Knits By Nat

Fun Bowling Tournament

2012-02-13T11:53:00.000-05:00

Saturday night I participated in a best box bowling tournament. A team consists of two players and they play 2 boxes at a time; the better score of the two players is used to calculate the points. Four games are played and the one with the most pins win.

It's the fourth year that I participate in it; I ended up winning it the first time.

This year the competition was extremely good. Teams played a minimum of 10 perfect games! Two of them were played on the same lanes I was playing. Normally it's both teammates that help each other out but one of them was by a single player. His teammate just sat and encouraged him through the entire game. It was great to see him play. They ended up playing another perfect game together.

The winning team played 4 perfect games! Now that is extremely amazing! The coordinator of the tournament had never seen this happen in over 25 years of tournament. He also hadn't seen so many perfect games played by so many teams.

As usual there were murmurs of how the teams weren't matched up properly and so on. But come on! Who would ever think a team could play perfectly for four games in a row? That's 48 strikes! I have played a few perfect games and they are not that easy to play. I have also seen top players play together and not even play a perfect game.

I really don't understand how people cannot see the exploit for what it is. Simply amazing!

Those Little Gifts That are Hard to Think Of

2011-12-02T17:22:00.003-05:00

Your child's teacher, a friendly coworker, your yoga instructor; all people you'd like to give a little something for the holidays. And you have run out of ideas. I thought going through some Etsy shops that offer vegan products might give us some wonderful ideas.

Lisa of Johnsonfamilyzoo has the cutest eco friendly reusable sandwich bags available in her shop. Just imagine bringing a sandwich to work in one of these bags or a snack! They will be the envy of their coworkers.

2 Sided OWLS and STRIPES Reusable Snack and Sandwich Bag SET

Rachel from soapwallakitchen makes these wonderful, luxurious vegan organic soaps. This doesn't mean the people on your list don't smell good; you just want them to feel pampered.

Organic Lavender and French Clay Facial and Body Soap Bar

Renée from pinkbubble creates these beautiful keychains. It's a great way to make sure nobody loses their keys anymore. And if you have a soccer mom on your list even better!

Soccer keychain

Jen from SickOnSin makes these wonderful pins. With the incredible choice available I'm sure you can find a few that will make someone on your list happy.

Do you have a few coffee lovers on your list? I can't help myself but I must mention my very own dear coffee cup cozies. It also helps that right now they are on promotion BUY 3 and GET THE 4TH FREE! They are a great way to carry the morning cup of java without burning your hands.

Yellow Coffee Cup Cozy with Acorn Leaf

I hope this very small list helps a little in your gift shopping. If you need more gift ideas just go to Etsy and enter veganetsy in the search bar and lots of vegan items will come up; all by amazing creative vegans!

Working with knitting charts

2011-11-30T21:27:00.000-05:00

For the One Cup Cozy a Day project I have been knitting with different stitch pattern books. Most books have written instructions and/or charts but one book in particular only uses charts to show how the pattern is knit.

To be able to follow I started using a sticky note and sticking it just below the row I am working on. I also wrote the explanation for one of the symbols since the glossary is at the front of the book and I wasn't in the mood to look back every time.

You can see on the picture I also write down the row I have just knitted. That's because a certain cat loves to plop down on my book, moving the sticky note from its row placement. Lola, you know who I'm talking about.

I usually prefer to work with chart patterns when I have the choice. Do you prefer working with written instructions or charts? Do you have a different way of keeping track of your rows?

Some Good Men Are Out There

2011-11-04T17:07:00.000-04:00

The first man I want to talk to you about is my boyfriend. Although he isn't vegan he has changed his cooking methods so I can eat supper without having to start from scratch when I get there. It would mean eating around 19:30 since I finish late. So, I love getting to his place after work and having supper ready hot on the table. He was a heavy user of margarine and now uses olive oil instead. If I happen to mention some food is vegan, the next thing I know he's bought some when he went grocery shopping.

This week we've had to make due with prepared food since he recently hurt his middle finger making it hard for him to write and horror of all horrors chop vegetables!

Here is where the other good man comes into the picture. He's the owner of the neighborhood Asian market and my boyfriend went shopping for some vegetables the other night. He was talking with him about his predicament and the owner actually chopped his vegetables for him. He chopped the bell peppers, the mushrooms, the carrots and the onion so we could eat a nice home cooked meal. I was pleasantly surprised and will be sure to thank him the next time I see him.

Supper was delicious that night, a Chinese noodle dish with lots of vegetables and soy sauce; just the way I love it.

Have you ever benefited from someone's kindness or have you been the giver of such kindness?

My love for a pom-pom maker

2011-10-16T16:22:00.002-04:00

I finally received my Clover pom-pom maker and I am in love! Pom-poms are so easy to make with this. Of course when I told my mother she said something along the line, "In my days we just used cardboard to make our pom-poms." I tried cardboard; the yarn just kept falling out of the hole and I just wanted to hurl the whole thing across the room. I want to make a good amount of pom-poms and I want it to be easy.

You can see below the Clover pom-pom maker (makes 3 3/8 inch pom-pom) and beside it is another device I found but the pom-poms were too small around 3 inches only. It also came with a 2 1/2 inches maker and I even bought the 4 1/2 inches one as well. I couldn't find these in any store around town and am glad I found them at Herrschners. Of course, I bought some yarn at the same time.

This is what a pom-pom looks like with the Clover maker and they also look great on my Cables and Seed Stitch Hat with Pom Pom.

Some loving for the knitting

2011-09-30T10:23:00.000-04:00

I just realized this morning I will actually be knitting 366 cup cozies for the One Cup Cozy a Day project. The year 2012 happens to be a leap year. The joke's on me.

The daily paper KnitPurlGurl Daily has the One Cup Cozy a Day project as one of their top stories : http://paper.li/knitpurlgurl/1300323010#. It's a great easy way to stay up to date with what's happening in the knitting world. Thank you.

Lidia from Vegan Bloggers Unite has written a wonderful review about Knits By Nat : http://veganbloggersunite.wordpress.com/2011/09/28/blog-review-knits-by-nat/. Thank you so much Lidia.

National Coffee Day

2011-09-29T15:37:00.001-04:00

My crazy knitting project has launched. It's all about coffee cup cozies coming to you daily for the next 365 days!

One Cup Cozy a Day

How do you drink your coffee? I like mine black, no sugar.

Lots of new projects

2011-09-26T11:49:00.000-04:00

I have been working on lots of new projects that should finally see the light of day soon.

One such project will be emerging this Thursday on National Coffee day! It will mean a lot of daily knitting but I am so looking forward to it. Stay tuned, it's only a couple of days away. And yes, you may call me crazy when you see what it's all about.

Some colours for the Cable and Seed Stitch Hat with Pom Pom have been knit but the making of the Pom Poms has me going a little crazy. How I managed to make the black one is beyond me because now the method isn't working. I am waiting for my Clover Pom Pom maker to arrive in the mail, hopefully very soon.

I have been working on a matching hat and fingerless mitts which need some buttons for the final touch. Saturday will be shopping day for those. I can't wait to spend time looking through the wonderful buttons at Rubans Boutons

Giveaway Contest on All Women Stalk

2011-09-12T17:27:00.001-04:00

The blog All Women Stalk is doing a Giveaway Contest and the prize is my Purple Cable and Lace Slim Scarf. Just go on their blog and follow how to enter : http://fashion.allwomenstalk.com/giveaway-contest-handmade-cable-knit-scarf-from-knits-by-nat/

GOOD LUCK TO ALL PARTICIPANTS!

SALE in my Etsy shop!

2011-06-27T08:07:00.000-04:00

I am celebrating the return of my computer and of postal services by having a sale in my Etsy shop. All my creations are now 15% off, the price shown is already reduced. You won't need to enter a coupon code when you finish your order; nice, easy and quick.

So, whether you're looking for a hat, fingerless mitts, a scarf or cowl; now is the time to indulge in wonderful knit vegan creations.

You can find the link to my Etsy shop just over to your right; hope you like what you see. If you're looking for something and it's not there just leave me a message in the comments here or use the contact option on Etsy.

Breakfast memories

2011-04-30T07:07:00.000-04:00

As a kid my favorite way to eat peanut butter on toast was to add some caramel to it. Gross to some, but oh so amazingly delicious to me. I recently discovered through Viva Vegan the Peanut Butter & Co line of products and they make a product called White Wonderful Chocolate. It is peanut butter with white chocolate added to it and tastes so much like my caramel combo. I just love it.

First bike ride of the year

2011-04-23T14:41:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I had the day off for Good Friday and decided to go biking with my boyfriend. We ended up going to see the progress on the new bridge connecting to Laval and I can't believe they are almost finished. This bridge has been talked about since the late 50s, early 60s and is now going to finally exist.

The biking went well for me, the boyfriend however ended up with a flat tire. It's the 3rd one he gets and hopefully the little piece of metal the guy found in his tire and took out is enough to not have flats happen again. I know flats can happen for all sorts of reasons but 3 flats in 3 outings is a bit much.

The new bike I have is just so amazingly light and it really makes a difference when I go up hills. Well, they aren't big hills but with my other heavy bike I always ended up having to stop in the middle and walk up to the top. This time we had three hills and I was able to bike all three to the top! I am quite proud of myself especially since my physical condition this year is just so-so compared to other years. I have let myself go a bit too much this winter and don't like it one bit. Hopefully using the BIXI to get back home evenings will help.

It was a gorgeous sunny day and we stopped in a park just to bask in the sun. We also wanted to rest our legs from pedaling against the wind. Why does the wind have to pick up when we are on the way back home? It's when we're tired and can't wait to get back home. The sun was strong enough to slightly burn my nose and tan the top of my hands.

The distractions I deal with

2011-04-03T18:05:00.000-04:00

Whenever I knit, it is unmistakable Lola will come to see what I am up to. I could be surfing the net for hours and she leaves me alone. But the second she hears the click of knitting needles she comes around. If only she looked at what I am knitting but no. This always happens while I knit.

She has to plop down on top of my book and chart making it impossible to continue knitting. And the second I put her down on the floor, she's right back up before I even have time to pick up my needles. She is so lucky I love her to pieces but sometimes my patience does run out and she knows it when it happens. She doesn't try to get back up after I put her down.

She's also the reason I only use circular needles; she likes to chew on the ends of regular needles. Now try knitting with a cat attacking your needles, not so easy.

My favorite way to eat soba noodles

2011-03-25T17:16:00.000-04:00

A friend was tweeting about soba noodles and it reminded me of my favorite way to eat them. I found this recipe years ago even before I became vegan in Vegetarian Times/July 1999. It's really the dressing that makes it so great; apple cider vinegar, soy sauce, lemon juice and dark sesame oil.

Now, I want to eat some over the weekend. Will need to go to the Chinese supermarket since I am out of soba noodles. I have all the other ingredients already on hand.

What are the ways you love eating soba noodles?

My biggest knitting pet peeve

2011-03-20T16:24:00.001-04:00

This knot to connect 2 ends of yarn in the middle of a ball is my biggest knitting pet peeve. I once had 3 knots in a 50g ball while trying to knit one of my spring scarves. It drives me crazy and I want to throw the ball across the room when it happens.

Luckily this time I was knitting something small and had knit only 10 rows. When 3/4s of the way into a row for a baby blanket is another matter though which is what happened to me the last time I knit for a friend.

Is this also your biggest knitting pet peeve or is it something different altogether?

Cable and seed stitch fun

2011-02-27T19:45:00.000-05:00

The last couple of weeks I have been working on a new hat and fingerless mitt pattern. The hat was inspired by a stranger in the subway. She was wearing a wonderful lace and cable hat and I really liked the look of it but wanted something warmer than the lace in between the cables. Winters here can be very cold and windy and lacey hats just don't cut it most of the time. After a few trials trying different patterns I found the seed stitch looked good. So here's what the hat looks like in black.

I also wanted to knit shorter fingerless mitts and decided to keep the cable and seed stitch as inspiration. Here they are in black and a detail of the pattern in purple.

Vegan salmon bagel

2011-02-13T14:28:00.000-05:00

Some weeks back I bought myself these vegan salmon steaks from the Viva Vegan Store and someone wondered if they would be great to make salmon bagels.

The salmon steak by itself is delicious. I love bringing it to work; microwave a few minutes with a herbed gravy and some mashed potatoes. It's a quick, easy and delicious lunch and my coworkers can tell you how much I love it. I rave about my lunch every time I bring this.

And yes they are great to make salmon bagels. I used the creamy Sheese, thinly sliced one of the steaks, added capers, onions and voilà! The vegan salmon bagel is born. I just wish I had some sprouts to put on top since I loved eating it this way.

Fruity Coconut Jelly

2011-01-10T17:40:00.000-05:00

Fruity Coconut Jelly are amazing, delicious jelly desserts. They are made with coconut gel and seaweed instead of gelatin which makes them vegan.

I love these with a passion and I have now found them in my neighborhood at the Asian market. I first ate these last summer when a friend found these shopping in Chinatown. They come in various fruit flavours; these are green apple, pineapple, strawberry and grape. I must buy the mango ones next time I go shopping.

Yes, half of the container is already gone after just one day! I eat them straight out of the little cup being careful not to spill some of the juice in them. There's also a little piece of fruit in them which I have yet to identify. I even have the omni boyfriend liking them.

Perfect games at bowling

2010-12-10T21:40:00.000-05:00

Last night I had so much fun bowling with my team. My boyfriend as usual was being his silly self exasperating our captain. I know he does it on purpose and she's so easy to exasperate.

I am not the one who played a perfect, neither did my boyfriend. The one who did plays on our team and he actually played two of them. We play 3 games per night and he did them on the first and third game. It was just so amazing to see him throw his ball and see it going down the alley so smoothly to make strike after strike. Out of 36 possible strikes he did 34.

It did help us win all 3 games and may even be enough for us to end up in first position of the bowling league.

Too much knitting

2010-12-05T16:23:00.000-05:00

This morning I woke up with my shoulders and lower back hurting. The reason : too much knitting. Friday night I spent the evening knitting, going to bed past midnight. I just kept telling myself, " A few more rows and then you'll go to bed." Saturday was spent knitting all day as well. I have a few custom orders to knit right now and want them to be ready to ship as quickly as possible. I also had quite a few fringed scarves to finish so I could finally add them to my shop.

Last week I had a pair of fingerless mitts with flap to knit and they turned out great. I really love the cap for the thumb, it's so cute. I once again used the Knucks pattern and added the flap by following different ideas people used. I now have to knit a pair in red.

Short and sweet post

2010-11-08T08:13:00.000-05:00

This is going to be a short and sweet post. Saturday, October 23rd in the afternoon, my computer gave me the dreaded blue screen of death. This weekend it was resurrected, quite easily I might add, by the tech guy who sold me the computer years ago. I did have to lug it to the Eastern Townships by bus but it was worth it. It has taught me to back-up my stuff from now on as well.

So, soon new posts will be appearing and new creations will be added to the Knits By Nat shop. All this non-computer time did allow me to knit a lot. It also showed me I spend a bit too much time on the Internet instead of knitting and doing other important things.

Custom order bragging day

2010-10-21T14:34:00.000-04:00

Yes, I am going to brag about the custom orders I have knit lately especially this wonderful set that has gone to Scotland. I started with a pattern I found for the hat but ended up knitting it in the round instead of flat with a seam in the back and added an extra cable section. For the fingerless gloves I used the Knucks pattern as a start and added the cable pattern from the hat, I also made them longer. The scarf was simple stockinette stitch with the cable pattern in the middle. The set turned out just gorgeous and although I don't usually wear hats I could see myself wearing this one easily.

Another custom order was for my shell pattern with ruffles scarf in lavender. The colour is just beautiful. This scarf is now in New York City enjoying the Big Apple lifestyle.

And last but not least is this wonderful dark charcoal slouchy hat that now calls Trois Rivières its home.

Last week of September

2010-09-27T17:30:00.000-04:00

I can't believe it's already the last week of September. It just seems to have flown by. I do get a bit more busy evenings with bowling twice a week. So, that may explain why I didn't see it go by.

Fall happens to be my favorite season of the year. I love seeing the trees changing to yellows, oranges and glorious bright reds.

I get to see this tree change colour every morning on my way to the subway and last year I finally grabbed my camera one morning to take a picture. Isn't it just gorgeous?

I also love fall because of the local vegetables available at this time of the year. I buy beets by the 5lb bag and end up eating them for weeks. My favorite way to eat beets is in a simple balsamic vinegar and olive oil dressing.

I'll cook all kinds of delicious stews with squash to fill my freezer. I especially love the acorn squash for it's slight peppery taste and beautiful orange colour. Do you have a favorite sqaush and which recipe do you like to make with it?

Murphy's Law, knitting and some bowling thoughts

2010-09-16T13:28:00.000-04:00

Thursday is bowling night so instead of working my regular 10-6 schedule I work the 9-5 one. Taking public transit at this busier time usually means I never get a seat to sit and knit. Last week I decided not to bring any knitting project with me and wanted to kick myself since I had a place to sit.

So, this morning I decided to bring some knitting along and guess what? No seats were available the entire ride. I hope on the ride tonight I will get to sit and knit.

Right now I am working on some cabled fingerless mitts and they should be available in my Etsy shop over the weekend. I really find them comfortable and warm, I may even knit myself a pair.

Tonight's bowling should be lots of fun since I will be playing last. This is reserved for the player who got the highest score the game before. We decided to add some fun by changing our order of playing this way and it has spurred my teammates to play better. I guess we just love the idea of beating one another to play last.

Some shopping and a surprise

2010-09-11T18:51:00.002-04:00

I finally found the teapot I wanted to knit cozies for. It's a nice bigger-sized teapot than those I have and I love that it's white as well. I found it at the community garage sale La Tohu organized today. I was on the bus when I saw the tents pitched on the grounds of La Tohu and decided to get off have a look. I'm glad I did.

I already have all kinds of ideas for teapot cozies and can't wait to start working on them. I do have to finish a custom order for fingerless mitts beforehand.

When yarn changes the outcome

2010-09-05T19:11:00.000-04:00

When I knit one of the scarves with fringe I often know ahead of time which fringe I will use to go with the solid-coloured yarn. Well, today it didn't work out that way at all for 2 of the fringed scarves.

The fringe I wanted to add to the blue denim scarf wasn't working at all; even the 3 options I thought would be beautiful with it didn't work. So, I dug into my stash of novelty yarn and came out with one that was absolutely perfect; one hundred times better than the options I initially wanted. This is how the scarf turned out. The medium violet red and plum tones make an amazing contrast to the blue denim. Isn't it just gorgeous?

The second scarf hasn't fared as well though. I don't have a single fuzzy, textured or sparkly yarn that will go with it. It is an olive colour and absolutely none of my novelty yarns look good with it. I guess I will have to go out shopping in yarn stores ( like that's a big sacrifice on my part ) to find a novelty yarn that will be amazing with it.

Viva Granola in October's VegNews

2010-08-25T17:18:00.001-04:00

Viva Granola are in VegNews. I had to mention this since I love Brigit at Viva Granola. She provides me with Cheezly, Soy Curls and countless other vegan goodies. Their website is easy to browse through and what amazing service. Quick and not one single mistake in all my orders.

They offer not only food but cosmetics, products for personal hygiene, animals and other things that can be hard to find in most stores.

I hope the exposure brings them lots of orders.

Waiting for crumbs

2010-08-25T08:20:00.000-04:00

Balou loves to wait for crumbs when I eat toast or bagels. She will sit by me (of course now that I wanted to take a picture of her she's gone, I will catch her one day) and meow until I give her my plate of crumbs.

This morning she is waiting for bagel crumbs and they are amazing multigrain crumbs. The bagels come from Mount Royal Bagel and are only a 20 minute walk from work. Their whole wheat varieties are vegan as well as their soups. I will work on them to make all their bagels vegan. If they can make the whole wheat ones vegan why not the others? Last night I ate the all-dressed bagel with vegenaise and slices of tomatoes, simply delicious.

This morning I am eating it with a new spread I found at Rachelle Béry : Yoso spreadables plain. It is somewhat reminiscent of the creamy Sheese but has a whipped texture. I really liked it. Yoso has another spread called "cream cheese" which I will look for and try. They also have sour cream and yogurt I would love to try as well. Hopefully Rachelle-Béry has them or can get them for me.

Cloudy weekend

2010-08-22T18:18:00.000-04:00

Why is it cloudy this weekend?

All week the weather channel kept showing lots of sun and warm weather. I know I shouldn't believe the weather channel since it's wrong 95% of the time but I was looking forward to taking wonderful pics of my latest knitted creations to add to my shop.

I also wanted to take out the new bike I bought for a great ride around town but I guess it will be for next weekend, if the weather is nice. It's a Fuji Absolute 4.0 and I love it! Mine has a baggage rack in the back and a water bottle holder.

I did eventually take some pics of a few of my knitted creations. I will add them to my shop later this evening.

I also have a few projects to finish, well more than a few to be honest. Like around 10 of them. I need to weave in the ends of a few, add fringe to some others and even knit a couple of centimeters for the rest. They should be available soon in my shop.

Return from vacation in Wildwood

2010-08-15T22:33:00.001-04:00

I returned from vacation in Wildwood last Sunday actually.

We had an amazing time enjoying the beach, the boardwalk, the rides, water park and lots of other activities. As usual we went biking to Cape May, played a bit at the casinos in Atlantic City (I lost 4 dollars) and went on the dolphin-watching cruise. I love going on the dolphin cruise since we go see them in their habitat; they are not captive in a tank. We saw a lot of them and they were jumping and splashing with their tails. We also finished our vacation with some time in New York City walking through Central Park and later Times Square.

The return back to Montreal was unfortunately not as smooth as usual. We were driving north on I-87 around 3:00 Sunday morning when a black SUV sped by us (he must have been driving 100 mph/180 km), passed the car in front of us by the right lane, got into the U-turn, turned and started driving southbound towards us. Luckily my boyfriend remained calm and when the SUV was around 30 feet from us he drove on the right shoulder a bit in case the driver wanted to turn towards us. The SUV passed us staying in the left lane and my boyfriend just took off. He had no intentions of being around if the SUV decided to turn around and drive after us. He slowed down maybe an hour later and we never saw the SUV again. This is the first time ever either of us wished we had a cellphone to call 911.

Talking about the return to people made me realize how lucky we were he didn't swerve towards us or that there weren't other cars around. It could have ended with an awful accident.

A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns

2010-07-17T20:55:00.003-04:00

I have found a copy of "A Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns" SQUEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE! Yes, I am acting totally giddy ever since I found it. My boyfriend found my reaction "cute and hilarious". He just doesn't understand how much I wanted a copy of this book. I love intricate patterns and had heard there were some amazing ones to be found in here.

Where did I find it you ask?
At an old books store in downtown Plattsburgh.

What was I doing in Plattsburgh?
Supposed to be enjoying the beach but since the same rainy weather was happening here as well we ended up in Ausable Chasm and then went on to Port Kent. The weather did clear up late afternoon so we went walking in downtown Plattsburgh. As soon as I spotted the old books store I knew I had to see if they had any knitting books and boy I hit the jackpot!

I have already charted a lace pattern and will soon be knitting wonderful scarves and more inspired by the lovely intricate patterns in this book.

Here are some pictures from Ausable Chasm. The first one is a a little chipmunk who kept coming onto to the porch whenever someone left to see if he could find some crumbs. The second one is of the falls. We spent an enjoyable time looking around a bit and chatting on the porch while it rained.

Inspiration for the garter stitch lace scarves

2010-07-10T17:59:00.003-04:00

The inspiration for the garter stitch lace scarves was from Baktus which I saw once on Ravelry and can be found here on Flickr :

http://www.flickr.com/photos/norwayneedles/2963651011/

I liked the idea of creating a scarf that started slim, went wider in the middle on one side and back to slim. Although her's looks really more like a shawl with a deeper V in the back. I found the lace edgings browsing through the Harmony Guide book :

I will really enjoy knitting more of these scarves since I love the look of them. The yarn I used comes from La Bobineuse de Laine and I am knitting another one in orange tones as well. They should all be up soon in my shop.

Heat wave the last few days

2010-07-07T17:44:00.000-04:00

We have been having hot and humid weather for the last couple of days. I love the heat, hate the humidity.

What this means?

No biking home on a BIXI since I don't feel like collapsing somewhere on the side of the road.

I have still been knitting but this morning the yarn and needles kept sticking to my fingers how humid it was.

If all goes according to plan I should have some scarves to add in my Etsy shop over the weekend.

Canada Day, or should I say moving day!

2010-07-02T17:02:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was Canada Day.

You know what it means here in Québec? It's moving day. Most leases finish June 30th and I don't know why but Montrealers have a passion for moving.

I spent most of my bike ride home last night biking around trucks that were blocking the bike lanes.

So for for the next couple of weeks lots of junk will find it's way on the street curbs waiting to be picked up by the garbage truck; things like mattresses, couches and lots of computers. I even saw one guy taking the computers apart to get the parts that may still be good and useful.

It also means new people in the neighborhood; new dogs to see being walked by their parents. This morning I saw the most adorable little pug enjoying his walk. I wonder if I'll see him often.

Unfortunately it will also mean lots of abandoned animals because the new place they are moving into doesn't accept animals. I hope there won't be that many this year but I'm not optimistic.

Festival International de Jazz de Montréal 2010

2010-06-27T14:58:00.004-04:00

The Festival is back in town for the next 2 weeks. This is my favorite festival of all time. I love jazz and I thank my father for exposing me to jazz as a kid.

I was born in 1967, the year Montreal held the International and Universal Exposition or as we called it EXPO 67. My mother spent every Saturday there alone while my father babysat me at home. He would play jazz music all day inside and outside since we had speakers in the backyard. We were the cool kids since we could blare music outside while playing in the pool. (Boom boxes only became the way to play music outside in the 80s.)

Actually all weekends my father basically played jazz until we were old enough to want to listen to our music instead.

As usual there will be great free concerts all over the downtown core. You can get further info here on the website : http://www.montrealjazzfest.com/default-en.aspx

Last night we were able to listen to the end of James Hunter's concert happening on the big TD stage.

At 22:00 on the Rio Tinto Alcan stage we listened to Crystal Monee Hall. She's a singer/songwriter who will be launching her first album early July in New York. She has an amazing voice; you can hear her album on her website : http://www.crystalmoneehall.com/

On our way to the Festival I was able to get a pic of this wonderful man on his way to ... Your guess is as good as mine.

My BIXI adventures

2010-06-26T16:24:00.003-04:00

Last night I had quite the adventure with a BIXI bike.

It wouldn't lock into any bike dock. I tired the NINE empty ones and no go.

Luckily, I wasn't far from my boyfriend's so I went to his place to call the BIXI hotline. Yes, I don't have a cell phone; that's another story.

Spoke with Jonathan who assured me everything would be fine. He contacted a technician who arrived at the BIXI station 5 minutes later. He wasn't able to work his magic to get the bike locked so he hauled it into his truck.

I checked my BIXI account and all is fine.

What's a BIXI bike?

It's a bike that's part of a public system that allows you to travel in parts of Montreal from one BIXI station to another. You can learn more here : http://montreal.bixi.com/rolling-with-bixi/how-it-works.

I have the 1-year subscription since I wanted to use it to get to my boyfriend's place after work. I often had to wait 10-15 minutes for the bus and realized I could probably bike down to his place faster. This year they haven't set up a BIXI station at the métro stop I get off though. So, I get off one stop earlier and bike it down.

I am even thinking of using the bike in the morning, great easy way to get some exercise in.

White chocolate from Sweet William

2010-06-20T16:45:00.003-04:00

I love white chocolate but have always found it to be much too sweet. Some weeks ago I ordered the Sweet William brand from Viva Granola.

It is amazing, really not sweet and "smooth" as they write on the package. They are an Australian company that make various chocolate products; blocks, candy bars, baking chocolate etc. They even have a No Nut-"nut" bar, the roasted soy beans make it nutty.

Sadly, Viva Granola does not have any right now and going to Australia to get some more is not in the budget right now.

Formula 1 Racing back in town!

2010-06-13T16:54:00.000-04:00

Formula 1 Racing is back in town and I for one am glad.

Yes, I am a big Formula 1 fan especially in the 80s and early nineties. I used to watch every single race to my mom's despair. She preferred I play outside than watch TV.

I loved Formula 1 so much that in my yearbook I wrote my ambition was to be a formula one driver.

All weekend festivities related to the Grand Prix were held on the "Main" and on Crescent Street. That's where the boyfriend and I were last night. There were lots of people and lots of prestigious cars to be seen.

So, yes, lots of walking again; this time around 4 miles to see all we wanted to see.

The Francofolies are also happening right now ending next weekend. We heard some of France D'Amour's show and Hôtel Morphée's on our way to Crescent St from St.Laurent St.

L'International des feux Loto-Québec also had its kickoff last night with Italy presenting their fireworks show. Ten weeks of fireworks every Saturday night.

As you can see when summer hits Montreal we have lots of activities happening around town. You just need to like crowds though.

Sidewalk sale on Mt.Royal

2010-06-12T19:21:00.000-04:00

Went on Mt.Royal to buy wigs for my mannequin and ended up spending the afternoon there. This weekend is the sidewalk sale which also happens to be the Nuit Blanche sur Tableau Noir a great visual arts event with all sorts of activities. The artists paint on the street live and music can be enjoyed on various street corners.

The street was closed almost it's entire length and I ended up walking it from one end to another.

I walked into La Bobineuse de Laine and for the first time came out without any yarn The only reason is they accept cash only and I didn't have any on me. I may go back tomorrow since I saw some yarn I like for myself.

I did get the wigs. Here they are. Yes, I tried them and after I get myself a net to keep my hair in place I will wear them to play a few tricks on my boyfriend. I like the first wig the most on me.

I also found these amazing plaid fabric shoes; they had a lot of man-made material shoes but most were no longer available in my size.

Tour De L'Ile on a rainy day

2010-06-07T17:39:00.001-04:00

Yesterday was the Tour de L'Ile. I biked it again with my boyfriend.

It was pouring rain the entire time we were out there biking.

We biked through a quarry coming out of there splattered in mud. I had some in my face and my glasses ( I spent most of the time wiping them )as well as all over my legs.

When we got home we had to hose ourselves down as well as the bikes to get rid of the mud.

What I learned? We can be a crazy, passionate bunch of people when it comes to biking. Those cheap, plastic rain ponchos ( paid them only a dollar ) are very helpful in keeping you dry.

Feeding my obsession for stitch patterns

2010-05-22T16:52:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I walked into the Chapters downtown with my nephew who was looking for books to read on his long flight to Crete. I had to go wandering into the crafts section and I found this wonderful little book of stitch patterns. The first 100 pages are about the basics of knitting which would be useful for beginners. She then classifies the various stitch patterns by Easy, Medium and Difficult within each category (knit and purl, rib, cables, lace and bobbles, lace edgings and twisted) All stitch patterns are charted only which I prefer.

Look forward to seeing some wonderful new creations in my shop; ideas are already buzzing around in my head.

Berroco Comfort Yarn has arrived!

2010-05-08T18:55:00.000-04:00

The Berroco Comfort yarn I ordered from Herrschners has arrived. I wanted to knit this yarn into wonderful hats but seeing it I'm not so sure, it's just gorgeous and soft. I will probably have fun with it trying different stitch patterns and come up with something gorgeous for sure. Working with a wonderful yarn helps a lot.

Etsy Treasury

2010-04-30T17:52:00.000-04:00

My Tangerine Scarf is part of the Tangerine Schemes Treasury, thanks AllBags.

The Great VeganEtsy Give-Away-Bashful Blues

2010-04-10T18:12:00.005-04:00

On Etsy I am a member of the VeganEtsy Team and the team is having a wonderful give-away challenge for the month of April. You can find all the details here on the VeganEtsy blog : http://veganetsy.blogspot.com/2010/04/great-veganetsy-give-away-bashful-blues.html

The challenge is to find blue items that have the VeganEtsy Team tag on Etsy and post your answer as a comment on the blog.

The prize is a pack of vegan samples from the team members, lots of wonderful vegan goodies!

The deadline is April 28th so hurry on to participate.

Spring/summer scarves

2010-03-29T12:59:00.002-04:00

With the weather slowly warming up, I am enjoying knitting spring/summer scarves. I love working with lighter yarns like cottons or cotton/viscose and knitting lacey creations. Right now I am particularly enjoying knitting a simple but gorgeous lace rib. I already have a few listed in my Etsy shop and am working on other colours. You can see a detail of the lace rib on the bottom pic.

Impressive commercial

2010-03-27T14:22:00.001-04:00

Someone on Ravelry posted this commercial and it is just impressive! It's a commercial for natural gas and I love how everything becomes knit in the house. Just wanted to share this video with everyone!

http://wimp.com/naturalgas/

La Bobineuse de Laine cones of yarn

2010-03-23T08:11:00.000-04:00

Last week I went to La Bobineuse de Laine where I spent 2 hours just loving the fibers they have there. Of course I did leave with some yarn, well lots of yarn to be honest. The first 2 pics are cones of yarn I created with the help of the wonderful lady, I must ask her name the next time I go. I will have so much fun knitting with this yarn; most of it is cotton to knit wonderful summer creations. I have already started a gorgeous lace scarf.

Cat blanket knitting pattern

2010-03-17T16:49:00.007-04:00

I don't know about your cats but mine love to sleep on any clothing I leave out on my bed or chair. So to stop getting cat hair all over my clothes I decided to knit them blankets to sleep on and they love them. I created the pattern from a stitch I loved and have knit it in different sizes and colours.

You can see Lola here enjoying her blanket :

CAT BLANKET PATTERN

This pattern uses a lace pattern with a border of garter stitch all around.

I knit the blankets with Red Heart's Comfort yarn using 4,5mm needles. The amount of yarn used varies on the width and length you make the blanket. I know with the 454g ball of yarn you can knit quite a few of these. A 100g ball of worsted yarn should give you a decent size blanket.

Stitches used :
K : knit
P : purl
yo : yarn over

Cast on a total of 81 stitches.
Knit 8 rows to create border of garter stitch.
Row 1 & 3 : Knit all.
Row 2 & 4 : K5 *Purl* end with K5
Row 5 : K5 * P5, yo, K1, yo *(11 times), P5. K5 You will end up with 103 stitches.
Row 6 : K10 *P3,K5*(11 times), K5
Row 7 : K5 * P5, K3 *(11 times), P5, K5
Row 8 : K10 * P3tog, K5 *( 11 times), K5

K10 Correction from K5 in original. Sorry for the mistake.

Do not count stitches for rows 6 & 7, they will be decreased on row 8.

Repeat the 8 rows until you reach the length you want ~~ending on the 8th row.~~ Correction : ending with rows 1-3 and then knit 8 rows for the border of garter stitch.

If you want to change the width of this blanket you just need to use a multiple of 6 stitches plus 5 for the lace pattern. Add 10 stitches for the garter stitch border.

Here's a detail of what the stitch looks like :

If you have any questions just leave them in the comments section and I will be happy to help you out.

Tea cozy

2010-02-28T15:18:00.003-05:00

I just knit this wonderful tea cozy in emerald green. I got the basic idea from this pattern here :
http://www.castoncastoff.co.uk/blog/2006/04/10/time-for-tea/. I used less stitches since my teapot is smaller and changed the binding off a bit. It is just so cute! I am certainly going to knit some for my shop with added embellishments. I have all kinds of wonderful ideas already.

Ideas for spring/summer scarves

2010-02-23T15:04:00.001-05:00

Since spring and summer are coming right around the corner I have wanted to knit scarves with lace patterns and so I have turned to my collection of knitting books. Right now the book that's been giving me the most ideas is from the Harmony Guides Series : Lace & Eyelets. It is filled with wonderful lace patterns that my fingers are itching to knit. My only complaint is this book has no charts for the patterns yet mentions it would be very useful to know how to read charts. I prefer working with charts so I take the time to transcribe them. Reading K2, P2 yo K2tog etc drives me batty after a while.

Expect to see many new lace scarf photos over the next couple of weeks then.

Sage cabled fingerless mitts

2010-02-19T16:52:00.001-05:00

I can now put up a photo of the sage cabled fingerless mitts that I knit for D since she received them yesterday. I can report she loves them very much. I guess they will be much appreciated to work in her cold office. I am glad she loves them; they were fun and easy to make and the colour is absolutely gorgeous.

Etsy Teasury and blog post

2010-02-18T07:07:00.003-05:00

Yesterday was the day for my knitted creations. My emerald green scarf is featured in the Emerald With Envy Treasury on Etsy ( thanks rubescent! ) and my Burgundy, Olive and Orange scarf is featured on the blog I heart Vegan Accessories ( thanks Shannon! ) The Treasury will expire Saturday, February 20th.

The book that created my obsession

2010-02-09T14:17:00.001-05:00

This is the book that created my obsession for knitting. It belongs to my mother but she has not seen it in the last 20 years and knows she won't ever see it again. :) I would spend hours knitting the various stitch patterns from it. When I first started knitting the Internet did not exist and this became my bible for instructions. I like the fact that pictures show how to knit the various techniques and not drawings. It is written in French and at the back is a glossary of terms in French, English, German, Spanish and Swedish. The glossary came in very handy when I first started knitting with patterns since most of those I found where English only.

Even though I now have over 25 books this is one book I always return to on a regular basis. I love the simple layout and easy instructions.

Fingerless mittens

2010-02-02T08:12:00.001-05:00

Sunday I tried my hand at knitting fingerless mittens with the magic loop method and it was super easy. This is what it looked like on the circular needle. You can find different videos showing how the technique is done; I especially like the one shown on KnittingHelp. Just go down to the section "Small Diameter Circular Knitting" and you will find the Magic Loop video.

This is the finished product. I only have one hand knit since I showed it on a forum and already have an order to knit a pair so finishing mine can wait. I especially love the Bernat Satin yarn I used for the project. It will go great with the fringe scarf I made for myself.

I brought it to work to show some people who also love to knit and I was telling the receptionist how I have lots of ideas to knit some of these with different stitch pattern; cables being one of them. Here I was enthusing about the different cables and lace patterns when she looked at me and asked,"You really love knitting don't you? Here you are all excited about what you want to knit. I just knit for practical purposes but not you." Yes, I really do love knitting this much and I get excited just looking at stitch pattern books.

Etsy Treasury

2010-01-29T17:36:00.000-05:00

My red cable and lace scarf was featured in pinkbubble's Vegan Love treasury. Pinkbubble has a wonderful shop on Etsy as well where she sells jewelry.

Lasagna with Daiya

2010-01-17T13:39:00.003-05:00

I just made an amazing lasagna with lots of mushrooms, spinach and Daiya. It is absolutely delicious. Daiya is a vegan cheese that melts just like cheese but without any of the animal cruelty associated with real cheese.

Christmas family knitting

2010-01-09T21:33:00.005-05:00

This post will be the pictures of the scarves I knit for my family. How I found the time to knit them on top of all the custom orders I had I don't know.

My business cards

2009-12-12T11:39:00.003-05:00

I finally got around to taking a picture of my business cards, I have a fourth style since I just ordered again from Vista Print this week. I love all the free stuff you can get and Priority shipping was free as well.

Things are working very well with the Etsy shop and I intend to make it work. I just love all the knitting I get to do and I really don't see myself running out of ideas. I look at yarn and all kinds of different creations come to mind. It's the same thing when I look at Ravelry and all the wonderful projects people have knitted. Right now what's missing is the time to knit all the ideas I have.

21 Sales in my shop

2009-12-04T14:14:00.009-05:00

Today I had my 20th and 21st sale in my Etsy shop. Youppi! for moi! The cable and lace slim scarf has been my best seller so far; I have knitted new colours and some with added fringe.

I must one day knit these adorable mice I found on Fuzzy Thoughts http://blog.fuzzymitten.com/2009/11/holiday-mice.html They are absolutely cute. They look like an incredibly easy and quick knit! I just wish I could find time with all the knitting I have to do for my Etsy shop not that I am complaining things are going so well.

Black scarves

2009-11-26T10:36:00.005-05:00

Lately I have had orders to knit scarves in black; one cabled and the other lace. The cabled one was a nice and quick knit although I did have a hard time finding a nice yarn I wanted to work with. It is now enjoying its new home in New York City.

For the lace scarf I knew exactly what yarn I wanted to use from La Bobineuse and it turned out gorgeous. It is a nice simple lace pattern but knitting in the black and with the 3-ply yarn was a bit of a challenge. This one is enjoying its new home in the vicinity of Québec City.

Business cards

2009-11-10T17:16:00.004-05:00

I ordered business cards from Vista Print over the weekend and my order has already arrived. I did pay for the 7-day delivery since I wanted them as fast as possible to give out in my orders and people at work had been asking for some. The business now seems a bit more serious with cards to hand out to people. I will post a pic of them later during the week.

On November 22 will be the Big Veggie Gathering at the HEC Montreal at the l'Oréal room. It is a vegan potluck and some different associations will be represented as well. Viva Granola, my favorite online vegan store, will be there. It should be an interesting afternoon.

Mom's macaroni and cheese

2009-11-08T12:26:00.006-05:00

Last week I received my order of cheeses from Viva Granola and mostly made poutines over the weekend. They were okay but none had the squishy taste of cheese curds. This weekend I decided to make my mother's macaroni and cheese with the cheddar Daiya. It tastes great although a bit sweet, something I find with most vegan chesses. They all have a sweet taste to them that regular cheese doesn't have or so I remember. It's a pretty simple recipe of macaroni, a can of diced tomatoes with herbs, chopped onion and the cheese. Cook for 15-20 minutes than broil until top is browned a bit.
I have finished knitting the shell pattern with ruffles scarf in off-white. It is just gorgeous, looks so chic. I have another busy week of custom orders to knit so new creations in my Etsy shop will be few this week.

Car cozy

2009-11-02T11:43:00.004-05:00

The boyfriend has been asking me the last couple of weeks to knit him something for the arm rest in between the front seats and I finally did Friday night. At first I wanted to knit the Yankees' logo but I couldn't come up with something I really liked. Since I love knitting cables I went for a celtic knot I found in one of my cable books. I finished it Saturday and he has been raving about it ever since!

Scarves shipping today

2009-10-15T13:18:00.004-04:00

Three of the four scarves are finished and have been handed over to Canada Post to go to their respective lucky owners. As usual, I forgot to take the picture for one of the scarves but I did manage a pic of the burgundy scarves. The colour is a bit darker in real life but it really is gorgeous. I hope Isa, Richard and Staci will love their scarves.

Busy knitting

2009-10-11T12:47:00.001-04:00

I have been so very busy knitting 4 custom order scarves this week. They should be ready to ship in the next couple of days. I also just need to sew the doggie sweater and it will be ready to bring to work. I hope the doggie sweater fits this time with the modifications I made.

Last week I did have time though to go to an amazing yarn store here in Montreal : La Bobineuse de laine http://www.labobineuse.com/ (the website is only in French). I am in love with this store. They can create any cone of yarn you desire; you chose the ply, the colours, the textures and the materials. I got these 4 cones already mixed and I am really looking forward to creating my own mixes.
I had to get out of the store quickly or else I would have bought a lot more cones.

The first cable and lace scarf that started it all.

2009-10-02T08:22:00.004-04:00

This is the first cable and lace scarf that started my desire to find even more fun cables and lace patterns to create wonderful scarves. I love knitting cables and ever since I found a way to knit without a cable needle it is even better. Thanks Amy from KnittingHelp.com It makes knitting on my commute so much easier. I wouldn't see myself with a cable needle trying to knit cables with commuters bumping into me and all. The cable needle would be on the floor more than in my hands.

I even had a custom order from Elise ( The Dark Faerie ) and now that she received it I can show the final result. I even added a nice fringe to it.

Orange cables and lace scarf

2009-09-28T07:00:00.002-04:00

After Saturday's ramblings I put up this scarf in my Etsy shop and bookmarked it on my Facebook page.

It sold in 8 minutes! I even had 3 three people who liked it as well. One has put in an order for the same colour and I am already more than halfway finished. I should be able to ship it out Thursday the latest.

This scarf originally started with my love of the lace pattern and then finding a cable that would look nice with it in the middle. I'm glad so many people liked it as well, enough even to buy it. The loop edge goes well with it; I didn't want an ordinary fringe. I found it on Lion Brand's website, they have great edges and such in their Learning Center.

Saturday night ramblings

2009-09-26T20:02:00.002-04:00

The doggie sweater ended up being a bit too small for Mike's dog but was just perfect for Andrew's. I will be knitting one for Mike since he loves it so much. I actually have quite a few people who want me to knit it for their dog.

One of my coworkers asked me some weeks back to knit a scarf for her friend in the New York Rangers colours. It turned out quite nice.

Skull doggie sweater

2009-09-23T05:20:00.004-04:00

I finally finished assembling the skull doggie sweater and it looks great if I must say so. It was my first time knitting with two colours besides making Phentex slippers! It was a lot simpler than I thought and I can't believe I avoided colour knitting all these years.

I took pictures of Lola and Balou wearing it so friends could see it. Lola even tried to bite my hand when I was putting her paw back inside the sweater. I must say Balou's pic is the best.

I have already sold it at work. I was showing it to the receptionist when one of my supervisors saw it and told me he was buying it for his dog. I just hope it fits.

Knitting on my commute

2009-09-19T20:19:00.002-04:00

The last three weeks I have been knitting on my commute ever since I read somewhere that knitting 4-5 rows here and there add up after a while. It is so true. One evening I was able to knit 24 rows just waiting for the bus driver to finish smoking his cigarette and the 6-7 stops to get home. It helps make the commute go by faster as well.

I must say I was a bit self-conscious in the beginning but people just smile. One lady struck up a conversation about how long I had been knitting and stuff. Yesterday I met my first knitter sitting across from me; we nodded at each other and smiled.

I love working with circulars even though I am knitting scarves. This way the needles are not getting in people's way and if I drop one it stays with me, not on the floor.

Back from vacation

2009-08-09T18:39:00.001-04:00

Just a quick post to say I have been away on vacation in Wildwood, met some freaks in Philly and have started knitting scarves for the fall. I will write some more over the weekend and put up pics of the scarves I'm knitting.

Pics of the Jazz Festival

2009-07-06T07:57:00.007-04:00

We did go back last night to hear some more great jazz music and I got a few pics before the batteries died. This is on Ste.Catherine street between the Festival stage and the Rio Tinto Alcan one.

I also love seeing these metal gates with the cat and notes. These could be seen mostly at the various entry points for the site. As usual they searched my purse; I even had a circular needle in there since I'm hoping some yarn comes in at work and I can start the scarf Ida ordered from me.

Patrick Watson was performing on the big GM stage and we got there just as Lhasa de Sela was singing. She was one of his special guests as was Guy Nadon. I really love Lhasa and was thrilled to see her even if it was only on the giant screens they had put up everywhere around the stage. Even the Loto-Québec stage's giant screens were showing Patrick's show.

Elann yarn

The yarn I ordered from Elann last week has arrived at work. The Lara yarn in burgundy is just gorgeous. It will make a very nice scarf. I can't wait to start knitting tonight.

Montreal International Jazz Festival

2009-07-05T13:39:00.003-04:00

The Jazz Festival is going on full swing since June 30th when Stevie Wonder opened up with a big free outdoor concert. I heard it was amazing despite the rain. Last night Claude and I went downtown to walk on the site and ended up catching Chocolate Thunder's show on the Loto Québec stage at 23:00. It was really great even though the weather was a bit cold. As usual I did not have my camera so no pics. I'm hoping we go back tonight and will make sure to bring my camera this time around.

It's a great place to be if you're a jazz music lover since there are so many free concerts happening on several stages at different times. We passed by the Rio Tinto Alcan stage and Lily Frost and the Debonairs was on stage.

Knitting projects I have on needles

2009-06-30T03:23:00.002-04:00

Someone at work told me that it is natural for a knitter to have many different projects on needles at the same time. Well, natural or not I have quite a couple right now!

I just finished knitting this scarf with novelty yarn and a cotton yarn. I really like the way it looks with denim. It was a quick and easy knit in garter stitch although the novelty yarn would tangle up at times.

I'm also working on this scarflette in aqua, gold and burgundy tones. I just have a few rows to knit and it will be finished. I need to go hunting for the perfect buttons to add on, will probably do that over the weekend. I'm thinking of going to Rix Rax, a store that has all kinds of wonderful buttons, ribbons, lace trimmings and more.

Another project I have is a jacket with added cables to the original plain jersey pattern. The yarn I bought for this is in one huge kilo ball. I know I will never see Lola run away with that ball!

I have a capelet on needles as well. I was testing a certain stitch to knit a scarf but found it would be great yarn to knit a capelet with instead. It is a nice simple lace stitch which I love the way it looks puffed up. I will need to find a gorgeous ribbon to tie the capelet.

Poncho ramblings

While I worked on the yellow poncho I also had a blue one and a pink one on needles. It's funny but I started the blue one a few months before the yellow one but it's still not finished. I need to assemble the hood and attach to the poncho. The pink one I have been knitting while watching television at my boyfriend's house. It is about halfway done as you can see in this pic. Also, I knit a different cable pattern with this one as I like to give myself a challenge when knitting.

Sold my first and second scarf

2009-06-28T14:45:00.000-04:00

Yesterday I sold my first scarf on Etsy. This one :

I even have a custom order to knit it in red. Just ordered the yarn for it from elann and hoping it gets here fast enough to knit before I leave on vacation.

Baby yellow poncho

2009-06-27T16:28:00.000-04:00

I finally decided to assemble the hood to this yellow poncho I have been knitting for the last couple of weeks. These plastic clothespins came in very handy in holding the hood together with the body.

Here you see the finished product. Isn't it just gorgeous?

I used Bernat's Super Value 100% acrylic yarn and I love how soft it is.

I knit my first poncho about 15 years ago when my friend got pregnant and I have knitted variations on it for 2 other friends and my niece's daughter. Here you can see the one I knit for my niece's daughter.

50th anniversary of Crescent Street

2009-06-21T11:55:00.001-04:00

This weekend Crescent Street has been celebrating it's 50th anniversary and last night Michel Pagliaro, Honeymoon Suite and Glass Tiger were giving a free concert. It was amazing! It reminded me of my clubbing years when I used to go on Crescent and they were the music we heard in clubs. The atmosphere was so much fun, I wish I had brought my camera to take pictures.

Here's Lola helping me with some of the dishcloths I'm knitting for my Etsy shop and just below is the final result. Dishcloths are so easy and quick to knit. I'm also thinking of knitting yoga mat bags with some of the Handicrafter yarn.

Handicrafter yarn on sale

2009-06-18T06:59:00.001-04:00

Last night I went shopping for 8mm needles and came back with lots of Handicrafter cotton yarn as well. They were $2.00 off a ball.

I will be knitting quite a lot of dishcloths especially the blue, white and yellow for myself. They are the perfect colour for my kitchen.

Raglan sleeve shrug

2009-06-13T14:51:00.000-04:00

I have just finished knitting a raglan sleeve shrug and it is now for sale in my Etsy shop.It was a fast and easy knit project that I liked knitting. I used size 6.5mm needles and a wonderful acrylic yarn. It was just stockinette stitch with some yarn overs to create the raglan styling. It was only the second time I knitted a sweater from the neck down, the first time it ended up way too small. I will probably give it my niece's daughter.

While I knit Lola loves to sleep either on my lap or on the desk and she looked so cute here. Luckily I was still able to get to my yarn.

Tour de L'ile

2009-06-08T06:45:00.000-04:00

Yesterday was the 25th edition of the Tour de L'ile. It is a biking event where the streets are closed off to car circulation for 50 km. Here we see the departure which was held at Jeanne Mance park.

The sun was out with a few clouds as we see in the picture above. It did get totally covered over the course but luckily we did not get any rain. I ended up getting a flat and waited a bit for mechanics to show up; they were very busy this year contrary to the first aid personnel. I had two holes in my inner tube so they patched those up and I was on my way; only to flat out again. We hailed down other mechanics and 6 of them stopped to help me. The inner tube had to be changed since the valve was broken. It took a 7th guy to stop by to have the right size inner tube. We did have lots of great laughs while they changed my tube.

The Cirque du Soleil is also celebrating their 25th anniversary and participated in their own unique ways.

We saw parts of Montreal we don't usually bike to and all in all it was a great afternoon with lots of laughs with the other riders. The news mention we were around 35 000 participants.

My first post

2009-06-06T16:38:00.000-04:00

I have now joined the world of bloggers. This blog will be about knitting but also about my life in Montreal and as a vegan. Be prepared to read a lot about my two lovely cats Lola and Balou.

Bowling and biking will be discussed here at length as well as they are two passions of mine. Some food pics may show up here and there as well.