Finding an Old Lover

Thank you very much for you get-well soon wishes. I am feeling a lot better. Leah's tip on air-conditioning worked like a charm! Though I am still clogged up, I have not been waking up with swollen red eyes. Anything in non-allergy direction is a bonus.


I learned embroidery and cross-stitch before crochet and knitting. I do not even remember how old I was....think around 7-8 years old. My mother is a talented crafter (though she does not do much anymore) and I learned embroidery (and later, crocheting) from her. I picked up cross-stitch from a neighbor and got quite obsessed with it. What I enjoy about needlework is its precision and attention to detail (which kinda goes hand in hand with my anal, obsessive Type A personality). (My mother capitalized on my obsession. I still think I should get some kind of remuneration)


The last time I did any kind of cross-stitch or embroidery was about 4-5 years ago. Last December, I came across Fair Square, a cross-stitch exchange. I wanted to exercise my rusty skills, and so I signed up.


My swap partner was Christina, who stitched these beautiful squares for me. She loves flowers, houses, bunnies, and everything "Xmasy". So I decided to stitch petunia flowers for her, in shades of pink, one of her favorite colors, and purple, one of my current favorite colors. (Who knew that the lily of the valley flowers in the square complement the ones currently blooming in Christina's garden!)


This is also a personal history, of flowers and pink. I stitched so many flowers in my childhood, I managed to get quite annoyed with them. Pink--a color I am not very crazy about--I suppose I must have stitched a lot of pink flowers. Stitching these squares for Christina made me revisit both of them. I really enjoyed the experience--I must say my skills have not gotten all that rusty. I was quite pleased with the outcome.


Pattern: Framed Petunia, from an Indian cross-stitch book (Cross Stitch Supriya, published by Maya Publication)
Threads: DMC in shades of pink, purple, and neutral greens (I chose a green tone that would not overshadow the flowers)

I added some goodies, including two kits--one is Xmasy, with a house and snowman and the other, a rabbit. Christina also enjoys crocheting and knitting, so there was a skein of Manos to symbolize our other crafting connections.

Hello from Allergy-land

I received some emails asking if regular sausage or red meat could be substituted for Goan sausage. Thought I should add a note here. If you use un-marinated meat or sausage, do not forget to add garam masala, meat powders, and an extra dose of vinegar. A google search for Indian meat recipes should help with regard to quantities, spices, etc.



Meet my two new best friends. I have the worst seasonal allergies--all clogged up with the cold, and have terribly itchy, watery eyes. Resident doctor aka Suketu says that it will pass soon and hey, I am waiting. Been waiting for the past TWO weeks. Still waiting. Tick, tick.

There has been good news during this wait. For me, postal mail is very great news. I love postal mail--in my mind, it is real mail. I remember my Dad and I used to spend most of December writing holiday cards to our family, friends, and his business contacts. It seemed so real, so personal, so us.


This is what I received from yarny-blogger friend, Leslie. Thanks much! I really appreciate that you thought of me.

Then came along a big package all the way from Sweden from Christina, my swap partner at Fair Square, a cross-stitch exchange. This is what she stitched for me.


The square also has my initials and location. How cool is that. How thoughtful is that. When Christina asked me what I would like, I requested if something local/indigenous would be possible. Christina says that the pattern in the center is a reworked pattern from an old weaving technique called "opphamata". It was used around Sweden as far back as the 16th century. Christina: Thank you! This is so perfect.


Christina also collects vintage items...and she sent me three things from her collection. The linen tea-towel is handwoven in a old technique, "angle brackets"; the potholder is in a "nordic" pattern, and since I like buttons, she sent me some. Bliss.

Thank you again, Christina.

Oldest UFO, The Parrot Cross-Stitch Project

A couple of weeks back, I began posting some of my old crafty projects which are at my parents' home in India. It is with great pride that I present my oldest UFO (Unfinished Object) to-date.

As a kid, I was knee-deep into cross-stitch and embroidery. Actually, my mom ran a sweatshop of sorts--I had to embroider all our pillowcases, napkins, gifts....my tortured childhood :)

Anyway, when I was 10 years or so, my mother became very intrigued with a cross-stitch project a neighbor was working on. It was a set of two parrots against a funky (weird?) background.

I was not intrigued. I strongly disliked the way the whole thing looked and found the parrot pattern silly and boring. But no one argues with Mom. So I began....one parrot done, and the other will never be done. I could not take it anymore.

But who knew that my mother was still hanging onto the ridiculous parrots! She has great hope.