Confissões de uma tricoteira

Holidays!!!

2012-05-25T12:58:00.002-07:00

I'm heading off to St. Simon, on a very well deserved holiday! Despite being only a few days, I am planning on doing absolutely nothing but chat with friends, drink, eat and enjoy the sand and the ocean…
I packed 2 shorts, one outfit for a night-out with the girls, one-piece bathing suit, a couple of bikinis and tons of sunblock (100). I am literally addicted to sunblock, specially on my face.
Time to get my feet up and just relax….
Bye!!!

Conquering my fear of the sewing machine

2012-05-24T14:51:00.003-07:00

I finished off the Indian queue scarf. Last year, when I went to get Buddy, my sister-in-law gave me two full bags of yarn. The majority of the yarn was worsted Red Heart. Nice but very scratchy.
So I decided to attach a lining to the other side of the scarf. For this, I ended up buying a very soft jersey knit and I attached to the scarf using a sewing machine. Yeap!!! Hard to believe but last time I used one, I was in my teens!
I loved the end result and I am glad I haven’t attempted to hand-stitch the whole thing. The sewing machine confrontation was a sort of an obstacle that I had to overcome but now I got excited and want to sew more…Let’s say…a hem!!! (*smile)

culprit of all fears

La Vie En Rose - Life in Pink

2012-05-05T10:57:00.000-07:00

Inspiration for Vacation

2012-04-21T13:31:00.001-07:00

Granny Squares

2012-04-16T12:49:00.003-07:00

Fall/Winter Vanessa Montoro collection

2012-04-12T11:39:00.018-07:00

her atelier in São Paulo/Br

reinventing crochet squares

handmade from the beginning to the end

Gorgeous and it's written my name all over it!!

crafted with pure silk hand spun yarn

dyed with organic pigments

her trademark: perfection

timeless elegance

Photography Subtleties by Tommy Ton

2012-03-28T11:46:00.016-07:00

Tommy Ton if you don't know, is one of the icons of street style photography. He has a keen eye to recognize new trends in fashion and to capture the essence of what is happening on the streets and in the backstage of this wonderful and complex world of fashion.
He created a new aesthetic in street photography and his pictures are trademark of elegance, movement, colors and journalism professionalism. In the fashion industry he has been recognized and praised by his amazing sense of retaining visual information worth of being published and of what might be a prospective trend for the year's fashion season.

pictures here

Spring flowers

2012-03-22T14:12:00.011-07:00

I decided to learn how to crochet. Inspired by so many talented women whose patience and camaraderie make this world of the (www) so amazing.
There is a lady in Germany, who freely and kindly posts all these videos tutorials on You Tube teaching how to crochet and knit.
Her work is so beautiful and even not speaking a word of German, I am able to follow her directions and actually even join the flowers by looking up the graphic one of her followers designed.
Great tutorial for someone interested in learning crochet techniques or if you just want to take a curiosity peek:

Buddy turns 1!!!

2012-03-21T14:48:00.007-07:00

Mini-me Oscar

2012-02-26T13:27:00.018-08:00

Meryl Streep. She can convincingly play anything and become anyone.

Jennifer Aniston-Still one of the cutest and most popular TV actress of her era.

Ashton Kutcher-The hottest thing in Hollywood. I bet (with that face) he could make his (girls) classmates laugh a lot at school.

Julia Roberts.2000 Best Actress winner for Erin Brockovich

Little Tom Cruise's missing tooth!! Even then, how he could be so darn cute!!

George Clooney- Looking not so hot there. Probably never dreamed of being the biggest lady's men in Hollywood.

Angelina Jolie savoring a toast. She fills so many different roles in life. Mother of 6 kids, actress, humanitarian, director, producer.

Chubby Brad- Beyond famous, he is one of the biggest movie star of the century

Lindsay Lohan-No comments!!

Pictures that bring back good memories

2012-02-25T06:45:00.010-08:00

Billie Achilleos' sculptures made of Louis Vuitton accessories

2012-02-20T12:01:00.012-08:00

Red Scarf

2012-02-09T11:17:00.012-08:00

Surrealism in the Southeast

2012-01-08T07:38:00.003-08:00

Picasso

De Chirico

Joan Miró

Alexander Calder

Picasso

Matisse

Brancusi

There is an ongoing exhibition at the High Museum and for the first time artists like Picasso, Matisse, Piet Mondrian, Brancusi, Joan Miró, De Chirico, Pollock ,Warhol, Alexander Calder and many others have been displayed in the southeast.
There were five sculptures from Brancusi; Bird in Space, New Born, Endless Column and Young Bird. In my view, Brancusi was the highlight of the display simply because his life was something that always intrigued me since I learned about him when I visited Paris.
Brancusi was born in Romania but he lived almost all his life in Paris. He lived a very simple, low-key lifestyle. He cooked his own food, dressed like a peasant and before he died he bequeathed his studio to the government of France demanding that they would renovate the studio and leave every masterpiece in the same place as the day he died.
I hope Brancusi harvested the fruit of recognition and distinction while he was alive but certainly he had never dreamed his work would be worth so much.
For instance, Yves Saint Laurent and his partner, Pierre Bergé, in the 70’s, bought Madame L.R (believed to be one of Brancusi's earliest work) for about €500.000 and it was sold for the second highest price marketed by Christie’s and Pierre Bergé and Associates auctioneers for €37 million in the 2009 Christie's auction in Paris.

Bracelet

2011-12-11T12:05:00.000-08:00

I saw this bracelet and I fell in love with it. For the talented gals who like crochet.

Lavish Jewelry bracelet (see more 14k jewelry)

Christmas decoration

2011-12-10T16:26:00.001-08:00

Thanksgiving dinner

Inspiration for Christmas

2011-11-19T08:12:00.000-08:00

accent pillows wrapped in festive ribbons

Interesting!!!

a wreath with a touch of fresh flowers

the inspirational Charlie Brown tree.

Christmas is around the corner and I think most of people start to feel de pressure. This year I don’t have plans on what I am going to do yet. I am leaning towards a quite Christmas. Regardless, I do not know if you are like me, I always change or add a garland, a wreath, or even a trim to the tree so the space LOOKS like it gets a CHRISTMAS makeover every year!
That being said, I am doing something different from the previous years. A small tree will be set up at the end of the stairs, facing the front door. I got "tired" of putting up the tree in the very same spot year after year, so time for a change!
To get some inspiration, I started to look at websites and magazines and in one of these searches, I found these pictures (the little Charlie Brown tree is the source of my inspiration for my project!) and hummm…he accent pillows wrapped in ribbons are not a bad idea either.

Crochet wonderland

2011-11-14T08:48:00.001-08:00

I haven't been able to write too much lately. After I came back from Mexico my life has been in a hectic schedule and last week I just went under the knife. Nothing major but I'll be out of commission for 2 weeks.
That said and done, I am having a lot of time to browse the net and I bumped into the spring/summer 2011 Vanessa Montoro collection to die for. All her dresses are head to toe handmade, she does not produce in large scale and the pigments she dyes her pieces with are extracted from nature and are in essence: herbs,seeds,tree leaves and tree trunks, tea and coffee dyeing.
Her craftsmanship is stellar and her eye for details and sophistication is undeniable!!

I want this one for New Year party!!!

I would wear this one too...

So, girlsss... which one you loved the most???

The BIG 5

2011-09-19T11:47:00.001-07:00

Valentin Resort in Riviera Maya, Mexico

French restaurant - inside the resort

Playa del Carmen

A day of scuba diving in Xel-Ha

A birthday gift I'll never forget

Furoshiki ideas

2011-08-28T07:28:00.000-07:00

A few months ago, I posted an article here on this blog, about Furoshiki.

The Japanese people wrap their gifts and do their grocery shopping using Furoshiki wraps. It reduces the waste (less plastic and paper litter) and is totally Eco-friendly.
Just using your imagination and creativeness,you can wrap everything; from books, chocolate boxes, baskets, bottles... to bags, pirex, pans and glassware. Look at the video below and see how this lady is

taking Furoshiki to another level.

Indian Queue

2011-08-27T06:13:00.000-07:00

I added another project to the queue... and it's called Indian Queue!!

Fio Sublime
Agulhas 6,0

Montar 32 pontos nas agulhas

1a. carreira : 1m,* laç, 2m, 2pjm, 2m* terminar a carreira com 2pjm,3m.
2a. carreira e todas as pares : tricô
3a. carreira : 3m, 2pjm, 2m, laç, *2m, 2pjm, 2m, laç* terminar a carreira com laç, 1m.

Fazer essas 3 carreiras até o tamanho desejado.
Rematar e blocar ( ou passar a ferro)

watching Buddy grow

2011-08-22T14:00:00.001-07:00

a vintage flair

2011-08-12T14:27:00.000-07:00

Inspired by this video. Added a nice finishing touch to the garment.

Buddy's graduation

2011-08-07T07:42:00.000-07:00

Buddy graduated yesterday 08-06-11. He passed with straight A's and he got a certificate and couple of nice treats.

miss Tracy (in a nice cuddling...)

Cobweb of faith

2011-08-06T11:02:00.000-07:00

Generically speaking I feel drained and overwhelmed by the work involved in having a puppy. Buddy is a very focused and he tries to please but at same time he is a handful and he needs a lot of attention. Way much more than I had anticipated.
I never thought having a puppy would be so consuming and my house looks like a hurricane hit it. Toys are all over the place and if there is one thing I can’t train him to do is to pick up them. (can I?).
I am exhausted and there hasn’t been too much time left for my knitting although I managed to finish off the cardigan. The cropped cardigan is a bought pattern and it is pretty simple but as I always believe starting any knitting project involves a great deal of faith. Faith in the designer who created the piece did the right calculations and adjustments. Faith in her directions and that she ultimately tried the piece on and the piece fits like a glove. It is when the cobweb of stitches start to take shape and everything starts to make sense.
The cropped cardigan needed some adjustments and thank God I had the presence of mind to try it on as I knitted and make the due adjustments along the way. I knew it needed some tuck in the waist line. I decreased only 12 stitches and boy… what a difference that made.
I think it came out pretty good and I would knit another one in a different color and yarn weight.
I used two techniques on this project:
The tubular cast off- bodice
The stretch cast off - sleeves(Fantastic^.^)