Fresh off the hook!!!

I'm excited!!! 2 things I finished this week...

A "coat" that I started at the beginning of the year, and was one of the big projects that I ran out of yarn for like for a month... is finally finished!!! maybe a little touch ups here and there and dealing with a few ends and tails... It's one of the biggest pieces I've made so far.
I was totally inspired and based my coat on the designs of a girl from Argentina. She sells her work on Etsy as Molda. I think I first found her around a year ago and I was totally crazy for her designs... but I saw she only sells small-medium size, and being on the big end I couldn't buy one of hers... so after a lot of thinking I came up with one for myself....

Are...

you...

ready??????

 

 

Don't you looooove it??????

I do!!! I'm in love with my new coat, it reminds me of "Joseph and his technicolor dreamcoat"!
I'm so proud of it!!! and so proud of myself of being able to do so without a pattern!
The pink bands goes up at the sides of my neck and I like the way it looks... I'll ask MG to take pics of me in it one of this days....
I added the lace at the middle to close it a little bit and at the band in the wais to make it a little slimer-ish.

The other item is blocking as we speak... and it's a cute little shawlette-scarf that I saw on the Interweave Crochet Accesories from last winter... The Sea Foam Shawl

Made with a sock yarn that I got 2 weeks ago at the quilt show... I think I didn't tell you about that!!
But there was a yarn booth and I got the yarn for this pretty shawl... I like it a lot! the color is a little deeper that the photo, but changes from red to purple...

Have a good night!

See you soon!
S.

I'm very excited!!!

Just a quick note to let you now I'll probably be away for a few days... My parents are coming to visit us soon for a week!!! so I'm all over the place and SUPER-SUPER excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

yay!!!

See you soon...
S.

Cris-cross hat and neck warmer... plus a cowl!

I've been meaning to share this with you and not doing it for so long....

they come back from January, or early February... you might remember a few pics of the neck warmer from a collage I made back then.

So I finished my neck warmer... I had seen a similar version in a blog written in Portuguese and I kind of can translate and understand it when it's written, but the instructions weren't right... so I looked around the web, books and (of course!) Ravelry, and found ideas that could work... so I made up my "own" pattern.
I used size 17 needles (BIG!) and 2 strands held together of Vintage Chunky (what a surprise, ha?) held together... actually I was looking what to make with a skein of that color that we had bought last year in May when we went to visit Rochester... I sill haven't found a project to do with the magenta color...
Anyway, the cowl is nice, thick and chunky and very warm... and it ended up needing another ball!!! luckily my adored yarn store had it.... I added some buttons and voilá.

 

When I tried to follow the instructions on said Portuguese blog, I had a very different stitch... and the main reason was that the cris-cross look requires the crossing of stitches of course, but also to do so alternating a row of knit and a row of purl.

The Portuguese was only doing the knit rows... which looked interesting but it wasn't what I wanted. So when I finished with that one, I made another cowl... with Debbie Bliss Cash merino Aran, that it's a dream, light, super soft and warm... lo.ve.ly!!!

I loved, loved, loved the result and I've been wearing it often. (the other one not so much as it is in display at the shop, I'm having a free class on it at the end of March)
Here's a close up of the texture!

Finally... I decided to go with the cris-cross neck warmer because I wanted to make this crocheted hat that I found on Ravelry... a free pattern from Tara Murray. I LOOOOVE her patterns... she writes them clearly and for hats usually for all sizes, from new-born to adult.
And they are always fun and lovely...

It took almost 2 skeins of Vintage worsted... it is SUPER thick and dense, almost heavy... but really warm which is perfect when it's really cold outside.
I wasn't sure at the beginning and I didn't know if to continue or rip it out... I'm glad I did and I think the orange bottom adds a nice touch to it. I didn't make the bottom band either.

It's only one strand but you take up several loops until you have that thick stitch... the only thing I didn't like is that it needs to be done back and forth, turning the work on each row, it can't be done in the round, so the joining place is totally obvious... and I don't like it.
Other than that I love it!

Happy weekend!!

See you soon!
S.

A crochet vest...

Last week I was tired of my knitting summer top that didn't have a good outcome... I'm still upset for it and it's away in a plastic bag until I get the courage to deal with it...
My crochet projects are finally on the go... I'm making 2 duster toppers (really big projects) and I was out of yarn for both of them for almost a month... so getting back to working on them was difficult because it felt that I've been working on that forever...

I needed something fast, enjoyable and with great results and looking for something else, I came across this jacket on Ravelry. It's from Lana Grossa and I loved it....
The pattern looked super simple and fast (using a 9mm/N-M hook!!!)
Wondering around the shop to decide on yarn and back to my beloved Vintage Chunky....

3 days and Ta-Dah!!!!!!!!

Absolutely perfect!!! don't you think??

I LOVE it!!!!! I decided to leave it as a vest because spring and summer are coming so I didn't add the sleeves, and did the scalop-y edge in the armholes too.
I LOVE the drape in the back and the feeling of it over all, also, I skiped the last 2 rows because I didn't want the overlaped crossed closing, but it's big enough to close it if I want to use a pin!

I thought I'd put the arms when the fall comes... but given the short time it took, I might make another one in a different color!!!

:o)
Happy middle of the week! and happy international Women day!!

See you soon!
S.