Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Ravelry projects/photos

If you are still wondering when you will ever find time to upload your projects and photos on Ravelry, here's good news. You can now try uploading photos directly from your computer. While it is still in the trial stage, and may not be a permanent feature, it is up and working right now. Why not go over there and try it yourself ;)

Saturday, July 19, 2008

homemade brownies and crochet tawashi

Before showing my next FO, I would like to show you the brownies I made last week. I rediscovered this pan that I bought a few years ago, but haven't used.



My son again requested me to make some chewy brownies (I just made him some, the other week...). Its from the recipe written on the Nestle Cocoa label. My oven is small, so when I used a 13 x 9 inch pan, it almost got burned at the sides and still not done in the middle.
So for the first time I baked brownies in this pan, it came out just right - all of it! (Btw, I substituted some of the flour with ground oats - which I also sprinkled a little on top.)

And of course I served myself one with coffee. I think an occasional treat like this won't do harm ;)



And now, presenting my neat little FO:



Handy Tawashi


My second tawashi design! I hope to come up with a few more... I started with the Flower Tawashi, which inspired me to make this one.
I already have the two tawashis available for sale in my Ravelry pattern store, and in my Etsy shop ;)

Flower Tawashi

I won't be buying any more commercial sponges for dishwashing, since they're all expensive and don't last long. Also, I've discovered that the rug yarn I have in my stash will make a good scrubber ;) When I bought it many years ago, I didn't really appreciate it, but just wanted to stock up on yarns. And with the high prices and unavailability of many imported goods nowadays, I wish I hoarded all the rug yarn I saw then!
Anyway, I still have these and I'm sure I can make plenty of tawashis :)



I am seeing a lot of cute designs, but I don't have any of those japanese pattern books on tawashi. There are some free ones online, and can easily be found on Ravelry. Still I wasn't content, so I came up with this flower design.
I like it so much, since its a quick project and very practical to use!
Pattern is now available here on Ravelry.



Major Repairs...

Doesn't just hearing those words give one a headache?
Our vehicle and our house need some repairs, not really major - but in terms of my budget, its major for me :p
Oh well...but I still consider myself lucky when it comes to not being stranded on the streets with a flat tire, or with a car that won't start or any other car trouble (knock on wood...) Because every time my (now 9 yr. old) car breaks down, its at home in the garage.
And I don't even know a thing about cars :p
I am borrowing my brothers' bigger vehicle and I do find more drivers giving way...hehe...

Anyway, while I'm staying here at home today, my son and his band mates are preparing for their first formal live performance tonight at Kampai. Before this they had their first public performance on the auditions, with 3 songs all in Filipino. (They have videos in their multiply site)



Tonight they have a new song and its in English.
I'm a big fan, of course ;)

Saturday, July 12, 2008

Still on Crochet....

Hi! Hope everyone's well, and thanks to all who left comments on my recent posts :)
I've been very slow lately, no FO to show yet. I also caught the flu, which I seldom do, and only because I went out in the rain for a few seconds to get to the car :p
Anyways, I don't feel sick anymore and I wanted to find something to blog about today so I went browsing a little. I did find a couple of big time people in crochet:

Todd Paschall who does portraits in crochet. He also teaches and sells patterns. I am considering embarking on this kind of crochet.

To have something like this in my bedroom:




Or maybe a portrait of my dear ones...like this kids' portrait, so adorable:


How about being able to knit and crochet garments that can sell by as much as $10,000 like Mihaela Manitiu?
I looked at every item on her catalog and found so many AWESOME creations:
This one's my favorite:
Silk Top, $900.


Her other creations in crochet include:
Green poncho, $650.


Black Shawl, $900.


This stunning dress at $4,000!


This pricey vest at $350.


...I'll leave you drooling on those for now ;)