Surprise!

Hello there. It's been a while since we last chatted. 

The last time I posted, I had recently gotten married and had decided to start laying down some roots. All has been going well. Marriage has been a fun and interesting ride. I don't think I have been married long enough to sit here and give any wise old tips. We will skip over that. New career paths have formed and I have been successful with the decisions I have made which I'm glad about. I even set a goal for myself to win the Sales Excellence prize and even won it this year! I won us a trip to Monaco but unfortunately I will not be able to attend. You see, something wonderful has occurred. We are now expecting our first baby. 

Surprise!

Yes, how exciting! I cannot wait to meet this little being that I have felt grow and nurtured for the past few months. Just about everything is ready (or as ready as it can be). I truly cannot believe that we are days away now. 

What can I tell you about this journey?

First of all, it's intimidating. Knowing that you are going to carry around a life so tiny and fragile. Everyone has questions and opinions. Some of them are outdated and full of superstition which can be frustrating at times. At times, I want to tell people to keep their comments to themselves but I know it is coming from a good place. They all mean well even if you do not like it.

Second, it's such a fun experience. Please note that this is coming from someone that has had a wonderful pregnancy. If you are not, I'm sorry. I'm not trying to rub it in here. I have not had morning sickness, strange cravings or gain a bunch of weight. My feet have only been swollen once and they went down within a few hours. I have had hip pain but that is to be expected. It has not turned into back or leg pain, fortunately. Being pregnant feels incredibly natural. I know parents always say all these cheesy things but I kind of get it. Nothing has felt so natural and real in my life. Nothing like this. It's like it's what I was meant to do. Raise this little being, help them grow and soon enough, bring them into this world. Perhaps the birthing part is where the fun ends? We shall see.

Third, I will tell you one thing that no one warns you about. I hate to be negative but the cramps. My God, the cramps. No one warned me about this. My pelvis was in severe pain at the beginning of the second trimester. I was doing a Couch to 5K challenge in order to be healthier and attempt to become a runner. After week 6, I had to stop. It felt like my pelvis was being ripped in two. Also, I had horrible charlie horse cramps in my calf while I slept and I would wake up screaming and crying. Let's say, the hubby knows how to keep cool under this kind of pressure when I wake him up in the middle of the night. I have trained him well. 

While I'm on the subject of the hubs, I have to say. He has been incredible. He has taken good care of me throughout this journey and I am forever grateful. 

I hope to post a bit more before the baby arrives. I usually have the best of intentions. I hope to be able to help them come to fruition. Perhaps a post about our Peru trip if I haven't already, a few knitting updates as well as a product review as an expecting mother.

Until next time, tata!

Welcoming a new baby

I introduce to you one of the two new bunnies that we have. An old friend of mine had two bunnies that she was looking to give up for adoption. At first they were a bit tough to warm up to because Bonnie, who you see pictured is quite protective of Clyde, her mate. They are absolutely in love and have warmed up to us now. Bonnie loves to be cuddled under a warm blanket and Clyde enjoys climbing on top of us as we watch Netflix. They go nuts for treats and have room to run around in the kitchen. More pictures to come.

Although the winter is now gone (Thank Goodness!), I still love looking back on the beautiful pictures I was able to snap of the view by the sound. After a long day at work, while driving home, I could catch the view of the sunset in my rear view mirror or beaming on the side of my car and could immediately tell it was another glorious sunset. It always called to me and I would drive my car to the shore and snap pictures with my camera phone while all the professional photographers had their high tech cameras with telescopes on them. There is something so calming about a sunset. No matter what happened in the day, the sun keeps moving. The sun would go down but you can always count on it to come back up. The world waits for now one and life goes on.

A few weeks ago I received great news from one of my best friends. She informed me while out on a double date that she was expecting with her husband. I was left speechless. What great news! She deserves so much happiness in her life and I could not be happier. I even had a dream that she was pregnant and told her about it. My female intuition has been kicking in!

As a baby welcoming gift, I am knitting up the OpArt Baby Blanket in 36" length. I am using a brown as my neutral and blues transition from a light hue to a darker one. I want to give them a blanket that was masculine and her husband would enjoy holding his baby in without being traditional baby pastel colors. I hope they like it and find it very useful. The yarn I am using is Knit One Crochet Two Sebago in colors Silver Fern (581), Cadet Blue (674), (Milk Chocolate) 822, Ocean (646) and Navy (695).

Finished Matrimonio Bolero

At last! The Matrimonio Bolero was finished. After much wiping sweat off the brow, I tried to get the crochet edging done but I can admit a weakness. I cannot crochet to save my life! Even with the help of the New Haven Knitting Group. Many tried to help but when I went back home, I just ended up tearing it out. I don't have any regrets though. It received many compliments and it is now a heirloom piece for me. 

Matrimonio Bolero

The Matrimonio Bolero is coming along quite well and is about half way done. I do suggest putting in safety lines for your first few lace projects. It is simply a nightmare when you make a mistake or drop a stitch and have to try and make sense of the whole thing. I think that I have been able to fix a couple of mistakes quite well. I hope to have this done in about a month. At which point I will go full force on making more projects for the wedding. Those will include paper flowers, pendant flags, photo booth back drop and other small items that will be laying around.

Lastly, I have been using my Addi Turbo needles which are heaven sent. Literally, when the mail package I am quite sure that I saw it floating down from among the heavens and landed on my door step. They are so slick and the stitches don't get stuck like my old screw on Susan Bates. You still have to push the stitches along depending on your gauge but nothing like it used to be. I definitely recommend them.

Christmas Presents

Long overdue, below are the Christmas projects from this year and the prior year.

Christmas Sweater Ornament for Jim's mother. I used some Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock weight yarn in turquoise and if I remember correctly, size 1 needles. It took about four to five hours but turned out great. My only regret is not embroidering the year on it.  

(Right) Polar bear ornament for Jim. Needle felted.

Needle felted bunny which was picked up at Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival in the fall.

Needle felted chipmunk. 

Welldigger Knitted Hat using Yak yarn

Cozy Ribbed Knitted Hat using Yak yarn

Happy New Year!

Happy New Year!! This year has been great so far. It started quite well while attending a Gogol Bordello concert with my sweetheart and ringing in the new year with more confetti than expected. They put on a heck of a show and know how to rock out with bottles of wine in their hand. For those that might not know of them, they are a gypsy punk band and unlike anything you have ever heard. Definitely check them out if you can.

This year is going to be amazing! As I am finishing up accomplishing several goals I set for myself last year, I am very excited for what I have earned. I have focused on knitting a lot more and incorporating it into my busy schedule which has made me feel great about feeding my creative side. I have also set the date for getting married this year and am going in heavy with planning and getting everything organized. 

Many that know me would think that I would have everything planned by now and would know exactly what I wanted but in fact, I don't. Come to think of it, I actually prefer it this way. Everything is a fresh decision and I know I can put my heart into everything I want to get done. I have already taken care of the invitations with my Gocco printer which was quite the task. At first, the machine did not cooperate and it was a challenge to make a master. After that, I had to make sure that I aligned the paper correctly and pressed each invitation evenly. In the end, they turned out pretty good. I also made RSVP postcards and hand sealed each one with hot wax. 

More knitting projects to come along with holiday gifts that I have made.

Lace, Lace, LACE

I am so excited to announce that I have reached the ankle of my new black lace socks from Knit Picks. I was able to score these in one of their clearance sales for a great price which included three socks patterns along with the yarn needed. This pattern is called Ternion Knee High Socks. I have reached a point in the pattern during one of my jury duty days where I am absolutely confused. I have checked a few forums but no one seems to be confused so I am taking the strategy to let the project rest so that I can come back to it with a fresh mind later. Wish me luck!

For the time being, I have started a new project for the wedding next year. I will be knitting the Matrimonio Bolero with a little something blue.The yarn I have selected is Shibui Cima laceweight. I am very excited to work on this especially as I keep up with Homeland and Alias this fall.

I am also very happy to announce that I finally got the opportunity to go back to Colombia within this past month. It was wonderful to get to visit family after over a decade of not visiting. Also, my heart almost exploded with joy when I stumbled upon the Botero museum, ate delicious food, saw heavenly mountaintops that reached up to the heavens and was able to lay down in a hammock and simply read a book. I cannot wait to go back and see even more.

I am also very excited to say that I was able to go to my first Mets game ever which was also my first baseball game as well. It was so much fun and am frankly a little sad that I have waited so long. Now that there is a Shake Shack in the stadium, it's over. Their 'shroom burgers are to die for.

First Quilt Project

Below is the quilt I have been working on for a few weeks now. This quilt project has been a slow process due to it being the first project for the sewing machine I bought myself a while back ago. I have been able to get a hold of it for the most part now that there isn't anymore thread getting stuck in the machine resulting in the sewing machine eating my fabric. 

Next step is to purchase more white fabric for the side edging so that I can complete the top. From there I will move on to sewing the batting and back fabric as well which will let me move onto the final step of the border fabric. I'm very excited to see it all come together. Once I complete this one, I will take on a much more challenging project.

Make Good Art

Make Good Art is a great video that made me stop and think about how my creative juices flow best when I'm in a good environment. Why is that? Why do I fall into ruts where I do not feel like picking up a pair of knitting needs or even a pencil. That has not been the case lately, though. I recently joined 3rd Ward in Brooklyn and took an Introduction to Upholstery class. Our instructor Colleen was very friendly, informative and helpful. I look forward to joining the intermediate class when it starts up in the summer.

While my cousin, Carolina was visiting New York City for the first time and made a special request of me. She asked that I bake her a birthday cake. This was going to be interesting since she is from Colombia and finds most of our cakes to be unusual. What did I make her? A New York Style Cheesecake, of course! Do you think that I would have it any other way for her first time visiting the US, nonetheless, NYC. Shame on you if you thought otherwise. It was amazing and made my mouth water.

For my next project, I decided to take on a new skill. Although it is not that new but rather I wish to develop my sewing skill. My first quilt is in the making. Since I have never made one in my life, it will be a simple square swatch blanket. Sound easy? It could be but it has not been the case for me. I worry so much that the sewing machine will eat my fabric and never manage to work again. Every stitch makes me a nervous wreck. Also, I missed the small sentence that informs me that I needed to turn my fat quarters into squares so I am currently needing to undo all my work on virtually the first step. I am currently only touching this project once a month so it might be a while before you hear from me again on this one. I am determined to conquer it though.

Also, I wanted to share a hilarious picture of me meeting Junot Diaz at the Strand Bookstore during one of his conversations. I cannot remember what we were talking about but I find the facial expressions to be quite humorous. He was such an interesting personality and understand his books so much better now. If you haven't read one of his novels, I definitely recommend you download it onto your Kindle app asap.

Lastly, I want to congratulate Jim for finishing his thesis and successfully defending his it. I know it has been a challenge for him but nothing he couldn't conquer. I am so proud of him. He now has his Masters in English. 

Happy Valentine's Day

Happy Belated Valentine's Day!

This year Jim and I decided to make our Valentine's Day gift to each other together. After a bit of thinking, we decided on a bird feeder which was a lot of fun to figure out all the plans, measurements and angles. We were a great team while working on it together.

Jim in fact did a lot of the work. He insists that we worked on it together and I adore him for it. We drew up the plans together and figured out a lot of the measurements before hand. I did get to play with the heavy machinery but only with his guidance to make sure I didn't chop off any limbs. It was truly a fun experience with him. I'm glad we worked on our gift together because after all, that's what Valentine's Day is about.

Above is the finished result of our bird feeder. We still have to sand it down, paint, add a wooden dowel for the birds to stand on and attach it to a post. I cannot wait to wake up with a cup of coffee and watch the New England birds visit our bird feeder.

Wintry New York City

 Yesterday afternoon I was walking past Central Park when I was heading to FAO Schwartz and the Apple store and came upon a beautiful scene. The fog was hanging over Central Park after the blizzard had coated the park with it's powdery substance. I had to stop for a moment and admire it so I figured I'd share it with the world. I love small moments like these in New York City.

This past weekend I cast on my new knitting project. I decided to knit up the Aspen Neck Cowl which I found on Ravelry. It's a simple knit which I want right now and hopefully I can enjoy it before the winter melts away in a few months.

Finished Object

This past weekend was the Super Bowl. I don't say this because it is the focus of this blog although I did have it playing in the background (on mute). I have to say that I did find it to be pretty hilarious. I'm glad New Orleans has been making a comeback by hosting it but what was up with the power failure? Anyway, I digress, I in fact took this time to finish a project that I had been working on for two years. I shake my head every time I think about how long this one took. This project wasn't difficult but rather I think it just got put into a bad time slot in my life. I hope to move my future projects along a bit more efficiently. 

The Isabella top from Knitty was actually quite relaxing. I found a few portions of it to be a bit confusing but nothing that I couldn't solve in the end. I really recommend this pattern for knitting up.

Another thing I wanted to review that I purchased recently was the iPad mini. At first I was all against getting a tablet. I saw why they were so useful when I was playing around with my cousin's tablet but I just couldn't bring myself to actually purchase one. It was until one day I was cleaning out my work backpack because it was getting heavy quick. It was starting to give me so many back aches, I couldn't get out the knots in my back quick enough. I kept noticing that the weight was from all my books. I had a note taking book for appointments, my Moleskine calendar (which I LOVE), my suggested reading from my boss and my own personal book I was reading on my own account. Not to mention my brick of a laptop. I realized that the solution to get rid of all the excessive weight was the tablet. I moseyed on over to the Apple Store in Grand Central Station and made the move. 

I cannot tell you how great this thing is. I keep all my notes for work, I can open up presentations and pages in front of my clients, my calendar is there, all the books I'm currently reading, knitting patterns and it's my web browser so that I don't drain my phone battery. If you have been considering getting one, by all means, you should. My fiance even tried keeping it and he hates apple products. We downloaded Minecraft and were playing around with it, as well as a bunch of word and puzzle games which quickly became addictions. The first step is admitting it, readers. 

If you are looking for a cover for an iPad Mini, I recommend the MoKo Slim-Fit Multi Angle Cover. It is really set at a great price on Amazon and does the everything you would want your cover to do. It has durable hard cover, you can set your iPad in four angles, and when you close it you get the advantage of the smart cover that turns it on and off. Not to mention a hand strap and an elastic to keep it open without the cover moving around on you. 

Have a great week, readers! Happy Monday!

Finished Scarf

At last, I finished the chunky scarf for a commission job requested by an old friend of mine. I'm so happy she loved it even though I was a bit sad to say good bye to it. I know it went to a good home.

Branching Out Scarf, Beret, Chunky Scarf and Isabella Top Knitting Projects

I recently had a friend contact me about a commissioned knit scarf. She sent me the picture from above and asked if I could possibly knit it up for her. I absolutely fell in love with the picture. Really, who doesn't love a chunky knit scarf. The one she wanted is in garter stitch and requested a deep mustard color. In just about a week or maybe two I went to the Lion Brand store and chatted up the workers there about my project and they h

elped me find the perfect yarn for the project. I really must say though, Lion Brand has really earned some respect from me. I always walk into a yarn shop and almost expect a bad attitude because of previous encounters. The guys at Lion Brand walk around with a cute little apron that comes equipped with a measuring tape, notepad, pen and who knows what other notions are in there. They measure, gauge, tell you how much yardage you need and run to the back and get the stuff for you. Even though I showed up 15 minutes before they were due to close, they did not act as if it bothered them at all. If you get the chance, I would really recommend visiting the shop. I'm now over half way through the scarf by plying two strands of Jiffy yarn.

The following beret is one that I knit for a close friend. When my father passed away last October, I was really able to get to know her better and she was very supportive and helpful during that time of need. When I found out it was her birthday a month later in November I really wanted to show her my appreciation with a knitted item. I knitted up the Star Crossed Slouchy Beret in a deep orange (her favorite color).

The next is another finished project. It's the Branching Out Scarf from Knitty. It was a project that I started back when I lived in West Virginia and finished it after my move back to New York City. I absolutely love it. It's a great lacework project that gets complimented all the time.

The Isabella top has been knitting up quite quickly despite working on it for a few months. Every now and then I just sit down and work through a few inches of it. Last week during vacation in Connecticut I had gotten 13 inches of the front until I realized something horrible. I had unfortunately been following the pattern on the page for the back again. It was so upsetting, I kept wondering why I wasn't reaching the eyelets for the higher waist area and that's when I noticed. I was so disappointed and had to frog the project back to where I went wrong. I've gotten over it by now and am just taking a few days off from this project. I just need some space from it and taking a break. At first I didn't understand how I made such a mistake but honestly, I was always working on it during my knitting group where I was just chatting so I guess it was quite easy to do.

A little bit of everything

Today I have a few things to take care of. I'm usually running around on my day off trying to catch up with friends or visiting family. For once I'm going to start the day off right with breakfast. My favorite breakfast place for vegetarians is in Vermont, Burlington to be more specific. It's a restaurant called Sneakers that my boyfriend, Jim introduced me too. The first time was amazing. They served me a tofu scrambled omelet with veggie sausage pattie. I can't remember what exactly was in it but I just remember all these different flavors in each bite. They had actually forgotten to call us for a table so we got free coffee cake with some sort of sauce that had been warmed up served on top of it. I know this is very vague but trust me, it was incredible. Now Jim is moving down to Connecticut so I won't be able to visit him up in Burlington and score these delicious breakfast meals. It makes me a bit sad inside but that just means that I need to figure out how to make it myself. This tofu scramble was delicious with green peppers and onions. It wasn't the same flavor as the tofu that the restaurant cooks up but it was good nonetheless.

It's been a while since I posted anything knitted related so here is what I've got done so far on my Isabella top. I casted on for the front yesterday and am past the picot edge on the bottom. I can't wait to finish this so I could wear it closer to those cool summer nights toward the end of summer. It is wool so it should be cozy. I know the pattern calls for cotton but when i went to La Casita yarn shop they unfortunately did not have any in stock but staff was so incredibly friendly which I find hard to come across. It really compelled me to give them some business. Usually yarn shop staff that I have come across are a bit snobby and don't really like to converse with you since they have their circle of friends that seem to hang around the shop. I can't wait to go back and if the friendliness continues, I'll be a loyal customer to them.

The Etsy shop, ZentasticThings is coming along. I haven't set aside much time for designing and carving stamps as I would like but I've just been busy with my regular full time shop. I have got one sale and two potential customers e-mailing me for more custom jobs and I know I have another sale coming up. Usually when it comes to carving up the stamps I think about my own interests and the passions of others I know. My brother is actually quite passionate about cycling. Not only does he enjoy it in his leisure time but he also teaches kids and adults how to ride bikes. He does presentations on how to ride safely to and from work and school. I've met several of this cyclist friends and since moving back to New York City I've noticed the community of cyclists and how active they are in our communities. For this reason I came up with three bicycle stamps and are now on sale. I'm going to be working on some more stamps today and editing the site so it becomes easier for others to find me out there in the Etsy World. Also, one of my projects that I'm going to be working on is hand printed stationary. Be sure to keep and eye out for that. I usually post on the Zentastic Things Facebook page first once I have posted something on Etsy. I post on the blog later on when I have time to write up a post.

Lastly, I leave you with a picture of my two goddaughters. This was while I had brought over a project to their house. I picked up some dollar socks and began to make sock monkeys. They had so much fun learning how to sew but just to warn anyone who want to take this project on with kids in their life, they do get bored eventually with all the hand sewing. My cousin (their mother) and I ended up having to finishing the arms for them. It was fun to work on with them so I suggest this project to anyone that wants to teach kids how to sew.

ZentasticThings is now open for business on Etsy

Yes! I'm so excited. I've carved up my six stamps and posted them in my Etsy store. Feel free to stop by, check it out and perhaps even buy some awesome stamps. Right now. I'm working through my aquatic theme but I have so many ideas rolling around in my head that there will be a lot more to come. It's been a day so far but I'm so excited that I've actually gotten it out there. My boyfriend Jim has really helped me out along the way, he even drew up the Angler fish design. He is as enthusiastic about it as me. He's constantly tossing ideas out there on what I could carve or how I can go about it. He's sent me links to materials and has proposed that he wants to set up a splash page that can be found on Google a lot easier and will link customers to my Etsy store. I HUGE thank you goes out to him (even though he doesn't read my blog). Who knows how many grammatical errors he would find in just one paragraph being an English major and all. Hehehe. Either way, I already know that my blog is not perfect but it's really out there for me to express myself and for others that are interested in what I do to keep up with it. I'm not sure how many of you are out there but I appreciate you guys keeping up with me. I see those page views rising every week.

Thank you.

Check out my new cacti!

No room is complete without one, at least not one of mine.

Etsy Store Coming Soon

For a while now I have wanted to have my own Etsy store. There's just been a few things that have slowed me down. For one, I didn't know what I wanted to invest my time and money into. Knitting seems to be very time consuming even though it is one of my passions. I probably will eventually sell knitted items but not just yet. Recently I've been experimenting and realized that I would love to sell hand carved stamps.

A few years ago I started toying with carving stamps out of old erasers and X-acto knives. After that I began letter boxing (google it if you don't know what it is, it's so much fun). I've now upgraded my supplies and and beginning a collection per say. I have a theme of aquatic life. The goal is to start off with ten, give or take and set up shop.

Here is a sneak peek at what I'm working on.

Book Signing

Upon moving back to New York I got informed about a book signing going on in Barnes and Noble. What a great opportunity to meet the woman that got me into knitting, Vickie Howell. It was so much fun meeting all these talented women that took their hobby and turned it into a career. What an inspiration, truly.

Nicky Epstein

Iris Schreier

Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Vickie Howell and Adrienne Armstrong

Vermont Winter Wonderland

There's been a lot going on in the past year so I'll be doing a bit of back tracking.

Last December I got to head out to Vermont and visit my boyfriend where I finally got to build my own gingerbread house from scratch. My boyfriend helped me with the gingerbread itself since I never have made it. It was so much fun. Bowls of candy and chocolate in front of your for designing your own house and munch on of course. It was a huge sugar high. I ate so many m&ms which might be partially why you don't see on the house itself but trust me, it did not need m&ms. There really wasn't any room for any or perhaps those are the words of an amateur. Also, he did all the snow drifts. Just felt I needed to give the credit where it is much deserved. Needless to say, we were extremely proud of our creation.

Here is a quick glance of the view outside the window of my boyfriend's place. I love lounging around on a cold snowy day.