Crazy Koozies

I really thought I was onto something when I started knitting beer koozies, but these things are crazy!!

This, my friends, is the original Scandinavian koozie. Available from Skuuzi if you want one for yourself, because I don't plan on trying to knit one of these anytime soon.

Lazy Post

Today I'm tired, so I'll speak in pictures.

My knitting has taken over the living room, but yesterday I got to flip on the fireplace for the first time this fall, making it a very cozy place to curl up and knit. (I think I was watching the Sing Off on hulu. Really awesome show if you're looking for something to watch with seriously talented people.)

They're multiplying!!!

A restock was in order, can't wait to try the Magic Hat beers from the seasonal Night of the Living Dead case we bought. Mmmmm octoberfest beer...

Some mini pumpkin pies left over from ladies knitting night yesterday.

Lastly, some pretty roses still persevering in my back yard. Everything in the yard is completely overgrown (I like to think of it as Halloween decorations) but the roses needed to be cut back. 

I couldn't just toss these guys in the bucket, so I'll enjoy them in the house for a bit.

The White House Home Brew

As you may have gathered, I like beer. I enjoy having a beer with dinner after a long day, or meeting up with friends at the bar for a drink and a Flyers game. While I am by no means a beer connoisseur, I do enjoy sampling new beers and finding new favorites. I'm not the kind of girl who will drink anything with "light" on the label rather preferring to have a pint or two of something special over imbibing half of a case of Coors Light.

I have to say that I especially enjoy homebrews made by family and friends that I have had the pleasure of sampling, as well as micro brews that can be found at places like the Iron Hill Brewery in the Philadelphia area. On a side note, I recently had a whiskey barrel brewed stout at Iron Hill that tasted just like an Irish Car Bomb without the chugging. It was a little bit of heaven in a frosty pint glass. Yum!

My Uncle Steve has been brewing since before I was legal, and I have a vivid memory of my Grandma yanking a very small glass of home brew from my hands before I had the pleasure of a sip when I was about 19. I must say, it was worth the wait, and continues to get better.

Therefore, I was very pleased to hear this morning that President Obama has brought the art of homebrew to the White House.

The President purchased the equipment himself and asked the White House chefs to come up with the first ever homebrew created for the President. Being homebrew enthusiasts, the chefs set about brewing several honey-based brews for such events as the President's Super Bowl Party and fufilling a request by former Marine Sargent Dakota Meyer who received the Medal of Honor and asked to have a beer with the President. The honey was harvested from the White House's own beehives and have gone into the White House Honey Ale, pictured above, as well as a White House Honey Blonde Ale, and a White House Honey Porter.

You can read more on Obama Foodorama's blog. But what I really want to know is, would the President like some hand knitted beer koozies in exchange for some White House homebrew? I can make them in red white and blue!

Knitting For Beer, Literally!

I feel like this is a big reveal, even though most of you have already seen these on Facebook, but the project I chose to work on while at the beach were beer koozies! Staying true to my name, even if not in the way it initially implies, I knitted for my beer. Now that bottle can be stylish and your hand can stay warm while you enjoy your frosty beverage.

I started with a beer in hand, for inspirational purposes of course.

Knitted on the beach, enjoying the perfect weather, and the koozies are small so I didn't have trouble keeping anything out of the sand.

Megan was the first one to enjoy a knitted koozie on her beer, but I promised all the ladies I would make them a set. I'm working hard on everyone's koozies, the first one finished was a set of purple.

I love projects that go quick and are fun to give to people. Plus the Stitch Nation yarn has the most eye-catching colors that are perfect for dressing up your beer. I designed four different cable patterns so everyone can tell their beers apart. I will post the patterns soon so you can make your own set!

Will Knit for Beer

Except for Interior Design, which I have a Bachelor’s degree for, I consider myself a jack of all crafty trades and a master of none. I stick to the sole use of the left side of my brain since the right side doesn’t always work well, and I married an accountant to take care of those sorts of things anyway. I love to do anything that involves creative thought, bright colors, working with my hands, and creating something out of almost nothing. I was taught to knit by my Aunt in December of ’09 and haven’t quit since.

I consider myself somewhere in the in-between phases of experienced, expert knitter, and still trying to figure this thing out. Scarfs have long since been exchanged for more challenging patterns resulting in misshapen sweaters and a semi-understanding of how a pattern gets altered and fitted for me. I don’t know how to crochet (but I’ll learn) I just recently started taking the extra time to block my projects (I was anxious to wear them or ran out of time before present giving) and I am desperately trying to get up the courage to learn how to knit socks (they just seem so complicated what with the crazy heel shape and that mystical toe bind-off *shudder*).

An explanation of my chosen title would not be complete without also stating that I am a lover of beer, and while I know very little about it, I enjoy drinking it which could always provide some good fun along the way.