Some knitting and some crochet !!!

Even if you are not hearing from me very often (internet service is quite a nightmare here!), this doesn't mean I stay with my hands on my belly all day long !!!!

I craft every day !!!!! Some days like a crazy, some days more quietly !!!!!

In the last two weeks I started a couple of projects with my straight knitting needles …..

I'm following a pattern from one of Fiona Goble's knitting books SCARVES and COWLS 36 quick and stylish knits : it's on page 14, the Long striped scarf and I love it !!!

I'm using different yarns ( Sirdar Sublime cashmere merino silk dk ….. discontinued !!!! sorry!) that I bought when still in Indonesia, while the pattern requires other yarns, but still from Sirdar !!! ;oD
Another different thing from the original pattern is the size of my needles : I'm working with a 3,5 mm pair, while the pattern suggests 4mm needles!

My scarf will be thinner and shorter than the original, but I'm already in love with it …

… when working with the garter stitch I always prefer the wrong side of my work, mostly when stripes are involved !!!! I like to look at the rows where I change the colours …

My "little" sister Varinia asked me to knit her socks …. scary, really scary !!!! I've never tried to use circular needles or dpns … so : what to do ?????
Well, I started to browse on Pinterest (where else ???) and I found an easy sock pattern to knit with a pair of straight needles, just to have an idea …..

I did it !!!!! At least one !!!! ;oD
The pattern I followed is HERE !!!!
I admit that I need to refresh my seam technique (!!!!), but I enjoyed this easy pattern that gave me the idea of the parts of a sock and I'm really less scared after this try!
One thing I'm sure right now : I need to understand and practise with DPNS, because they allow you to knit better socks!!!! We'll see !!!!

In the meantime, two Birtdays have been celebrated here in Maputo, so I knitted (again!!!!) two softies,
one for a little girl (3 years old!) …

I call her "piccolotta" (a sweet way to say little in Italian!) and I love it as it's a very quick knit, so simple and satisfying, as you can add small touches to make it great !!! See the bow on her head? And the buttons?? You know what I mean, right???? ;oD

The other softie, was bigger because for a bigger girl (15 years old !!!!) ….

…. ah, the little heart, embroidered using the duplicate stitch method ….

I did some crochet, too !!!!
I'm preparing a couple of photo tutorials and I hope Internet will allow me a serene photo editing in the meantime to show you very soon my new projects!!!
The Big Girl (who received the big softies) kindly asked me to crochet her some little baskets (do you remember THESE????) as party favours : she needs them to put some little cacti in! Nice idea, right?

These baskets are a little bit bigger than the original ones, as I added a couple of stitches in the first round (so they are larger) and two more rows of DCs (so they are higher, too!) !!!

See you soon ( I hope!), xxxx Alessandra

Summer "scarves" !!!!

Before leaving Maputo for our summer holidays in Italy, I started (and completed!) some other little projects…

I have a passion for circles, so I crocheted a big pile of them …

… and when I decided it was enough, I began to join them with a colourful simple border with picots …

…. so at the end I obtained a kind of necklace/scarf as you can see me trying it on …

I made even another one, but with a white border : this time the final effect was more "cold" …

… and my mum took that one !!!!

mine!

mum's!

I did even an experiment with some pink and red diamonds …

… and when I added the green border, this necklace/scarf reminded me the tail of a kite, don't you think?

I made even a proper scarf (!!!!), just following the Arctic Scarf pattern by Sarah London …

Happy Weekend, xxxx Alessandra

Today links : Link your Stuff!, Busy Fingers Showing Off #97 and Craft Schooling Sunday

Another gift and ...

The husband (and colleague of Paolo) of a dear friend of mine is arriving today in Maputo for a work meeting. He is bringing in his luggage lots of food for our kitty Margot, who needs a specific diet because of her thyroid problems …

So as a big thank you, I crocheted a colourful scarf for my dear friend (her husband, instead, will enjoy a homemade dinner by us!) …

I worked with a 4mm hook with some MERINO MIX by Katia and some WASH'n'WEAR from Sirdar.
The pattern (again!) is from a Japanese crochet book (shown in pictures) and the pattern is #19 !

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…. and then some news …
We have to move in a new flat in a couple of weeks……
…. so I'm packing again….. not nice, I tell you …. even because we are moving in a temporary apartment, that is furnished…. so our furniture has to be stored in another place, while we'll have some luggages with stuff good until the end of June …. after that, another move in the final destination…
I"M TIRED !!!!

Not happy with a lots of things around here…..
Even the continuous black outs and internet problems (my daily routine)….

All that to say that you will not hear from me for a while…. sigh….
…. and I'm not sure if homemade@myplace has any future here in Mozambique….

At the moment I don't have the time or the right concentration to write on my little blog….
I don't know what to say….

I love you all and thank you !!!!
I hope to ….

P.S. : the custom at the airport has confiscated all the food for Margot …. I have no words left… some tears, yes ...