Sunday, June 12, 2011

Kusha Kusha Scarf and Blueberry Pie ~


You mustn't think that I'm not aware I have a fixation on an earlier period in time.  Many of my projects reflect that fascination.  I particularly like projects that bring alive clothing items worn in an earlier era such as some of my triangle shawls.  But I also like to play with the juxtaposition an ancient craft in a modern setting or a modern design.


Woody Allen is an insightful writer and his most recent film, Midnight in Paris, focuses on people who have romanticized an earlier period of time.  I know this is true for me.  He said that it is to escape the painful reality of our present.  Maybe. I definitely felt aware of the glare of lights and a distaste for cars racing by as we emerged from the theater.  Owen Wilson, by the way, does a fabulous job of playing the role that would ordinarily have been played by Woody Allen.


The scarf that I am wearing is using knitting and felting, two very ancient crafts, to create a very modern look.  The modern look is achieved by using a combination of different sized needles, the mixed medium of knit and felt, and a stainless steel yarn (decidedly a modern medium) to create an amorphous fabric.   The stainless steel yarn softens when washed and rolled in your hands.  During the felting process I worked both sides of the scarf with my hands, even the stainless steel portion, as I wanted to relax and stretch that as well.  Incidentally I have knit with stainless steel yarn before and you can see the tunic I made in the post, A Simple Summer Tunic


Particulars: Kusha Kusha Scarf (Kit-78) by Habu Textiles; design by Setsuko Torri; US 8, 6, 4, and 3 needles.  This is a very fun and simple scarf using stockinette stitch.  I knit mine a little longer than the pattern recommended as I think otherwise the scarf pattern is a tad too short.  When felting be sure to stretch the fabric and work it with your hands to achieve the dimensions you wish.   My pre-blocking measurements were 60" (40" combined yarn x 20" stainless steel).  While drying there was an "incident" involving Simcha.  Suffice it to say I had to cut out 90% of the stainless steel portion and about 5% of the felted portion.  To fix this, I picked up the remaining stitches and reknit the scarf working inward.  I joined the two sides with a 3 needle bind-off and the felting process melted away any evidence of the join.  All's well that ends well!  But this explains the strange "post" blocking measurements and why I cant' tell you exactly how I modified the pattern by row count.  Final post blocking measurement is 51" (28" combined yarns x 23" stainless steel).



A Taste of Summer ~ Blueberry Pie

Homemade blueberry pie is one of Summer's treats and versatile enough for picnics or company dinner!  Steve thinks it might be his favorite pie, but he's not sure.  He can't decide because he loves tart cherry pie too.  But after rhapsodizing over every morsel he's already asking when we might have another one.  Note to Self:  blueberry has the slight edge.


For the filling I followed the recipe on the Tapioca box except I used slightly less of the recommended tapioca and slightly more of the lemon juice (these were sweet berries).   I also cooked mine longer than the recommended time because a berry pie is not cooked through until you see the juice bubbling up through the crust. 

For the crust I followed my mother's recipe which can be found in the post As Easy as Apple Pie. Did I serve it with warm with ice cream?  Does it take two to tango?

Until next time, be well and love well, and I hope your Summer includes at least one blueberry pie. 

21 comments:

Monika said...

Although I don't think I'd want to knit a scarf like this, I love how it looks worn! That Simcha! Wanted to be a little creative himself?!
The pie looks so very delicious. I never think of making pie, it's not what I'm used to. But I need to change that. Maybe there'll be at least one blueberries pie this summer?!

jillian said...

Gorgeous FO, as always! It's very you. And blueberry pie with pastry fanciness. Is there anything you can't do?

SissySees said...

Oh yum. I was battling the afternoon munchies before those pie photos...

Love the scarf too!

Anonymous said...

ah, I see it was naughty Simcha! The scarf is still gorgeous and good work to pick up the pieces and finish it off!

And I'd love a piece of that blueberry pie! yum!

Prairie Rose said...

Mmmm, that pie has left me drooling.
I love pie, in fact this week for my birthday I will be having a Birthday Pie instead of a cake.(Rhubarb Strawberry,my all time Fav:)
LOVE your new scarf,its so classy and elegant, Like you!
Have a great day!

gMarie said...

So glad there everyone came out of the Simcha incident unhurt - or at least relatively. Gotta love the dogs.

That scarf is very interesting. I recently bought some stainless steel and need to decide what to do with it.

The pie looks fabulous. I can't wait until my berries are ready. g

Allie said...

Claudia, that scarf is just gorgeous - it has a mystical feel to it that I really love. You make the most interesting things! Stainless steel yarn? You floor me. AND you make blueberry pie....*swoon* Which reminds me, I have some blueberries downstairs calling my name!

Anonymous said...

Gosh. The words juxtaposition, Kusha Kusha, Simcha, blueberries, and tart cherry pie (my favorite since childhood) all in one post. My mouth was watering throughout!

Ursula

Bridget said...

What a very cool scarf! I like it because it's different without being weird.

That pie sure looks good. I haven't had pie for a while. In our house, Tim is the pie baker - I think it may be time to drop some hints ...

Mr Puffy's Knitting Blog: said...

Thank you all for your sweet comments! Since a picture is worth a thousand words... here's a piece of the mangled area that I cut out:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/8283620@N04/5829643157/" title="Need I say More? by MrPuffy, on Flickr">

(Sorry, for some reason blogger won't accept a picture but hopefully the link to Flickr will work)

I'll admit that I cried when I first saw it. But once I calmed down and the shock wore off I realized I had lots of the yarn left over and that's why I was able to fix the scarf. Sometime I'll write up my trick for getting stitches back on the needles after a catastrophe such as this!

Unknown said...

That pie looks simply delicious! I love berry pies in the summer.

At Home Mommy Knits said...

I love the scarf! I have never knit with stainless steel but I loved your tunic so I guess I should look into it.

The blueberry pie looks delicious! I just bought a bunch of blueberries to make the lemon blueberry bread in Martha Stewarts July magazine but I might have to make a pie for this weekend as well (we are heading back into the mountains)! With more s'mores on the menu and a bluberry pie to boot we will all be in a sugar induced coma by Sunday :).

Tracy said...

Scarf and dessert...what could be better?! ;o) LOVE the scarf! I like the old meets new in every aspect of it. I've not knit with stainless steel before, but have seen many great results with it. Your scarf is an excellent example. Hubby & I love Woody Allen's films. We have yet to see this new one. Your blueberry pie is wonderful... I can't recall the last time I ate blueberry pie. Probably back home in the States sometimes. Pies like this aren't seen to much here, shame. I guess I should remedy that and make more of my own pies then, especially as we don't really have diners here either--so no easy way to pie. ;o) haha... Happy Summer Days, my friend ((HUGS))

kim said...

I love your Kusha and your sense of style. I swore I would never make another of these, and then I bought more Habu at Stitches East. Maybe I'll work up the stamina for another. After seeing yours, I am actually tempted. Speaking of which, that pie! A work of art in itself.

raining sheep said...

I love the look of that scarf. I have seen and admired it over the years as I have seen fabulous versions made by knitters. I love how you described making it.

I really like pie. I am not really a dessert person; I make dessert for the babe, but I love pie. Apple, blueberry, rhubarb-strawberry, lemon meringue are all my favorite. Hope you are doing well. Work is slowing down for me a bit but I am extra busy with school.

Kate (KnitsInClass) said...

The scarf is beautiful - excellent fix, too. I had a dog who ate the sole of one of my handknit socks, and I have to admit I threw them out (they had been well worn before she ate them).

Renee said...

Oh Simcha - that's just priceless. Your scarf turned out stunning!

Mmm, definitely blueberry over cherry. It could be... that I'm drooling right now. I'll pass on the ice cream, but enjoy my BBPie warm, thank you! If I lived close by I'd be knocking on your door!! YUM!!

Lap Dog Knits said...

Thank you for sharing this scarf!!! My cousin was working on this and gave me the pattern and I bought the yarns required while visiting L.A.....seeing how lovely it is I know I need to get this project underway. The blueberry pie - beautiful, wish I could stick a fork in my screen and take a bite!

Knitting Out Loud said...

I love love love the scarf. Stunningly beautiful!!! And then cleverly wrapped around Balzac.

You might enjoy Jean Renoir's biography of his father, for a portrait of France in the 19th century. Renoir loved the 18th century, felt things had gone downhill. Just goes to show.

Blueberry season hasn't hit Maine yet, but when it does, all things will be blueberry here.

Rachel said...

Wow--that scarf is stunning. Right about the time I forget that I want to try knitting with Habu, someone posts something beautiful like this! And I love your words about ancient crafts meeting modern style.

Blueberry pie is hands down my favorite pie. And of course a berry pie isn't done until it is bubbling thick juice out of the crevices! And I like your little flower on top...nice!

rozemie said...

Hi, I love the kusha kusha scarf. i have knitted one too, it took me quite a while because the metal thread wasn't easy to knit. I have spent quite some time on your blog, so many lovely projects ! I 'm sorry that mr Puffy isn't around anymore, he looked such a friendly dog. Greetings from Belgium, kind regards from Rozemie