Rockin' Knits: Newfoundland scenes

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Let's Go Iceberg Hunting, Ellen!

John suggested it, I readily agreed and Ellen was delighted. She had never seen an iceberg until Friday. We'd heard through the grapevine that there were icebergs on the move so we decided to go on a hunt up the Southern Shore Highway as far as Ferryland. We did find two small icebergs: one in Witless Bay on the way to Ferryland and another in Tors Cove when on the way home, so Ellen did finally get to see icebergs. Yay!

The summer sweater that Ellen is modelling is being hand knit with Knit Picks Shine Worsted. It's 60% pima cotton, 40% modal. It was so windy out on the cliff near the iceberg that I had to use a knitting needle as a shawl pin just to keep the sweater on Ellen. John to the rescue again! He kept Ellen upright while I grabbed a few quick shots. We thought about doing the photo shoot in a sheltered area, but Ellen wanted the iceberg in the background. We thought that would make for a better story so we went along with it. :-)

We also got a few Doggie Paparazzi shots, came across a section of the East Coast Trail, got a few good deep breaths of Atlantic Ocean air in our lungs and let the wind blow through our hair (and through the sweater that Ellen modelled!) Successful day for sure!

Happy Easter everyone!

Iceberg at Witless Bay

Ferryland

Section of the East Coast Trail at Ferryland

Ferryland (off the main road - looking left)

Ferryland (off the main road - looking right)

Ferryland Lighthouse in the distance

This dog looked like he had been for a swim. He's doing 'the shake' here.

Rolling in the grass to dry off

I got fairly close to him and he completely ignored me and went about drying himself.

You can see the Lighthouse to the right. The road going up the hill leads to the Lighthouse.
We go there for picnics in summertime.

Tors Cove iceberg

This photo reminds me of the Newfoundland & Labrador Tourism ads where
they show people having fun near the sea.

The only reason for including this picture is because I love old fences and pathways.

Ellen's first iceberg experience

The zoom lens helps us get a little closer

Looking toward the land on the way back to the truck with Ellen

Wednesday, April 4, 2012

Happy Anniversary, Ellen!

My goodness, how a year can fly by! Ellen was delivered by Purolator courier one year ago today. We've had all kinds of adventures since her arrival and hopefully we have many more in the months and years ahead.

It's kind of humorous how Ellen became the focal point of this blog: When I told my daughters that I intended to buy a mannequin so that I could use her to build a knitting portfolio, they all thought it was rather funny. One of them asked if I intended to have her ride around with me in my car sitting in the passenger seat like a real person. Another said I should get a group of mannequins and load them aboard the car and go around doing photo shoots with them. Then, she went on to say how funny it would be unloading them while people watched, all the while wondering what in the world I was doing. All said in good humour and we all laughed at the ideas. Anyway, as eccentric as that sounds, when I began to think about it, it really did seem like a great idea because, when I picked up knitting again after several non-knitting years, I stopped doing photography. And, seeing I had spent quite a bit of time and money learning photography I didn't want to forget what I had learned. So, with Ellen around I always had a model for the knit wear and I could still take landscape photos.

A few months later I started the blog as a way to keep in touch with Andrea and Angela, the daughters who live in other parts of Canada so that they, my Mom, other family members and friends could share in the adventure, keep up to date with what I am knitting, and hopefully be entertained. As you know, from time to time I need a sidekick - to help keep Ellen upright or just as buddy to go on a photo shoot. Enter John (my boyfriend/partner/buddy) and Alana, my oldest daughter/buddy. I think both of them thought I was losing my mind at first, but being the gracious souls that they are, they willing agreed to help whenever they were asked and sometimes volunteered when they were not asked. I always appreciate their help. I also appreciate the encouraging comments from people who write me privately.

Below are some of the highlights of our year. Cheers to Ellen and thanks to all of you for accepting her as one of your own!