Strange week

This has been a very strange week, strange because there was a holiday on tuesday and the whole work rhythm suffered some (good) modifications, but mostly because we received the news of the death of my uncle. Well, I can´t complain about my life here in Buenos Aires as I love to live here, but when these things happen, I just feel very, very far away. I mean, even if I went directly to the airport the moment I got the news, I wouldn´t have made it on time for the funeral. Not being there with my cousins and aunt made me realize how far away I am. Not that I didn´t know it before, of course.

On a lighter note, we´re now officially counting down to our honeymoon trip to Australia. We have plane tickets, both international and domestic, an e-visa and lots of things on our to-do list there. I´m now compiling yarn and craft stores´ addresses from the very nice and helpful Australian knitters group on ravelry and thinking about all the local yarn I can fit into my suitcase. I can´t wait!

The funny thing is that on our way back, just like Willy Fogg made it into winning his bet, we are going to land in Buenos Aires at the exact same time of the same day we left Sydney! Cool, isn´t it?

Have a nice weekend, everyone!

Thank you cards

I´ve been working on a series of "thank you" cards for my shop, all done with cut paper illustrations. I´m loving this tecnhique more and more every single time I do it! It´s still a bit hard on my shoulders and neck but the results are so satisfying that I want to keep cutting more and more paper.

More photos here (more will be added to this set as I upload them).

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Nos intervalos do "outro" trabalho que tenho estado a fazer (de design gráfico, para clientes), estive a fazer uma série de ilustrações em papel cortado para um novo conjunto de postais para colocar brevemente à venda na minha loja. Cada vez estou a gostar mais de usar a técnica do recorte em papel para ilustrações: por um lado, é o facto de ser uma linguagem minimalista, com apenas duas cores (a do fundo e a do papel); por outro, o facto de poder ter uma expressão de traço bastante rudimentar, por ser cortado com x-acto. Apesar das dores nos ombros e no pescoço com que fico quando faço uma nova ilustração, cada dia estou mais feliz com esta técnica!

Mais fotografias deste conjunto de cartões aqui.

Knittter´s meetings and other things unrelated

No camera yet. That´s why I have absolutely no photos of our wonderful meeting last Saturday. While everyone in the northern hemisphere was celebrating the arrival of Spring, we had a lovely Autumn equinox sitting on Joji´s patio while chitchatting about knitting, patterns, yarns and generally just getting to know ourselves. She did a wonderful job receiving us all and documenting the event for posterity.

I came back home with an urge to finish the November Socks, mission that I could accomplish the following day, Sunday.

And immediately started swatching for my next project, the Victoria Yoke Pullover.

This is how we knit the "portuguese way", with the yarn around the neck. Photo complete with stained fingers from painting class.

Caminito, Buenos Aires

Being camera-less makes me go back to old albums I never got to share. I just uploaded to flickr a series of photos taken with the Lomo camera that some good friends gave us. I love the grain, the texture, the colours and the general lack of sharpness the whole photo has.

It´s so good to go back to being analogical in this digital world.

(The photo was taken in Caminito, here in Buenos Aires.)

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Uma das vantagens (quiçá a única) de estar sem câmara fotográfica é que acabo por revisitar álbuns antigos, que ainda não partilhei aqui. Carreguei no flickr uma série de fotografias tiradas com a Lomo, máquina que me ofereceram umas amigas que estiveram de visita (chiiii! Há quase um ano...).

Adoro a máquina por ser como um último reduto analógico neste mundo digitalizado...

(A Lomo e o tricot, claro está! Ah, e a fotografia foi tirada no Caminito, aqui em Buenos Aires.)

Father´s Day

Happy Father´s Day!

(and thanks to Skype and all the technology that allows me to stay in touch!)

Dialogue at Design for Mankind

If you haven´t heard of "Dialogue" at Design for Mankind yet, go there, now.

Being a freelancer isn´t easy but it has become an increasingly popular carreer path for a lot of artists and designers out there. While everything might look glamorous and shiny read through a blog, living the life of an independent professional isn´t always easy. We all struggle with difficulties everyday, being it self-doubt, fees and pricing of your artwork, finances or pretty much everything you can think of.

Erin at Design for Mankind has come up with this great project where she puts well-known bloggers/independent artists answering some questions on video and the editing makes it look like a friendly chat over a cup of coffee, tea, mate (I live in Argentina, I have to cater for local tastes too!) or whatever drink of your preference. One of the many upsides is that you get to see what those authors whose blogs you´ve read for ages look and sound like. And, guess what, they´re human and have the exact same questions as all of us.

So, if you´re still reading this, head on over to Design for Mankind. Congratulations, Erin!

I´m camera-less. My very faithful, always with me digital camera decided to become an impressionist yesterday, after several long years of hard work. I´m sad because it was a present, I´m sad because I was used to it and loved working with it, and mostly sad because apparently it is a defect that Sony is aware of - and still, it appeared after the warranty expired. Now I don´t want to go into the "big corporation" doesn´t care argument here, as apparently Sony US is repairing cameras for free - if you´re in the US. Here in Argentina I was told a huge, bold no and that I would receive a quotation for the repair.

Anyway, this is one of the pictures my camera took while living its impressionist stage:



So that´s why I´m now relying on my laptop´s camera, which of course isn´t neither the most portable camera in the world nor the best quality ever. But still I´m thankful it exists because that way I can show you the papercut I worked on today. I hope to convert it into a card later this week and add it to my shop as soon as possible (but will need a decent camera to photograph the cards, right?).

This is why I want to leave this computer and go outside: we´re enjoying the most beautiful end of summer weather, being warm but not too hot, with beautiful sunshine.

Staying in front of the computer is a test right now: not only because of the weather but also because of my new, sharp eyesight. It´s like I´ve been given a gift and I want to step outside and play with it. I never thought I´d love it so much to stare at those tiny, minuscule numbers and letters that are just so far away down the street - and actually seeing them. This is new for me!

So have a great weekend and pardon me if I´m not so keen on showing work here - it´s just that´s so much to see outside, you know?

Last days of summer

Though you can´t really tell by my last posts, I have been working. Not as much as I would like as my recent eye laser surgeries have forced me to take it easy with the computer and any detailed work (read "papercut") I have to do. I´ve been knitting a bit but mostly enjoying looking to those buildings and numbers and letters far away down the road and actually seeing them.

German classes have started for the new school year, I´ll be back to painting classes as well (had to interrupt because of the surgeries), and I just joined a new knitting group, which means that the regular year´s activities will now leave the summer memories behind. And it is fine, though nice weather is always welcome.

Last weekend was dedicated to some home improvement, what with hanging frames on the walls and preparing some new canvases for future paintings. But as the weather was so fine and not too hot, we made a detour to the Rosedal de Palermo, a beautiful, luscious rose garden in the heart of the city, complete with a lake and two bridges. Close by it´s the elected porteño spot for jogging and roller blading, as well as just sun bathing and mate drinking. I love how people here in Buenos Aires take advantage of the beautiful gardens, something you don´t see as often back in Lisbon. Public gardens there are beautiful and well-kept, but for some reason there´s a prejudice that mostly elderly folks and kindergarten kids visit them. I hope the efforts against this prejudice prove to be efficient, because visiting gardens is probably one of the activities I love the most.

When November isn´t really November

Here´s my November Sock (pattern by Birgitte Zeuner) having a grand time by the pool. I think it contradicts the spirit intended by the author of this pattern, but hey, this is the southern hemisphere anyway. And November here is a great month: not too hot, but with beautiful weather and blooming jacarandas all around the city. Probably my favourite month in Buenos Aires!

(more photos here)

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A minha November Sock (receita de Birgitte Zeuner) esteve este fim-de-semana a passear-se à beira da piscina. Dá-me ideia de que contraria totalmente o espírito inicial de uma meia de Novembro, um mês bastante escuro (e que prenuncia a escuridão invernal alemã) mas que aqui é sinónimo de jacarandás em flor e de Primavera fulgurante. Aliás, é o meu mês preferido em Buenos Aires!

(mais fotografias da meia aqui)

This has been an atypical week of work. I´ve had corrective laser surgery on my left eye last monday and, until next monday,the day my right eye will be "lasered", my perception of the world is a blurry cloud. Don´t get me wrong: my left eye is great; my right eye, not so great as I can´t see sharply nor can I wear my prescription glasses anymore.

Looking at small type on the computer is probably the worst of all, and that´s why I´ve been away from the screen most of the time. Knitting, for some reason, is very doable. Really, knitting is probably one of the few things I can do without feeling a weird headache.

So, away from the computer, I´ve been making some sketches for some upcoming projects. I haven´t been able to engage in any sort of larger projects - too much for my blurry sight.

So, until next monday, it´ll have to do.

(if you´re willing to undergo laser eye surgery, don´t be discouraged by words: it´s such a good feeling, the one of having a sharp eyesight, that I still don´t know what to do about it! My experience so far has been great: the process is quick and the recovery was about as long as an afternoon nap afterwards.)

This is a fabric from pre-colombian times. It´s on dispçay here at the Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes. I´m not sure it is actually knitted - not the way we´re used to think about knitting, at least - but it definitely looks like the finest of lace shawls. And it´s several centuries old. Isn´t it amazing?

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Este é um tecido que se encontra exposto no Museo Nacional de Bellas Artes daqui de Buenos Aires. É de antes da chegada dos espanhóis, o que significa que tem vários séculos de idade. Apesar de não dever ser tricotado da maneira como hoje tricotamos, a verdade é que parece um intricado desenho em lace. Espectacular, não é?

Making of IF_Breeze

I´ve just uploaded a new series of images with the process of making IF_Breeze´s papercut. To check it out, click here. Hope you enjoy it!

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Uma nova série de fotografias com o processo de trabalho para a ilustração IF_Breeze, de ontem, foi colocada aqui. Espero que gostem!

IF Breeze

Papercut+digital type for Illustration Friday.

Art

via Soule Mama