FO and new Hobbies

And here is the promised photo of my FO sweater! It is so soft and warm… I love it!

Two weeks ago, I and J went to a wedding. It was an ordinary wedding, nothing new to report. But we loved the souvenirs: bonsais!

Now we’re with the bonsai fever! J has been studying how to grow bonsais and has lots of ideas to make new ones! I’ve asked my granddad to make me a little tangerine tree. And I’m thinking about doing a little flowery tree, like a Serissa Han-kengai or a Delonix Regia.

We know our bonsais are nothing but an ugly bush, but at least we’re practising

Yarn help

As anyone worked with Filatura Di Crosa Zara Chiné yarn from Tahki Stacy Charles? I don’t know how it is. If it is too rough or soft. Or if it gains spouts from too much wearing. Or if it is fantastic.

In Knitters Review it is said: “This type of spin [from Filatura di Crosa Zara and others]produces a wonderfully stable and well-wearing yarn, and I look forward to seeing more offerings in this category.”

I’m afraid to order it and don’t like it. Maybe I’ll try to find a good 100% merino yarn here in Portugal… I don’t know… What should I do?

VK fall issue

Have you seen the fall Vogue Knitting issue? I’ve fell in love with two dresses! One is from the cover:

But what truly inspired me was this dress, from Tahki Stacy Charles:

My sweater is almost finished!! I only have to shape the left arm and sew it! I think this weekend I’m going to have a new lovely warm sweater!
My neighbor’s dog, Giza, a boxer, had two puppies a month and a half ago. It was her first pregnancy, and unfortunately the smallest puppy didn’t survived.

Lara, the puppy, is huge now! So cute! Just check out the next photos:

Winter projects

What do I want to knit this Winter?

First of all: I WANT TO KNIT!

I’m making my efforts to knit a little every day. My sweater has a whole arm sewed in and I’ve already started the second. And it makes me happy. I shouldn’t forget my good habits.

Since I’m with the flue and I’m soooo cold (stupid air conditioning), all I can think is to be in my sofa, with a blanket over my legs, my sweetie by my side (doing whatever he does on his laptop), and knitting. And what do I want to knit? Here’s my want-to-do list

• Finish my Belle Époque sweater

• Finish my grandma’s purse

• Finish my friend’s dolls

• Knit a pair of socks (pattern yet to be determined)

• Knit a hat (pattern yet to be determined)

• Knit a good for my sweetie (decisions, decisions)

• And, if possible, a pair of gloves or mittens and scarf for me

Until the end of this year, these are my priorities! Which patterns? Ravelry here I go!

Anti-Theft Lunch Bag

Do you make wonderul sandwiches for your hubbies lunch and does he complain that some co-worker is always stealing them?  Do not worry any longer!

Innovative designer Sherwood Forlee has a solution: The Anti-Theft Lunch Bag!

I bet no one will want them now!!

August – the month of sun, peace and beach

I wish! I didn’t have any vacations last month. I was full of work, with no time at all! Don’t you just love it when your boss asks you to do some work that had to be done 3 weeks before? And you see yourself with no time to do what you like. Not even enough time to sleep. You got up at 7.00 am, arrive at work at 8.30 am, and you only got out of work at 22.00 pm. Some crazy weeks I had… It wasn’t easy. My boyfriend didn’t like it. I didn’t like it. But it’s over now. And I don’t care for being writing this post during my work hours. I’ve work the hell out of me, and I deserve to have some peace!

As for the beach and sun… You know… Portugal, 9 months of sun during the year. The press said back in May: “Be careful! This is going to be the hottest summer in the last 25 years”. I don’t know of what they were talking about, but it sure wasn’t about Portugal! We had no summer at all. Stupid global warming! Will I have summer at Christmas? I’m not sure I like this idea.

At least this weather confusion got me a little more preoccupied with environment. I always did my best to make environment-friendly decisions. But now I’ve become a little more environment conscious. I’ve been reading loads of info about this issue, and have learned so many things! I’ll try to share some of my findings with you

Right now I’m with the flue. It sucks! But it isn’t all bad news! Nowadays, I’ve been looking for an apartment with my boyfriend. It feels so good to have someone besides you, no matter what. And building a life together is great! I really love it.

Two days ago we went to see one. It was lovely. Modern, clean, it was exactly what we’ve been searching for. Until the owner opened the blinders. Then it transformed itself into a nightmare! At least I would have nightmares if I stayed there! While the owner was opening them and view started to show, I and J were completely speechless. All that we could see from the window was a graveyard! A HUGE graveyard! A huge like football stadium huge! We were so astonished, that all we feel like doing was laugh (something like giggle loop if you saw “Coupling”). Oh my… it was so morbid!

But our hopes are high. It was our first visit, and the right apartment will come. I’m sure of that!

As for my knitting, I’ve been having nightmares about it. Seriously! I almost don’t have any time to J, and I just want to be with him. So, all my free time goes to him. My sweater, the one Sharon sweetly gave me the needles I was missing, is stopped on one sleeve away. Two dolls I was making to a friend are stopped (hair and clothes missing). And the saddest part is that I don’t know when I’m going to have the time to knit. Is like Cass said today, we should have time bottles. Every now and then I would have my sip of time.

Besides my knitting, I still have thousands of items in my “to do list”. The most urgent is my portfolio. As a designer, it is utterly important to have a portfolio. And mine is not very good… I’m working on it. Very slowly. J fully motivates me to do it. He knows I need it, and he is helping me doing it. As a System Administrator, he helped with all the geeky stuff, like settling my server and connections. He’s a sweet geek

Oh! And I’m a Linux user now! Away with Mi€ro$oft! Hooray for Open Source! I’ve been using Ubuntu release. I love it. You could think “yeah right! She says that because her boyfriend is a Linux expert and he helps her out”. I admit he helps me sometimes. But just with some commands. Ubuntu is very user-friendly and for an internet surfer or blogger it is the best! It’s much lighter than Window$ and much quicker! It doesn’t crash. It’s safer. It’s free! I fully recommend it! Get it a try! And if you need help just say it! It’s my pleasure to help. Now in my laptop I have two operating systems: Window$ (for some work) and Ubuntu (for work and fun). And yes, I’ve installing them all by myself.

My biggest setback against Linux is Photoshop and Freehand. These are my everyday tools. But they’re for Window$. I’m slowly learning how to use new tools (open source). Now I know how to work with Gimp (image editor, but not as good as Photoshop), Kompozer and Notepad++ (open source substitutes to Dreamweaver), Inkscape (Freehand alternative). I don’t know if it is my still poor knowledge about these tools, but Photoshop is unbeatable, so, it keeps me at Window$.

I really believe open source idealism is the future. We are leading, each day, to a more interconnected knowledge. Share is the new black. See Ravelry for example: you share and receive, for free! And isn’t that wonderful? Why shouldn’t other stuff be like that? You just have to want it!

I’ve been reading your blogs (apologies for not commenting them) and I conclude that money is lacking all around the world. It doesn’t matter what color is your money. What name it has. It’s always less than we need. Why not to start to do simples things to change this? Choosing a free Operating System is one tiniest answer. Using the cold water program on your washing machine is another. Adapt simple habits like soaping all your dishes first and, at the end, watering them all at once. Recycle your leftover yarn! Have you tried to knit with your old plastic shopping bags? Your old newspapers, VCR tapes? Yes, it’s possible! Everything is possible: you just have to be a little creative

London

Vacations are over. For now I mean. It tasted like heaven!

I really love London and my sweetie loved that city too. So next year we’re moving over there! We already saw some places we like: Canary Wharf or North Greenwich. It is so beautiful! Just by the river, away from the confusion, but very near the city.

Here’s my luv by Picadilly Circus:

We went to Oxford Street to do some shopping and I fell in love with a Gola shoes. They’re lovely and super comfortable! In the colors gray and pink. They are similar to these, but much darker:

Since we were in London, the multi-cultured European city, we wanted to try different food. We ate the English Breakfast and Fish and Chips, lots of Italian food (Yammi) and some other specimen. One of these was Thai food. I loved it, but the next day I woke up with pimples all over my body… I must have done some allergy to some condiment or so. Vacations without being sick aren’t vacations to me LOL

About knitting… My sweater is almost done, just have some finishings to do!!! Thanks Sharon for the needles! Without them I could never finish it so soon! And I have 3 dolls made, just have to do the clothing now.

And now back to work (the worst part of taking some vacations…)

I’m back!!

First of all, I want to apologise for my absence from here. I’ve been doing a thousand things more, and the little extra time I have, I try to be away from the computer.

As for my knitting, my sweater it’s only a sleeve away! Don’t have the time to knit either…

And why don’t I have time for blogging or knitting, you may ask? Well… I kinda have a boyfriend now! It’s great news, because he is exactly what I’ve been searching for. We’re very happy together. Tomorrow it’s our first monthiversary eh eh eh

I’m trying to knit him a little princess, but I just don’t have the time for anything! But yesterday (it was our 4 weeks together) I gave him a rose with my perfume. He loved it! For tomorrow I’m thinking about doing an apple pie. LOL why do lovers look like fools???

Oh well, as for everything else, all its good! I’m going to London on vacations in two weeks with honey, and I’ve been travelling around Portugal with some friends.

But now the weather isn’t cooperating. It looks like January. Lots of rain and cold. I hate this weather!!

Saturday was C. and A. wedding. It was beautiful, my dear C. was so happy! I cried so much… It’s not every day that our best friend gets married! Here is a picture of the two, look how beautiful they look together!

Sweet Spring!

Well, judging by the weather, I don’t know if it’s Spring, Summer or Winter. Two weeks ago, it was Spring. Flowers starting to bloom. Sunny but still a little cold. Last week it was definably Summer. It was too hot! Even for the usual Summer here. Temperatures around 30ºC and keep rising! I even went to the beach and got a tan! But this week is clearly Winter. Freezing cold, lots of rain. The weather is crazy!!!

But in one of my Summer days I received a lovely present from Sharon, my Hot Cocoa swap friend, that keeps spoiling me!

She sent me the DPNs I needed to finish my Belle Epoque sweater (of course they’re already in use) and some treats to myself! More hot cocoa, little marshmallows birds (sweeeeeeeeet), lovely cotton and a super yummi postcard! Here’s a pic of the goods:

And here is what my sleeve lots like now:

This one is almost finished!!

As for the credit card, I got all my money back, cause no one could prove I made those shops (there was no signature on the receipts. Lucky me!).

Meanwhile, I’ve been doing some work on the babes. A friend of mine asked me to do a Pirate to her son (it was his 3rd birthday). Here is how it looks like:

And I’ve done a cell phone sock for another friend, but still have to finish the inside. No photos of that one though

Happy knitting for everyone!

What else?

What else will happen to me?

Yesterday I’ve discovered someone had cloned my credit card. They’ve made 3 purchases in Paris, France, in the amount of 1000 euros!!!

Why don’t they still from the rich?? And why do this kind of sh*t always happens to me??

So yesterday, I  spent all day between the bank and the police station. It was so boring!!!

And in the police station.. OMG! It’s another reality!

When I got there, it should be shift changing. One very cute policeman came to me and heard my complaints. But he had to go away, so another policeman was called. This one looked like a retard didn’t know how to take my complaint, so the other policeman tried to explain what he got to do. And everytime the very cute policeman said my name, he looked at me and blinked me an eye ih ih ih

It seems the process is all digital now, but the police didn’t got any training. Well, this policeman was so lame and didn’t know how a computer worked, he used it like a type machine, and he didn’t even know what forms should I fill. I spent 2 hours in the police station, and was sent away, cause the “system was down”.

I came to work, and had to go to the police station again, at night, to sign my complaint (I don’t know the name for this in English). Now I have to go to court, a few times a month Meanwhile, I’ve got to wait for my VISA insurance to give my money back, and I sure hope they do, cause I even had to spent 30 euros to cancelled my credit card!!!

I’m so pissed off…