Winter Joy

Ah, it's finally cold!!! Last night temperatures dropped to 5C in my city... Below zero in some towns. This is bliss for me!

Why? Well, more tea, more knitting and crochet (so much more!), more watching tv on the couch with blankies on.... Using my knitted socks...

I could go on and on :)

I am so happy I was able to finish this scarf (shawl? cowl?) in a few weeks, just before the cold arrived. First time I ever made something in this shape. Got about 218 stitches, so the largest thing I've ever knitted!

If you want to make one for you, here is the pattern. It's so, so easy! You memorize it in no time and I made this while watching Vikings :D

The yarn I used was a gift from a friend who I love. She sent me this italian merino, and it's so, so cozy. And the color? It goes well with EVERYTHING! Just my kind of thing!

Can't wait to use it. Before I finish, here's a little something from our garden - little sister's gold oranges. Well, they're not gold just yet, but they will be! :)

Love, Tina

Blanket Journey

As I said many times before, blankets are my weak spot. I love making them. The planning is one of the best moments of the journey... But this time, I was quite stuck.

So many ideas, but nothing I really loved. And who wants to spend weeks, sometimes months, doing a design they don't really like? That's just crazy.

I tried mandalas, simple squares, complicated motifs... So far, I THINK I'm on the one. I *think*. I really hope it is, because it's stunning. Big and pretty!

Not going to show this whole motif just yet.... But it has popcorns. LOTS of it. :)

I have a bunch of colorful yarn I'm itching to use, and this will be the first blanket of 2016! I made 4 last year - Maybe I can make 5 this year? Who knows :D

Stay tuned for more - I will be documenting everything here... Not sure why, but I think this blanket will be special.

With love,

Tina!

Candy Color Squares

Not much going on lately.... Mostly because I'm making this square blanket and that takes quite a lot of work! I guess the worst part is weaving in ends - And I like doing that! Imagine how it is for those who hate it - a true labor of love :)

In any case, I only need 18 more squares - and then I can start joining! Going to make a sc join, just like I did with my last blanket. Not sure about the color yet, though :)

Also, I haven't choose a border yet. I like lacy borders, but I'm not so sure that would work with this square. I'm lucky though, I got an Edie Eckman book about crochet borders with lots of designs, so my problem will be the choosing, and that's quite a cool problem to have.

Other than that, I made a couple of baby booties. I used a new pattern for the orange one, and a the pattern I use all the time for the other. I have to say, I really like my "deafault" pattern!

Love,

Tina

A Lacy Blanket

Sometimes, it's sad to finish a project. Sometimes all you can think of is "Oh thank god this is over!", and sometimes all you feel is pride.

This is one of those times. I'm so proud of this blanket. It turned out much, much better than I expected.

You see, I like variegated yarn. It's fun yarn. But not to use in a blanket - or so I thought. I had these very strict rules over what yarn I would always use in blankets and such - at least in blankets made of a bunch of squares or motifs joined together. I had no idea how wrong I was, really!

As it turns out, I had all those balls of cotton, variegated yarn at home. They were in my stash just being there, using space. Thing is, this cotton is not exactly cheap, and I was getting nervous about never using. I had some ideas in the past, but they never really seemed to work.

I was in love with the Victorian Lattice square for quite some time, thinking about what a stunning blanket it would make. But I was thinking about solid colors only! So silly of me. So one day, I was searching for yarn for another project when one of those yarn cakes pop out of nowhere and I thought "you know what? I'm using this right now. I'm going to make that square with this yarn!" As if that was such an amazing idea, right? If I was more open minded, this would have happened ages ago!

So I started, and as my first motif blanket, I have to say, it was lots of work. But I wanted to see the colors mixing and matching, the joins to look perfect, to find the right border. And I loved every second of it.

Believe it or not, I still have yarn left! :)


Love,

Tina

It's been too long!

Oh my, how long has it been since my last blog post? I'm sorry about that. But so much has happened! I had weeks and weeks of tests and all I did for almost a month was study. Not a lot of crafting time!

Still, I was able to get most of mom's blanket done, and I'm starting the sleeves on that baby cardi. Not going to show you much of the blanket yet, because all I have to finish is the edging, and I really want to show the whole thing ready :)

Also, this month was my birthday! I got so much yarn as gift, I can't not even express how amazing it was.  Grandma gave me tons of yarn with lovely pastel colors she choose so I can make a blanket for her (which I loved because I ADORE making blankets :D And she can't really crochet much anymore... It takes her over a year to make something like a blanket. Also, she loves having the things I made, so it's a win win situation :) )

And mom... Oh, mom. She took me to a yarn store and said I could choose what I wanted. This woman is amazing - we are not that well when it comes to finances, but still, she spoils me as if I were a little girl still. Also it's quite amazing how she trusts me to spend wisely. Love her so much.

So I got this acrylic/alpaca mix too, and.... Oh I have big plans for it.

Love,

Tina

Knitting, knitting, tons of knitting

I honestly don't know how this started. I've been mostly a crocheter since always - Hardly picking up a knitting needle. This last few months tough, it's all I've been doing.

I think it started with the socks. It was a challenge and I wanted to make a few great pairs. Then I started looking up patterns and decided I was going to make a fair isle sock. It all went downhill (?) from there.

To be honest, I am hoarding (What? Me? No, never) yarn for another crochet blanket. I think I want a make another chevron blanket - or maybe one with hexagon motifs. See? No idea just yet. It will get done though - More yarn is needed, that's all. That's hardly a problem, by the way.

So crazy me started a swatch for a fair isle motif I want to use for a sock. Thing is, I am making this much harder than it should be - I am knitting this flat. I just want to have an idea of how this is going to go - after all I'll be using 3 colors, and I never done anything like this before. Yeah, making a few stripes in a hat is child's play - flat fair isle has the power to make you call your mom. Which, for me, it's useless. She can't even hold a knitting needle.

Oddly enough, I find this process amazing. This swatch will be my project for this afterrnoon.

There's also this super cutie cutie baby vest. It's very simple and plain, but I have a few ideas. Actually more than a few, but I need to buy black and yellow crochet thread for it and at the moment, student me has to choose between buying thread of printing all those papers. I'd much rather have the thread, but I need those papers, so thread will wait. (Wait until I can tell mother how much my life depends on that thread. That might work too.)

And then, there's this wonderful, beautiful, mesmerizing Drops Delight that I got from a equally wonderful friend. She sent me a parcel from a far away place - When I opened it felt like my brithday (Again! Remember when Nicki sent me sock yarn and needles? Oooh so amazing.) There were tons of cool yarn, stitch markers and those cute green clover stitch holders.

I want to make a scarf with it - I started one but was not feeling it. Frogged yesterday and I think I found the perfect stitch today... Cannot wait to started.

Actually, I should study. I have a test in three weeks and it's going to be hard, but there's so much yarn in my face at the moment... Lots of distraction, you see. Can't study until I've dealt with it!

Love, Tina

My first pair of socks

Back in april, I really wanted to learn how to knit socks. To me, it was the most complicated thing to knit in this world. Just the tought of making a heel made me shudder!

Then in may I learned about the Sockalong - Met wonderful people, made great new friends, but socks were still a dauting task for me.

But a few weeks ago, things just clicked. And the knitting went pretty much without any trouble at all! My problem at the moment? Kitchener stitch. But I have faith. One day... One day I will master that thing.

Now, not only I have my first pair, I'm already starting a new one, and very happy about it! When you are able to do something you thought it was almost impossible, you feel amazing. :)

I'm also working on a cable cowl, and making a gift for grandma, while I create different color combos for new mandalas.

Crafting life sure is the best one!

Love, Tina

Yarn Butterflies

The pleasure I had this week consisted in sitting in front of my computer and searching for new music. I do this at least once a month - music keeps me going! While I did that, I knitted and drank my coffee. There's something magic into closing my eyes while holding my needles and just listening to that special song I just found - It feels like heaven :)

I also crocheted some tiny flowers and butterflies - and sew them on a baby top I made. I so loved the result... Maybe I will start making tiny gardens to sew on the cardis? The possibilities are endless!

For a few weeks now I have searched for a cowl pattern - nothing fancy, something simple and quick. I was going to use a beautiful blue dk yarn I had bought... Until something clicked.

Back in '13, when I started knitting, grandma Zaira gave me her whole stash. I'm not kidding - she did that. Within all that yarn, I found this wool silk blend. I never used it - it's so beautiful, I had no idea how to use it. But now, there's that cowl pattern... I hope 100grams is enough!

I do love that green. Because I have brown hair, dark green looks good on me. But every time I was about the start the pattern, I had to do something else. Or my mom called, or my sister wanted me to do something... The joys of family, haha. :)

I HAVE to start that, though. I just have to!

Also, this week was so somber... Everyday the sky was overcast, and it rained a lot. How happy I was when I saw that we had sun today? So much happines!!

Here's a flower to celebrate. :D

Love, Tina

Bela Blanket Pattern

This blanket was such a joy to make. I loved choosing the colors, getting myself a bit nervous, and even sewing all the ends.

The fact that I used different yarns made sure that there was never a dull moment. Most importantly, my sister loved it!

As soon as it was finished, she snatched the blanket from me and started using it. To think, it starts with a granny square!

Oh, crochet. For me, it's the most wonderful craft that exists. Yes, I love knitting just as much, but there is something about crochet.... <3

I used worsted, bulky and aran yarns to make the blanket. The border was made with DK yarn. I went for bright colors, because my sister asked for that. I used each color for two rounds, as I found that it would make the colors stand out more.

Have in mind that using different yarn weights can make your blanket bigger or smaller! Mine ended up quite big - 90cm wide and 90cm large.

Well, here's the pattern page on Ravelry, I made a PDF for it, as I always do.

Enjoy making your blanket! :D

Love, Tina

The row that almost never was

Phew! That was what I thought when I finished the row and saw I has enough yarn for it. Oh, the terror….

Just imagine (or have you been through it as well?) this: You have only one skein of that wonderful color left. You used quite a lot of that skein already. To be exact, over 2 thousand double crochet stitches were made with that same skein (I did my math!!).  And yet, you want to use it again, to make at least another thousand double crochet stitches.

What do you do? You go on with it, of course. Because you’re crazy, and because you really want that row. You need that row.

You make no plans – you just hope the yarn will be enough. You wish from the bottom of your heart that you will NOT have to continue the row with another color. You even pray.

Then, you notice you are almost there – the end. The joy! Even better – there will be yarn left.

For me, that’s what success really means! :D 

My day was great. Not only because of the row incident that ended very well - my little sister stayed home with me. She had no school today - They were having math tests for a competition, and she takes after her big sister - terrible at math. So she had the whole day for herself.

We took pictures, she read while I crocheted. I made her some homemade chantilly and we talked about many things. 

The sun was shining, there was laughter and yarn. I look forward to many other days just like this one. :)

Love, Tina

So.Many.Projects! *May 2015*

I'm not a normal person. If I was unsure about it before, now I just know it. Maybe it's me driving my anxiety to different things - and if that's what is happening, then this is actually a really good thing. But... This month has been crazy when it comes to my projects. I started socks, hats, blankets, scarves and a lacy table runner. I knitted and crocheted more than ever. I thought making a post about what I've been making would be nice. :)

1- Basic Baby Hat 

This one was such a joy to make - I even learned how to make pompoms just for it!Now I need a blue one for my baby cousin. :) * Project page - you can find the pattern here.*

2 -Sockalong Winwick Mum

I have said many things about this wonderful sockalong in older posts. I finished my pair of socks but for my sadness, I had to frog them. Why? I only had 3,50mm dpns, and needed smaller needles. I was not able to find them here in the yarn stores we have where I live. :( But I will get the smaller dpns soon enough! :) *Project page - find the pattern here*

3 - Isabela's Blanket 

This has been such a wonderful project. It's almost done, but part of me wish I had started the blanket now. This is how much I love making it! I hope my sister likes it too :) *Project page*

4 - I See Hearts 

I have a big trunk in my bedroom, It used to be filled with toys when I was a kid. Now I'm 21 and don't play with dolls anymore, but it's a good wooden trunk and I will paint it white (because it's pink, and decorated with dolls and yellow hearts.) and use it as a nightstand. I wanted to make a doily for it - But not round. So I decided to choose a stitch and make a lacy table runner instead! But I'm not so sure about this. Let's see how it goes. The hearts sure are cute though! *Project page*

5 - Memory Blanket 

I can't stop knitting this blanket, it's so relaxing and such a simple project. I take it everywhere with me, and people always say how cool the pattern is. *Project page - find the pattern here*

6 - Another Blanket

And I think I might be starting another blanket. I made one for me, for my sister, and the memory blanket is for charity. Why do I want to make another blanket? Because I have TONS of cotton yarn in this house. Top quality cotton yarn. I haven't really used it yet because I had not found the perfect pattern for it. I got many of those skeins for my birthday last year - god only knows how much money they spent in all of this. I would not be able to AFFORD making a blanket with this yarn! The only thing I would have to buy to complete the blanket would be white skeins, 2 or 3, but that's minimal. And I already have a pattern in mind! :) 

7 - Lacy Scarf

Oh well.... no photo for this one because I have frogged it so many times looking for the perfect pattern. The yarn I chose is beautiful though! :D

That was quite a list, right? :) 

Love, Tina 

Happines

I learned from a really early age that happines does not depend on anyone but yourself; surely, it does not depend on having things either. 

Yesterday was a hard day, I had a terrible migraine and my wrists hurt a lot. I was really stressed this week and everytime I would knit or crochet, my tension was extremely tight. I didn't notice that I was forcing so hard until moving my arms actually hurt. 

It was a beautiful day, but it was so hot I could barely stay outside. As someone who loves winter and cannot wait for very cold days (they should be here already - May is fall here in Brazil), having another hot day was not really nice.

Also, I was running out of yarn for my sister's blanket. Tragedy, right? 

So today, when I woke up, I did my best to think positive thoughts. The sun was shining and well, it is hot, but I might as well enjoy it!

Went to buy groceries with mom and got coffee - I had none yesterday and to me, it's a ritual. I need my coffee. 

I also got a tiny chocolate bar - C'mon, everyone needs that sometimes! ;)

After helping mom with groceries, she looked at me and said: "Alright, I'm giving you the money for yarn.". I'm a student and I'm usually broke (hahahaha) so that meant so much for me. My mom is awesome. 

While yarn always makes me happy, I can guarantee that just getting more would not make a difference if my attitude were the same as yesterday. 

Sometimes, just being happy because the sun is shining is the key for a better day. When the sun it's not here to grace me with his presence, I search for other things. Maybe today I will watch that tv show I love; I will craft a new project, listen to the falling rain, try and create a new pattern, and so on. 

Those little things do matter! If something so simple can make you feel good, invest in it. Take your time, drink you tea (or coffee) and make something. :)

Love, Tina 

Finally!

After knitting socks, hats, making pompoms and finishing small crochet projects, I started my sister's blanket. And you know what? I decided to make a HUGE granny. And I'm really liking it so far! 

The reason why I chose this design is because I have a lot of scrap yarn in different weights. Making square by square would draw attention to their different sizes - Here, you notice the colors more than anything else. 

This are some of the colors I will be using next. After those, who knows? As long as they match, I love this. 

And, to finish this post, a flower. The day is wonderful, blue skies, sunny, warm. :) 

Yey for sunny days!

Love, Tina

My Sister's Blanket

I've made two blankets so far. One for my mom, one for me. My sister never asked for one, until I asked if she would want a blankie just for her. She said yes, so here I am!

Those are the left over yarns from the blanket I made for me. She liked the colors, so I might use a few. That beautiful green yarn has not been used yet - I bought it two years ago! Shame on me.

It's going to be my first square blanket. I have joined squares before, but never like this. Excited to see how it's going to be!

Right now I'm making different squares and choosing patterns. If I like them, I join them together. So every time I try a new pattern, I have to think very carefully about the color I want to use next. I'm loving this challenge!

Mixing lace squares with more solid ones is what I want to do here. Can't wait to see the progression of this! This is why new projects are so amazing - Your brain just never stops.

Love, Tina