gearncniht

I'm back!

2008-03-02T09:38:00.003+01:00

Okay, I've finally decided that trying to focus on a dissertation 24/7 while stressing about a job hunt just doesn't work. So, I am easing my way back into the knitting scene. I attended my first Stitch 'n Bitch meeting this year on the 18th of February (though I had to miss the following meeting because of aforementioned dissertation), and it was so great to see all my fellow SnBers and to see what everyone was working on. I am going to try to attend more regularly (that meeting was my first since October last year!). But first, over the next couple of postings, I am going to update on my FOs from last year with photos and take inventory of UFOs.

Crocheted Baby Blanket

I made this baby blanket last spring. I gave it to a friend of mine from my time at the University of Georgia who is now living in Sheffield. She gave birth to a baby girl last spring, so it wasn't too late. I actually visited her and her family and finished the blanket there. Talk about crocheting your heart out! But in the end, I am quite happy with how it turned out and so was she. Yeah!

Gelukkig Nieuwjaar!

2008-01-08T17:07:00.001+01:00

Happy New Year!

I know, it has been ages and ages since I last posted (27 August 2007, to be exact). This is just a quick post to let everyone know that I haven't died and to update you guys on what I've been up to. (And why I haven't posted in so long)

In the crafting arena, there is not much to discuss. I haven't had time to craft nor am I allowed to--my developing RSI symptoms (Repetitive Stress Injury) caused the university doctor to recommend that I stop knitting until it got better. Who knows when that will be...

My main stresses have come naturally from work--I have a dissertation to finish up (anyone in the final stages will totally understand where I am coming from) and a consequence is that I had to start applying for jobs so that I won't be unemployed when I finish.

Now, when you are an immigrant in a country and you say that you are on the job market, one of the first questions you get asked is "Well, do you want to go back or do you want to stay?" I can't tell you how annoying that question is, especially after the umpteenth time. In my case, I want to keep my options open--I just want a decent job and am willing to move wherever necessary for it. It just so happens that the job openings at the moment are primarily in North America, where you usually have to apply a year in advance. In Europe, the jobs generally aren't advertised until a few months before you would start. It's just very frustrating when people assume you want to go back just because you apply for jobs in your "home country". And then have the nerve to ask why you don't want to stay! Find me a job and I will! That's what I always want to shout... It just seems that some people just don't quite get how the job market works and how there usually has to be an opening before you can actually get a job. Anyway, just venting. The stress is getting to me, can't you tell? (After re-reading this, I guess I shouldn't really complain, but I'm going to keep it in.)

A quick update on my job hunt, though (I am not naming any of the institutions and would appreciate it if those of you are privileged enough to know the details of my job hunt not name any of them in a public post on this site):

I have applied to 19 jobs so far.
I have received 3 rejections.
I have had 6 interviews, 2 by telephone and 4 at conferences.
I have received 1 invitation for an interview, but haven't heard from the head of the search committee since, so I guess the invitation has been retracted.
I still have at least 2 more jobs to apply to (there may be some late openings).
I am still waiting to hear from 9 of the jobs, though a few of them interviewed at the conferences mentioned above (interviews for which I was not invited), which leads me to suspect that I am no longer in the running for those positions. But until I get a definite rejection, there's still hope, right? :-)

Isn't the job market such a lovely place? Are any of you completing a major project and/or on the job market? I'd love to hear your experiences...

Until all of the excitement of everything calms down (hopefully before the end of the year!), I won't be posting much and I won't be knitting... :-( But I may just post an occasional update... Just keep checking! (or email me to "encourage" me to post)

Hope all is well in your neck of the woods!

I suck, I suck....

2007-08-27T07:57:00.001+02:00

I suck... I received a really great package from Cheryl for the PRGE Mini-Exchange, and I am just now getting around to posting it. There was a delay in sending it, and the package arrived while I was away at a conference... When I came back, I was bogged down by a looming deadline... So, major stress... But of course the next round of PRGE is beginning, so the last bits of the previous mini-round need to go up. In any case, it was very inconsiderate of me; I am sending out my apologies.... But here it is!

It was a very fabulous package filled with all sorts of goodies. In the overview picture, you can see a I Taught Myself to Crochet package (includes a booklet, 6 different crochet hooks, stitch markers, tapestry needles and yarn holder for multi-color crocheting), two long Afghan crochet hooks, a bag each of Welch's Fruit Snacks and Chewy SweetTarts (both of which are now no more... a moment of silence, please...), two canisters of Altoids Mango Sours (had never seen them before, I don't think, but are really, really sour! yum!), two canisters of Godiva Chocoiste: one Milk Chocolate Pearls and the other Dark Chocolate Pearls with Mint (again, fabulousness in a canister!), two hilarious luggage labels (one reads "remember? yours is black" and the other "take my luggage, do my laundry"), an insipirational magnet that reads "Success can only be measured in terms of distance traveled.", a box of assorted Harney & Sons teas, a box of The King's Cupoard's Espresso Chocolate Dessert Pudding (doesn't that sound fabulous!), and a Jasmine Green Tea scented candle from Yankee Candle, with a very nice and smooth scent that is not overpowering. And, that is not all!

Cheryl also sent me the cutest stitch markers I have ever seen! They are of dogs in various positions! I think you can get a fairly decent look at them in my pic to the right. Aren't they just the sweetest thing? I hope they can get my yarn and needles to obey my commands as well as they seem to be trained! ^^ For those who are interested, the stitch markers were made by Wee Ones.

And, you thought that was all? No, wait, there's more! Two skeins of fabulous yarn, both of which I have been dying to try out!!! One 420-yard/4-ounce hank of Cherry Tree Hill Supersock 100% superwash merino fingering weight in the Birches colorway and one 425-meter/100-gram skein of South West Trading Company's 50% superwash wool/25% Soysilk fibers/22.5% cotton/2.5% chitin Tofutsies in lovely purple/pink with bits of grey and black. Cool, huh? And below the two skeins of yarn, you can see a fabulous-est and punkest project bag I have ever seen! You can see one of the skulls... And the project bag is very sturdy. There's a hook so I can hook it to the outside of my knitting bag (or to my belt) so I can knit while standing around. I can close it tight with the elastic, which has a tightener clamp (or whatever that is actually called) and the end of the elastic is sealed with more skulls so the clamp doesn't come up! It's just so fantabulously punk!

Thank you so much for all the time and effort you put into this package Cheryl! I'm really enjoying all of the contents! Again, I apologize for my delay in posting... I know it can be a bummer when you have a slack-ass spoilee...

Wolle aus Köln!

2007-07-16T09:24:00.000+02:00

Wool from Cologne!

I went to a fabulous yarn shop when I went to Cologne for a short trip. The shop is owned and run by Daniela Johannsenová, the maker of the Secret Knitting podcast. I heard about it through Cast-on and remembered that the podcaster had a yarn shop in Cologne. So, I thought I would give it a shot. I am really glad I did!

I entered as soon as it opened and was greeted by Daniela upon entering. She started in German but after my confused look, switched to English. She asked if she could help me with anything and then proceeded to describe her stock. She was so helpful! She has a lot of yarns that are not easy to find in Amsterdam... Afterwards, she offered me a cup of coffee, and we sat at her sofa and knit and chatted. Very pleasant. The following afternoon, I went back (the day was so hot and I needed a rest after spending the morning and early afternoon walking around). There two other knitters (in addition to Daniela) just sitting, knitting, drinking, and chatting. I wish we had such a lovely, cozy and welcoming yarn shop in Amsterdam! I bought two hanks of lovely alpaca (one light grey, one blue--a color-stranded vest was my plan...) despite not needing any more yarn... But I thought that I should support such a nice shop... Who knows, I might go again!

Here is the website of the shop: Maschenkunst. Two enthusiastic thumbs up!

SP10: Final installment

2007-07-11T21:43:00.000+02:00

Today, I received the final installment from my SP10 pal. The only appropriate description is "Oh... my... God!" I was overwhelmed by the three packages I received at my office! There are no appropriate words to describe the fantabulinity contained in the packages... I just wanted to let my still-secret pal know how wonderful everything is! I'll have loads of fun with it all for a long time! At the moment, I don't have photos of the contents, but I thought I could go through the packages and let you guys know how I have been so spoiled by my pal!

package 1
-a beautiful burlap bag from Yr Hosbis i Blant yng Nghymru 'The Children's Hospice in Wales', a great place to hide (a small part of) my ever-increasing stash!
-a huge grab bag of assorted yarn ends from Texere Yarns, a wonderful assortment for future color-stranding or intarsia projects!

package 2
-three knitting magazines, all with free gifts!
*Simply Knitting with sheep-shaped point protectors
*Knit Today with a booklet filled with baby patterns
*Knitting with a poster of different sheep varieties!)
-a Shaun the Sheep comic with free magnetic photo frame
-10 x 25g skeins of Jamieson's Ultra (50% lambswool/50% Shetland wool) yarn in a beautiful white color. Perhaps another opportunity to dye again? Or maybe I'll keep it white and knit a nice lace shawl for my mom. We'll see!

package 3
-2 x 50g skeins of Koigu 100% Merino wool KPPPM yarn in mostly beige-y color with lots of other colors mixed throughout. I've been waiting to get my hands on some Koigu because of all the hype about it in the podo- and blogosphere and now I have 4 skeins: two from my SP10 pal and 2 from winning one of the PRGE best pal awards. How fabulous is that?!? Now, what to make from it? Socks? Gloves? Mittens? Oh, my!
-2 x 50g balls of Sirdar Snuggly baby bamboo yarn (80% bamboo/20% wool) one in light beige and the other in khaki. It's so soft! I think this will turn into something for my future niece or nephew. Gotta hunt through baby knitting books (as if they are hard to find!)!
-a 50g? skein of a mysterious orange yarn, feels like a plant fiber--perhaps cotton or linen? There are a number of bits in the grab bag mentioned in package one that seem to be of the same weight and type as this yarn, so perhaps I'll combine them into some sort of color-stranding project.
-a mix for a Turkish dessert called Kazandibi. I tried this in Turkey, and it was a nice custardy milk dessert. The version I tasted had chicken in it--not chunks of chicken and you couldn't taste it, but you could see the fibers of the chicken. Very interesting! I think I'll save this mix so I can make it with Ashley when I go back across the pond.
-a bar of Coldspring Mill Wool Fat Soap, a lanolin soap! It smells so lovely, not strongly perfumed. It's supposed to keep your hands nice and smooth... Can't wait to try it out!
-a 170g box of Clotted Cream Fudge, which is absolutely delicious! (um, yeah, I've already had a piece.... or two... ^^)
-four Clover products
*Knitting counter
*yarn cutter pendant (This is something I've always wanted to buy, but just never did for whatever reason. Now, I have one of my own! Yeah!)
*two sizes of coil knitting needle holders

I think you can see now why I was overwhelmed! So much stuff in one day! I'm going to have to start a bunch of projects this weekend!

Ethel, thank you so much! All the things you have given to me in these three packages as well as in the previous ones have been just fabulous--you chose so well! I can't wait to find out who you are!

Örgü dili: Knitting in Turkish!

2007-07-09T12:52:00.000+02:00

Örgü dili 'The language of knitting'

Here are some useful knitting related words and phrases in Turkish that I learned while in Turkey. I did not really use them, though, as I was always with a Turkish friend who I had ask all my questions for me.... But in case you're caught in a Turkish yarn shop on your own...

Notes on Turkish pronunciation: Some letters (and sounds, for that matter) in Turkish are not found in English. Some of the sounds are spelled with a different letter than they would be in English. Other than that, Turkish spelling is pretty consistent--words are pronounced the way they are spelled and vice versa. Here are letters/sounds that do not correspond to English:

C, c is always pronounced like English 'j'.
Ç, ç is always pronounced like English 'ch'.
Ğ, ğ is never pronounced--it lengthens a preceding vowel.
H, h is pronounced as in English, but it is always pronounced wherever it is written, even at the end of a word.
I, ı (non-dotted 'i') is not an English/German/French sound. It is an unrounded 'oo' sound.
İ, i (dotted 'i') is always pronounced like English 'ee'.
J, j is always pronounced like French 'j' or like the s in the English word 'pleasure'.
Ö, ö is always pronounced like German 'ö' or French 'eu'.
Ş, ş is always pronounced like English 'sh'.
Ü, ü is always pronounced like German 'ü' or French 'u'

Now, the words/phrases...

I. Nouns

örgü 'handcrafts, knitting' My understanding is that Turkish has one word for handcrafts in general.
örgü şişi 'knitting needles' This is the same şiş as in "shish kebab"!

Yumak 'yarn'
(saf) __ yumağı '(pure) __ yarn'
yün 'wool'
pamuk 'cotton' (I also heard people say koton.)
ipek 'silk'
akrilik 'acrylic'

(Saf yün yumağı) istiyorum. 'I would like (pure wool yarn).'
(Akrilik yumağı) istemiyorum. 'I do not want (acrylic yarn).'
(Saf yün yumağı) var mı? 'Do you have (pure wool yarn)?'
(Saf yün yumağı) nerede? 'Where is it/(the pure wool yarn)?'
(Saf yün) değil. 'It is not (pure wool).'

II. Adjectives

renk 'color' + -lEr (plural) = renkler 'colors'

You can just add adjectives in front of nouns--there is no agreement like in German or French.

açık 'light'
koyu 'dark'

siyah 'black'
beyaz 'white'
kırmızı 'red'
mavi 'blue'
turuncu 'orange'
pembe 'pink'
yeşil 'green'
mor 'purple'
sarı 'yellow'
gri 'grey'
kahverengi 'brown' (literally 'the color of coffee')

güzel 'beautiful'
çok 'a lot (of), very'

bu 'this'
şu 'that (and point)'

(Mavi) değil. 'It is not (blue).'

III. Verbs

örmek 'to do handcrafts, to knit'

Turkish verbs are fairly complicated. There are a number of endings one can use to express various characteristics of an action. There is even an ending, for instance, to say that the speaker only heard that something happened but did not witness it firsthand! I will, however, only demonstrate a few basic endings, enough to get started. Something else that one has to contend with in Turkish endings is vowel harmony. I will explain this later.

For basic conjugation, there is usually one ending for the tense and/or aspect of the action (present, past, future and/or progressive, perfect, habitual, etc.) and one ending for the person (first person singular/plural, second person singular/plural, third person singular/plural).

Some basic tense/aspect endings are:

-Iyor- progressive, in other words 'to be (verb)ing'
-(y)EcEK- future, in other words 'will (verb)'
-DI- past, in other words '(verb)ed'

Note: the capital letters indicate that this sound changes depending on the context: A vowel changes depending on the last vowel of the verb stem (vowel harmony) and a consonant changes depending on the preceding sound. I will explain these a bit later. In the future ending, a y is added if this ending is added to a word ending in a vowel.

These tense/aspect endings generally go between the verb stem (ör-) and the personal endings.

ör-üyor- 'be knitting'
ör-ecek- 'will knit'
ör-dü- 'knitted'

To this, you add the personal endings.

-(y)Im 'I'
-sIn 'you (singular/informal)'
-(DIr) 'he/she/it'
-(y)Iz 'we'
-sInIz 'you (singular/formal, plural)'
-(DIr)lEr 'they'

The vowels between parentheses are added if you are adding the ending after a consonant. So, if we conjugate for the progressive, we get:

ör-üyor-um 'I am knitting'
ör-üyor-sun 'You (sg/informal) are knitting'
ör-üyor(-dur) 'He/she/it is knitting'
ör-üyor-uz 'We are knitting'
ör-üyor-sunuz 'You (sg/formal, plural) are knitting'
ör-üyor-(dur)lar 'They are knitting'

Usually, a k at the end of a word becomes ğ if an ending beginning with a vowel follows it.

ör-eceğ-im 'I will knit'
ör-ecek-sin 'You (sg/informal) will knit'
ör-ecek(-tir) 'He/she/it will knit'
ör-eceğ-iz 'We will knit'
ör-ecek-siniz 'You (sg/formal, plural) will knit'
ör-ecek-(tir)ler 'They will knit'

In the past tense, the endings are a bit reduced. Notice, though, that the ending for 'we' is not related to the one we already learned:

-m 'I'
-n 'you (sg/informal)'
-(nothing) 'he/she/it'
-k 'we'
-nIz 'you (sg/formal, plural)'
(-lEr) 'they'

So, when we apply this to the verb, we get:

ör-dü-m 'I knitted'
ör-dü-n 'You (sg/informal) knitted'
ör-dü- 'He/she/it knitted'
ör-dü-k 'We knitted'
ör-dü-nüz 'You (sg/formal, plural) knitted'
ör-dü(-ler) 'They knitted'

You can also combine the progressive and the future endings with the past tense marker. Then, you end up with:

ör-üyor-du-m 'I was knitting'

Notice how the past tense ending is no longer -dü- like in the simple past tense given above but has changed to -du-. This has to do with vowel harmony. In Turkish, the vowels of most endings change depending on the vowel preceding the ending. There are two types of vowel endings: E-endings and I-endings.

E-endings: This represents a two-way distinction.
If the last vowel before an E-ending is i, ü, e, or ö, then the vowel of the ending is e.
If the last vowel before an E-ending is ı, u, a, or o, then the vowel of the ending is a.

The plural ending -lEr is an example of an E-ending. You have, for instance, renk-ler 'colors' versus yumak-lar 'yarns'.

I-endings: These are a little more complicated because they represent a four-way distinction. If the last vowel before an I-ending is i or e, the vowel of the ending is i.
If the last vowel before an I-ending is ü or ö, the vowel of the ending is ü.
If the last vowel before an I-ending is ı or a, the vowel of the ending is ı.
If the last vowel before an I-ending is u or o, the vowel of the ending is u.

The stem ör- has ö as its vowel, so an I-ending will become ü.

ör-dü-nüz 'You (sg/formal, plural) knitted'

If the -Iyor ending intervenes, however, the I-ending becomes u because the vowel before the ending is o.

ör-üyor-du-m 'I was knitting'

Another change that occurs in Turkish endings have to do with consonants. Generally, if an ending begins with a consonant that has voiced/voiceless counterparts, you use the voiceless counterpart if the final consonant before the ending is voiceless. Otherwise, you use the voiced counterpart. So, the d of the past tense -DI ending may change into a t if it follows a voiceless consonant, for instance, when you add this ending to the future ending:

ör-ecek-ti-n 'You (sg/informal) would knit'

Another useful ending for verbs is the negative ending, -mE. This is usually placed between the verb stem and all the other endings. Notice how vowel harmony is cumulative.

ör-me-di-m 'I did not knit'
ör-me-yecek-sin 'You will not knit'

With the progressive, the vowel of the negative ending is dropped.

ör-m-iyor-uz 'We are not knitting'

As you can see, Turkish endings are quite complicated, but there is a logic and a system behind it all. For more information on Turkish, you can consult any number of Turkish grammars.

Hope this is helpful! ^^

PRGE... Mini!

2007-07-05T07:57:00.000+02:00

Okay, so I likes me some swappin'. I signed up for PRGE Mini, a one-month not secret pal exchange to hold us over until the grown-up version gets going again... Here is my questionnaire. (It's not quite finished, but I'll add to it as I think of things...)

1. Why are you punk?
Punk me? PUNK YOU!
2. What are your five favorite things? (these don't have to be knit related)
Languages, Cooking, Books, Travelling, Sweets (chewy fruity kinds and chocolate kinds)
3. What are your three favorite things that you have made with knitting/crochet?
Norwegian vest for my niece, my Swell hat, my Noro ribbed hat.
4. What five things would you love to see in a swap box someday?
No Sheep for You, hooked knitting needles (found in Portugal, perhaps elsewhere), any of the newer interesting yarns made from various weird things (corn, seasilk, soy, chitin, etc.), Folk Socks: The History and Techniques of Handknitted Footwear, Ethnic Socks and Stockings: A Compendium of Eastern Design and Technique
5. What are your three favorite yarns? What are your three least favorite yarns?
No particular brands... Depends more on the feel and look of the yarn...
Favorites: anything soft
Least Favorites: anything scratchy, frilly or novel
6. What are your five favorite delicacies?
Hmmm... Toughy... Anything chocolate (leaning more toward milk chocolate recently, but also enjoy dark chocolate occasionally), chocolate-covered sunflower seeds, Krispy Kreme donuts (which I can't get here!), nice coffee (for making capuccino, interesting teas (I currently have a lot of jasmine, lady grey, pu'er, oolong, lapsong soo chong, north korean rice/green tea, rooibos, assorted plain black teas, etc., etc. I'm not particularly fond of the kind of sour teas like the Zinger line of Celestial Seasonings--though I love their other teas)
7. What are your three favorite guilty pleasures?
Going out to eat (in Amsterdam, you feel guilty about the price... But the service is generally NOT a pleasure), ???, ???
8. What would you like your pal to know that is not covered here?
Umm, go Dawgs! Woof, woof, woof, woof, woof, woof.

Happy 4th of July!

2007-07-04T19:36:00.001+02:00

Okay, so I'm actually posting this on the 5th... But the postdate magically says 4th... Know how? ^^

An informational tidbit for non-United Statians: The normal way we, the people, refer to this holiday is the "Fourth of July". This is so ingrained in us that there is a joke: Does (name of any random country) have a "Fourth of July"? Most United Statians immediately answer, "No!", knowing that our holiday, commonly known as the Fourth of July, is only celebrated in the US. The answer is, of course, that every country has a 4th of July (assuming they follow the Gregorian calendar).

When I first moved to Amsterdam and people asked/talked to me about "Independence Day", I didn't know what they were talking about at first. It only took me a few seconds to realize that they were talking about the Fourth, but this shows you how strongly we associate the date with the holiday. Of course, it is officially "Independence Day". And this is the better way to refer to it, I suppose, outside of the US, since everywhere else, the Fourth of July is just a date... ^^

Craftiness in Turkey

2007-07-03T09:06:00.001+02:00

Okay, so the previous four posts pretty much sum up my vacation to Turkey. It was such a wonderful experience! I can't wait to go again! And for those who might be interested in going to Turkey, you more than likely need a visa. However, you can easily get this upon entering (at the airport), and it is not terribly expensive (for Americans, it's $20 or 15 euros). A useful tidbit: you have to pay cash. They don't accept cards. Be sure you have enough...

Now, for the crafty bit of my journey. The project I ended up taking was my Exchequered scarf. I figured that my Master Knitting swatches, though small, would require a lot of references (I want to try out different techniques to see which works out best), and I hadn't started any socks. The scarf was small enough, and I knew that I wouldn't finish while in Turkey. I didn't take any emergency sock yarn because I knew that I would be stocking up on yarn--if I needed to, I could just start a new project with some new yarn. Besides, I figured that with such a busy schedule, I might not have much time to knit anyway (not thinking about the hours upon hours of travel time). It turns out, however, that this was a wise decision.

So, on my second (full) day in Istanbul, I met up with Nihal, a crafter I met over the internet. She was nice enough to meet up with me and show me around the yarn/textile part of the famous Istanbul bazar. It was amazing and a little disappointing at the same time. As Nihal warned me ahead of time, I encountered mounds and mounds of acrylic--the mounds and mounds of yarn being amazing to look at, all the acrylic being the disappointment. However, not all hope was lost--there were many little shops with all sorts of yarn. It just required a bit of searching. I was on the hunt for some cotton yarn for a short-sleeved summer polo shirt and enough wool yarn to make a sweater. (I still haven't attempted making any sort of top for myself... I'm a little scared... And the previous times when I bought yarn with the intention of using it for a sweater, I ended up not having enough or not really liking the combination of colors... Perhaps I was subconsciously trying to sabotage myself before even beginning?) We entered one shop with a very nice and helpful owner. Luckily, the shop was stocked with mostly cotton yarn. And I found the colors I was looking for--dark blue for the body of a polo shirt with a light beige for the collar. I also saw two other colors that I liked--a khaki color and an orange-y red. I thought short-sleeved striped V-neck. I debated long and hard about whether to buy it or not and ended up buying it... You can never have enough yarn, and this was a lovely souvenir, afterall! ^^ And of course, it was so cheap! I was like 1 Yeni Türk Lirası (usually abbreviated 'ytl') per 100g (about 0.55 euro or $0.77 per 100g)! Can't beat that, eh?

In another shop, I also managed to find some nice pure wool yarn, a nice dark grey (but not charcoal grey). I couldn't find a color that went well with it, so a solid-colored sweater it'll be. I got 1kg of this yarn (I'm pretty big...) and also got 600g of a beige cotton yarn at the counter (for a great bag I want to crochet). Needless to say, I had to lug around a loooot of yarn that day. The sacrifices we make for our craft! ^^

Nihal also wanted to take me to a yarn shop on the Asian side of Istanbul where there was also quite a selection of yarn for cheap, but unfortunately, she had to get back to her exams. She gave me directions since I was staying on the Asian side. I decided that I had already bought enough yarn, but Fulya asked me to knit Coachella for her. I told her that I wouldn't mind if she got the yarn, so together we went in search of this incredibly cheap yarn store. It took some searching, but we eventually found it. The store, named Diyana, had quite a selection, but again, it was mostly acrylic. After a bit of hunting, we found some nice peach-colored cotton yarn, perfect for the pattern. So, we bought the yarn, a pair of circular needles and a tape measure (I didn't bring all my knitting supplies with me... but you can never have too many tape measures, right?).

The Coachella project ended up being the knitting project I worked on in Turkey. I measured Fulya and checked the pattern for the appropriate size (converting from metric to US measurements). I knit a swatch in the round so the top would come out the way it was supposed to. The needles were too small, so we went back to exchange them. I knit another swatch with the new needles and recalculated the pattern to fit my new gauge (again, constantly converting between the metric and US systems). I cast on and worked on Coachella for the bus ride from Istanbul to Ankara, the car ride from Ankara to Kaş, and for many of the small breaks I had in between. I knit and knit and knit, hoping to finish before I left. When I was about halfway done (while we were in Kaş), I put the stitches on an extra piece of yarn so Fulya could try it on. How did it fit? Not like a glove as I was hoping it would... It was two sizes too big!!!! Can you believe it! After all my prep work and careful calculations... At least this terrible mistake was not a result of my knitting (this was one of my most consistent pieces) nor my calculations. Apparently, the sizes given were measured differently than I expected. Despite the little note at the beginning of the pattern (which I didn't think was very clear, but I was sort of rushing through it), I assumed the list of 'Chest measurements' represented the actual chest measurement of the recipient. Instead, these represented the measurement of the finished garment, which fits a person with an additional 7 inches of chest. So the XS, which measures 25 inches, fits a person with a chest measurement of 32 inches (25 inches + 7 inches). I hope you can see why I was a little confused. And I saw on Ravelry that I was not the only one who was confused by this... I'm not a total idiot! Yeah!

What did I do? I sighed, took a deep breath, and started over. I looked at the pattern again, did loads and loads of calculations and then cast on for my second attempt. At least I (a) got a lot of practice with the combination method, (b) have a much better understanding of the pattern as a whole, and (c) can avoid the mistakes I couldn't correct in my first attempt. And hopefully, this one will end up being the right size!

What did I do about the overly large Coachella? I kept the stitches on the yarn and set it aside... I couldn't bear to rip out all that knitting at the time... I actually still haven't ripped it out.... It's stuck in small plastic bag on my sofa in that state of perpetual incompleteness... It knows it's going to be reincarnated, but just not when... I don't think I'll rip it out until I need to for Coachella Junior... You knit, you learn! ^^

Ankara'dan Kaş'a... and back!

2007-07-02T22:29:00.001+02:00

From Ankara to Kaş... and back again! Fulya's parents were quite excited about my visit and planned to take us to Kaş, a lovely town on the Mediteranean coast. About an 10.5-hour drive from Ankara (with plenty of breaks on the way). But I got to see a lot of the landscape in Turkey--from the desert area around to the Mediteranean coast, you can imagine that there is a lot of variation in between. On the way down, I remembered my Dramamine but did not realize that it is only effective for 5 to 6 hours... I got pretty woozy about an hour and half away from Kaş... I quickly took more Dramamine, which helped a bit... I definitely remembered it on the way back though! We stayed in a lovely pansiyon 'pension' (is that an appropriate word in English? perhaps 'inn' is better? I would have said bed & breakfast, but there was no breakfast. any other suggestions?) in the center with a lovely view of the center and the sea. Fulya and I went swimming each morning at like 6:00 am! The water was cold! But a great way to wake up! It is such a lovely, laid-back, relaxing town. Hopefully, I'll get a chance to go back!

Apparently, kaş means 'eyebrow' in Turkish. The story goes that Meis, the name of the Greek island off the coast (visible from Kaş) means 'eye', so the Turkish town is the 'eyebrow' for the island 'eye'. Funny how places get their names! ^^

Kaş'a 'To Kaş'

A lovely place where we stopped for kahvaltı on the way. We had gözleme (read previous post for a description) and Türk çayı 'Turkish tea'. Çok güzel!

Turkish landscapes

Tea break!

More landscape

Kaş'ta 'In Kaş'

Views from the balcony of the pansiyon. The Mediteranean! Gorgeous, eh? Jealous?

A view of Kaş itself from my balcony.

A view of the Greek island of Meis from the Hellenistic amphitheater in Kaş.

Lovely flowers and a small bay near where Fulya's family will build their own house in Kaş!

Dinner on our last night in Kaş. Fulya's parents are so nice and friendly, very lovely people. Our conversations were a mix of French, Turkish and English...
Great fun for a linguist like me!

On the road back to Ankara.
We stopped for a mini-picnic and for a stretch--just two hours left!

İstanbul'dan Ankara'ya

2007-07-01T22:07:00.000+02:00

From Istanbul to Ankara. On a five-hour bus ride. I remembered my Dramamine this time! :-) On our last day in Istanbul, we took a trip to Adalar 'The Islands' known as the Prince's Islands in English. We visited Büyük Ada 'Big Island'. It was very, very hot, but pleasant nonetheless. We took a picnic lunch and then wandered around a bit before heading back. The following day was the five-hour bus trip to Ankara. It was a nice bus, I have to admit, and more like flying than riding a bus--someone came by every so often to offer drinks and snacks, and we even got a meal. I spent the first hour or so sleeping (Dramamine) and then spent most of the rest of the time knitting... stitch, stitch, stitch. But I'll tell you about that later! ^^ In Ankara, we stayed at Fulya's place and visited the Museum of Anatolian Civilizations and Ankara Kalesi 'Ankara Castle'. I also got to meet almost all of Fulya's very wonderful friends and colleagues--she is quite lucky!

Adalar: Büyük Ada 'Prince's Islands: Big Island'

View upon arrival

View when you exit: hordes of people!
Apparently, we weren't the only ones with the bright idea!

A beautiful abandoned house

Covered market? At least it provided some shade.

Ankara'da Fulya'nın evi 'Fulya's house in Ankara'

Balkonda Kahvaltı: Breakfast chez Fulya on her balcony. So, the Turkish word for 'breakfast' is kahvaltı, literally 'under coffee'. Apparently, you would have coffee after breakfast, thereby placing the food under your coffee.

View from Fulya's balcony

Ankara Kalesi 'Ankara Castle'

There was a festival going on at the castle, so there were quite a few people, and a lot of stalls selling assorted goods and handcrafts. Here, Fulya and I are having lunch: delicious gözleme, a sort of savory crispy crêpe made with yufka (i.e., filo dough--paper, paper thin dough used a lot in Turkish and Greek cuisine--think baklava) instead of batter.

The courtyard where we had gözleme, surrounded by assorted antique and clothing shops.

Looking down on Ankara from the castle

Fıstıklar! This is where we got Hugo'nun fıstıkları 'Hugo's fıstıks' (pardon the inside joke). Fıstık in Turkish (related to the English word 'pistachio') refers to dried foodstuffs like nuts and dried berries. As you can see, they have quite an assortment!

A beautiful tree stub in the castle

Not at the castle, but still in Ankara: Lunch with Fulya's colleagues from Bilkent Üniversitesi 'Bilkent University', a very friendly group of people.

Türkiye, part II

2007-06-29T23:46:00.001+02:00

Before Turkey, some quick news... I got my ravelry invite! Coolness! If you are already on ravelry, add me as a friend (my name is "gearncniht") and send a message. If you haven't already signed up, you should now! It's a great place to keep track of your stash, projects, supplies, make friends, etc. It's like friendster for crafters, plus much more!

Now, back to my trip. A few more photos... We stayed in Istanbul for a few days, so here are more pics of it. On day two, I did some yarn shopping with a Turkish crafter I met over the internet, Nihal, at her blog. It was a very exciting and interesting day, and I'll have a separate entry on all my craftiness in Turkey, so be patient! ^^ After yarn shopping, Fulya and I went to the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art and then met Burcu in Beyoğlu for dinner and just walking around... The following day, Fulya and I took a cruise of the Bosphorous (not quite to the Black Sea), where I'm sure you can sympathize with me when I say I should have taken Dramamine! But it was pleasant, and we got off at Sarıyer, where Fulya's family used to go each summer when she was younger. We had some of their famous Sarıyer böreği for lunch and then slowly made our way back to the ferries by bus with a stop in Örtaköy, a kind of hip trendy little area on the Bosphorous with a lot of craft shops, food vendors and tea gardens where you can enjoy a game of tavla (Backgammon) or nargileh (hookah). Very cool!

Kadıköy'de çay bahçesi

Sunset at a tea garden in Kadıköy

Views from the commuter boat

Mavi Camii (Blue Mosque)

Topkapı Palace

View outside of the Istanbul Museum of Modern Art

Boğaz Turu: Bosphorous Cruise

Tea break! A cool thing on the boats, even the commuter boats, is that there are men walking around with trays of juice and tea for sale. A pleasant way to have a refreshing beverage on your to wherever!

Views from the boat

Guess who! ^^

Fulya in front of her childhood vacation home in Sarıyer.

Men fishing at Örtaköy

Türkiye, part I

2007-06-28T22:09:00.000+02:00

Here are some photos from day 1 of my trip to Turkey. I won't put up all the pics or post about each day... Just the interesting things Fulya and I did. Day 1 was jampacked with all the historical sites of İstanbul'un Sultanahmet'i (the Sultanahmet area of Istanbul--I hope I'm writing that correctly!).

Topkapı Palace

Fulya in the garden at the entrance of the palace.

One of the side streets in the second court area (there are four).

A reenactment of a palace procession with music, singing and traditional outfits.

Harem hamamı (Bath in Topkapı's harem)

Aya Sofya
Byzantium church built by the Greeks, turned into a mosque,
and now rediscovering its Greek roots.

Basilica Cistern
Underground water supply--nice and cool after a hot day wandering around in the sun!

Two heads of Medusa, taken from another structure (though no one knows what structure). Strangely, one was placed in upside down and the other sideways--scholars think this was intentional but are not sure why.

Fish in the cistern. Fulya and I fed them simit, a Turkish circular bread with sesame seeds. You find this bread all over the place in big cities sold on the street--a wonderful snack!

Oost, West, Thuis Best!

2007-06-27T19:39:00.000+02:00

Home Sweet Home! (The post title is the Dutch version of this saying--literally "East, West, Home's Best") After two exciting weeks in hot, hot Turkey (apparently, one of the hottest summers in decades!), I came home to a cool and rainy Amsterdam. Home Sweet Home, eh? ^^

Well, I will definitely post pics and commentary about my trip in the following week or two. To get a taste, you can visit F.'s blog, the good friend who I visited in Turkey, here.

But, first, I need to blog about two things awaiting my arrival. When I went in to the office yesterday (after my flight--I'm a glutton for punishment to go into work the day I arrive from vacation, eh? I do this even if I fly from the US. I'm somehow deluded into thinking that it helps me overcome jet lag...), I was disappointed to see that no packages had arrived for me as I was expecting two. When I left to go home, however, I saw a package at the porter's desk that looked suspiciously as if it had come from the US. As I approached the porter's desk, I saw my name on the box! Yeah! So I asked the porter if he could give it to me (though I must say I was a little surprised that he didn't ask for identification...). Yippee!

What was it, you ask? It was a package from the Punk Rock Gift Exchange--I won one of the best pal prizes (there were three)! And this is what it contained: A great black project bag with a skull and crossbones in white, two patches, a button, wonderful skull stitch markers, fabulously kitsch magnets from Obsidian Kitten, five 50g blue and turquoise-y green skeins of 77% cotton/23% rayon Believe yarn by Classic Elite Yarns, and two 50g yellow/blue/green skeins of 100% Merino wool yarn by Koigu. Such a wonderful package! What am I going to make with the delectably yummy yarns? Any suggestions? ^^

And, what did I get today? A package from my SP10 pal! Yeah! Some more luscious yarn--hand-dyed 100% cashmere! So soft! There were two 100g skeins of a grey-white sock yarn and two 55g skeins of a brown-white lace weight yarn, both from HipKnits. I'm not sure what they are destined to become... Perhaps gloves so I can envelop my hands in the luxuriant softness? We'll see!

Thank you so much, Sunneshine and SP10 pal (or, as I learned in Turkey, "Çok teşekkür ederim")! The gifts are divine--I'll definitely enjoy working with them!

Vacation!

2007-06-12T06:55:00.001+02:00

A quick note to let all of you know that I will be away for the next two weeks. I leave this morning! Yippee! Two weeks in sunny Turkey! How exciting! I'll get to visit a really good friend of mine and explore her country (well, a small part of it, anyway), culture and language! Hopefully, I'll have an opportunity to blog while there, but we'll see! When I get back, I'll definitely have lots to tell about the experience and hopefully of lot of interesting information about knitting in Turkey! 'Til then, have a great summer! ^^

Sheffield

2007-06-06T08:58:00.001+02:00

For Ascension weekend, I flew to jolly ol' Sheffield, England to visit a friend of mine and her family. Of course, I just had to check out what yarns were on offer, so I joined the Sheffield Knitterati Yahoo group and sent out an email asking for addresses of shops to check out and to see whether anyone might be interested in meeting up for some yarn shopping, chitchatting, and knitting. I got an immediate response from Astrid, a Dutch woman who has been living in Sheffield for the past 7 years. How funny is that! ^^ She suggested a few places and was free one of the days of my visit, so we arranged to meet up. It was a pleasant day with a very nice and friendly woman. We visited two department stores in the city center and then went to have coffee and chat. Here's a pic of me (taken by Astrid) knitting away on my Exchequered scarf while having coffee at a café--you can see Waterstones behind me... The following day, I had time, so I went to one of the dedicated yarn shops in Sheffield.

My overall impression is that each of the places has more or less the same amount of yarn available but quite different selections. Atkinsons is mostly acrylic and blends with some wool and cotton. John Lewis has quite a selection of Rowan and Debbie Bliss yarns among others and also carries some acrylic. The Wool Baa has Debbie Bliss and Noro among other brands (you can get a more complete list on the website) and also has some acrylic and blends. I felt one skein of yarn here that was amazingly soft. I looked at the label and was very shocked to find out that is was 100% acrylic! I just had to buy it for the novelty! ^^ I think it'll turn into the Alien Illusion Scarf from one of the Stitch 'n Bitch books.

Being big department stores, the atmosphere at both Atkinsons and John Lewis was not very warm, friendly or welcoming. I mean, it wasn't necessarily that the workers there were not friendly, but I guess it's better to say that it was more distant. I decided to buy something at John Lewis, but they did not have enough of the yarn of the same dye lot. So, I took the dye lots they had and asked the cashier, when she came (I had to wait a bit before someone showed up), if they had enough of any of these dye lots for me. She didn't seem annoyed that I asked, but she didn't seem very pleased to do it for me... But, that's more or less what one should expect in a department store, I guess. In contrast, The Wool Baa was quite homey, and the owner was very friendly approachable. When I asked for a business card, she gave me a pad of paper with the contact information of the shop on the bottom. How cool is that! ^^

The Wool Baa
83 Junction Road
Sheffield s11 8XA
+44 114 266 6262
thewoolbaa@btconnect.com
Tu 10:00-18:30
W-F 10:00-16:30
Sat 10:30-17:00

John Lewis
Barkers Pool
Sheffield s1 1EP
+44 114 276 8511
MTuFSat 9:00-18:00
W 9:00-20:00
Th 9:30-18:00
Sun 10:30-16:30

Atkinsons
The Moor Precinct
Sheffield
+44 114 276 8811
M-Sat 9:00-17:30

Square Three

2007-06-05T07:27:00.000+02:00

You thought I forgot, didn't you? Well, now, I didn't... I've just been a little lazy... Here's the final square that I knit for the baby blanket. It's in the first column on the third row. In the baby blanket, it's actually upside-down... but no worries. I put a bunch of stitches together from the book Beginner's Guide: Knit Stitches & Easy Projects by Leisure Arts, Inc. The border is done in Divided Boxes (little squares that are made of two triangles--one knit and one purl). In the center, I did Diamond Lace and on either side is Little Fountain. After I finished, it was just a little smaller than the size we agreed on (20cm x 20cm), so I crocheted a simple edging--nothing fancy. Just single crochet, chain three, single crochet. I think this is my favorite of the three. Which do you like? ^^

Yarn: Cotton/Acrylic Blend (forgot details)

Colorway: Purple (forgot details)

Needles: Suzanne Bates US8/5mm straight aluminium needles, Suzanne Bates USH/5mm aluminium crochet hook

Patterns: Various Stitches from Beginner's Guide: Knit Stitches & Easy Projects by Leisure Arts, Inc. (Border: Divide Boxes, Center: Diamond Lace, Sides: Little Fountain) and simple crochet edging

Price: Group purchase, so I'm not quite sure.

How long: An afternoon

Where: Home

Finally, two FOs to report!

2007-06-04T00:37:00.000+02:00

So, this weekend was fairly productive for me. I finally finished my third sock (to go with my first one), and I was in such a knitting place that I cast on and finished a tea cozy in like 11 hours. And today I'm wearing my first pair of hand knit socks! Yeah! Now time for the pics and details.

Sock # 3

Yarn: Knit Picks Memories, 100% Merino Wool

Colorway: Fly Fishing

Needles: Knit Picks US1/2.5mm aluminium dpns

Pattern: "Straight-Laced" in Knit Socks! 15 Cool Patterns for Toasty Feet by Betsy Lee McCarthy

Price: yarn and needles gift from princessgenevieve during Secret Pal 9

How long: Off and on for about two and half months, I think.

Where knit: Mostly at home and at a few SnB Amsterdam meetings

What did I learn?: My first time doing the Kitchener stitch. It didn't come out too nicely, though, so I need to try it again. I also learned that you don't want to knit the foot the actual length of your foot... You want it a bit shorter (or at least, I do) so you get a nice snug fit.

Tea Cozy

Yarn: year of the goat, hand-dyed, 100% wool

Colorway: no name--greens and browns (rusty reddy brown)

Needles: US7/4.5mm Bryspun Bry-Flex plastic dpns and US7/4.5mm Denise Interchangeables

Pattern: Modified version of Kureyon Kozy from Knitty.com

Price: Yarn gift from princessgenevieve during Secret Pal 9

How long: started around noon on 3 June, finished around midnight (with a few breaks and a nap in between), ripped a bit on the morning of the 4th and reknit, finishing around 9:00am. So roughly 10 hours total.

Where knit: at home

Modifications: The teapot I was knitting this for is a Turkish teapot, and it is not round like the teapots this cozy was intended for. I had to knit it much taller than the pattern called for. And since the handle is so high, I kept the cozy in one piece, more or less, until that point instead of knitting two flaps like the pattern calls for.

What did I learn?: I practiced combined knitting for the bit I reknit this morning--purl by wrapping the yarn from under the needle and then knit into the back of the stitch. This is one of the suggested techniques for knitters whose purl stitches are a little looser than their knit stitches. My ribbing was a bit more even, but I still need to practice.

Me, me, me, me, meeeeeme....

2007-06-02T23:45:00.000+02:00

I was tagged by princessgenevieve.

Here are the rules
1. Each player starts with 7 random facts about themselves.
2. People who are tagged write a post with the same.
3. At the end of the post tag 7 people.

Ready? Okay!

1. I lived in Panama for three years with my family in the mid-80s.
2. I went to a fine arts high school (despite not really taking part in any fine art....)
3. I took one year of piano lessons at said fine arts high school. (forgotten everything, though)
4. I took a month of danso lessons in Korea. The danso is kind of like a recorder in the sense that it's the instrument that almost everyone learns to play. It's a little more complicated than the recorder in how you blow into it--there is a little notch at the top, and you have to place your lips properly in order to produce any sort of sound. I should start practicing again! ^^
5. For some reason, when I was younger, I had my heart set on liking liver. So, I had my mom make it for me about once a year to see if my tastes had changed. It took a while, but eventually, they did!
6. I got sick off of burritos when I was younger (I inhaled like ten of them in like 5 minutes) and couldn't stand the smell of the spices afterwards for almost a decade.
7. The one time I had to get stitches was the result of having fallen at a skating rink. Four stitches in my chin. Apparently, I fell some something sharp...

Now, whose turn is it for a bit of randomness?

I tag fuliyama, oferenda, klozknitz, smoek!!!, Liza au lait, metalknit, and ghostknitter! Get those skeletons out of your closets! ^^

What kind of yarn am I?

2007-05-30T13:13:00.000+02:00

A quiz I saw on C's blog. So, what kind of yarn am I? Are you surprised? What kind of yarn are you? ^^

What kind of yarn are you?

You are Dishcloth Cotton.You are a very hard worker, most at home when you're at home. You are thrifty and seemingly born to clean. You are considered to be a Plain Jane, but you are too practical to notice.
Take this quiz!

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PRGE2: The final package...

2007-05-29T09:42:00.001+02:00

Yeah! My final PRGE2 package! And, what, oh what, did it contain, you ask? A very lovely silk tie with penguins (how cute!) and a deceptively prissy little pink box that contained a skull keyring! If you lift the top part of the skull, the clock underneath is revealed. How cool are these gifts? Thank you so much Chrissie! You've been a great pal!

Easy-peasy!

2007-05-23T11:47:00.000+02:00

Yeah! Woohoo! A finished scarf! Never mind that it was just a simple garter stitch scarf with free yarn from my Utrecht stash. It's finished! Of course, pink is not really my color... I was planning on donating it to a charity, perhaps The Dulaan Project if they are still functional. If not, any suggestions?

(Template stolen borrowed with permission from C.)

Yarn: 1 full 50g skein and a number of partial balls (perhaps an additional skein and a half) of Phildar Steppe yarn (76% acrylic, 20% wool, 4% rayon) in pastel pink.

Needles: Suzanne Bates, aluminium, straight, US8/5mm

Pattern: Garter Stitch to the end!

Worked: At home and at a few Stitch 'n Bitch Amsterdam meetings (garter stitch makes a great project for chatting--not much thought to it.)

Cost: Free! Well, I guess technically, I had to pay €7 to get to Utrecht and back to pick up the famous (free!) Utrecht stash, and whatever I paid for the Suzanne Bates needles, which happen to be my first pair of knitting needles (bought at JoAnn's in Athens, Georgia in December 2003)!

Travel knits

2007-05-15T09:07:00.001+02:00

In June, I'll be travelling to Turkey for the first time to visit my good friend Fulya (for whom, as you might remember, I knitted a pair of gloves last summer/fall). We'll spend about a week in Istanbul and a week in Ankara (where Fulya lives). I can't wait!

Of course, I'm faced with the difficult decision of what projects to take along to knit. Something not too bulky I can easily take out and work on in the plane and while waiting in airports, but enough of a project so that I don't run out (i.e., finish) while I'm there. I think my best bet will be the swatches for the Master Knitting Program. I have to do quite a few plus a project, and I need to practice the different techniques to get them just right. They are definitely small enough to carry around and enough to last... I hope! That should keep me for two weeks, right? If by chance I do finish all the swatches and the project to my satisfaction while there (not likely), what do I do?

A very interesting fact that I learned while reading up on Ankara is that its old name was Angora, and it was well known for its goats and rabbits and of course, the wonderful yarn you can get from them! So, of course, I'll be loading up on yarn, yarn, yarn! Perhaps I'll even be able to find out about Turkish knitting, which I understand is a little different from the way we Westerners generally knit. So I'll also try to find some books on traditional Turkish knitting and patterns. Lots to look forward to! Sounds like great potential for a knitting holiday, eh? ^^

I've bitten the bullet...

2007-05-09T23:15:00.000+02:00

I've enrolled myself into the Master Handknitting Program, Level 1! Fun, eh? I just received the instructions yesterday. 16 swatches, 17 questions, a report and a project. I have my work cut out for me! I'm gathering my research materials... I have to buy appropriate yarn, but I'll practice the swatches with yarn that I have, I think. Let's see how long it takes me to complete the program! Luckily, there is no time limit, but I hope to finish it within a year at most. Keep your fingers crossed!

Got Squares?

2007-05-08T09:21:00.000+02:00

Here's another square that I made for the SnB-group-effort baby blanket: third column, fourth row. A bed of various flowers knit into a stockinette background with a border composed of squares that are half knit and half purl. The two flowers in the middle were made with bobbles (how fun to make!) and the ones on the top and bottom were done with a kind of mini-bobble (the directions were from a Chinese stitch dictionary, so I'm not quite sure what it is called...). The stems and leaves were also knit at the same time, not duplicate stitched on afterwards. But because of all the loose bits of yarn in the back, I knit a small pink swatch and sewed it onto the back, hence the pink border between the field of stockinette and the border. I was quite happy with this square, but it is not my favorite... Any guesses? One square to go! ^^