OLGAJAZZY

Officially, in Japan people keep congratulating you with the New Year till around mid January, so I am not being really late! Happy 2010!!!

I hope this year is going to bring much much more exciting events to all of you, while I am going to tease you about my life in Japan. First impression or not, it is AWESOME! It’s just as I expected it to be and more.. so many things that have been learnt. Where would have I gone next day after we had landed in the country of a Rising Sun?…
Yes, a craft/yarn store! It was 5 floor high and best to go by myself and spend a whole day at! A whole floor to fabrics, a floor to yarn and buttons, a floor to stationary and beading, bagmaking, silversmithing, leather crafts, etc .. it is enough to make one want to throw up from the sensory overload. Especially if you are like me and do lots of those crafts. To compare with something else, it is like Costco Superstore sized High end craft store!
I have not taken any photos of it yet, but I have many moons ahead of me!

Just before New Years I got a chance to meet up with wonderful Reiko/joujoka who is a fellow blogger and a knitter living in Tokyo. She is very kind and met us at Kichijoji station and have taken me to…

right, Avril! I can’t wait to meet up with her again so we can explore more crafty destinations in Tokyo and suburbs and hopefully meet more Japanese knitters!
After that we went to get Siow Chin who arrived that day to Japan for holidays with her family! It was soo much fun to have met them all now! I have known Siow Chin for couple years online, we have exchanged packages, but it was still quite surreal to finally meet in real life! And the girls are the sweetest and so funny!

Shinjuku lights…

I have seen 2010 in on Zojoji Temple grounds and it was amazing!

How did you spend your holidays??

I have been holding off some exciting news and they just started piling up, so I guess I can start spilling some of the most exciting ones. This winter an “idiot’s dream” is coming true and our household of hubby and the cat is moving to Japan for the next 3 years!!!
I know excitement was just pouring out of me, having moved overseas before, I am looking forward, but this time only a bit worried for not knowing any language [yet!]. We are going to be only hour or so away from Tokyo and very close to Mount Fuji. Japan is one of the countries that has always been a mystery to me. The ways of people, their culture, technology, fashion – all that inspiration! I can’t wait to start exploring and sharing with you!
My longest fascination with Habu Textile fibers will be in heaven and now I would be able to visit [mother company] Avril and drool all over that yumminess!!!

On the other exciting news…

For the past 6 months I have been actively working on a project along with Vanessa Yap-Einbund known as coloursknits. Earlier this month with the help of our friends we launched the website and are really to tell the World all about it! Ori Ami Knits is a book that has 15 designs knit entirely out of Habu Textile fibers, beautifully photographed by Vanessa in northern California. There is a significant amount of innovation in this book and I can’t wait for all of you to see it! For information on how to get the book please subscribe on the website.

And to top all these news, Fibre Space, a yarn shop here in Alexandria, VA is hosting us, both authors on November 5, 6-9pm for an exclusive book preview! If you are in the area come see and try on all garments as well as enjoy our company and delicious refreshments!

I wish I had time to watch tv , but when I did have it I certainly was sucked into the America’s Next Top Model show to see what real hardships are for someone to become a model and not just to have a pretty face and be tall!

I just saw over the Interweave knits facebook that an amateur model that was modeling for the magazine and happen to be also one modeling my Petal Halter design back in Spring 2009 issue! I am so happy for Jennifer, so no I need time to watch it and root for the model who did such an amazing job before!

photo courtesy of Interweave Knits

With this also came a realization that I actually didn’t get to blog about this design of mine more extensively. It has been my first for Interweave Knits and coincidental on some part. It has been knit within a week and yarn choices where 1 out of 3 and at the very last minute everything was late on my behalf as this took place last year during the hardest times in my life. Nowadays I look back and think to myself, I wasn’t entirely there… or was I so into work that actually helped me cope.
But this outcome proves that working under pressure and when you are sometimes not happy with the other emotional part of your life it was entirely worthy being invested in a project.

Petal Halter has been inspired just from a sneak of a quilted sewn couture piece, that was very distant from my knit interpretation, but yet it triggered the right ideas and execution methods were well on the way to be figured out…

I am very thankful to Eunny Jang and Lisa Shroyer who dealt with me during that time to this garment happen and make it on the pages of IK. With each experience, you learn more and more!

And Here are some links to Knitting Daily website where Eunny was kind enough to put a workshop on the Petal halter and show different possibilities for a wearer.

As recently as June I have finished my Petal halter in grey that I wear a lot this summer ! And it is great to see how same garment looks different in a different shade!
Happy knitting!

And yet again Jennifer has done amazing job!
ANTM starts September 7.

First, I need to thank all of my readers and supporters, I am so happy you loved Grecian top! I must admit one of mine is going to live with my mother, who is actually very hard to impress, but she loved it so! So now all need to get to knitting as I can’t wait to see more of them knit up in the wild! Now onto a new adventure!

Trifecta Scarf – I think this was a project I was pushing through my holidays. Knitting it everywhere I went, even on that darn Red Line (I was once stuck for an hour and a half underground!) but having a blast at this stitch pattern!

I was told more detailed photos of the scarf will be posted shortly on the Spud & Chloe website.

A while back, almost 2 years now I think, I have finished this top I made out of Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy, it was a designing attempt for something summery, simple, but enough detail and flair to be interesting. At that time I didn’t happen to take any notes on the process and it was when a whole lot of knitters started requesting this pattern. I tried to resize it from what I had to work with and last month I actually bit the bullet and have re-knit the whole top from a different yarn, but having learnt so much more since way back when the original was created, the pattern turned out quite pleasing!

And now I am so proud to present Grecian top [Ravelry link] to all of you, readers, knitters and lurkers 😀

I want to share a great joy of mine, of being published in Interweave Knits magazine, this is my second design for them and I am really pleased how it turned out. I want to publicly thank Eunny Jang and Lisa Shroyer for dealing with my difficult situation at a time to have this out of me. This experience was utterly amazing, because I took so much from it, being challenged to be presented with a wonderful opportunity at the most complex time of your life is something indescribable, but this is what you call life . As trying to motivate yourself regardless that things that needed to be done and testing self-discipline no matter what. I didn’t come out all bright and shiny, some tasks failed, some I persevered through. And here you can see the outcome. I am going to write more about Petal Halter with a tutorial later. But for now, I give you Akomeogi Tunic, which in translation from Japanese means “folding fan”. To be honest, I had the sketch and yarn for this garment since June 2007. But what all of you get to see in a finished project is a bit processed from this original sketch.

And now, I remember I have Louet and Lin-net linen to play with, hmmm! Possibilities are tasteful!

Karida Collins and Libby Bruce, who I met upon moving to VA, over a year ago they offered me to contribute to this fun book they were putting together. It is all about social knitting. Read: knitting in a restaurant or a bar. Book is not only filled with knitting projects but also tons of advice and tips on such occasions, like which drinks would stain and what are necessary projects to keep in your notions bag. And it is just a fun read!

As we got some chill in the air last week here… some of you may have noticed that on a sidebar I have a new feature now. Recently, I have paired up with Knit-a-gogo Company (and its owner Danielle Romanetti) along some other teachers to offer classes in Greater Washington DC Area. What does this mean? “Creme de la creme” of classes in the area!
I have a list of classes being offered in various locations, some in DC and most of them at Knit Happens yarn store at historic Old Town Alexandria, VA. I am thrilled about these because they have been handpicked and thought over numerous days: for what knitters out there like to learn these days and what is really we can teach not to bore you! I haven’t mentioned it before, but by training I am a teacher of English, so teaching is not something new to me.
Knitting, crochet, broomstick lace, entrelac, jewelry, fair isle, intarsia as well as runway knitting… I do take pleasure if sharing the tricks of the ancient craft with others if you are willing to learn or just curious! Afterall discovering something new to yourself is an intimate moment of celebration, no matter how big or small your achievement is, it would always keep you hungry for trying out more exciting things!

Runway knitting , Fair Isle , Entrelac Bag Classes previews…

You can easily sign up for either of these and many more on Knit-a-gogo website

Also there is a following of Knit-a-gogo Groupies on Ravelry.
Danielle has made it possible for knitters not only hang around learning and knitting at your favourite cafe or restaurant, but she is the best “go to person” if you want to have a knitterly party/shower/retreat!!!

To let you know I am also available for private tutoring in the area, please inquire through the email on the sidebar.

On the knitting news for me.. 6 projects at the same time is not challenging enough I thought.. I didn’t even sing up for Ravelympic… so I have pulled this Labor Day weekend to finish up some of them, make them or break (frog) them, but I do owe some new photos of some… it feels with the first day of Fall my needles should switch into the Turbo mode and stop procrastinating!..
Please, let some force give me patience and more hours of the week!

It may be still summer, but already August, it will be cooling down here in no matter of time… Last spring I had a terrific experience working with Pear Tree Yarns for a design of this slouch hat. I know the colors of it reminiscent my Palisel Hat, but when Sue (of PTY) saw it she was thrilled and wanted me to design one of a kind with their yarns.
You see a hat, but this project is filled with techniques used: Intarsia, Various textures, short-rows, Kitchener stitch, picking up stitches, working in around. We, knitters, all come in different categories and learn those techniques on various occasions and a small project like this can be pretty rewarding.

 

Pattern Information
Skill Level
Intermediate

Pattern Information
Sizes Small (Large)
To fit head size: 20 (22)”
Finished hat circumference: 18.5 (21.75)”
Finished hat length including brim: 12.75″

Yarn
1 skein Pear Tree 4 ply Merino Yarn (100% merino wool; 215 yds per 100 g skein) in Sienna
1 skein Pear Tree 4 ply Shades of Alpaca Yarn (50% merino, 50% alpaca; 215 yds per 100 g skein) in Sand
1 skein Pear Tree 4 ply Shades of Alpaca Yarn (50% merino, 50% alpaca; 215 yds per 100 g skein) in Clay

Needles
Size 6 (4 mm) straight needles
Size 6 (4 mm) circular needle (16″ long) or dpn

Other Materials
darning needle
scrap yarn
stitch markers

Gauge
22 sts and 36 rows in 4″ over St st

Price: USD 6.00
Pattern is a .pdf format file, 2 pages

Purchase via Ravelry

You can find more pictures through here

I want to express special thanks to my photographer and layout designer, fellow friend and a blogger Vanessa Yap/coloursknits for her help as well as Alexandria Virgiel for tech editing the pattern and Pear tree yarns for their fabulous yarns!

Sue, the owner of Pear Tree Yarn company has a store in Torquay, Australia, where her company has started out from. I hope this would be one of my point of destinations if I ever go to visit Oz!
My flickr and Habu partner in crime, Kirsten of assemblage blog fame, has got these pictures for me when she was visiting that area last! Thank you!
So here is the store itself… regardless the size, I must assure you, their yarns are just fabulously soft and pleasure to work with!

As Sue has explained to me, the mill that produces their yarns is using old type of machinery and that is why their yarns come with a handspun look. Here is a wall of heaven!