Moogly CAL 2016 – The End

23 Friday Dec 2016

Tags

CAL, Crochet, Crochet Along, Crochet Blankets, Moogly CAL 2016

The Moogly CAL 2016 officially came to an end on the 24th of November when the final block was released. All that was left to do was to begin the joining process and add a border.

Mine is all done now and I’m so pleased with the way its turned out! I can’t believe I stuck to it and finished it before the year is up 🙂

I’ve used my favorite joining technique – The Flat Braid Join (considering that I’ve never tried any other method and only ever used this once before in my African Flower Square Baby Blanket, I’m really not sure how its a favorite. I mean, you decide on a favorite once you’ve tried a couple of things and then you choose one, isn’t it? Which I haven’t.) Maybe I just wanted to use something I was familiar with and get the whole thing completed as quickly as possible so I can move on.

For the border, I used the Treble Scallop Edging that I had listed in my post on Borders and Edgings that you can read here. I loved it! Dare I say, its a favorite 🙂 !

So now that one big project has been wrapped up, I can now focus on my Sophie and a bunch of other little things I’ve been really hoping to make.

My 11 year old has been getting a little creative as well with some random doodling and she made these –

I think the first one looks like a little gift paper and when I told her I’ll probably use it to gift-wrap something small, I was subjected to the death stare and some angry rants akin to “it will just be torn off and trashed! Is that REALLY what you want with my drawings???” . Made sense, I guess.

Next time I shall just keep my ideas to myself, ooh and aah over it and quietly sneak it off when its completely forgotten about. Nah! Easier said than done. I’m not sure if I’m evil enough to do that. Will see what I’m capable of if ever a desperate need arises 😀

So for now, it looks like its just going to be piled up and treasured with all the other things she’s drawn up in the past.

So that’s all for now, dear readers.

I wish you all the Most Merriest X’mas and Fun-filled Holidays!!

Patchwork Throw

05 Monday Dec 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Crochet

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Crochet Afghans, Crochet Throws, Dare to be Square Afghans, Leisure Arts, Patchwork Throw

Its time to show off the throw that I had been working on for a while now. Although I had completed most of the work last month, only the borders had remained.

The pattern is from an e-book I had purchased earlier this year called “Dare to be Square Afghans e-book” by Leisure Arts. The reason I purchased it was because I liked the fact that the throws are all made in one big square and kind of saves me the trouble of making different blocks and the bother of joining them. I need only to carry this one single piece with me whenever I wish to crochet on the go and see it grow.

There are a total of 8 patterns in the book and 4 of them had caught my fancy.

The first one I attempted was the Patchwork Throw : throw-4

I used the same pattern to crochet a cushion cover too. It took me a good while to figure out the best way to go about it since I do not sew. The pattern has a lacy appearance; so I bought a solid-colored cushion cover with a zipper to serve as a lining. I first crocheted 2 panels as seen below (front and back), joined only 3 sides together with single crochets and shelled around them. The 4th side was where the zipper would be from the lining cushion cover underneath. So made single crochets on the top edges of the front and back panels of this side, shelled around both edges & fit buttons on one side of the shells. This way, after I slip the crocheted cover onto the lining cover, I button up into the shells on the other side. Did that make sense, dear readers?

I don’t really know if that was a good idea, but it worked. Cushion covers can be a bit tricky to crochet, can’t they? Especially if you do not know how to sew.

Front side of cushion

Back side

Next time I visit mum, I am going to get her to teach me some basic sewing with the machine (which I’m quite terrified of, honestly). Every time I think about learning to use a sewing machine, thoughts of my fingers getting stitched up instead of the fabric, kinda gives me the heebie-jeebies. But I know I have to face my fears if I want to progress.

Overall, I’m quite happy with the way they’ve turned out. Better than expected 🙂

What do you think?

Catching up!

13 Sunday Nov 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Crochet, Family

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Tags

CAL, Crochet Along, Moogly CAL 2016

Hello, lovely people!

I hope you all have been well and enjoying life!

Its been an absolute eternity since my last post and I just thought I’d pop by and say hello.

Another month and we will soon be in a tizz over the X’mas festivities! I can already feel the joy bubbling up in my heart and I’m so looking forward to this beautiful season!

I’ve had a job change happening and I had been busy trying to wrap my mind around it. This is a first in my entire career while living in the same country. The first time I changed a job was when I left a country to move to this one 9 yrs ago! Trying to adjust to the changes and the new responsibilities is always quite a challenging task.

Which brings me again to why I’m so glad I took up crochet as a hobby! Cheers me up no end when I come home after a days work! Puts my mind at ease and I can always feel the tension ebb away.

And I’ve managed to catch up on a lot with my WIPs!

The Moogly CAL 2016 is in its final month and I think the last I posted about it was in June when I completed Block 12! My goodness! That really is a long time!

I have progressed pretty well with it and here are all the pictures of the rest of the blocks till Block 21 –

Block 13 – Southern Summertime Square

Block 14 – Wishing Well

Block 15 – Rising Sun

Block 16 – Joyful Afghan Square

Block 17 – Popcorn Lace

Block 18 – Lotus Flower Mandala

Block 19 – The Trail Square

Block 20 – Festival of Fall

Block 21 – Fans and Lace Square

Block 22 is a little tricky with some sewing involved and I think I will be using an alternate block instead. So that leaves just 2 more blocks this month and I’ll soon have a completed afghan to cozy in by December! Can’t wait!

My Sophie is still in its infancy. I have managed to complete only up to Part 7 and I had hoped to complete Part 8 before I post an update. Hope to get that sorted out before the year is up!

There was also a throw that I had been working on early in the year. And boy! Am I proud to say that its been done with and I’d even made a cushion cover to complement it! But that’s going to be for another post when I can really show it off 🙂

I did think of starting on some crocheted gifts for Christmas too, but decided I really did not want to take that road so late. I don’t think I can handle the stress of not completing them in time! So I’m gonna give it a miss this year. Sadly.

I bet you’re all done with your X’mas gifts, aren’t ya!

On the family front, my 2 year old quietly turned 3 earlier this month. We went for dinner to celebrate it. We even took him to a movie later that week 🙂 It was his first time to a theater and I laughed at the way he sat on his father’s lap, waiting solemnly for whatever it was that was going to take place. I forgot to click a picture, silly me! I always forget to take pictures of my children’s “first time” 😦 Once the lights dimmed and the movie started, he still maintained his silence. I kept glancing at him to see if he nodded off considering how late at night the show was. But he sat entranced the entire 3 hrs. Proved I needn’t worry about taking him to the movies next time 🙂

So that’s what’s been going on in my life so far!

Now to catch up on all your blogs..

Until next time..Take care, lovelies!

Post-Trip Blues

01 Thursday Sep 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Holidays, Travel

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Blog

After a wonderful and refreshingly beautiful holiday in Europe, I am now glad to be back home.

Actually, no, that’s not entirely true.. I’m not truly glad to be back. There were plenty of moments on my holiday when I desperately wished with all my being that I could live there forever. Especially as the end came near.

We visited some of the most gorgeous places in Europe – Norway, Denmark, Germany – the Norwegian Fjords being the highlight. We selected Norway only because the fjords were featured on the top of my bucket-list since forever (I am glad to be able to cross it off that list now). I have seen countless pictures of the place full of tall mountains and peaceful waters and imagined myself in the center of it all!

And now that I’ve seen them, I cannot find the words to describe how beautiful they are. Truly a feast for my eyes. We cruised along the Sognefjord (supposed to be the 2nd largest fjord in the world) during the early hours of the morning with the eerily majestic and misty fjords looming around us and a feeling of awe at the wonder of it all totally rocked me. The sights were one of absolute breathtaking beauty and I remember having a similar feeling when I stood among the Alps in Val D’Isere during one of my official trips. Of course, the fjords cannot compare to the grandiose of the Alps, but it still managed to evoke that feeling of being in the presence of something mysterious, ominous and magnificent.

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Misty fjords early in the morning

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Villages along the way later in the day

Bryggen – The Wharf

Before we traveled, I did worry about the kids. Especially our 2 yr old. That he would get cranky and tired and unbearable and generally be a pain. But he surprised us! Even woke up at 5 am without a peep, to get ready for the Fjord tour. I couldn’t ask for more! And my 11 yr old did a grand job of being the ideal sister to him throughout. Both of them became wonderful companions for each other and bonded more on this holiday. Although the occasional squabbles between them did exist, they were both stars! One friendly lady from Spain on the Fjord cruise even took the time to tell me how impressed she was with my daughter. Impressed at the way she took care of him. It was a proud moment and I couldn’t stop beaming 🙂

Another highlight of our trip was the long daylight that we thoroughly enjoyed. I think that was the best part! That we got to be out until 9:30 or 10 pm almost every day without a care in the world!

I miss it all. I miss all the places we went to. I miss the glorious weather, the long daylight hours, the blue skies with clouds that look like they’ve been painted, the quiet beauty and solitude of the countryside with its gently rolling green and golden hills and fields, the liveliness of the cities, the friendly people and not to forget, the wines!

Fields in Vejle, Denmark

Copenhagen

And I suppose when one resides in a country that is severely lacking in all the above factors, its quite normal to not want to come back.

But, there’s nothing like home either, isn’t it? Even if your home is in a blistering hot, developed desert. On our flight back, thoughts of my cozy corner of the sofa surrounded with yarns managed to lighten the gloomy thoughts of getting back to the norm. And surprisingly, I found that I did miss the chaos of our routine life too. But just a tiny bit, mind you.

And my plans of crocheting while on holiday definitely didn’t work out. I had some grand ideas of finishing at least 1 WIP by the end of it. But every time we got back from a full day’s sightseeing, I was too beat to even contemplate the thought of lifting my hooks. And this was the case every single, unforgettable day! But I’m eager to start hooking again and I’m hoping to at least begin work on some more squares of my CAL that is long over-due.

Its been almost 10 days now since we’re back and I’m writing this post from work. The phones have already started doing their job of startling me out of my day-dreams.

Oh yes, I am thoroughly back to reality.

Hello!

15 Friday Jul 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Life In Kuwait, Writing

≈ 2 Comments

Just wanted to say Hello to you all!

I’ve been MIA for over 2 weeks; but I’m still here.

I had forced myself to take a break from crocheting and blogging because work has been overwhelming. And most days, I had been dragging it home with me. Its the holiday season in this region and being a part of the travel industry means I do not get a minute of free time. Planning peoples’ holidays and sorting out all sorts of hiccups along the way really gets me tired mentally. On days that I do not get bogged down with phone calls and messages at home, I’m busy planning my own vacation (end of July! YAY!) even though all I wanna do is just curl up and sleep for a long, long time.

Although I have definitely missed reading all your blogs, I think I will continue with this break until end July when I’ll be off on my hopefully refreshing holiday and will then get some time to do some of my favorite things.

Sending lots of love your way and hope to catch up soon!

The Greatest thing

Block 12 – Moogly CAL 2016

25 Saturday Jun 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Crochet

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Tags

CAL, Crochet Along, English Garden Square, Moogly CAL 2016

I’ve been so hooked on my Sophie that I’ve missed to see the latest Moogly CAL 2016 blocks.

2 days ago I logged on to Ravelry and realized that 2 new blocks had already made its introductions. So, immediately got to work on the 1st block of this month which was released on the 9th of June.

The 12th block of the series is called English Garden by Pattern Paradise.

And this is my completed block –

I enjoyed making this one. It was easy and its got some interesting stitches. This block turned out a row or 2 larger than all the other blocks.

I will now have to take stock of all the blocks made so far and start making notes on the total number of stitches on the last row so I can slowly start working on some adjustments.

I really can’t wait to see how this blanket is going to turn out in the end 🙂

Stray Memories

20 Monday Jun 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Life In Kuwait

≈ 4 Comments

We had the joy of taking care of 4 little kittens and its mother until a week ago. They were housed in a small cubicle-like ventilation shaft near the staircase of our apartment floor. They didn’t belong to anyone. The mother cat had given birth to them on one of the floors above us (I don’t know when) and brought them down into this shaft almost 3 weeks ago. The kittens had grown a little by then; but they were still on the mother’s milk and too small to venture out anywhere on their own.

So we had been feeding Mama cat all the time she was there. She even let us pet her little ones. Maybe she decided we were safe. My 2 yr old kept insisting on going to the staircase every now and then to watch.

It was amazing to see her love for her little bundles. She was always nuzzling and licking them clean and I could feel my heart burst with these little displays of affection. A mother’s love is such a powerful feeling.

Until a week ago.

When we had to witness acts of cruelty by human-beings toward the helpless. Our horrid watchman took all 4 of them and gave them away to some boys who proceeded to torture them. All my shouting and screaming did nothing to deter them. They just laughed at my anger and ran away grabbing the poor little babies by their tails and swinging and flinging them around.

I cannot imagine what must have become of them. But we are now left with Mama cat crying piteously for her babies; she’s constantly going up and down the stairs looking for them and keeps coming back to stare into the shaft.

We are left with rage at the cruelty that human beings are capable of inflicting. I do not blame the boys. They are young. But I am angry at the watchman. He knew what would happen. But he still went ahead and let it without a moment’s thought. Washed his hands of the responsibility of leaving strays in the building.

What does it take to show some kindness? Is it so hard to be a little considerate? Very hard to pity the helpless? To just let them be? They would grow up soon and go away, anyway. Maybe I shouldn’t be so surprised. With all the terrible things happening in the world that even innocent little children are not spared, what place do tiny kittens have?

Watching Mama cat now breaks our heart. She keeps approaching our door, probably in the hopes that her precious babies are in our home. I do not open the door any more when she comes crying. There is nothing I can do to help and I can’t bear to see her loss.

This is a picture I took of them when they all popped their heads out one by one to get a lick from her –

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And now, they have become only a memory that will soon fade.

X-Stitch Summer Wrap – Complete

18 Saturday Jun 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Crochet

≈ 1 Comment

Tags

Alize Diva Yarns, Alize Yarn, crochet summer shawl, X-Stitch Summer Wrap

Almost 2 weeks ago, I had posted a few of my favorite summer shawl patterns that you can read about here.

And, I have most definitely finished one of them 🙂 – The X-Stitch Summer Wrap by Pattern Paradise.

X-Stitch Summer Wrap

X-Stitch Shawl

My shawl came out a little slimmer because the yarn I used is a GORGEOUS micro-fiber yarn by Alize (range : Diva Silk Effect).

It is beautifully soft with a silky sheen and drapes well. Each ball is a 100 gm and I used 2 whole balls for the wrap. I had to add on rows for my project because it was turning out to be small length-wise. For the border, I used a solid Teal color of the same brand and only less than a quarter of the ball. Hook size used was a 5.5mm.

Of course, its not practical for me to use it in the summer here because it gets really, really hot (up to 58 degrees Celsius; although one time it got to 62!!).

But I am definitely wearing it in the winter because if I scrunch it up, it can be a really warm scarf, although the lacyness won’t be seen when worn thickly around my neck.

That’s alright, I guess. At least it will be put to use instead of being stashed away 🙂

I LOVE how the sunlight really make the colors pop!

I have 3 more varieties of the variegated yarn and solid colors that go with them.

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Can’t wait to figure out what to make with them!

But before that, I can now peacefully resume with my Sophie and I hope to get a few more parts completed real soon.

Blog Awards :)

16 Thursday Jun 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Writing

≈ 7 Comments

Tags

Blog Awards, Blogger Recognition Award, The Creative Blogger Award

I’ve been nominated for 2 awards by 2 amazing bloggers and I’m making it into 1 post here. Make sure to check both of their blogs out!

creative-blogger3

The talented Rene at Periwinkle Pursuits nominated me for The Creative Blogger Award over 3 weeks ago and its only now that I’ve got around to making a post for it.Thank you so much, Rene, for nominating me! I’m truly delighted!

Here are the rules:

Nominate 15 – 20 bloggers and add their links.
Thank the person who nominated you and include a link to their blog.
Share five facts about yourself.
Notify the bloggers you included.
Keep the rules in your post.

Five Facts About Me

1.. I love food. I live in the Middle East and dining is a favorite pastime for almost everyone here with lots and lots of restaurants to choose from. I have tried so many cuisines and honestly, its difficult to point out a favorite :D. But I would go any day for Thai and I have one very near to my office that I frequent.

2.. Traveling is my one and only dream. I dream of seeing the world and I am currently excited about this year’s holiday plans.

3.. I have a driver license. But funnily, I do not drive. I am afraid to. I take a taxi if the better half is out of town 😀

4.. I used to be very self-conscious. Not so much now. Maybe growing older and a little more wiser had to do with it. But there are times when I still give myself a mental pep-talk and work on it.

5.. I never watch movies that have a sad ending. NEVER, EVER. No matter how BRILLIANT the sad movie is. If someone gives me flicks to watch, I always make it a point to only take those that end well.

blogger-recognition-award1-e1439965499665

The second award was given to me by lovely Emma at Emma’s Craft projects. Thank you Emma! An honor this is, really!

The rules:

Write a post to show your award.
Give a brief story of how your blog started
Give two advice to new bloggers
Thank whoever nominated you and provide a link to their blog
Select 15 other blogs you want to give the award to.

How my Blog Started :

I started my blog on a whim. No prior thoughts. No preparations. One day at work, the thought came out of the blue. I called my brother and asked him how to start a blog. He told me “WordPress” and it just went on from there. Learned things along the way. I only wanted it to be my personal space where I can write whatever I wanted and I never, ever thought anyone would be bothered to read it. Initially, I was too embarrassed to even share what I was doing with my friends and family until a month later when I shared it on FB. When I got to be a little more confident and a little less self-conscious 🙂

Two Advises to New Bloggers :

Your blog is about you. Who you are, your passions. Its important to write from the heart. And have fun while you’re at it. Blogging should be something you enjoy doing. Not a task and not something to stress over.
Follow others with similar interests, read their journeys. This will inspire you and give you food for thought that you can then write about.

Finally,

Nominations :

Dartmoor Yarns

Daniella Joe’s Blog

Emma’s Craft Projects

Yarnya

Saintswest

Craft And Other Crazy Plans

A Day Out with Anand Photography

Cypress Textiles

Vanella Road Creations

The Sailor Crochet News

The Ninth Life

MaRRose CCC

That Girl Who Crochets

The Crafty Mummy

Zeens And Roger

Crochet Borders and Edgings

11 Saturday Jun 2016

Posted by Bessie V in Crochet

≈ 3 Comments

Tags

Crochet Borders, Crochet Borders & Edgings, Crochet Edging

I love intricate borders and edgings on crocheted blankets, shawls, scarves and the like. Wherever an edging is possible, really. They give a nice finishing touch to the item and adds a certain flair to it. I feel that a project looks complete and neat only once that border comes on 🙂

Although “mypicot.com” has some really, really pretty patterns including borders, here are some I’ve come across that I liked a lot and will try to use whenever possible :