My first Blog Contest !!!


I have been working , crocheting on a whole lot of projects simultaneously. Hence I do not have the pictures of all the projects but a few are working up really fast and will be over in a couple of days. So for those of my blog friends who are eager ( that is ,if anyone is ..lol!) to see the pictures of my work...here is a little teaser for you......




This is a motif from one of the projects. It's done in cotton thread and is about 9.5 inches in size. Can you guess what I'll make using this motif ? C'mon, it'll be fun , make your guess.Okay ,say I'll give a 'little gift' to the first correct guess. There goes ....I have my very first blog contest !!! The contest end on Sunday, 2nd Dec 2006.
I'm sorry but this contest is not open to Swapnae, Jaishree, Pearlin and Shaheen as you gals already know what this is going to be.

Yipppeee Yay !!
Another finish off for me and this wasn't even on the list ! This is a CAL from FIBRE FREAKS. It's a really nice forum and this is the Winter wears CAL. This scarf and hat set is a gift for my cousin. She wanted it made specifically in this yarn and colour.I hope she likes it. As you can see in the picture it's a very simple scarf and ofcourse , I didn't follow any pattern. And here Mr . Garfeild had graciously agreed to pose with the scarf and hat. My refused flatly - He said it was girl stuff!

Sweet Shari
Sometime back I had seen somebody post in C'ville about a layette made from the book Tender touch Layettes from Leisure Arts. That book just got stuck on my mind !!! I had posted about it some time back HERE .
This morning I had a lovely surprise in my Mail....the same book sent to me by an online 'angel' Shari . Thank you so much Shari . It's real sweet of you. I can hardly wait to start working on the layettes. All the layettes are super duper cute .

It's Raining , It's Pouring ......
And my Dh is snoring !!!! Seriously , it's raining so hard and the weather is so cold and lovely. It's been a looong time since we had rains here. And this is serious rain....there's water collecting on the streets.Okay, I know a lot of you would wonder what's the big deal , but to me it's a celebration. The summer is going and lovely winter is just around the corner.
The smell of first rain ....mmmmmm...lovely earthy fragrance all around. I've put on some lovely music and have all the windows and balconies wide open ...( yes I'm going to mess up the house !!! ) ...and it's such fun. With some coffee and crochet to go with it..... I feel like it's some part of heaven right now.And I had to share it here.
Today Jibbs and me are going to the park to walk in the rain...ofcourse when it slows down to a drizzle.
And on the Crochet front : I have updated the list

OFF MY HOOKS :
1. Little Girl dress for a friend's daughter.
2. A diaper bag
3. A tissue box cover
4. Soap dispenser cover
5. Toothbrush holder cover
6. Trinket Box cover
7. One top for twin girls
8. Mesh cap
9. Project for Christmas competition


ON MY HOOKS :
1. Edgings for towels
2. Kitchen window curtain
3. Dustbin cover
4. Two tops for twin girls
5. Motifs for a shower curtain

ON MY MIND :
1. Beautiful coasters by Mimi
2. A pair of cushions
3. Fat bottom purse - only if I can manage to get the handles

As you can see , a lot of little projects are done. I have yet to take the pictures. I'll have it up for you all to see real soon.

New and Improved !




After blogging about the diaper bag last night , I kept getting a nagging feeling about the bag. I liked it but then quite honestly ,I liked only the little ballerina booties and the colours used ! Some how ,I could not get myself to be satisfied with it. It was missing something ........and then , late at night , it struck me - sunny days -- sunny look ! So here is the new and improved version of the diaper bag. Finally I'm satisfied with it - A little change goes a long way ! I think it looks better now , what say you? And in the picture you can have a better look at my favourite buttons closure:).
Another couple of things are done too. But I just have to give the finishing touches and upload the pictures. More pictures to follow.Lol!

Hot Off My Hooks

Like I said in my previous post , I've been crocheting away . And here is the proof. My FOs.
1. Frilly Tissue Box Cover


The first in the series ...I'm working on a bathroom set. This is done in Ecru , Rust and Purple. Another of my own patterns - nothing much to it except the colour play. I've used Omega cotton mercerised thread.










2. This is the next FO - Another Diaper Bag.


I have decided to call this bag Sunny Days - this is what came to mind when I looked at it all done and complete. I've given it a little pair of ballerina booties as add ons. That's my favourite part about the bag. Except the colours of course. This bag too has a buttons closure. No zips for my bags !!! And the buttons are so lovely and give a nice touch too.
Incase you are wondering what those little spots are on the lavender stripe, they are light yellow ribbon roses. The pictures show them as spots ...wonder why ? Something to do with my photography skills , I guess. In the picture below you can see the little Ballerina booties that I loved making.

Already into November !!
I've been a bad blogger...only one excuse for that ( which might be actually justifiable to some of you : ) )- I've been a good crocheter!!! No pictures yet, but I promise some really soon. I've also been following all my favourite blogs and have stumbled upon a few more interesting ones.
My resolutions, every single year , FAIL invariably! I've once again bitten off much more than I can chew.......though I must admit that I'm enjoying it so much.
Off my hooks:
1. Little Girl dress for a friend's daughter.
2. A diaper bag
3. A tissue box cover

On my hooks :
1. Soap dispenser cover
2. Kitchen window curtain
3. Dustbin cover
4. Two tops for twin girls
5. Mesh cap
6. A project for a christmas competition
10. Motifs for a shower curtain
11. Edgings for towels
12. Curtains

On my mind :
1. Beautiful coasters by Mimi
2. A pair of cushions
3. Fat bottom purse - only if I can manage to get the handles


Desperately needed :
1. An extra pair of hand to finish the above mentioned lists
2. Atleast 24 hours additional in a day.
Now that is one big list. I just hope I don't wind up with many more additions to my WIP list.

Diaper Bag- the last of the Nursery Project.

I have not posted in a while now. I've been working hard and crocheting even harder. It's been busy days with Ramadan and the school day finishing early. With the additional episode of flu and a season of cold,fever and dry cough all in a combined package. It's good to be feeling better again.
And finally the last of the peices of the nursery set I was working on. This is the diaper bag which took longer than I had thought - it was easy enough a pattern to work up but I had made some ( really silly ) mistakes.I was getting the bag right but the even look was not there ...somehow it looked 'traumatised'. And then eventually I did figure out the problem.....the yarn and hooksize were just not compatible!! This is the first time I came across such a thing. I kept working on the bag and it just didn't seem right , the look was not there. Then finally , it struck. I switched hooks and it was suddenly looking better. Funny how a simple project can make you sweat so much ,especially since you've done so many complicated projects before and that too without running into much difficulty.
I had expected this bag to be a breeze and put it off as the easy end project , but then I guess it was meant to be the other way around. Looking at it you'd never guess that such a simple pattern could give so much of work.Actually it wasn't the pattern at all, I made the basic error of using incompatible hook and yarn. Another lesson learn't ! Designing is no peice of cake.
Oh well, after that boring account of the making of the bag , you can now have a look at the pictures. Here they are as promised.
The front view and the back view



















And then the top of the bag. As you can see I opted for using the buttons as closure. I had wanted to use a zip but I hate it when the zip snags at the yarn and it happens so often. I wanted to keep the baskety look of the bag and had to have a proper closure too because being a diaper bag , I had to make sure that nothing fell out of it when little hand get to exploring.

I'm busy Crocheting......crocheting ....

And here is the proof ! Hot off my hooks is the Baby Short Round Poncho and matching headband. This is a lovely pattern by Dot.She has some really amazing and beautiful patterns. And her directions are great to follow, easy , clear and simple.
I loved working this pattern. It was fun and quick too. Instant gratification is what drives me to crochet. Maybe that's why I enjoy making baby things so much. They are quick to make and I love little kids.






And here is the close up of the flower on the poncho. I've put in a square crystal in base colour to give it a shine. But it doesn't really show in the picture. The next picture shows the crystal better. It's the flower on the head band. This set is going to a friends pretty little three years old girl. I hope she likes it .

Broomstick Lace
I've been checking out broomstick lace for quite sometime but honestly didn't like it enough to learn it . But all that changed when I came across Kimberly's post about it. In her post HERE , she has posted pictures of her swatches of this lace and I loved the look of it. That was inspiration enough ! I got out my yarn and my son's plastic ruler ( ofcourse , I do not have a large enough broomstick needle- and I cannot even hope to get it out here !) I followed the crochet cabana tutorial . I must say it's a very good tutorial with pictures that makes it very easy to follow. And there I was making the bromstick / Jiffy Lace. Yay ! Ofcourse it's no where as neat and pretty as Kimberly's but , hey it's my very first try! Thanks to you Kimberly , now I have learn't a new technique.
Once I got the hang of the stitch , I started on a project right away. Yes, I was so inspired by Kimberly's post that I'm making a similar scarf for a dear friend. Here it is ....almost halfway through.






Broomstick Lace

Cottage Rose Nursery set
This is the matching afghan to go with the baby bassinet that I had given off without taking the pictures. There is also a smaller baby blanket to match. My friend has sent me the picture of the afghan. This is the best I could get ....it was a picture taken from her cell phone. I can promise you the real things much better than this picture :).




I have also finished off making the matching Tissue box covers for the nursery. And here are the pictures. Atleast these pictures are much clearer.



I'm still working on the diaper bag. It's turning out trickier than expected. Well, I'm still new to the designing world and I have a lot to learn. I'll post pictures when I'm done.

That does it !!



Swapnae had posted this picture for me - of a yarn winder that she got ! And you guessed it , I want one too. Infact this led me check out various things on line that I really, really want ( mind you, I'm filled with greed right now !) and I keep looking at and drooling over !
Any idea friends where I can find this particular thing? Now I'm going to Rant as well....most of these online stores do not ship things and books abroad . Isn't that such a bummer? Especially since there are hardly any supplies available out here !
Speaking of supplies , there are so many online stores that won't even mail out Susan Bates yarn hooks! And here is another book I'm looking around for. I want to make a layette for the same baby that I made the carriage cover for.




Another thing I"ve been looking around without any success is a Good book of Knitting which will help me to learn knitting on my own with simple beginners projects. Any help would be appreciated.

Baby , baby !
Warning: Picture heavy post.

I've been making a lot of baby stuff but blankets and afghans for babies I prefer to avoid. The reasons being :
1) Big Projects distract me very easily- ADD at the topmost level
2) The weather here is too hot most of the year - almost 8 months summer
3) Good Yarn is not available in variety and and is priced too high as well. I've ended up with couple of projects put aside midway as I ran out of yarn and haven't seen or heard of the yarn used ever since I first got it. The only yarn available easily locally is an inferior quality which just is not worth putting so much time and effort into.
But as of now , I'm working on a baby Nursery Ensemble. It includes a baby blankie,matching hat, a baby afghan, a bottle cover, Baby Moses Basket cot cover with hood , tissue box covers, and a diaper bag.
This is the basket cot cover . It was fairly simple to make , except the hood which was a little tricky to size up. But all in all, it was fun to work.















Details:
Yarn : Yasmine yarn by the Company name : AB, in colours beige - gold, hot pink, and olive green.
Hooks: Susan bates - 5.00mm, 505 mm, 6.00 mm and 6.5 mm.
Pattern: Inspired by so many squares seen online

I had no idea !


I came across this test at Swapnae's blog. And this is what I found out about myself ! I had no idea I was so little open to experience :)

My Personality Neuroticism 62 Extraversion 76 Openness To Experience 55 Agreeableness 62 Conscientiousness 66 Test Yourself Compare Yourself View Full Report Find your soulmate / pysch twin Ugg Boots, Friendster and Survey Software

AUDREY



Meet my last ADAL , Audrey! For those of you who are not fimiliar with the term ADAL, it stands for 'Advanced Doily Along' . This was done in the group Gathering Threads . This was a an advanced pattern but pretty much fun to work and fast as well. I used the silk thread I got from India and size 1.25 mm hook.Here is a close up view....




This picture here shows the silky look the doily has that doesn't show in the other two pictures. I love doilies done in this thread. It's fun to work with and the doilies look so elegant as well.

Pretty Doily in my Mailbox !


Yes! This beauty came in mail box today . And Am I spell bound with it's beauty. Its a beautiful intricate pattern. My guess is that it looks like a P.K Doily design. This beautiful doily was sent by Debra at Gathering Threads. She does some beautiful crochet and I'm lucky to have her as my partner.
Once again for my curious buddies a different view of the doily showing the stitches and the texture .Isn't it so pretty?



Thank you Debra. This one adorns my bedside table ( strictly my own space).

Another months has flown by!

It's September already and more than half way through too! Unbelievable how time flies! It's the back to school Rush....and back to routine too. And I haven't blogged in a loooong time. What can I say ...life is getting busier and internet isn't getting any friendlier!!
Long time since I blogged so there is a lot to blog about .Just how many times did I use the word ' blog'? So u can be prepared for many entries at a shot.
First of all , a huge relief that Jibbs, DS , doesn't hate school anymore. Infact , pleasantly shocking though, he has begun to look forward to it. And I really an thanking my lucky Starts for this.
After a long wait I finally got my swap doilies. Though I am still waiting for mine to reach safely.
I received this wonderful package from Denise at the Crochetville Doily Swap. It's an usual spiderweb pattern and I am wondering where I could get it. I'd love to make this doily.
Denise has also sent along a really beautiful floral doily book. There are gorgeous doilies in this one and I can hardly wait to start on it. There is also some green tea . This would be the first time I'll be trying it. Hmm....I like to try out different stuff. Thank you Denise , it's a lovely puffy.



And for those of you who like to inspect things closely , here is a detail picture of the doily and you can see how pretty it is. It's done in a very pretty shade of blue but the picture here makes the colour look washed out. It is a very beautiful blue in person.

Summers Promise



This beautiful design was created by KATHY . She was kind enough to let me do pattern testing with this doily. I must say it was fun and a I learn't a new technique too. Thank you Kathy for the trusrting me with this one.This is the first time I've tested a pattern for Kathy and it was a wonderful experience. And here is the picture of the details on the doily....


As for the other details : I've used thread size 20 , 1 mm hook and the colours are dusty rose and pearl cream in cotton Anchor.
I love the name of this doily.....very dreamy and romantic.

Meme - 6 weird things!
I've been tagged by Swapnae and this is the first meme at my blog. Now to narrow down my weird things about me to just six.....thats a tough call.

1. I love chocolates but can never eat more than three bites at a time. I almost never finish a bar of chocolate at one go.

2. I cannot sleep unless I'm covered with a cotton sheet totally from ears to toes.......even when it is very hot ( which it is for most part of the year out here). I guess this weirdness is a common one among my blog friends!

3. I can never be barefoot unless I'm walking on the grass or the sand.I have different slippers for the bedroom, the rest of the house, the balcony, the kitchen and ofcourse the bathroom! I always walk bare footed on the grass and the beach sand!!!

4. I hate to see anybody brushing their teeth!! Makes me feel sick! Seriously ...I cannot take it.

5. I spot even the tiniest of bugs anywhere in a room before anybody else does ! Bugs, creepy crawlies and specially worms eeek me out totally !!

6. I have to watch a comedy .....anything like movie, a show ,a funny serial or even read a funny book ... every single day.

So much for me being weird! Dh says he can think of atleast 60 things! So now it's my turn to tag and I tag

Ulla

Vik

Tandi

Jaishree

Sue

THANK YOU CHRIS !
Finally, Lady Luck smiles on me. And I got my puffy from Chris. Aren't these just beautiful? I would have posted these yesterday if only Blogger would be more cooperative. Its a crocheted doily and a machine made Callalilly doily and bowl. The picture does no justice to this beauty. I love it ...and it's found its new home on my dresser holding my jewellery!

















Here is the close up of the bowl and doily . Thankyou , Chris , for the lovely gifts.