My ever-growing special yarns

Hello everyone!

How has the weekend been going for you? I hope good :) So, because it has been a couple months before I could post anything about my summer, I thought I might show you some pictures of my favorite yarns so far! :D

Enjoy! :D

Catch up

Hello everyone!

My goodness it has been a long time since I have jumped on blogger to write. I feel like time flew by between work and school starting. I guess my priorities switched a little for the last couple of months :( But I'm back! And I have so many different things to show you!

Over the last few months I have managed to whip up a teddy bear for the cutest little one year old :)

Isn't it darling :) It was not too hard to make and was a joy to see come together.

I also mananged to work on a birthday present for a while (still not finished). The strangling vines scarf made out of knitpicks stroll tonal blue-violet sock yarn. It is coming out beautifully. Hopefully I can have it done soon :)

I also managed to revisit the water bottle holder I made

a while ago. This one was another birthday success :)

Last but not least I whipped up a Giant's beanie for my Kevin's mom :) I know she will love it!

Any Giant's fan would love to have this for their birthday :)

Have a great day!

Talk to you soon :)

Nikkole

Nichole Yarn

Hello everyone!

I bought this beautiful yarn at Adelas Yarn in Castro Valley, Ca. I fell in love with the colors and how soft the yarn felt against my skin :)

The colors reminded me of the beach, mainly because of the varying colors of blue/aqua to a light sandy color that reminded me of the sand and ocean colliding, all into one skein of yarn :)

The lady there was also very kind to wind it up for me :) I took it home and immediately started taking photos! I have no immediate plans for this yarn, but it is sitting right next to me in my chair and waiting for inspiration to hit :)

Have a great weekend!

Nikkole
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Golf cozy :)

Hello everyone!

I have exciting news! I have just finished my very first knitted project! I made up my own little pattern for a birthday present to Kevin's poppy :) I picked out a yarn that was his favorite color and went to work learning not only how to knit with sock yarn and circulars, but at the same time how to knit in the round and Kitchener stitch. It was definitively worth the time and difficulty to see his face light up!


It turned out fantastic :)


I hope everyone has had a wonderful last few weeks :) I will be posting soon about a beautiful luxury yarn that I bought and photographed, but that will have to wait until next time!

Have a great next couple of days!

Nikkole
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Purple Vines

Helloooooo everyone!

I hope everyone has had a good couple of weeks! I am so glad to have school done with and only work and knitting to focus on :D Lucky for all of you, I am learning at a fairly fast pace. Wahoo!
I can't disclose anything about this project until Friday, but here is a sneak peak at my latest project!


I love how wonderfully fast and easy this project is coming along :) I found this pattern on Ravelry: Strangling Vine Lace Scarf.

I am also using KnitPicks stroll blue violet tonal sock yarn.


Oh and here are some beautiful pictures of the flowers at my apartment :) Have a great day!


Nikkole
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Cowl in May

Hello everyone!

I just wanted to pop by and show you my lovely little scarf that I fastened in the back to make a wonderful little cowl :D

I actually made this scarf a very very long time ago, when I was first learning how to crochet. I came across it when I was moving and felt the need to use the perfectly sized scarf as a cowl.
It has been pretty cold the last couple of days... odd that it is May and we are experiencing weather similar to February. Oh well, it gave me an excuse to wear this! :D

Next week is finals week for me, so after the next week, I will be free to enjoy the summer with lots of knitting and crochet!

Have a great day!

Nikkole
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Day 90 Results for round 1!!!!!

Hello everyone!

I hope that everyone is happy and healthy :D I know I am! I passed day 90 of P90x the other day, and I am now officially a graduate of the program! :D I am so happy with my results and I really want to thank everyone supporting me over the last couple of months. Without your support, I might not have been as motivated to finish. I also have to thank my Kevin for doing the program with my for all 90 days :D Now, for the moment we all have been waiting for.... my video!!!!!

Click here to watch :D


I hope you enjoyed seeing my results as much as I did! If anyone has any questions, feel free to ask me. If you want to see Kevin's results, you can find it here. His results are pretty incredible :D We have started a second round of P90x yesterday, so I am back to day 2, but I am doing a different version this time around, so we will see how that goes :)

Oh and I am still working on the my knitting, but that will be saved for another post ;)

Have a great day :D

Nikkole
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packing+knitting=????

Hello everyone!!!

I hope you guys have had a great couple of weeks! I have been incredibly busy with lots of packing and knitting (with school and work on the side). I am moving on Wednesday of next week, so I have plenty of things to do, but of course I couldn't help myself and I have been indulging on some knitting! I bought a few sets of circular needles from knitpicks as well as some sock yarn to get me started on learning how to knit in a round. I found that I have a really hard time with dpns, and the circular needles are perfect for me! I learned the magic loop method and I have been very pleased with the results of my knitting. I may end up having to add "and knitting"to my blog name because of how much fun I am having! My main project is a golf cozy with knitpicks tonal sock yarn in the color kindling. It has been so fun to get to the point of where I am at right now with the project! I hope that I can finish this project by Wednesday! :D


I bought quite a few skeins of sock yarn from knitpicks the same day I bought the kindling yarn, and I can't wait to make something wonderful! More than likely socks! :D


I love how bright and magical the colors are!

Well, I have half of the apartment to still pack, so it is probably time for me to get to work. Plus, I'm hungry :D

Have a great day everyone!

P.S. Tuesday is day 90 for p90x! Check in for results! :D

Nikkole
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Royal Dancer from YogaX

Hello again!

I hope all is well with everyone. I only have a few minutes before I have to jet off to class, but I thought that I might share with you a pose that I had Kevin take of me when I was doing YogaX from P90X.

have a great day!

Oh and I bought some sock yarn and circular knitting needles today from knitpicks. I can't wait for them to come in so that I can show you the lovely goodness!

Nikkole
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Peach iced tea for me please!

Hello everyone!

I hope that you guys are having a wonderful Monday! I am fully enjoying my Monday night, and I have had a wonderful day so far :) This morning I woke up early to write a paper for one of my classes (I finished it in a couple of hours) and I had a nice big bowl of cereal with some toast. After going to class for a couple of hours, I came home and decided that I have not had me time in a very long time. In fact, lately I have only had time for school, work, and working out...repeat. So as soon as I got home, I made a nice big cup of peach iced tea and I sat down with some yarn and really started working away at my knitting. I haven't quite gotten too far in the potential scarf, but I am very pleased with my results! Here is my rib stitch scarf :) This will be the very first scarf I will have knitted, so I am very excited!


When I figured out the order of the stitches and how it should look, the scarf just started coming along so fast with such instant gratification that my heart started racing! In a good way of course ;) I am excited to finish the scarf, regardless of the fact that it is getting warmer and warmer here. This is going to be an exciting summer full of knitting and crochet with some work on the side.

I hope everyone has a great next couple of days!

P.S. here is a couple of pictures from my campus. I just couldn't help myself. It was just so beautiful outside!

Nikkole
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Day 63 Pictures!

Hello everyone!

Sorry for my lack of posts. I feel so bad that I have not been able to post anything new or fun lately. I seem to only have time to work, workout, do homework, and then sleep [repeat everyday]. During this routine of my life, day 60 of p90x has come and passed! I finally had a day where I didn't have to get up at the crack of dawn and run out the door, so Kevin and I were able to take some pictures! Would you like to see???? Yes you do!!
Tada! My day 63 pictures! I lost an additional 2 pounds to make my total 13 pounds so far :D I am so happy with my results!

Until next time everyone!

Have a great day!

Nikkole
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Day 45 pictures :)

Hellooo everyone!

:D I hope you guys are having a great week! I am so glad today is Wednesday, because I have today and tomorrow off work! Yay! I have worked 5 days in a row with each one being 8 hour shifts with overtime. I am tired. I was able to sleep in this morning though, and boy was that super duper amazing! I woke up feeling refreshed and ready to enjoy my two days off and make something of my spring break other than work. I plan on going to a yarn store over the next couple of days :D I am very excited to go and marvel at all the lovely yarn all saying "take me home Nikkole!" haha. Well I do not have any thing new to show you as far as my creations. I am working on learning how to knit still, and I would rather not show you my failures quite yet ;) But I can show you my day 45 pictures from doing p90x! These pictures mark my half way point, and I can tell a huge difference in how I feel both emotionally and physically. I am very happy with my results, and I can't wait to start the next round all ready! Okay so here they are: This is my day 1... I was starting to become a whale.
Compare this to my day 30 pictures and you can see a huge difference!Tada! Here is my day 45 picture! Only 15 days after day 30 and you can see an improvement :D

I hope you enjoyed looking at my triumph! :D So as of today I have lost 11 and a half pounds, and I have lost about 3-4 pant sizes. Most of my clothes do not fit anymore, so that means I have to go shopping when I am at day 90! Such a great excuse to go shopping! I hope everyone has a great rest of the week! I will speak soon I promise (hopefully with a project this time)

Nikkole
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Happy St. Patrick's day! Free Four Leaf Clover ring pattern :)

Nobody can pinch me today! bahahahaha!


I may only have a percentage of Irish in me somewhere, but I am going to fully embrace the holiday with my Four Leaf Clover ring :)

Want one yourself? Let me show you how :) I will do my best to explain how I made this ring, but let me warn you that this is my first go at pattern writing/explanation. I comprised this of a few different styles of clover patterns, but mostly from this youtube video: click here!!!! The only difference between this video and my pattern is the beginning and how to make the ring. That being said, here we go!

my abbreviations are as follows:
ch--chain
tr--triple crochet
sc--single crochet

You will need:
Green yarn (I prefer worsted or dk. the yarn I used is wool of the andes avocado from knitpicks)
4mm G hook
Tapestry needle

First start out with a magic ring. ( take the yarn and wrap around your finger(s) so that you have the cut end towards you and the connected yarn on the back of your hand)

Round 1: Ch 4 into the ring. Then tr into the ring 2 times. ch 3. It should look like this:


sc into the ring (we are going to be working in the magic ring the whole time, so do not cinch together)

Round 2: Ch 3 into the ring. tr into the ring 2 times. ch 3. sc into ring.
Round 3-4: repeat round 2.


You should now have 4 petals.
Round 5: ch 5, that way you now have the stem. cinch the magic ring together (pull on the cut end of the magic ring). cut and fasten off.

Now to make the ring. We are going to use a tapestry needle to weave in the loose end from the stem of the Four Leaf Clover go in between the stitches until you reach a petal. Weave yarn in and out of the Four Leaf Clover then cut the yarn.

You should now have one loose string of yarn in the back of the Four Leaf Clover. Thread this string into the tapestry needle and push into the Four Leaf Clover so that you have a loop. Pull this loop tighter until it fits sung on your finger. Leaving the loop at the size you want, continue to weave in and out of the Four Leaf Clover until the loop is sturdy. weave the string into your work then cut.

Tada! You should now have the ring! :D

If you have any questions or comments please let me know and I will be happy to reply! Have a great day! :D

Nikkole
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And so it begins....

Hello everyone!

I know it has been forever! I am so sorry :( Life has gotten quite busy over the last ten days. I try to post every three days or so, but it seems that when you are running around like a crazy mad person, you forget to find some to blog. I am in the midst of the semester, so projects and exams are due. So I have been a busy girl! During the last couple of days, I have been working away! That's right! I got my job back that I was laid off from a couple months back. So now I have work on top of my 15 units of classes. Yay! I am so happy to be working again and getting regular paychecks. In celebration of getting my job back, Kevin was so sweet to give me a card with a gift certificate to a craft store in my area. I of course went shopping right away and got these lovely items :) I am excited to see what I can make with the bamboo yarn. It is so soft and delicate. I am also a little bit nervous to use the dpns. I am still new at knitting and hopefully I can pick it up pretty fast. I also have a couple of pictures from a learning swatch that I have been working on. So far I have learned a couple of things :) It's nothing special, but I like it just because I use it to learn :) Well... I guess it is time for me to return to the world of homework. Working now has limited my time to do homework even more than it already was. I hope everyone has a good next couple days! :) Enjoy the lovely weather changes :D (I get to see this every time I am on campus)


Nikkole
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