passionate about it and collect it but...none the less it was not my cup of tea. I know "to each his own" and whatnot. I also know that I do things that others think are a bore. This lecture was on the history of the paper itself, not on the actual making of the paper, like we thought. Well anyway...my dad has this talent of being able to sleep through all he is not particularly interested in. My mom is totally aware of this and told me " don't you let him snore". I was sitting next to him so I had the privilege and responsibility of keeping him from embarrassing us. Let me tell you, I was doing and excellent job...I really was but....the whole endless talk of paper was sucking me in to this deep abyss of nothingness and I was overcome with boredom. It was like I was almost in a trance and then...the most horrid yet awfully hilarious thing happened....right when the lecturer took a pause in his speech, yes...my father managed to drum up the loudest snore you have ever heard. It echoed throughout the auditorium. It was so loud I myself cannot even imitate it. It was one of those snores that was so loud it woke himself up to the point he was not tired anymore. It took all that I had in me not to DIE laughing. I tried not to look at my dad because I knew that he would have started laughing too, not to mention my mother! I honestly though that she would be mortified but she thought it was funny too. So, I guess we all struggled throughout the last 20 minutes not to bust out laughing and make a mockery of the whole event. So, needless to say, this vacation has been rather entertaining from the very minute we got to Santa Fe.

This is an incredible sculpture that is located in the Museum atrium.

Today, Monday, we attended the Santa Fe School of Cooking Culture Tour (the picture to the left is the cooking school classroom). It was fantastic. We Started out at the Cooking School and the Director of Culinary Arts, Rocky Durham, was our tour guide. They prepared us green and red chile enchiladas to taste, they were wonderful and we all received a copy of the recipe. I will certainly be cooking this when I get back to Texas.

We then walked to Los Mayas Mexican Restaurant where we had chips, salsa, a margarita, and the most wonderful stuffed poblano pepper I have ever tasted. It is called "Chiles en Nogada", meaning chiles in walnut sauce. It was stuffed with pork, plantains, and a number of things I cannot remember. The walnut sauce was wonderful, it was almost like dessert, just melted in your mouth. The owner Fernando even played a song for us on his guitar. It was fabulous.

After that we walked over to The Institute of American Indian Arts where Walter Whitewater served us Pinon Chile Beans. He talked of the Navajo culture and how the men do not cook, however, he prepared the most wonderful dish. The flavor of the beans were so savory. He even sang us a beautiful song. I was absolutely amazing!

After we ate our chile beans, we walked over to La Boca (Giada went there too on her weekend getaway) and met Chef James Campbell Caruso. We ate tapas and drank wine in the most intimate atmosphere. The tapas were wonderful! I think I may be able to convince my parents to go back for a little happy hour with wine and tapas, can't beat that after an afternoon of shopping.

Our last stop was the Coyote Cafe where we met Chef Eric DiStefano. I have to admit, this was my favorite stop (that is me, in heaven, at the Coyote Cafe. Our tour guide and chef extraordinaire, Rocky, is chatting some people up behind me). Chef Eric served us crab cakes....I thought that was it but then he brought out spare ribs! I was in heaven. The food was absolutely wonderful, not to mention he also served us white wine to go with our crab cakes and then red wine for the ribs. It was the most amazing afternoon. We met many really neat people, learned the history of Santa Fe cooking, and ate so much food we needed a wheelchair to carry us out! If you are ever in Santa Fe, this cooking tour is an absolute must. You will have the best time imaginable!

My dad played golf while my mom and I went on the tour. After the tour was over, we met my dad at the La Fonda Bell Tower for a drink. Then, off to the Pink Adobe we went for dinner and more drinks.

The fun will not end here! I have 4 more days to go!


Cheers!