Learning Why Blacks can’t Swim

Cote des Arcadins, Haiti

…According to one of my friends it is a legacy of slavery. This fear is supposedly inside every person of African origin because of the memories it brings back. Now I understand why my mother had a nervous breakdown when I forgot to tell her the place I was camping this weekend had a beach. Not fun in the moment but quite funny now I am thinking of it.

It is the second time we are returning to this area. The first time we found it by mistake but the nice coincidence is we met the land owner a few months after. It was a nice surprise to realize that we could now go whenever we wanted to on this little piece of paradise.

This trip would not have been complete without collecting some seashells for my jewelry. Priceless.

Sharing Some not So Haitian Food

I could probably spend my life hosting dinner parties. People are often surprised when I tell them I can cook a mean lamb Korma or gyoza. I love every facets of food: gardening, cooking, culinary writing, I love it all. In NY it is very difficult to invite people over for dinner (no one wants to go to The Bronx! ). In Port-au-Prince everything is pretty straight forward. It is a small city compared to NY with very few things to do so people like their little diner party. This one was to say thanks to my friend Elsa for giving me a place to crash after my many nights out. I made lamb with a mixture with a yogurt and tomato based sauce and basmati rice with a little side of cucumber raita. We ate so much that night….miam!

Away In The Sun

Gingerbread style home. Pacot, Haiti

I  have been a tad miserable for the past months in NY, mainly because of the weather. So I decided to break free for Spring Break and go soak up some sun in my dear Haiti. It is so great being able to see friends…just priceless. I will be posting once in a while about the highlight of my days for the next two weeks. No knitting or crochet.

Spiced Hot Chocolate

Nothing beats a nice cup of chocolate in winter. In Haiti, we use pure chocolate. Even though it can be bitter and very greasy I prefer it to the powdered 0% chocolate packs that are sold in supermarkets. But since it is less likely I will get cheap raw chocolate in NY I have to work with what’s available. So here’s my regular hot chocolate recipe.

*SPICED HOT CHOCOLATE*

You need for 2 people:

2 packets of instant chocolate

1-3 star anise

1 small cinnamon stick

small piece of lime peel

mixture of milk and water

Optional: a dash of heavy cream and cardamom 

1) Instead of only water, use a mixture of milk and water. Add a piece of lime peel, star anise, and cinnamon stick

2) Bring to a boil (make sure the fire is low other wise you boiling milk will spill)

3) Then add your little packet of chocolate. Stir. let it boil for a minute then taste.

4) Adjust your hot chocolate to desired taste (more milk, more chocolate, it all depends on your taste)

Saturday Jewelry making

On Saturday, I had a sudden urge to make something. I woke up with a massive headache from partying too much on Friday and I spent the entire day in bed coming up with what you see.

Eventually I would like my line Tifoli to be primarily handmade summer accessories and outfits. So I wanted to concentrate a little bit putting together some ideas with a free spirit flair. All the big beads I bought at a flea market in the south of France (except for the skull) but I was mainly inspired by the colors of India and happiness. I would usually crochet my way around the beads but I decided to tie groups together instead. Easier and just perfect for the look I was going for.

5 Gifts Your Knit-Crazy Girlfriend Will Thank You for

I hope my boyfriend reads this…

1.  Luxury (and damn expensive) yarns from Leilani Arts or Arty Yarns. From $15 to $50

2. This set of interchangeable circular needles is just perfect and the price is great. Imagine having to buy every single one of these…lots of money.

3. A ball winder is THE best gift ever. Buy one and you’ll get laid everyday. About $50

4. The patterns in this book Pop Knitting are just so pleasing to look at and frankly you can never go wrong with a good knitting/crochet book (Amazon, $18)

5. A nice bag so she can continue to drag her projects with her everywhere she goes. These by KlassDsigns are just too cool and a steal at $30. (On Etsy)

Work in Progress: Hand Warmer

I have been working on this pair for a week now just in time for the drop in temperature  (and nasty weather) in NYC. As always, I was inspired by bold colors (hanging around my house) and shapes, in this case crosses. I quickly sketched the design on graph paper and decided to try it and see what it looks like. I used 2 Lion Brand Yarn Wool Ease and size 8 needles.

I have finished the first one and the second one is in progress. Since all NYC is stuck at home this weekend maybe it’s a good time to finish it.