my first ever knitted hat

the spring may be just around the corner.
but before it comes, I wanted to squish in some knitting.
I love soft and warm knitted/crocheted item that keep me cozy in the cold weather.

do you remember how I explained before that I didn't have a brain and hands for knitting?
I know I had failed so many times trying to knit,
but, all the hats and scarves I see on Etsy and people on the street & blogs had been making me want to learn knitting, well, once again!

I searched online for slouch hat/beret patterns, and I came across this blog.
also find this site for knitting terms and stitches, and it even has little tutorial video clips.
thank god for the Internet! I would have been lost without it, otherwise!!


I changed the pattern slightly because uneven number of stitches was driving me nuts!
yes, I am very particular when it comes to things like that.
and after restarting it five or six times, finally it was shaping like a hat!!
I was so excited :)!







I did one too many row in the cable(can you find where it is?),
but I decided not to rip it all apart once again and tried to shut my eyes off of it.

not bad for the first project, right?
the important thing is, I actually finished a project!





now, I am hooked on knitting!
and want to make myself another hat with cranberry/raspberry red yarn.
the year I used for this hat was thrifted for 50c and wasn't that soft.
I am guessing it was aclyric.
I want the next hat to be nice and soft, so now I am off to yarn hunting :)

this week

it feels like I have been out of the blogging world for the entire week!

I've been reading up on the blogs I enjoy, but have not had enough time to write a post on my own blog...

my husband was home for the week because there was no work.

it is a nature of construction having a up and down times, and it's both good and bad.

financially, it's not that great, but it's awesome having a family time for the whole week!

he's been working out of town and coming home only on the weekends for the past six months.

so, it was definitely great for all of us to have him at home for the week.

we got some stuff done,

and little L(our daughter) always loves having a papa time.

and just be lazy and enjoy being around each other.

this whole week was like a loooooong weekend :)

besides that, I got a few sewing projects done.

I have been too lazy to make an effort to take some pictures,

but I promise, they are coming!

and now I am into knitting!!

I even finished my first knitting project!!

ha :)

it's getting a bit long, so I'll tell you more about it in another post sometime this weekend!

have a wonderful weekend :)

milano girl

I know I've just posted about these girls in Milan not too long ago,

but another very stylish Milan lady I can't regist making a post about!

(pic)

just LOVE everything about her styling.

leather jacket, (folded) mini skirt, black tights & pinheels, dark nails, short hair, and her smile

- everything is just so devine!!

thrifted treasures

I totally scored on this dress!

paid $9, I guess it is more like a used consignment price, but I couldn't let it pass.

it is size large, and it doesn't look bad on me although I am size s(or xs sometimes).

but I think I will take a couple inches in from the sides for the better fit.

...and these coasters -$3.

love the delicate design :)

have a relaxing weekend♥

xo

red

I am not a 'red' person.

sadly I can't wear red...

every time I see a gorgeous red dress or jacket, makes me want to try it,

but I know I won't like it wearing.

it is just too intense for me to handle.

it is almost an energetic thing that the color red agitates me...

all I can handle is a little bit of red here and there as an accent,

maybe a belt, jewelry, or shoes.

yesterday, I made a necklace with a little faceted garnet bead.

sort of inspired by Carla Caruso's necklace.
I love the blight red of the ruby on her necklace!

I am not completely sold on the design though... :(
maybe I'll snip the sparkly gold ball off? (is it rather destructing?)
or wrap the bead differently??

hmmm :I

or maybe all I need is a blight red ruby bead!

Marie, an old lady

before my motivation for creativity fades away,
I managed to whip up the Marie skirt.
I had been wanting to try this pattern for quite some time now.
I had this curtain thrifted about a month ago, and thought it would be perfect for Marie.
it is a very quick and easy project that can be done in an hour or less.
of course it took me a bit longer because I had to wait for my daughter to wake up from her nap.
I was patiently waiting on using a sewing machine because my craft corner is just right by the bed.

she usually naps for an hour or so, but that day she slept for more than two hours. of course!

I couldn't hold myself back any longer, and started sewing anyway.

well, she didn't wake up till I was half way done!

when I showed my husband this fabric(curtain) from a thrift store,

he immediately said it was very old lady like, and how much I like stuff that are old lady style.

okay, I admit it,,, yes I do! I do love old lady things!!

anyhow, the skirt turned out pretty, I think.

I think this pattern will also be cute as a bottom part of a dress as I've seen some of Burdastyle members have tried.

like these: ★ ★ ★

I also have a little more than half of the fabric left.

maybe, I can squeeze a dress out of the leftover fabric??

a vintage 50's style dress would be perfect!

don't you think?

happy V-day :)

it's a super girly movie, but I gotta watche this!

Happy Valentine's Day!

LOVE to you all :)

xo

she is well and happy again :)

ah

my daughter had been sick pretty much the entire week.

her fever finally went away yesterday!

however,,, she spent a whole day crying and screaming yesterday...

she must have been feeling better, but we couldn't figure out what was bothering her.

children definitely test your patience and challenges you in many different ways!

ugh! I am happy it's finally over!!

after all the sitting around and snuggling with her(that was all she wanted me to do),

I am dying to get back to sewing and crafting!

today I copied some patterns form the Japanese sewing books while my husband took her out for a few hours,

and I am ready to go!

will start on a few projects next week

and can't wait to shar with you guys here for the new creations :)

well, tomorrow is Valentine's day.

anyone got a plan or date?

we'll probably have a nice mellow day st home since my daughter is just fully recovering.

have a sweet & lovely Valentine's everyone :)

oh my little girl is sick... :(

My daughter is not feeling well... :(

she had coughs since the last weekend, and yesterday she had fever.

oh, and last night, we found some red spots on her back and right arm.

we thought it might be chicken pox...

but this morning the 'spots' appears less red and less swollen... and no new spots...

so,,, hm.... :l

don't know what they are now...

maybe some bug bites??

inspite of her cough and fever,

she is handling it so well.

she is not fussy, but she is eating well and resting well.

in fact she is sleeping on my lap right now :)

it breaks my heart and makes me feel horrible for her every time she gets sick.

(well, she is healthy and has a strong immune system, so she doesn't get sick that often. but still...)

oh, how many more times I have to feel this way... :(

hope it will pass soon and she feels better soon!

p.s. I'll be back when she gets better :)

kittens, inspired by kittens

I love cats.

we got two kittens(brother and sister) when we got married because I missed living with cats so much.

and we made an agreement that if we didn't have any kids, I was going to be a cat lady.
but I guess that's not happening now... :(

we have a beautiful daughter instead!

sometimes, I get sucked in watching cute pet video clips. especially ones with kittens in it.

I just watched this one, and oh my! she's just so cute and hilarious!!

I just had to share this.

have a wonderful weekend :)

japasese sewing books

yesterday, I and little L(my daughter) had a playdate with other ha-pa(half-Japanese) kids and their moms in the valley.

I had no idea until recently that there were a quite few japanese people living in this valley.

(well,,, yes, you can find japanese people everywhere, that's true!)

one of the mothers kindly lent me some of her japanese sewing/pattern books.

(thank you!)

this one on dresses is awesome!

they all are so very lovely and look comfortable to wear.

it's so attempting to try them all!

these books on kids clothes are also very cute.

I don't even know why I borrowed these,,, obviously they are still way too big for little L.

but for sure I have to copy some of the patterns for when she is bigger(in 8yrs or something!).

look at the trench coat and the sailor pants on the covers!

I want those!!

carla caruso

Carla Caruso
that is the name of the artist who made my wedding band.

here are a few pictures of her jewelry.

I had a hard time picking a few(well, more like 'several') items...
I love all of her jewelry!

her creations are so feminine and delicate,
even the chunky(er) pieces are...


I'd love the twinkle ring :)
(hint hint to my hubby!)

where to next? tired of moving...

(pic)

our life is well described as gypsy style.

lived there for a few years, and lived here for a couple years, then off to the next place.

now, we are getting to the point of thinking 'okay, where to next?' again.

well, to be exact, as soon as we moved to this town from oregon,

we were already thinking about where's 'next'.

this just isn't the place for us...

I am getting tired of moving, though...

it takes so much work and costs money!

and the feeling of 'never being settled in' consumes me...

it gets exhausting after doing it so many times.

feels like our life has been on hold forever...

so, I'd like to 'settle down' to the next place(wherever it may be) for a good chunk of our life.

and call it 'home'.

maybe, buy a house, have a proper studio for my art & craft and for my husband's woodworking and music

and start a vegetable garden...

what we are looking for the place we'd like to live in:

-a good safe community-

-open minded creative people-

-art/craft/music/entertainment-

-beautiful surroundings/parks-

okay, so we know what we want(that's the first step, right?)

but, how do you find 'that home'?

that is the question.

how do you know that is 'the right place' for you?