August 18, 2009

There are so many things that I am excited about! Planetpurl.com (a great knitting website) is doing a Nicky Epstein Knit-Along for my “Knitting In Tuscany” book.Knitters voted and chose their 3  favorite pieces from the book for the Knit-Along…”Tuscan Sun Shawl”, “Cypress Capelet” and “Carrara Marble Cardigan”. There will be a live chat with me on their website on August 28th, and September 1st and 15th. I’m so anxious to see how the projects progress. This is a first for me.

More fun news…Mary Taylor, an avid knitter( and top notch attorney) in Minnesota, who rarely knits for herself, has declared that she is going to knit all 48 designs in my book “Knitting On Top Of The World”, starting January 1, 2010 and hopes to finish in 3 years. That’s approximately 12 pieces a year, and they will all be for her. She’ll be blogging her progress as she goes along. In the movie “Julie and Julia”, Julie cooks through the entire Julia Childs’ cookbook in a year, and this may be a dedicated knitter’s equivalent to that, but I’m honored that Mary’s doing it.
 

I just had a visit from Yoko Hatta, a wonderful fellow knitter and designer from Japan. She comes to New York once a year with her husband, and we always have tea and exchange little gifts and our latest books or magazine projects. Her new book “Fair Isle Knitting” is coming out in August 2009 and you can check it out on www.kazekobo.net. She told me knitting and crocheting is very popular in Japan. I told her my next book “Knitting A Kiss In Every Stitch” is filled with gifts to knit for friends, relative and charity. She told me charity knitting has not yet hit Japan.

I hope you like the free “Colors Of Tuscany Travel Scarf” instructions on my website, and the new pink and lilac colors now available for my designer silk scarf. My new line of clasps with JHB will also be added to the site soon, along with some of my knitting patterns.

My 4 year old great nephew Mason, came to visit with his Mommy and Daddy and it was such fun. We took him to the American Museum of Natural History (he loves dinosaurs) and to the New Jersey State Fair. In spite of some rain, he rode the rides, enjoyed the farm animals, and played the games (he won 3 big prizes…I think the vendors were being generous, because he wasn’t letting the rain stop him.)

It’s very hot here in New York so I’m staying in most days, designing away.

PS—If you make the Pignoli cookies from “Knitting In Tuscany” make sure not to overcook them…they should be very light brown. Also the caponata can be cooked on top of the stove.

Here’s a new quick recipe for summer...

Chocolate Covered Cherries

1 lb white chocolate
1 cup your favorite colored chocolate (optional)
10oz jar cherries with stems

Mix together—3 tbsp melted butter—1oz melted unsweetened chocolate—1tbsp half & half or canned milk

Add-2 cups confectioner’s sugar and mix well

Wrap mixture around cherries… put in refrigerator or freezer until cold

Melt white chocolate—Dip cherries until covered—Place on wax or parchment paper--Let cool! (I use a cookie sheet and put them in the freezer for 5 minutes, because I can’t wait to eat them).

Optional- Melt colored chocolate and drizzle over cherries-Let cool!

YUM!

Keep cool…Keep knitting!
Nicky