Cats

I always wondered where does artists like writers or painters get their ideas, when the sit in front of an empty white piece of paper. ^^

Now I know! It just comes! ^^
As the cats came to me yesterday and landed on the pieces of paper, crazy colourful cats with crazy names! *^v^*

These are my sketches with pencil crayons. In fact I've never ever tried drawing with them and what I found strange was the fact that you cannot smudge the shadows with your fingers... I always looked like a crash victim after I was drawing with a pencil or pastel crayons, because I placed a line on a paper and used my hands to smudge it all along. It's not the same with pencil crayons - here you have to place more and more layers, but it's fun, too, it's just a different kind of fun! ^^


And here is a sneak peek into what I bought today! I'll write about it tomorrow! *^v^*

Creative juices are flowing

It's around noon here and Robert is still asleep. He came home at 10:00, drank lots of water, took a shower and went to bed to make up for the sleepless party night. *^v^*

I'm feeling better, thank you for the concern and advice on what to drink, I may try it all today. It's very quiet at our flat apart from the wind and rain outside the windows.

I've been already planning what to do with our balcony - first things first: next week I'll get rid of all the stuff that needs to go, I'll remove the rest to the basement storage and clean the windows. I checked the prices on the glass constructions and it won't be cheap (who would've thought!... ^^), but my mom said she'd lend us the money so we'll probably do it in the second half of August.

I've been also thinking about my plans to over dye the orange cotton yarn with some other colours and decided that it may be easier to knit a sweater first, and then dye it rather than unwind yarn from the balls into skeins, dye it, wind it again into balls and knit a sweater. So, I may cast on soon for the next sweater, yikes! ^^

And now I dug out a box of pencil crayons, I'm off to play with colours. *^v^*

Oh, it hurts...

It's Saturday evening, 6 pm, and I should be at my friend Kate's housewarming party.

Am I there?
No.

I'm at home, suffering because this morning at 7 am my stupid bladder struck again!... Last night I was fine, watching "Mary Shelley's Frankenstein" and knitting clue 4 on my Mystery Stole 3 and this morning - a disaster! I was so looking forward to this party (and I'm not that social person, mind you), barbecue at the patio, people I like, the atmosphere of a fresh new apartment!...

I'm still fighting, though. I sent Robert there already and stayed home to see whether I'd get any better in the next two hours. If so, I'll hop on the bus and join them! I'm on a big dose of medication and waiting for any improvement, it seems that I don't have to visit the toilet every 30 minutes but it still hurts... (and maybe I'll catch some sleep because I didn't sleep well last night...).

Anyway, the good thing about today is that the huge not working tv set finally disappeared from our balcony! *^v^* I was hoping that somebody might just come and steal it from us (we live on the ground floor), but nobody was willing to do so... and you hear of thieves everyday on media, but not one of them spotted the tv... ^^
Anyway, our friend came this afternoon and he and Robert took the monster and drove it away to the recycle point (I was unable to lift it, it was 56 kgs and slippery all over!).
I can now start proper decluttering and cleaning the balcony, and we talked about the glass construction that would transform the balcony into another useful storage space. So, this counts as a big PLUS! *^v^*

Please, remember about my sweater pattern request from the last post and later I'll write about the knitted 3 piece set Robert designed for me this morning (it will be fun if I knit this! ^^)

EDIT: It's almost midnight, I feel better but not better enough to go to Kate's party so I'll probably go to bed soon. Some heavy rain is pouring down outside the widows, cat's in my lap, Robert's just called to wish me goodnight and I miss him... I know I wanted him to go and have fun, there was no point in him staying at home and watching me suffer, but now I wish he didn't go, you know...
Anyway, he's coming in the morning so the sooner I go to sleep the sooner I'll see him!
Good night, everyone!

New colour palette for Autumn

CraftyDiddl asked me yesterday, did I grow up in a very crafty home - well, not at all. ^^ I mean, yes if you count that my father was a blacksmith and my mother used to knit a lot when I was a child (but then she stopped and started to crochet occasionally).

I learnt how to sew by myself, on an old Lucznik sewing machine.
I learnt how to knit reading the foreign blogs two years ago.
I was taught traditional embroidery by my Grandmother but then I caught a cross-stitch bug and continued for several years.
I taught myself naalbinding, cord-making and weaving, because I needed this for my medieval reenactment activities. (Spinning awaits me! ^^)
I went on a professional jewelery course last year and learnt how to make jewelery out of silver, copper and stones.

As you can see, I just find something new and interesting, and I plunge into it, trying it out, seeking information all over, and then I decide whether I like it or not. I tried patchworks once and I think it's fun but not necessarily my first choice of a craft.
Sometimes I think it would be better to concentrate on one craft and master it to the limits, but then I got distracted and find something new. Well, that's me! *^v^*

Rho, it's true that Robert prefers black, but I think he looks great in red (and blue, but he hates blue, well...).


This is what I've been working on last night - in two weeks time we are having our Annual Great Feast in our medieval society, and everybody's preparing some gifts for our Prince. ^^

So, apart from other things I'll still be making, I decided to make a pair of naalbinded socks from the Norwegian wool I received from Helene.

They turned out great! Very delicate and light, perfect for the Summer and he asked me once about the grayish yarn for a pair of socks, so I hit the jackpot with this colour! ^^
I am a great fan of naalbinded fabric texture! *^v^*



The new Autumn collection of Gudrun Sjoden is out now and I'm ecstatic again!
After the Summer collection hiccup, this one is fabulous. There are three lines: Italian Renaissance, Inspired the the 40's and Dots, and I love love love the first line of clothes!
Look at the colours, the textures, the patterns!...
If I won the lottery, the first thing I'd do is to go to Malmo - the closest in Scandinavia for me, and do some shopping in Sjoden's shop (I could do it online but I'd love to be there among all those clothes on racks and just breathe in the atmosphere... *^v^*)
I love all those layers - oh, putting together shorter and longer pieces of clothing, the ability I still need to practice! ^^




Could anyone advise me the pattern for the similar knitted cardigan? I feel I desperately need one like this, with a low semi-circular neckline.



Speaking of Gudrun Sjoden - I finally have the fabrics and the idea for a jacket inspired by Gudrun's design. I still have to wait until Robert cuts away part of this gorgeous wool to make himself a medieval cape, but the rest will be mine! (about 1,5 m x 1,5 m).

Just look at that texture, yummy!
(I am very keen on textures, I always touch everything - fabrics, yarn, tree bark, ect ^^)

Depending on the amount of fabric (Robert still didn't decided whether he needs 2 m or 1,5 m), it'll be hip-long or even going down to the knees, we'll see.

I'm going to sew a raglan sleeved jacket, longer at the back, with buttons at the front, the lacing at both sides and a square neckline, which will be embellished with the violet cotton you see in the picture.

Happy Friday, guys! *^v^*

Thursday

I've got out of bed this morning with a strange urge to sit at the sewing machine and... sew something! ^^ So, in order not to loose this feeling I started right away and reconstructed three t-shirts, yikes! *^v^*

I've been using only red and black thread today hence the colours on the banner above.
(I should have taken the "before" pictures but forgot about it... And sorry for the poor lightning, there is no good light in my apartment.)

Anyway, the first two t-shirts were just big men's t-shirts, the red one I bought for Robert but he said he didn't look good in red so I changed it into cute girly blouse! ^^

How did i do it? Simple: place a t-shirt on a table, put your best fitting blouse over the t-shirt and trace the shape with a pencil or sewing marker, then cut out the new shape, sew the sides, replace the sleeves (I even pleated the red ones because they were way too big for the new sleeve holes), choose new length and finish the hem. Done! *^v^*


This on was a Marylin Manson t-shirt I got after we closed the shop 3 years ago and didn't wear it since because it was all straight and lose. Now it's fitted to my figure and I'm definitely going to wear it! ^^


The last one, on the other hand, was too small...
But I was desperate to make it wearable and here it is: it was too tight in the torso so I added strips of black cotton (left after I cut out the second blouse! *^v^*) on both sides and removed the elastic band around the neckline, deepening it a bit so I could wear it without choking. Volia! ^^

It says: "On your birthday: Remember, you can teach an old dog new tricks!"

I love life, too! (at least right now)

Thank you, guys, for the compliments on the gloves, I'm already thinking about the similar pair, but with another pattern, in black and white maybe...? Time will tell! ^^

Do you know this blog: [i] LoveLife?
I've just found it a couple of days ago and I'm enchanted! By the beautiful artworks Kal makes, but most of all, by her constant positive attitude towards life - she just loves life and it shows in every sentence she writes.
If you are sad or depressed or angry, just choose any post from Kal's blog at random and in a minute you'll be full of happiness!

And her posts can work miracles! It's true - here is my proof:
- On the way home from the swimming pool today we stepped into a second-hand shop and I bought myself a nice denim dress for 1 USD. This evening I've been reading the archives of Kal's blog and I suddenly remembered that I bought this dress and decided to try it on. When I took it out of the washing machine I spotted... a hood! This dress has a hood, and I didn't notice it while buying it, and I love hoods!... *^v^*
And it doesn't matter that it's a bit too tight here and there because I already know what to do to make it fit better, and I'm so happy. 1 dollar happiness! *^v^*

(Moreover, there is a Rolling Stones concert very close to my block of flats and I feel a bit like I'm there with the crowd - but comfortably in my chair with some orange juice, that's my idea of a good concert! *^v^*)

Ready for Winter!

Yes, I know it sounds strange in the middle of the Summer, but I am! *^v^*
Last night I finished the second Norwegian Glove.

Today's weather is cold, rainy and gloomy so I felt tempted to wear them while shopping... *^v^* (No, I left them at home, but I wore a thick cardigan, Summer suddenly decided to have a hiccup here, blah...)

Pattern: Norwegian Gloves from the famous Japanese knitting book many bloggers bought from www.yesasia.com, Hokuou no knit komonotachi by Shimada Toshiyuki (available only in Japanese)
Yarn: Wendy's Merino Double Knit, 1 skein of white (I was lucky to have some of this yarn left from the previous project because there wasn't enough for the last two fingers!) and Yarn Art Merino De Luxe (50% merino wool, 50% acrylic) 1 skein of maroon (still a lot was left)
Needles: 3 mm dpns
To sum up: I loved this project, I love Fair Isle knitting (in projects like socks or gloves, I haven't tried anything bigger yet), knitting separate fingers is boring, so next time I'll knit mittens! *^v^*

Okay, here is a quick contest: spot the difference between the two gloves!
No prizes this time, it's just for fun (I spotted it when I finished weaving in the ends last night and put both gloves next to each other...). ^^

EDIT: Yes, you are right! I cast on differently, with white on a thumb in the first glove and red on a thumb in the second one... ^^

Diet

"If your daily life seems poor, do not blame it; blame yourself, tell yourself that you are not poet enough to call forth its riches." (Rainer Maria Rilke)

I started a diet today, because I decided to cleanse my body and Summer is a perfect time for it. It's rather radical, but it won't last very long - although we'll see about that because I might like it! ^^. I'll be drinking a lot of fruit and vegetable juices and occasionally eating something more substantial like a "cardboard bread" with a slice of cheese or something like that.
I hope it'll do me good - to my stomach as well as to my skin and weight! Keep your fingers crossed!

Last week's theme on Inspire Me Thursday was Goddess and I'm making something that is very along this topic - feminine, delicate yet strong and sturdy, elegant, a perfect accessory for a Goddess in me. I'm making a lace parasol. ^^
(is it true, that 'an umbrella' is for the rain, and 'a parasol' is for the sun? I read it somewhere. Hello, native speakers of English?)
It will be white with white lace, it's being built on the metal base from an umbrella but will have a canopy of white cotton and lace, and (that's the best part! ^^) - I'm preparing the tutorial with pictures so you'll be able to make parasols like this for yourselves! *^v^*
Details soon, which means next week, because I need to go to the wholesaler for a lot of lace!

One more thing concerning knitting: Craftydiddl asked me about my knitted parrot - the pattern comes from July issue of Simply Knitting magazine I got from Ambermoggie. It has a whole pirate to knit but I only needed the parrot for now. ^^

Busy Sunday

It was a busy Sunday again! ^^
First, after breakfast, we decided to make a photoshoot on an unused railway tracks, in a punkish style (it was just for fun, I'm not a model or something... ^^).
This is my favourite shot:

Then we went to the National Contemporary Art Gallery "Zacheta" to get some inspiration - I liked the paintings by Wanda Paklikowska-Winnicka - texturised landscapes and machines, very dark and scarry sometimes, but very appealing.
Look, I was wearing my Tomato! *^v^* (and Anna still kept her punk look from the morning photo session! ^^)

Previews for fall issues of both, Vogue Knitting and Interweave knits are up. I'm not very keen on IK sweater patterns (I like Tyrolean Stockings, Snowflake Socks, Mirepoix Bodice and Composed Mitts), but I like the VK patterns - the Well Red series, for example. I'm seriously considering the subscription.
In fact, one of the sweaters I'm starting next week, when I have yarn for it, is the one from the VK collection, but I'll keep the mystery for a bit longer! *^v^*

Theme Picnic

It was a great day today! (Although we didn't get much sleep because we went to bed very late last night and got up at 8 o'clock, but still, I really enjoyed the morning. ^^)
We met with some friends and went to the Family Park in Powsin (just outside Warsaw) to have a theme picnic.
What is a theme picnic? Well, we chose some not-everyday outfits for this occasion - Anna was a Pirate Lolita, me and Kate were Sweet Lolitas, Wojtek was an Elegant Arictocrat and my Robert was Jack Sparrow himself! *^v^*
Here are some photos:



We ate some delicious homemade food. ^^




We played a bit of petanque (boys won twice...).


Kate was making soap bubbles! Oh, childhood memories! *^v^*


My Robert. Look at the parrot, I knitted it last night! *^v^*

BTW, I started a new blog - FriendSheep Fragments, where I'm going to show the pieces that constitute my life, day by day. No words, just photos, every day for as long as I'm happy with it. You are welcome to visit and leave the comments! ^^

Wordless Friday