India Calling...

..we are off for our summer vacation!
Yipeeeeee!!!!!!

Leaving for India tonight. I may have accidentally finished my packing..he he..no no wait, i still need to buy a couple of things. Haan, yes i do need to get some covers and some bags. That's more like me, doing things till the last minute :)

All the clothes, with kids you never know when enough is really enough. ?Thankfully its summer so i don't need more layers. You just dress them in tees and shorts and off then can flutter away.

The goodies are packed in bags, the shopping done and the sorting done :)

Empty closets. I am thinking how it will be when we finally leave HK. Its gonna be like packing so many memories. Both the children have spent their infancy and one is spending her toddler-hood here. It may not be my country of origin but family is where my kids are right now. Hong Kong is not so bad after all :) and the best part being you can afford frequent trips to India.

The only clothes in the cupboards now are the winter wears and full sleeves. So good to see the little people in sleeveless and short sleeves.

  

The below 2 Upsy Daisy T-shirts are my daughter's eternally favorite ones i think. God bless the day i painted them. She has used it so so so much. She used to either wear it or she used to carry it. I could get her to bathe, eat and in general obey me with them. In fact she has even carried it on her flight to India in our previous visit :) Every family member has asked her for it and she says that she will buy a new one from market and give it to them! 

The short sleeve one is "tight Upsy" as the shirt is really tight for her. The other one is "new Upsy". Its new only in comparison with the tight one. One day i need to get these framed!

Well, last few hours before we all set off, i am all super excited! Not sure how much crocheting n crafting i can get done. But want to do a lot of scrap booking as paper is really cheap in India.

Going to try my best to blog and motivate myself.
Before i am off, one more link - a great DIY crochet T-shirt dress idea. Amazing in fact, going to try my hand at it pretty soon.There is one for the mommies as well here.Hope to get this done as its tooo beautiful.

Off i go to catch our flight :)

Things to Do

The blogging world is truly amazing. Its a window to so many things beautiful and interesting. The craft and the variety is mind boggling. Just a simple search on a granny square gives one endless possibilities and i can see so many bloggers/crafters who have done so much that it is easy for me to pick what i want to do!

Here's a list of few things i am planning to get done by the end of this year. Sorta like my crocheting plan for 2012 :)

1.Granny Stripe Blanket. This is mainly going to be an inspiration from dear Lucy. You can find it here.

2.Cushion Covers - There are oh so many wonderful patters out there. There is a sunburst pattern here. The blues are really lovely in this. Then the flower granny square cover. This is an easy pattern only you need to get your colors right or else it may hurt the eye. The back of the cushion is something which you wouldnt want to spend too much time on. Yet it should look lovely. I am always on the look out for easy patterns but which give a great effect. Playing with colors and accessories enhances the look of a finished object a great deal. This method here is a great way of closing up your cushion cover and making good your old sweater.

3.Crochet Bunting - Need to do a butterfly bunting for the little people. They have been asking for it.

4.Granny Square ideas - Have a look at this pdf.  This has amazing granny square patterns, each one unique and wonderful. I am still waiting for my yarn to start this off..

Hopefully i can get to complete my wish list by year end. 

Now the time to leave HK and go for a holiday is nearing. My shopping and packing is still looming in front of me. Even tho i am a stay at home mom, i never seem to have time to complete my shopping. There is something still missing or something which i need to buy!

A look at the girl's new crocs. She loved the little decorations which give off a light when she jumps. Jumped all her way from the store to home:)

This is a doll for a dear friend of mine in Bangalore. I do hope she likes it. These dolls are a must buy if you ever visit Hong Kong.

 

And then the clothes, which need to be packed. This is just the beginning. I still have to go to the kids cupboards :(

So i neeeeed to start thinking about packing. Need to need to.
I am going to do that now. Or maybe just a bit more of crochet browsing and then :)

Aimless Crocheting

The last couple of days i have not had any big crochet projects going on. I need my yarn and i have discovered that i also need a big project underway at all times. It helps me get my work done faster. Anyways, till the yarn comes, i have been doing some spring cleaning, last minute shopping and entertaining the little ones. Banker's class-mate n friend from India had come over for a couple of days. So it has been a hectic weekend in which i somehow managed to finish 1 crochet piece. 

This is a cover for my new external hard drive. No particular pattern followed. I just did some random SC, HDC and DC.

Used clusters of 3 spike stitches to finish the border. Spike stitches add another dimension to the work. Done in contrasting colors and at the right intervals makes an excellent and easy border.

Added 2 buttons to complete it. Also a button hole for plugging in the USB cable. So this case need not be opened and it also has a cover.

When there is a crafty stay at home mom all these kinda things happen. Clocks, pen-stands, phones all get make overs :)

Hope everyone out there has had  pleasant weekend. This week i am traveling to India!!! Hurray! Looking forward to it is an understatement. Suddenly realized that i have so much more gifts to buy, so much more things to do! Well, its getting warmer here in HK and i am off to make myself a cup of coffee and enjoy the morning before the little people are up and i am caught up in other activities.Till then...

Summer Shopping - Part 2

Had been to Sham Sui Po yesterday. This place is truly amazing! I mean i can really spend weeks and weeks here. It has everything under the sun at very reasonable prices. You can find my earlier posts here.

I had to buy an external hard disk and a memory card. Golden Arcade is the best place for buying anything related to computer. Its a geeks world out there, there are rows and rows of computer peripheral shops and gaming VCDs shops. Purchased a Seagate External HD 1 TB for HK $870 and a high speed memory card 64 GB for HK $629. Crocheting a case for the HDD now.

 Making in shades of blue with a dash of red.

All the yarn i am going to use for this case are here.

There is something for everyone in Sham Sui Po. Be it computer/sports wear for men, craft/fabrics/accessories/street market for women and toys/clothes for kids. Ventured to the Yu Chan street for the usual round up of beads, ribbons and Ric-racs. Ready for a color feast?

Rainbow ric-racs.

Multicolor Ric-racs.

 Baby lace for scrap booking.

Just like that lace.

Some random flowers and fabric flowers.

As a craft loving mom i never know when i need these things, but hey no harm in storing them right? Sham Shoi Po also stocks wholesale fabrics. I used to wander past these shops never knowing that they sell stuff by the yard. It was close to 7 p.m. by the time i chanced upon one tiny shop selling a yard to a customer. That's when it hit me! They sell fabric too...Oh my god, there are rows n rows of yummy shops here which stock all kinds fabrics to buy from or just to feast your eyes upon. Since i ran out of time, picked up a few random stuff for i don't know what projects! Can you believe that i bought almost 10 yards of colorful fabric to play with for just HK $ 100? A revisit is definitely in the offing!!

Once i am back to HK after my summer hols I will surely be going here again :)
Till then i am going back to aimless crocheting, like the case cover as you know my mailman hasn't yet bought me those Stylecraft yarn which i am eagerly waiting for.

8-Petal Flowers

Where is it? Why hasn't it come still? I am wondering about the yarn which I have ordered from Ebay. You can find it  here. This yarn is really value for money. It is not very expensive but the shipping charges is more than the cost of the actual yarn itself! Oh, i really wish i was in UK now. And i had a bigger house or at least a cupboard just for my craft and yarns. Now i share a cupboard with banker's books, my kids clothes and suitcases :( Envy all the women out there who have the luxury of their own physical creative spaces.

So while i am waiting for my lovely yarn, i crocheted some flowers.

The inspiration for this is here.  I modified the pattern a bit to make the edging neater.

 

The other flower is in a granny square. I know the colors are bad but those are the only colors i have of Stylecraft. Waiting for the yarn (have i told this before?) 

My model got up very early Maybe to pose for me?
Cannot suppress her yawn tho..n no comments for the unmade bed. It was really early and the helper hasn't started her work yet.

and i cannot resist using this :)

Can you guess where this ended up? Of-course on her frock :)
Finished it up nicely with a vintage button.

The frock is from HnM. It is a lovely store here has lotsa lovely dresses to buy from.

Hope you enjoyed the flowers. Hope the mailman gets the yarn.

Wavy Stripe Blanket

I Love to surround myself with all things hand-made. There is something special and comforting about it. I want to make a blanket for a king-size bed. But i pondered, do i have it in me to crochet such a large piece? Decided to make a demo version first. In the beginning of this wavy, i wasn't sure how big/small it would turn out as the blue/green yarn was limited to just 2 balls each. But it did turn out alright!

The intended recipients :)

Every blanket deserves an edging. This one is from dear Lucy. You can find the pattern here.

 

Details:

Total yarn : 10 Balls used, i do not know the weight of each.

Hook size : 5 mm.

Pattern      : 2 color wave stitch from here .

Measures  : 3" x 5"

Time         : Approx 5-6 weeks (Its actually 2-3 weeks, but i have 2 very active and playful kids and 

                   hence the delay).

A totally happy girl = Me!

This always happens to me after a finished item. The restlessness. I keep pacing the house, wondering what next? what next? I always need to have some work in progress. It keeps me relaxed, it keeps me occupied and it keeps my home colorful.

I know what i am doing next. It lovely, its beautiful and its going to enjoy a very special place in our little home. Its dear Lucy's Granny Stripe Blanket. I am waiting for the Stylecraft yarn to arrive.

Till then, shall be doing some bits and pieces. Complete the shopping and get some spring cleaning done!!

Summer Shopping

The countdown has begun, we are all going to India for a long, summer, fun filled holiday.The trip will take us to many places and i will keep this space updated.

In India summers are really HOT. Had to pick up clothes for the 2 little ones. Fa Yuen Street is the best place for kids clothes, bags, shoes, accessories and craft punches! It is mostly a local market, not frequented by the tourists. Also there is no bargaining, which is good for the likes of me. And they don't sell the knock-off LV purses and such stuff. All in all, a great place to shop.

I picked up many clothes for kids at throw away prices, dint click them.

These are the travel kits.

 and the hair clips to go inside them. They have it in a zillion colors and patterns!

for her twinkle toes :)

 clips n more of them. Now i am feeling maybe i bought a bit less:(

 

Gift bags too..

A few of the punches i bought. This isn't my entire stock.

Well a happy sunny Saturday afternoon it was.

On the crochet front i am feeling very lazy to end the wave stripe blanket. Have the last row of edging to be done. Already zeroed on my next hooky. Really lovely bit of work this pillow. Waiting for the mailman to deliver the goodness package :)

Shopping to-do list is still very long:

*Shirts
*Chocolates
*Perfumes
*More clothes :)
*Kitchen stuff
*Wardrobe stuff
**
***

Happy Sunday and hoping the sun stays smiling till i leave HK.

Almost there..

Past few days have been a routine, its like i can tell what i will be doing at every hour, every day. Sometimes  patterns in life are good. Keeps you content and you just go along with the flow. Morning 8 till night 11(if i get lucky) are filled with motherly activities. Its this one hour in the morning and a few hours late at night which are totally ME time. I love the quietness, when there is no one wanting my attention and i can do as i please.

During one such hour i was looking for Instagram like apps for PC that i came upon this site. One word for it - AWESOME! You can just transform your pictures. And its free.

Take a look at this. The Before snap.

Transformed it into this -

A rare smile for the shutter bug.

 

Before this was just an almost finished rug.

Now, its a vintage heirloom :)

 

OK.This is how much i have completed. Ran out of the blue yarn so called an end to the body of the rug. Started the border in white. I have completed 1 round of it, need to do a few more rounds and finish it off with an edge. Something about a border, gives an entire new look to your rug.

 

As my little ones are still asleep, i am off to get that cup of coffee and my hook. 

Happy 'vintage' time :)