Adam's new haircut

We took Adam for a haircut last weekend..

Both him and his Daddy. I was quite nervous because the last time we went there they guy thought he was a girl and gave him a girly haircut...this time i made sure the stylist knew he's a boy...

tadaaaa! finally a boyish haircut!

yay...i really like it! what do you think?

How to turn your regular pants into maternity pants

Materials:
- Any regular pants that used to fit you, except now they're tight on the waist. To try it out you can use old pants you don't really like or pants from thrift store etc.
- 2inch wide elastic
- a rectangular piece of stretchy fabric about 5 inch wide x 17inch long (this was what i used. the length would depend on your pants size). you can use scrap from an old t-shirt maybe.

Ok, so here's your regular pair of pants.

Here's what we're aiming to do. When worn, the stretchy rectangular tab on the front will rest just under your belly. I personally find it very comfortable.

When folded in the middle, you can see the curvy shape of the stretchy tab.

Draw the same curve on your regular pants. Remember to add a seam allowance of 1/4inch.

Here's what it looks like when it's cut. If your pants had a zipper like mine, remove the zipper and sew the fly close. Above the pants you can see the 2inch elastic i'm going to use.

Next just fold your piece of stretchy fabric once, lengthwise and place your elastic inside the fold.

Align the raw sides to your pants and sew along curve you just cut.

Taraaa! it's done! Literally in minutes.

It's really quite simple to do..try it. I think I'm gonna get some more pants from thrift shops/carboot and make more of these...

Eid Celebrations, London style

First Eid in London...

Also the first time Adam went to Eid prayers. We all went to Central Mosque, they have 5 imams at different timings, we went for the one at 9am. Daddy said Adam was really well-behaved during prayers. Then he had a short nap during the khutbah. Khutbah was in both Arabic and English. It was also my first time praying Eid in mosque...normally in Malaysia I stayed at home.. and in Sheffield I prayed with the girls only at one of the houses, not at the mosque..

After prayers we went to Regents Park near the mosque for photos..here we are..Eid in Autumn..

(jgn terkejut pakai baju raya tahun lepas...hehe..takpelah org London tak penah tgk kan..baju Adam dah singkat, so proving that he did grow afterall..hehe..songkok dia pulak dah tak muat terus...)

Adam dah sebulan tak pegi park during Ramadhan..so dia gian sgt nak main ngan birds and ducks..susah nak amik gamba dia...pak ngah dia yg layan dia main birds..

In the morning we had breakfast of rendang ayam with nasi impit and serunding..simple je masak sbb we were already invited to few houses..then later we went to visit friends' houses...

here we were at the High Commissioner's house..ade big open house..lawa giler rumah dia..

berjalan raya that day sampailah malam...

balik rumah...pulun masak pulak...

esok bgn pagi2..masak lagi...

buat open house at our house...nyum2..i cooked rendang daging, lodeh, ayam masak sambal, nasi impit, kuah kacang...typical food we would've had in Malaysia kat kampung..my husband masak karipap..sedap giler..semua lauk i tak pernah masak sorg2..thanks to my mom for the recipes and also my brother Hilmi, sbb dia dah biasa masak lauk raya kat German..

Lps guests semua dah dtg and mkn2...kitorg kuar beraya lagi...sampailah mlm lagi..

Adamlah paling happy sekali..

All in all, not bad juga raya kat perantauan ni...mkn sampai penuh jugak sama mcm kat Msia..hehe...

Handknitted Shrug - finished!

How was your Eid? (probabyly shouldn't use past tense, I bet Eid is still going on over there..hehe) Ours was great, we had too much to eat! hehe... the photos aren't uploaded..i'll get to them soon..

Here's a couple photos of the knitting project I was doing for Baby. I finished it thursday before Eid. What do you think?


I'm really happy with the result. But quite sad that the project is over...i think the knitting process is the best part...oh wait, the best part would be when i get to see Baby in it! I quickly got more yarn before Eid to start another knitting project...this time for Adam! Its a much more complicated pattern so i think it'll take more than 4 days like the shrug but i can quickly make Adam wear it as soon as im finished...hehe...

Eid photos coming soon...

Eid Mubarak

Selamat Hari Raya dan Maaf Zahir Batin from the three of us

Raya di perantauan la tahun ni...pertama kali I will cook all the Raya food all by myself..huhu..takut...baru mintak resepi from my mom..haha..mintak2 jadilah masak..my brother is here from German..jadi raya 4 org (+ Baby) la kat sini..

Semoga hari raya kita semua diberkati...insyaAllah...

New Etsy Store!

My Etsy store is finally open!!!

click here - azniena.etsy.com

ok, there are only a few items for now...but it's a start, right? pls have a look ok :) thank you...

Knitting Weekender

Last weekend there was this Knitting festival, kind of, where they have a yarn market, classes and workshops etc...We went there on Saturday morning to check it out..

All the yarns there looked really luscious and beautiful..they have alpalca, wool, cashmere, angora...everything soft and furry. They even sold the raw freshly sheared furs, for people who wants to spin and die they're own yarns..some people were there knitting for charity..many were shoppping for specialty yarns..some were just sitting around knitting with friends and sipping coffees..

Unfortunately for me I'm still very much a newbie in knitting so i don't really know what yarn to get, which needles..so i just browsed around, marvelling at the beautiful colours..I saw people knitting from the thinnest yarns making spiderwebs of lovely lace, to the hugest yarns with needles as big as logs (seriously, two three people had to help lifting and knitting up with the big needles)

I ended up only buying a book from this shop which turned out to be a wonderful investment. Its a book on knitting baby things..

I already made a start on one of the projects in the book, something for Baby..i'm really excited! The big miracle is that Adam LETS ME KNIT! i say it's a miracle because normally he won't let me do anything - no cleaning, no sewing, no checking out the laptop, even no reading - when he's awake. He wants my full attention..I only get to do my own things when he's asleep. But suddenly, with knitting, i have his blessing! hehehe...he's kind of scared of the pointy needles actually..hehe..so he doesn't try to get too close or to rip off the yarns..so i get to knit while at the same time i can watch and talk to Adam..oh, heaven....Thank you Adam!!!!

First knitting project

Taraaa! hehe...i'm quite thrilled that I managed to finish it. It's basically just 2 rectangles of the same stitches over and over...but it was really good practice. I've learned a few more things while making it and now i feel more comfortable holding the needles and that makes knitting quicker..

Looking forward to the next group meet-up :)

p/s: It's a cosy for my camera

Sewing project: Maternity Shirt

When i was pregnant with Adam, I hardly get a chance to wear any maternity clothes because he was so tiny, i didn't really need maternity clothes until the 8th-9th month of pregnancy, by which time it seemed pointless to buy maternity clothes. But this time, at 5 months i can no longer fit into my normal jeans...so recently we went to get me some...wow, so expensive.

I got this shirt from Mamas and Papas (awesome store!) and it's the most comfortable shirt ever. The lower front is actually 2 overlapping layer that drapes well over the pregnant belly and leaves a lot of room to grow into.

I found some cheap cotton knit material (t-shirt fabric) from the market at 1 pound per meter. So i bought 2 meters and drafted the pattern from the above shirt. I changed a few things..position the sash a bit higher, make long sleeves instead of short...

And here's the result!

action pic

I'm quite pleased with the result. For 2 pounds i get a maternity shirt that would've costed me 20++ pounds at the store..I'm not good at making garments..there are a few things i'd changed if i were to make this shirt again...tapi kire oklah baju ni..selesa...

Anomaly Scan

I had my anomaly scan today. Alhamdulillah...Baby is doing great..the doc checked the brain, kidneys, heart, tummy, hands and legs...everything looks ok..

And.....we found out...

IT'S A GIRL!!!!!

Knitting group meet-up

The meet up started around 6pm. My husband came home early to stay home with Adam...Thank you bang!!! I took the tube..it's held in a Costa Coffee in Picadilly..

I was rather nervous about meeting these new people..but i didn't need to be. They were very nice people..the meet up was kinda like a casual gathering..everybody brought their own project and shared with everybody else..


There were 2 other people who are complete beginners like me, one of them a man. We've been told earlier the suggested needles and yarn to bring. One of the ladies, Trisha, taught me how to start casting and doing the knit stitch. So we started knitting while conversations and coffee flow around the table. Another lady, Betty, who i was told is the expert in the group taught me more about knitting and how to proceed next..

I really enjoyed myself. considering the fact that to enter a knitting class would've costed me 100+ pounds...this was great bargain! not only did i learn knitting for free..i get to meet these great people too..they hold these meetings every 2 weeks...

ok i only ended up with a small section of knitting done..hehe...but knitting is meant to be slow and relaxing...yes...i felt very calm just knitting away slowly....hopefully i'll get to learn more..

p/s: by the time i got home (around 9 pm) Adam hardly realised i was missing! haha...Daddy said he was very well behaved...

Big tote

another bag i sew..this time it's a much bigger one. Big enough to fit A4 documents.



i'm really enjoying sewing again..i'm just using the fabrics i already have on hand..scraps or fabric i bought but never used..

I think i'll make a few more items and then hopefully i can open my Etsy store! insyaAllah....

p/s: I've a meet up with a London Knitting group in my area tomorrow evening! i've never knitted in my life....but they say beginners can come and learn! i can't wait!

Chef Adam

Chef Adam really loves cooking. He would give up watching SpongeBob just to 'help' Mommy cook dinner. Yesterday Daddy bought him his own little kitchen..and he was thrilled! Straightaway he worked hard in his kitchen...cooking...cooking..

very busy Chef

You see the oven glove that is too big for him? I tried to take it off, but he got upset and insisted to put it on again! Of course! How can you be a Chef without oven gloves?? silly Mommy...

thank you Daddy!

All day he was occupied...busy in his kitchen. After he's done he put the food in little plates with fork and spoon and let Mommy and Daddy taste them. Oh...yummy!

alhamdulillah the kitchen wasn't very expensive, but already he's learning so much. I am amazed at how much he's picked up from watching me cook. So funny watching him demonstrating what he's learned..and how he uses his imagination...