handmade

Autumn

| Verónica

After the humid heat of summer, autumn ushers in cooler days and bursts of color.

Just in time for the cool weather, I made up this chunky cabled hat from the Wooli yarn in my stash using this pattern (sans pompom).

Here it is in progress. The top two photos taken with my phone are fuzzier than I would like but I had to show the circular work in progress. I chuckled as I thought of Obey Crochet and hook’s smug comment about how many needles it takes to make a circle.

A close-up.

Here are some gratuitous pictures of mums and the last gardenias blooming in the garden. Those oranges, yellows and ochres brighten up our doorstep.
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Aaah, autumn.

Super Sweet Blogging Award

| Verónica

Such sweetness! Agujas was nominated for the Super Sweet Blogging Award. My teeth hurt just from looking at all that sugar! A HUGE thanks goes to Knitting Revolution for sharing this award with Agujas.

In accordance with the rules, I will answer these five questions:

  1. Cookies or cake? Cake, definitely cake. I love German Chocolate cake, Coconut cake, Italian Creme cake. Cake, cake, cake!
  2. Chocolate or vanilla? It has to be smooth, creamy vanilla. Did you know vanilla comes from an orchid?
  3. Favourite sweet treat? Easy. Cold, sweet ice cream.
  4. When do you crave sweet things the most? Late at night.
  5. If you had a sweet nickname what would it be? Caramelo (in Spanish).

{Sources: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5}

I am also delighted to nominate twelve sweet blogs for this award:

  1. Modflowers
  2. G-Ma Ellen’s Crochet Corner
  3. warmhotchocolate
  4. Serena Olivieri
  5. Roootreee Blog
  6. gone-rustic
  7. Now I’m Home
  8. belle cherie handmade
  9. Georgina Giles
  10. The {Tiny} Times
  11. The Middlest Sister
  12. Sugar and Cloth

Now all I need is a glass of milk!

A Very Crafty Evening

| Verónica

This is my second year attending the annual Artisan’s Market presented by the Contemporary Handweavers of Houston (CHH). The market runs from September 6 – 8 so if you are near Houston, you still have Saturday to stop by.

I am so glad that I went on their opening night. I did my usual walk around the rooms to look at all the displays. I then picked up a small plastic basket from the front so I could begin collecting the beautiful handwoven textiles, baskets, handmade jewelry, handspun yarn, and felted ornaments that I had singled out. I was too slow. Those ladies are fierce! Several items I had on my mental checklist were gone! Nonetheless, I had a great time looking, touching and taking pictures.

I saw beautiful handwoven textiles.

There were felted bracelets, handmade cards, woven rugs and artwork.

There were felted baskets, silk baskets and other sculptured baskets.

There were ghosts and goblins and catnip wrapped like mice for the upcoming Autumn holidays.

Even Saint Nicolas’ helpers offered their wares for the yuletide season.

Of course, there was yarn.

A huge round of applause to all of the fiber artists who produced these beautiful handmade items. By the crowds and the long line at check out, I am pleased to say that Houstonians truly appreciate the handcrafted arts.

If you want to see more lovely items like these, this is the post I wrote about last year’s event.

A long, hot summer

| Verónica

It seemed fitting to close out this HOT summer in flames. Andrea and the wonderful Miss D from I Love Schnauzers shared the Blog on Fire award with Agujas. When I came across I Love Schnauzers, I was hooked. Andrea knits a little bit of everything and makes the cutest doggie sweaters – and Miss D is the perfect model. Thank you Andrea and Miss D for heating up my day!

The rules are to share 8 unusual things about yourself (or your pet) and then share the award with 8 other bloggers who are on fire! Since this honor was bestowed by a line of dog lovers, most of them wrote about their pets, so I will too. My pets have been gone a long time, so this is in memoriam.

  1. Despite their spirited names, Tequila (terrier-schnauzer mix adopted from the SPCA) and Vodka (blonde pomapoo adopted from friends) only imbibed non-alcoholic beverages.
  2. Tequila liked his on the rocks. Give him an ice cube and he would slip and slide all over the kitchen floor chasing it until he crunched it all up.
  3. Tequila was the athletic type – extremely agile and fast. He could jump 2-3 feet into the air like a jackrabbit on steroids.
  4. Tequila had cat-like qualities. He could jump onto the sofa or bed without making a single sound.
  5. Vodka was the dreamer. He would follow Tequila faithfully on their romps but was easily distracted. He would give chase to butterflies and then look around in panic when Tequila was out of his line of sight.
  6. Vodka would nudge his nose under my hand until he was nestled under it so that I could rub his neck.
  7. Vodka was clumsy. If he ran too fast, his short legs would give way under him and he would run into things.
  8. They were mischievous. Once I left them in the backyard to get fresh air and sunshine. Apparently, they broke out of the yard and roamed the neighborhood because when I drove up to the house, there they were both sitting at the front door with very guilty looks on their faces.

Here are Tequila (black-bearded fella) and Vodka (blondie). DISCLAIMER: This picture was taken a LONG time ago.

In the spirit of these blog awards, here are 8 blogs that are on fire that I encourage you to visit.

  1. Grackle and Sun – learn how to use natural dyes for your yarn
  2. Buscando Comienzos – colorful crochet
  3. Salty*Mom – fun do-it-yourself projects
  4. Deep in the Heart of Textiles – knitting and quilts, lots of quilts
  5. Spinayarnknit – see pictures of traditional Peruvian textiles
  6. Land of Bread and Honey – ripple crochet afghans and recipes
  7. Daisey Jayne – loved her hand sewn dresses for little girls
  8. Big House, Little Prairie – loving life on the farm

And to end summer on an even lovelier note, thanks to Seascapes AUS for sharing the One Lovely Blog award with Agujas. Since this honor was already bestowed, I just want to say thanks and encourage all of you to go see the lovely paintings of the sea.

In Stitches

| Verónica

Mom had surgery a couple of weeks ago. In the scheme of things, it was a routine surgery. But it was my mom. There was nothing routine about it. Thankfully, the surgery went well. Mom is recuperating quite nicely and I was glad to be there for her. Even my teenage son enthusiastically played caregiver once I returned to work. He made her breakfast, made the beds, and asked her if she needed anything … every five minutes.

We were at the hospital during Worldwide Knit in Public Day so I pulled out my needles and yarn while waiting. I wanted to make a little something special for her; something I could make quickly and that would make her feel good. Lately, I’ve been seeing many posts on wash cloths. It’s like they’re all the rage. This was it. I would knit a couple of wash cloths she could use to clean her face at the end of the day. It would be my way of tending to her even after she went back home six hours away.

I found this 100% cotton yarn in the sale bin at my LYS. I loved the colors and knew this would help hide any lingering make up stains.

Araucania Pomaire Multy and Nature Cotton.

I used two patterns – Dishcloth Boutique’s Bamboo Cloth Variation 1 and Maggie’s Rags’ Chinese Waves Dishcloth.

This is one of the wash cloths still on the needles.

Here is the finished set. I didn’t get to use the solid peachy yarn yet.

The smile in her eyes when I gave them to her was all I needed.