Elegance

I went to the library last week looking for George R. R. Martin's "Game of Thrones". Unfortunately, they only had 5 copies with 25 holds on it. Not interested in waiting so long I went searching for something else to read. I picked up this book because I found the cover fascinating. Elegance is a trait I frequently strive for but rarely feel that I have achieved. As a stay at home mom, my wardrobe has slowly disintegrated to jeans, T-shirts and tennis shoes. I try to blow dry my hair everyday but forget make-up. I pulled this book by Kathleen Tessaro down and skimmed the back cover. The story of Louise Canova rang a bell, so I took this book home and devoured it in 2 or 3 days. I enjoyed the transformation of this character from sad, lonely housewife enduring unhappy relationships so that she can feel secure to stupid, shallow divorce and finally to empowered, balanced woman. It was a delightful ride. This book was published in 2003. Current sensibilities may be distressed by the lead character's cavalier attitude toward excessive spending that is clearly beyond her means. The lessons, though, still ring true. I  found the chapter titled "Negliges" particularly apropos. The lead character's muse, Madam Dariaux, reminds us of the importance of dressing for the bedroom. Although I have several negliges, they are not suitable for actual sleeping and only come out for special occasions. Most nights I pull on my husbands flannel pants and an over-sized T-shirt...very attractive. This book has motivated me to find some options that fulfill both roles, comfy and flattering.  I am looking forward to picking up more of Ms. Tessaro's books. I would recommend this one to anyone who would like to feel more elegant or who needs some reminders on how its done. Louise Canova is sure to ring bells for you too. As for "Game of Thrones", I picked it up at the bookstore and I'm finding it a bit slow. Perhaps the TV series has spoiled the books for me.

Dahlias...

I'm so excited to share these photos. My husband fell in love with these flowers on our European tour in 2002. That may sound a little ostentatious; we were really just kids bumming around with backpacks. We made no plans and drifted through France, Italy, Switzerland and the Netherlands. Our last stop was in Amsterdam, we had just gotten engaged in Interlaken, Switzerland (a story for another day), and we were giddy with love. We wandered around the city reveling in the canals and the liberal mindset of the city. One morning we got up looking for something to get us out of town and the front desk recommended Floriade. Floriade is an international flower festival. Its held every 10 years and just takes up acres and acres of land with beautiful gardens, there were interactive gardens, cultural gardens, statue gardens and many others. But there were also two or three acres of dahlias. They were amazing. They come in a huge range of colors and shapes.

Friday afternoon, on the advice of Heidi at 101 Cookbooks, we went to Golden Gate Park to see their dahlia display. Its just off to the right of the Conservatory of Flowers.

Our favorite was this crazy flower. H thinks it looks like a Dr. Seuss tree:

S had a great time too, though he seemed a little disappointed that we couldn't go inside the fence.

My First Sweater

I've been working on my little white sweater for a week now and I'm really enjoying this pattern. The base stitch is very similar to the one I was using previously and had to undo but between each row of V-stitches is a row of single crochet and single chains that works as a foundation for the garment. I imagine these rows will give the sweater a more structured shape.

Here is the finished back, and I am almost done with the right front piece as well. The pieces are a little skewed in one direction but blocking should take care of this. I'll post more as it comes together.