GIVEAWAY!!!

Quem quer ganhar esta capa para proteger livros?

Conforme prometido, Junho não acaba sem o 1º giveaway deste blog. Decidi fazer esta capa porque assim posso juntar duas paixões: a costura e os livros. Adooooro ler. Mas não vos irrita ir no comboio ou estar numa esplanada e toda a gente saber que livro estão a ler? E não detestam quando os cantos da capa ficam estragados sempre que o livro anda na nossa mala de um lado para o outro? Pois... daí a capa para os proteger.

Só tenho uma para dar (mas quem não ganhar e quiser mesmo uma é só dizer porque terei todo o gosto em fazer) e as regras são:

- deixem um comentário neste post a dizer os vossos três livros preferidos, e já agora porquê. Escolher só um seria difícil, certo? Três é aquela conta certa. É que eu leio muito depressa e fico sem nada para ler num instante, portanto vou gostar de ter algumas sugestões para as minhas leituras de verão.

- quem já alguma vez deixou um comentário no meu blog tem automaticamente direito a mais uma entrada.

- não precisam de se tornar seguidores nem de divulgar o meu giveaway no vosso blog, blablabla, mas se quiserem fazer esse tipo de coisas ganham mais uma entrada, pronto.

- não sei trabalhar muito bem com aquela coisa do random generator e tenho medo de dar barraca, portanto vou recorrer ao velho método de escrever os nomes em papelinhos e depois tirar um ao calhas (não acredito que o giveaway tenha muitas participações portanto não me parece que dê assim tanto trabalho).

O giveaway termina no dia 7 de julho às 23:59 (Greenwich Time). Divulgarei o vencedor no dia 8. Boa sorte!!!

Espero que se divirtam tanto quanto eu!!!

Who wants to win this book cover?

As promised, June doesn't come to an end without seeing this blog's first giveaway. I decided to do this book cover because it's a marriage between two of my greatest loves: sewing and reading. I just looooove books. But don't you all hate it when you are on the train or sitting at a caffe and everyone gets to see what book you're reading? Or how the corners of the cover get damaged because you run around with a book on your handbag? Hence, the book cover.

I only have one to give away (but if you don't win and really want to have on too we can arrange that, I'll be happy to oblige) and the rules are:

- leave a comment on this post telling me your three favourite books, and why. Picking just one would be too difficult, right? Three is a good number. You see, I'm a really fast reader, so I'm left with nothing to read in a heartbeat and I could really use your suggestions because summer is coming.

- whoever has left a comment on my blog before, gets automatically another entry.

- you don't have to become a follower or post about my giveaway on your blog, blablabla, but if you want to do this, oh well, you get another entry.

- I'm not sure if I would be able to use the random generator thingy without screwing up, so I'll do things the old way: I'll write the names in small pieces of paper and then draw one (who am i kidding, there won't be many entries anyway, so it won't be a hard thing to do).

The giveaway will close on July 7th at 23:59 (Greenwich Time). I'll announce the winner on the 8th.

Good luck! I hope you have as much fun as I'm having!!!

The books are WAY better but...

Attention must be paid, nonetheless.



And I'll be seeing it tomorrow (another reason to celebrate with a giveaway ehehe).

Still thinking about the holidays...

When I made this...

Very vaguely inspired by this

(Image by Audrie Bidwell)

And bought this...

And, more importantly, this...

Oh, I need holidays again!!!

Baking...

In the middle of the night... and out of the blue... whether it's yoghurt cake or scones, there's noone else I'd like to share it with :)

Check it out!

This amazing vintage sheet quilt that Deb is giving away in her blog Works in Progress. Take a look at the rest of the blog and all her works, because it's worth the visit!

Today...

A sneak peak

Do giveaway da próxima semana! Já acabei a peça e estou satisfeita com o resultado final, por isso espero que quem quer que a ganhe goste também. Agora percebo toda esta coisa em torno dos giveaways. É mesmo muito divertido!

Uma dica: uma das regras que vou implementar tem a ver com quem costuma deixar comentários nos meus posts, porque acho justo premiar os "habitués". Portanto... quem visita este blog mas ainda nunca deixou um comentário, vai a tempo de começar. Toca a comentar!

Of next week's giveaway! It's done and I'm happy with the outcome, so I really hope that whoever wins it likes it too. Now I get this whole giveaway thing. This is a lot of fun!

A hint: one of the rules I'll have has to do with people who usually leaves a comment on my posts, because I think it is only fair to reward the "usual costumers". So... if you visit this blog but haven't left a comment yet, it's time to start. Comment away!

The International Fat Quarter Swap

Logo após o Giveaway Day, participei na International Fat Quarter Swap organizado pela simpática Bree do blog Me and my two guys. Ela emparelhou-me com a Jennifer e a Linda, dos EUA, e a Vivian, da região de Yukon, no Canadá. (Vale a pena perderem tempo a pesquisar onde é que fica, acreditem.)
Claro que nestas swaps, com a troca de emails por causa das moradas e tal, acaba-se sempre por criar alguma amizade com as pessoas e isso é, sem dúvida, o mais divertido. Mas esta swap teve outro grande motivo de interesse, que foi o facto de trocarmos tecidos locais, aproveitando assim para contar um pouco da nossa cultura e aprender sobre a cultura das nossas parceiras.
Enviei tecidos portugueses comprados na Retrosaria durante as férias e também alguns tecidos brasileiros que cá tinha, explicando os laços históricos que unem os dois países mas também a grande diferença cultural que hoje em dia os próprios tecidos espelham (a diferença nas cores era abismal).
E o que recebi na volta do correio foi...

Right after the Giveaway Day, I enrolled in the International Fat Quarter Swap that lovely Bree from Me and my two guys put together. She paired me up with Jennifer and Linda from the USA and Vivian from the Yukon Territory in Canada. (Take the time to search where it is, believe me, it's worth it.)
Obviously, because you exchange emails with adresses and etc during the swap the fun part o fit is precisely meeting new people. But this swap was also interesting for another reason. We were supposed to send local fabrics and show a little bit of our culture, which meant we get to know other people's culture too.
I sent portuguese fabrics bought at Retrosaria during my holidays and also some brazilian fabrics I had, and I explained the historic connection between Portugal and Brazil but also how the big cultural difference today, one that even the fabrics proved (the difference in the colours was just awesome).
And what I got back was...


A Vivian enviou-me este conjunto de fat-quarters com as cores mais típicas dos Nativos Americanos e tendo por tema principal o urso da região onde ela vive. Adoro animais e um dos primeiros tecidos que comprei tinha patinhas e tudo, portanto ela acertou em cheio. Também gostei muito do postal lindíssimo que ela juntou ao pacote e das palavras que me ensinou. Masi cho para toda a gente :)

Vivian sent me these coordinating fat-quarters with Native American colours and the main theme was the bear that lives in her region. I love animals and one of my fabrics ever had paws, so she really hit the jackpot. Also, I love the amazing postcard she sent and the words she thought me. Masi cho everyone :)



A Jennifer, que é da Califórnia, enviou um tecido que eu amei por causa das cores (têm tudo a ver comigo, incluindo o azul de fundo que é a minha cor preferida de todos os tempos) e um outro tecido que foi pintado por ela, portanto é extremamente especial. Pelo que percebi, ela vai começar a vender os tecidos dela na sua Etsy Shop, portanto aconselho-vos uma visitinha.

Jennifer, who lives in California, sent one fabric that I loved because it has my favourite colours (the blue in the background is my favourite colour of all times) and another one she painted herself, which makes it extremely special. From what I gather, she will start selling fabrics in her Etsy Shop, so everyone should go take a look.



A última encomenda a chegar foi a da Linda. Nos emails que trocámos ela tinha dito que é de Nova Iorque mas agora vive perto de Atlanta, por isso claro que partilhei com ela o meu fascínio por Nova Iorque e... surpresa das surpresas... ela mandou-me um tecido com os famosos táxis e outro com a linha do metro (adooooro tecidos com letras). E, para cúmulo, mandou ainda mais dois tecidos com cores que adoro e ainda dois quadrados verdes e ainda um pássaro em crochet e ainda flores feitas em tecido (super mimosas). Ela bem dizia para eu abrir o pacote aos poucos porque tinha várias camadas... Acho que ela perdeu completamente a cabeça! Foi uma surpresa e tanto!

The last package to arrive was Linda's. In our emails, she had said that she is originally from New York but now she lives near Atlanta, so of course I told her all about my fascination with New York and.. surprise surprise... she sent me one fabric with the famous yellow cabs and another with the underground lines (I love fabrics with printed letters). And, on top of everything, she send two more fabrics in colours I love and two little squares and one knitted bird and several fabric flowers (really sweet). She warned me to open her package little by litlle because it had layers. I think she completely went over the top! It was a huge surprise!





Adorei ter participado nesta troca e espero manter-me em contacto com as minhas novas amigas. Gostei muito do que vocês as três me enviaram, por isso, um grande OBRIGADO à Vivian, à Jennifer e à Linda!!!

I enjoyed this swap so much and I hope to stay in touch with my new friends. I really loved what the three of you sent me, so a huge THANK YOU to Vivian, Jennifer and Linda!!!

Meet Eva!

O meu aniversário é só para o mês que vem, mas já tenho a prenda dos meus pais no meu pequeno atelierzinho de costura.
Apresento-vos a Eva!
É bastante mais formosa do que eu (tenho mais 10 cm em todo o lado mas não contem a ninguém) mas vai ser uma excelente aliada nos próximos tempos, quando quiser fazer umas roupinhas à maneira!
(Ia pô-la ao pé do Edward, mas depois fiquei com ciúmes e mudei-a para perto da tábua de engomar. Toma lá destas! Somos amigas, mas nem tanto!)

My birthday is not until next month, but I already have my parent's gift in my little sewing room.

Meet Eva!

She has a much elegant body than I do (I have 10 extra centimetres everywhere, but don't tell this to anyone) but she will be of great help in the upcoming future when I start making some really nice pieces of clothing!

(I was going to put her next to Edward, but then I got jealous and moved her next to the ironing table. Serves her right! We're friends, but not so much!)

Sushi

O meu cão está a ficar velhote... Tirámo-lo da rua há dois anos, por isso não sabemos exactamente quantos anos tem, mas começo a ver alguns pêlos brancos no focinho. Eu AMO AMO AMO os meus cães!

My dog is getting old... We rescued him from the streets two years ago, so we don't know exactly how old he is, but I can see some grey hairs in this nose now... I just LOVE LOVE LOVE my dogs!!!

His and hers placemats II

A little ironing wouldn't have hurt but I figure why bother. They are stuck on a suitcase on their way to Brazil now!!!
And also a very small tolken for a special seamstress:

His and hers placemats I

Watercolour quilts

Until today, I had never heard of a Watercolour Quilt. But when I googled it, this was what I found:

More at Glenwood Sew.

Junho

Nos últimos anos, Junho tem sido um grande mês para mim.

Em 2007 a Emma entrou nas nossas vidas.
Em 2008 estava cada vez mais envolvida no SOS Animal (e vi os Bon Jovi no Rock in Rio ehehehe).
Em 2009 recebi a minha máquina de costura.

Por isso, decidi que até ao final deste mês vou fazer um giveaway. Nada de especial... Mas fiquem atentas!

Além disso, para festejar o 1º aniversário do blog e este 1º giveaway hoje inauguro um novo cabeçalho!





In these last few years, June has been a good month for me.

In 2007 Emma came into our lives.
In 2008 I was getting more and more involved in the pet rescue organisation SOS Animal (and I went to a Bon Jovi concert eheheh).
In 2009 I got my sewing machine.

So, I've decided that by the end of this month I'll be hosting a giveaway. Nothing special.. But stay alert!

Also, to celebrate the bloganniversay and this giveaway, today I have a new header!

Yeah, yeah, yeah! O Castelo é que é!

Por causa de todo o secretismo em torno das marchas populares, ainda não tinha podido mostrar as fotos que tirei quando há umas semanas fui ajudar uma amiga a fazer os fatos e a pintar dois lenços gigantes (siim, mesmo muuuito grandes).
Confesso que nunca liguei muito aos santos, talvez porque não suporto sardinhas, mas este ano vi tudo com outros olhos.
Até fui ao Pavilhão Atlântico ver o desfile para efeitos de competição, mas neste fim de semana não fui à Avenida (os meus pais e o meu irmão foram, portanto a família esteve representada, sort of...).
A inspiração foi os lenços dos namorados :) E apesar de este ano o Castelo não bisado nos prémios principais (ficou em 6º na classificação geral), pelo menos ganhou o de Melhor Figurino (ex-aequo com Carnide). Grande Rita!!!

I'm sorry for not having translated this post, it was just something so specific that I thought it would be very hard to translate, but I'll try.
I'll begin by explaining what this is all about.
In June there are festivities throughout the country, each town celebrating its patron saint. It's summer, people get together in the town center, eating sardines, dancing around, in small times it means that time of the year when you can flirt all you want while watching a concert of your favourite folk singer. Ssometimes I see that in american movies too, with all the country music and the ferris wheels. This is our version of that. Sort of.
In Lisbon this time of the year also brings a competition between the different buroughs (almost 20). It's called "Marchas Populares". It's really a big thing around here, it's a really old tradition and people are passionate about it. There is a big parade in Avenida da Liberdade, a main street in the heart of Lisbon, hundreds of people watch it and it lasts all night. It's so crowded that I never go... The competition entails best coreography, best costumes, best music, just to name the most important ones.

The preparations of the costumes and the rehearsing of the coreography start several months before. It's all a secret, if someone shares pictures or inside information the burough can even be disqualified. Because of this, I hadn't been able to post the photos I took some weeks ago, when I helped a friend in the making of the costumes and in painting too really big pannels.
I have never been a really big fan of this traditional parade, maybe because I don't like sardines, but this year, being involved and having met people that were so into it, I saw it under a new perspective.
I went to the parade held just for the jury, in a concert hall called Pavilhão Atlântico, but didn't go to the parade in Avenida da Liberdade (my parents and my brother went, so the family was well represented).
The theme of the burough I was with (Castelo = Castle) was the "lenços dos namorados". This is another traditon from way back when people couldn't date openly, so girls would make these lovely embroidery scarves with messages of love and the guy they gave it too would wear it in case he wanted to express his love too. Many of this scarves are known to have spelling mistakes, because people didn't go to school. The motifs are usually hearts, flowers, and phrases pretty much like Edward's "Take care of my heart, I've left it with you" :) The idea behind it was expressing the Castle's burough love for the city of Lisbon and how the patron saint (Santo António, also the patron of couples) aproved this match.
And so the Castle burough, who won last year, this year came in 6th place in the overall but at least won the award of best costume. Rita, my friend's friend who was responsible for the styling, deserves to be congratulated!

The pictures show us making the costumes and painting the big pannels. The video shows the parade for the jury I went to (I wasn't the one filming it, I found it in YouTube).

Back to life, back to reality!

As férias acabaram. Puff!!! O tempo passou num instante.
Mas pelo menos acabaram em grande. Ontem, mal os convidados para almoço* se foram embora, fui costurar. Fiz dois individuais usando só retalhos e agora só me falta quiltar. Têm de ficar prontos até 6ª à noite, que é quando me vou despedir do meu irmão antes de ele regressar ao Brasil, porque é suposto serem uma prendinha para o meu irmão e a minha nova cunhada (continuo a chamá-la de nova cunhada ao fim de 4 anos para distinguir da ex-cunhada, que só por acaso ainda é como uma irmã para mim).
Fotos em breve.
Hoje, o pensamento do dia é: "depressão pós-férias". Qualquer desculpa para uma depressão é bem-vinda por estas bandas hoje em dia.

*Em vez do habitual almoço de domingo a casa dos meus pais, a minha mãe insistiu em que eu fizesse um almoço em honra do meu irmão. Acreditem ou não, ela está tão feliz por ter o querido filhote por perto que foi a primeira vez que não só não encontrou nada de errado para criticar, como até fez elogios. Disse que a mesa estava bonita, que a comida estava boa e... pasmem... elogiou os meus cães! Sim, leram bem, a minha mãe e a Emma estiveram frente a frente e ambas sobreviveram!!! Há esperança!



Our holidays are over. Puff!!! Time flew by!
But the least it ended on a good note. Yesterday, as soon as my lunch guests* were out the door, I went upstairs to sew. I made two placemats with my scraps and now I just need to quilt them. I have to finish them by friday night, which is when I'll send my brother off to Brazil, because the placemats are supposed to be my present for him and my new sister-in-law (after 4 years I still call her my new sister-in-law to make the distinction between her and my old sister-in-law, who happens to still be like a sister to me).
Photos will follow soon.
Right now, the thought of the day is: "post-holidays depression". Lately any excuse for a depression is welcomed around here.

* Instead of our usual sunday lunch at my parents', my mother insisted on me throwing a lunch in honor of my brother. Believe it or not, she's so happy to have her favourite son around, that for the first time not only did she not find anything to critize, but she even made me some compliments. She said the table looked beautiful, the food was great and... shocker... she said my dogs were nice. Yes, you heard me right, my mother and Emma were face to face and they both survived. There is hope after all!!!

Three days, three pictures

Friday



Saturday



Sunday