Happy Holidays from Yellow House Knits!

Holiday Greetings from Yellow House Knits!

 

Warm Wishes from Yellow House Knits

Modern Easter Eggs

When I was little, my great uncle used to make Ukranian Easter eggs, also known as pysanky.  It was an art that he had learned from his grandmother, who came to this country from the part of Austria-Hungary that is now the Ukraine.  I remember being amazed at the beautiful, intricate eggs he created and at the vibrancy of the colors and patterns. 

Pysanky is a process similar to batik.  The egg is progressively covered in wax to mask certain areas and the  unmasked parts are dyed.  Each progressive dying creates a darker color on the unmasked areas.  Once the dying is complete, the layers of wax are melted away, revealing all of the colors protected underneath. 

My uncle gave many of those eggs to my grandparents as gifts over the years.  My grandmother, while a wonderful woman in so many ways, was entirely unsentimental and didn't save any of the eggs.  But I remember seeing them looking much like these (and I even remember her having a similar tablecloth!). 

So when I stumbled on the Pysanky Panky shop on Etsy, I was instantly transported back to my grandparents' living room at Easter.  Nicole makes lots of traditional and more modern eggs, but I particularly love these graphic, individually colored eggs.  I think they would look fantastic on a white, Easter "tree."  It would also be great to get a whole set in a single color (the lime green really speaks to me). 

For anyone creative, Pysanky Panky also sells a kit that you can use to try your own hand at egg decorating.

The Halls of the Yellow House Are Decked!

I just love the sparkle and warm glow of the holiday season! 



Santa is Back From the Finisher

My dad collects Santa Clauses, so I try to make him a needlepoint Santa for Christmas each year.  This year's Santa is back from the finisher, and I'm so pleased with how he turned out!

The canvas is by Amanda Lawford, who designs a ton of Santas.  I think I made him more complicated than he needs to be by doing all of the fur in French knots, but I love how soft and fuzzy it turned out. 

I'm hoping to take a picture of all of the Santas while I'm visiting with my parents at Christmas, so stay tuned.

Holiday Cards Went Out Today!

Happy Fourth of July!

The Fourth of July is quickly becoming one of my favorite holidays, probably because I've developed a Fourth of July routine that includes some of my favorite events.

First, I ran the Autism Speaks 5K in Potomac, Maryland.  I've run this race every year for the past five years, and I've watched it grow from a small, community race to a real event.  The course runs through a Potomac neighborhood and, while lovely, is really hilly.  Which means that it kicks my butt every year.  But it's all worth it because the race raises money for a great cause.  And they always have pizza at the finish line.  (Nothing like a slice of pizza at 9am after running three miles!).

After the race, I rushed home to make it in time for the Capitol Hill parade.  The parade is, hands down, my favorite Hill event.  It is not a sophisticated affair (more like festive chaos), but everyone comes out to see the parade and celebrate the holiday.

The Marine Corps band is the most polished part of the parade.  But in my opinion, cheering as the local boys' basketball team does its thing and collecting candy from the Girls Scouts is just as much fun.   To me, the parade epitomizes the community and neighborhood spirit that I love about the Hill.

The parade is not Mr. Bullet's favorite event.  I think the heat and noise and crowds are a little too much for him, but he tolerates it.  And he puts with the American flag and parade beads I make him wear at least through the end of the parade.

Later in the evening, Mr. Bullet and I walked to the Library of Congress to watch the fireworks.  It's a great place to see the fireworks without having to brave the crowds and security checks on the Mall.  I think they were better than ever this year!

Hope you had a happy Fourth as well!

Happy Administrative Professionals' Day!

Administrative Professionals' Day snuck up on me today, but luckily I remembered in time to be able to say a big THANK YOU to everyone I work with.  And if you work in an administrative support position, I hope someone remembered to say "thank you" as well.  If not, I'm thanking you on their behalf.

At my office, we had a fancy lunch today for everyone to celebrate Administrative Professionals' Day.  It was actually surprisingly good!  For dessert, they had a Good Humor ice cream cart, complete with a fun umbrella like the one you see here.  The cart had ice cream sandwiches, King Cones, Chocolate Eclair bars, and all sorts of other cool treats.  Felt just like summer!