On Mystic Light Shawl, Optim and Rothenburg o.d. Tauber

Mystic Light Shawl, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 19th April 2008
Finished: 30th April 2008
Yarn: Wollmeise 100% superwash merino Sockenwolle in "Koralle im Meer" (light)
Needles: Addi Lace, 3.5 mm / 80 cm
Pattern: Mystic Light Shawl by Anna Dalvi (aka Knit & Knag)

At last I got around to taking some photos of the Mystic Light Shawl. I surprised myself knitting this whole thing in only 11 days. Admittedly, the shawl's not that huge...but it's still a good sizes shawl.

I have problem with the colourway though. It is pretty busy that it obscures the lace pattern. But thanks to clever photography tricks, I can get the lace pattern to show on the photos.

I might knit this shawl again in a more solid colourway. I'll see.

All in all, I reckons that the shawl is beautiful and it wasn't such a hard pattern to knit like the Mystic Waters. The cables that run down the middle and along the top edge of the shawl as well as the true lace border add an interesting point in the knitting.

Mystic Light Shawl, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Mystic Light Shawl, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Mystic Light Shawl, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

I was racking my brain trying to think of a nice setting to take photos of the shawl because I had to represent light somehow. I started out thinking about taking the photo of the shawl with a lamp post...but that was tacky and out of the question because I couldn't reach up the lamp post anyway to hang up the shawl. :-p I settled for the small park around my flat and hung the shawl up on the tree with the sunlight streaming through the shawl to represent the light. The branches of the tree created shadows and helped representing the mystical part of it.

It was so windy when I was doing the photoshoot that I thought the shawl would fly away. Alala reckons that the colourway reminds her of Superman. LOL, imagine if the shawl had really blown away and flew around in the wind. It's a Superman Shawl! Thank goodness the tree barks were so rough that the shawl hung on to it very well.

Anyway, I've also finished spinning up the Optim:

Chameleon Colorworks Optim: Tahiti, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Chameleon Colorworks Optim: Tahiti [97:366, 06.04.2008], originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 22nd April 2008
Finished: 05th May 2008
Yardage: approx. 412.5 m
WPI: 18 WPI (plied)
Fibre: "Tahiti", 4 oz/113 g merino optim from Chameleon Colorworks given to me by ClaudiaWarner
Wheel & Settings: Kromski Minstrel, spun worsted on 12:1 ratio in double-drive mode, navajo-plied on 16:1 ratio in double-drive mode.

There are some super thin parts on the finished yarn...I just hope it won't break because I'm already knitting with it:

Le Flambé du Pacifique [100:366, 09.05.2008], originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Start: 8th May2008
Finish: WIP
Yarn: My own hand-spun - "Tahiti", merino optim from Chameleon Colorworks
Needles: Addi Lace, 3.5 mm - 80 cm (US#4 - 32")
Pattern: Swallowtail Shawl by Evelyn A. Clark from Interweave Knits Fall 2006

I'm knitting a Swallowtail out of my "Tahiti" optim hand-spun.

"Flambé" is French for the Scarce Swallowtail...it's native to Europe and not the Pacific. I chose the name "Le Flambé du Pacifique" (Scarce Swallowtail of the Pacific) because the colourway "Tahiti". Besides, I reckon that the colours on the Flambé's wings also reflects the colourway of this shawl.

Rothenburg ob der Tauber: Plönlein [95:366, 03.05.2008], originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Lastly, Dr. D and I went to Rothenburg ob der Tauber together last Saturday. It was our first trip alone together to somewhere, where both of us haven't yet been.

Nice picturesque hamlet....but it has unfortunately turned into such a tourist trap. Things are overpriced and everywhere there are only shops selling knick-knacks to fill the clichés but that nobody actually needs.

We went to two museums there: Reichstadt Museum and the Mittelalterliches Kriminalmuseum. Otherwise we just walked around town and looked at this and that.

Oh, and I got to try some "Schneeball" (it's a kind of snack and a specialty of Mittelfranken), which kind of made me sick afterwards because it's so fatty.

Very last thing though, I really would like to thank every single one of you who sent me words of encouragements and understandings concerning my last post. I'm feeling a lot better now that those things are out of my system. I have to make it clear though that when I talked about the negativity on Ravelry...or rather about HipKnits, it wasn't about the customers or something like that as some of you might have thought (well, those of you who knows the story wouldn't have needed any explanation anyway), but it's about the scandal that came with the shop's closing down a whole load of other things - no idea why I thought the shop had closed. I won't go into detail about it here since it doesn't really concern me (I never bought anything from there)...but if you're curious, I'm sure you can find information about it all over the net anyway. ;-)

ETA: Oh, dear Eru! Now there are even people copying spindles! That's getting kinda bad....if not very bad.

Well, so now you've caught up on everything. Have a great week, everyone!

Current Mood: Good
Food for the Ears: (If you listen to the Knitters Uncensored Podcast, you might remember this song....oh, and the video might not be very kid/work-safe.)

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On Chocolate....just add caramel

"Dental Floss" single, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 22nd September 2007
Finished: 25 g, spun in single on 11th October 2007
Yardage: approx. 225 m
WPI: n/a (but definitely more than 25 WPI)
Fibre: Anettes Wollwerkstatt merino batt, 19.5 microns
Spindle: Anettes Wollwerkstatt Turkish Cross Spindle

Yes, I finished spinning my brown dental floss....and now the yellow one is being spun up.

I can't wait for the yellow one to be done and then I can ply it together with this brown one. Really curious as to what it will look like.

"Dental Floss" single, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

"Dental Floss" single, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Anyway, on Thursday, I received two packages full of rovings that I ordered last week. I still have one more package to come though...but I'll keep quiet about that last one for the moment.

The first one that arrived was one kilogram of 100% Australian merino rovings I got from Wollknoll (in German). It's a huge ball of roving...and just for sizing, I put a skein of Wollmeise sock yarn beside it for you:

Australian Merino Rovings, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

I'm thinking about spinning a (semi-)worsted-weight single out of about 150-200 g of this and knit up a My So-Called Scarf...although I'm not sure whether I would be able to wear the colour or not. We'll see.

Then the second package come...and OMG this one:

Ashford Corriedale-Alpaca mix, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

This is 500 g of Ashford Corriedale-Alpaca mix I got from Wollinchen (also in German). The percentage of the mixture wasn't stated, but I'm guessing something around 80/20 or 70/30.

Anyhow, this stuff is super soft! I can't wait to spin this up. I'm not so sure how I'm going to spin this one up though. Any suggestion?

Wollmeise Sock Yarn: "Fratello", originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

So, before I go over to Vaterstetten, I better show you this. Yup, it's the "Fratello" colourway from Wollmeise. It isn't available at her shop though, since it's a special colourway for the sock kit in co-operation with Yarnissima. I've had this one for quite a whiel now, but I never blogged about it because it wasn't announced yet. I was supposed to test-knit for Yarnissima, but I never got around to it. Bockstark Knits did though. Yeah, I know, bad knitter, no cookies, right?

Wollmeise 80/20: "Tiefer See", originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

So, Vaterstetten.

Yesterday, I went to the wool market in Vaterstetten with Alala and another girl from the SnB...and no, I didn't take any pictures. :-p

I fully intended to go and get myself another spindle (with the weight in between the two that I have, which is 40 g for the Turkish cross spindle and 120 g for the Ashford classic low-whorl). Unfortunately, there wasn't any shop that sold spindles at all. This was quite a disappointment for me since it said on the back of the flyer I got at Benediktbeuern, that the supporting programme included "wool carding, hand spinning". I totally thought that the hand spinning part would mean there will be spindles on sale. Bummer, eh? (Okay, maybe there might be some today...but I'm not about to go over there again today. Besides, I spent all my money that I allowed myself for the market yesterday already.)

Anyway, the picture above is part of my haul from the market. Obviously, the Wollmeise was there. I originally intended to get one hank of yarn for a specific project from her....but since I couldn't get any spindles, I had some allowance for something else. And of course, I just had to try out the new "80/20" sock yarn. And what a coincidence that she had "Tiefer See" there! I had been dying to get my hands on this colourway for a while now but never got around to getting it.

From the initial petting, I can say that the yarn is very squishy comparing to the 100% merino sock yarn. It's also very soft....not that I'm saying that the 100% merino isn't soft. The 80/20 just has a different kind of softness to it. I can't say which one I'd prefer until I've knit the 80/20. So, be sure that I'll get back to the review again.

Wollmeise Lace-weight: "Pfefferminz-Prinz", originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

So, originally I wanted to go get a hank of the Wollmeise lace-weight specifically for the Mystic Waters KAL (yeah, I finally caved in for one of these mystery KALs). Originally I wanted the "Tiefer See" colourway, but the Wollmeise hasn't got any left in the lace-weight, but she suggested the dark version of "Pfefferminz-Prinz" instead....and OMG! It's even more perfect than "Tiefer See"! "Pfefferminz-Prinz" doesn't have a "water" name, but thinking of water, the colourway is perfect...the darker green/teal/black part really adds to the "mystic" part of the KAL. And it really gives depth to the water itself!

Wollwerkstatt Roving: Navy-Green, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Wollwerkstatt Roving: Green-Brown, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

And to make for the market not having any spindles, I found some gorgeous rovings and got these two for myself. They're both 50 g of 100% merino with 18 microns...so they're super soft. They're both from Wollwerkstatt (in German yet again).

The top one has some very deep green interspersed with the dark navy. You can't see any of the green in the photo though, but believe me, it's there. ;-)

So, that's my haul from Vaterstetten. Before I finish this post, I have some story to tell from yesterday.

When we arrived in Vaterstetten, we had to still walk to the market itself. We asked for direction a couple of times. The last time though, I went up to these three ladies and asked them whether they knew where the market was. Turned out they were from Nuremberg and didn't really know either. However, they had directions from Google with them, so we tagged along. At one point, one of the lady turned around to me and asked whether I'm on the internet (i.e. this blog here). So, OMG, someone recognised me from my blog! So, here's a shout-out to the lady from Nuremberg!

Then when I was petting some pretty lace-weight over at the Wollmeise stall. There was another lady who was browsing through. I was talking to the others, but I noticed that this particular lady kept looking at me. At last she seemed to have plucked up enough courage and came to ask me whether I'm one of the Knitters Uncensored! Turned out she's Shaun (Ravelry link because she's blogless) and she's a listener and also member of the Uncensored Knitters Group on Ravelry.

It's just so funny that I got recognised twice on the same day. But well, we were at a wool market after all. ;-)

Well, that's all I've got right now. Wishing you all a great Sunday and a good start to the week!

On Shawls are the new Socks!

Clementine Shawlette, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 11th May 2007
Finished: 09th June 2007
Needles: 3 mm / 60 cm Inox circs
Yarn: Rohrspatz & Wollmeise sock yarn, "Drachenblut"
Pattern: Clementine Shawlette by Michele Rose Orne from Interweave KNITS Spring 2007

It's finished! Yup! My Clementine Shawlette and I LOVE it!

Yes, you heard it right. It is for MEEEEEEE! Sure, it can go as a scarf, if I choose to wear it outside, but well, I'd rather have it around my shoulder at home. And no, I don't cross dress...I just like to look at the pretty lace and feel the luxury of great wool and feel proud at something I had created by my own two hands.

Clementine Shawlette, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

I used about 0.75 of the yarn, so I still have a quite a bit left. The pattern said that it should be blocked lightly to the size of 10 3/4" wide and 57 1/4" long. However, I totally blocked it out and I get 13" wide and 71" long....I quite like it blocked out like this. ;-)

In the last episode of I threw out the question of whether men could wear shawls...lacey ones at that.

*LOL* It seems that my idea wasn't well accepted. But hey, I don't care. Like I said, I'm not about to wear a lace shawl over my shoulders to go outside of my home, but still, I like it. I have to re-iterate again that I do NOT cross dress, so don't even think about anything stupid here.

But just for the sake of it, I'm modelling my Clementine for you guys. ;-)

"Who said we can't?" Clementine Shawlette, modelled par moi, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Not too bad, eh?

WWKIP-Day was on Saturday. Only the KU team was there plus a German girl from
and a friend of mine. Better than nobody, eh?

So, that's all I have to say for now. Have to get back to my studying.

Have a great start to the week!

Current Mood: Okay
Food for the ears: One more year at Hogwarts, Billy Reid - listen to the song on my Vox

On...Hi Michelle (aka the anonymous Commenter)

Hi Michelle,

Thank you so much for leaving the comment and clearing up some of the things. I'm not a person who like to participate in lengthy discussion, so I'm going to say the last bit here, you can still comment on it though, but I'm going to leave it here. Why? Because you, as well as everybody else, will eventually get an invite to Ravelry and things will be solved anyway. ;-)

Anyway, now that I look back, I have to apologise for my tone. Seemed like I was writing pretty much out of spite. But I have to defend myself on that: I'm in Ravelry and have been observing what had been going on inside it. How much work Casey and Jess are dedicating on the site - and mind you, they're doing this in their own time while holding their own jobs and the biggest thing you have to hold in mind here is the fact that they are doing this for us knitters for free. A lot of people have expressed their wishes to compensate them both on this. I tend to coil away from having to pay fees to use a site, but I would gladly donate an amount that I can choose. However, that's another story.

So, keep in mind that Jess and Casey are doing all these works for free, in their own time, with their own money. And they're doing this for us knitters to build a community together. A community that would hold us together, a playground for knitters (and of course crocheters - don't think I'm leaving you guys out. I crochet, too!). I think that a lot of people on "the other side of the fence" do not realise that. And Casey and Jess aren't going around proclaiming that fact either.

I wasn't aware of the fact that you did not know what was inside Ravelry, because of how I interpreted your post. Besides, I assumed that most of the people should know by now some of the main features in Raverly, prior to the screen shots from yesterday, since so many of the "real" A-list bloggers out there had been posting about it and that was actually how I got to know about Ravelry in the first place, even before podcasters started to talk about it. It still also surprises me that there are quite a bunch of people who still haven't got a clue about Ravelry (as I have seen in some of the Flickr threads)....but I guess they know now. :-p

You said that you've been corresponding with people who are also somewhat disappointed about not having yet received an invitation. The only thing I could ask you to do here is, please, tell all of them to be patient. Tell them to go take pretty photos of their yarns and projects and upload them to Flickr. Tell them that Ravelry is doing their best to get everybody in, even though they're still in Beta. But above all, tell them that the makers, i.e. Jess and Casey, are doing this in their own spare time for free, while holding up their jobs. :-)

Yes, I did keep in mind that you said you were going to wait. And I am glad that you reiterate the point again, for I sure do hope that all other not-yet-Ravelrers out there would know how to be patient for some things....otherwise they wouldn't be knitters, aren't they? Making a garment stitch by stitch requires patient....an when you really are patient about it, then the joy at the result is great. And thus it also is for Ravelry.

Lastly, thank for not trashing me anywhere because of what I said. I'm not taking back what I said, but I'm trying to put it plainly and explain my motifs, like you have been doing. I think that the low-tolerance on the kind of frustration knitters are having over Ravelry come from the fact - like I said above - that a lot of people who are already in can see how much work goes into making Ravelry and why there is such a great need for Jess and Casey to tread carefully before opening up the site. Whilst the others who are not in haven't been able to see all this. So, I guess that now the words are out, that things will calm down a bit and that people will have more understandings about what's going on. Everyone can also see what's going on at Ravelry as well as seeing the progress on the site by visiting the Ravelry Blog.

The very last thing I have to mention is that I also just received an email from Jess, in which she admits that they've realised that they haven't been doing 100% well on the communication front to both sides of the fence. So, yes, communication should now flow more freely...and I hope that all parties will be satisfied. Just be patient everybody. Jess and Casey are trying their best to be fair to everybody and to make the site fantabulous for everybody....and as we all should know: Good things take time. ;-)

As for you, Michelle, I raise a hank of yummy Wollmeise sock yarn in reverence to your understandings and patience over my rantings and, above all, in knit-blogo-sphere friendship! :-)

Take care! *peace out*
Elemmaciltur

Ps. Thanks y'all for raising my status and making me realise that I - out of some weird reasons - had become and A-list blogger. I'm very flattered and I hope that you guys will continue to read my blog! Including you Michelle! (Haven't you got a blog so that I can stalk you, too? *LOL*)

On...that Anonymous comment

Hi Anonymous,

Yes, you! The one who left that anonymous comment in my last post. Apparently you didn't read my post very well: I don't like anonymous comment. Sure, I didn't disable it, but that's because I want to give people a chance to say things and it seems you're using that, which is okay. But I really feel that if you want to constructively criticise something, then it's better to do it honestly with your name or at least your screen name.

Okay, now to your comment. Sure, you might find it frustrating waiting for an invitation to Ravelry, so did I. But like Tini said: Life goes on. You're not going to die from not being on Ravelry. Anyhow, what got me going here is the fact that you were saying that there are users who were given invitations to issue to whomever they want. To my understandings, this was the case in the beginning, but I don't think that it is now anymore. So, scrap that, please. Sure, I could be wrong and if that is the case, then sorry. But I still don't think that it's unfair at all...and it does in absolutely no way contributes to the elitism you were referring to.

In the end you were saying that you completely understand that Ravelry has to protect itself from not being overwhelmed, but why were you then immediately taking jabs at "popular podcasters or A-list knitbloggers"?!

FYI, I am NEITHER an A-list knit-blogger, NOR was I a podcaster before getting the Ravelry invitation. So, please, don't just throw your disappointments around at other people who happened to be in such position. Just be patient and keep doing other things and you'll get your invitation sooner or later. And again, like Tini put it: Your joy will be even greater.

The things I've been telling people who want to join Ravelry but are waiting for the invitation was that they should just start taking photos of their FOs, WIPs and also photos of their stashes, i.e. each different yarn individually and upload them onto Flickr. One more tip, sort those out into sets. Believe me, it'll make your life a lot easier once you join Ravelry.

Okay, now you might hate me and stop reading my blog. That's okay, I don't mind (even though I'm such a comment-ho). I don't think that that many people read my blog anyway, remember, I'm no A-list knit-blogger. ;-) But if you want to throw your disappointments around, then please do so somewhere else, but not on my blog. You can start trashing me on other blogs or somewhere else, too, if you feel like it. I don't really care. Coz I reckon that people who have been reading my blog a long time would know how I am, not to mention those who know me personally. So, take your pick. Either be honest with yourself and constructively criticise openly with your name, or just hide behind a facade and keep going on like that. Last thing I want to say here is that I do not intend to offend you in anyway here, but if it came over as an affront, then sorry. I just felt the need to point this out and put things right.

Thank you very much.

Regards,
Elemmaciltur

On Gorilla on the loose

Moo Mini Cards, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Yeah, well, the title. It was going to be a rant, but I don't think that it's worth it. If it bothers me again, I might post about it. ;-) I was going to re-title the post, but I actually quite like the title, so I'm going to leave it. *LOL* (Oh, there'll be a little rant later alright, but not on the same topic)

Anywayz, as you can see, I received my Moo Mini Cards!!!! They are sooooo purdy and fun to play with! I can't wait to start distributing them around...and since I'll be sending off some yarns for swaps, a card will be going in with each package! Right now, I'm using one as a book-marker for my EZ's Knitting without Tears! (I could rant about Amazon and Deutsche Post here, but no)

Now, before we get to the real knitting content, I need to let out one real rant here. So...*rant on*

This morning, when I got on the computer and logged on to I saw an update by Casey, the Fairy who created the site. (If you don't know what Ravelry is, go and take a sneak peek HERE).

The update tells us that some dimwit a certain "particularly upset" person sent them an email expressing his/her unhappiness that he/she still hasn't received an invitation to join Ravelry. By the tone of how Casey wrote, it seems that the email wasn't very nice at all. When are people going to understand that they can't just go ahead and open the floodgate and get all the people in and just let the site go boom?! Be patient, people!

Sure, I'm already in, so I can talk how I like. And also, if you know me, you know that I'm very impatient about some of the stuff. But let me tell you this, I understand totally why Casey and FreckleGirl is going slowly at this: They want to make the site ready before opening the gate. Think about it. Aren't you going to be even more unhappy if you just joined up and the next day the site crashes? Besides I can tell from experience. I waited for my invitation, very impatiently. Bockstark Knits even got her invitation before I do, and I was sure that I signed up before she did. So, I wrote a nice email asking FreckleGirl about my invitation and she got back to me promptly and said that I wasn't far down the list. Now, I didn't go around barking at them and sent them an anonymous email! If you're going to get angry at them, then do it with honesty and don't go through the back door and bark at them anonymously. Bloody coward! *rant off*

Boyfriend Sock: Frogged back and needles re-inserted, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

If you've listened to the first episode of , you'd have heard me talking about my woes with my sock-knitting-mojo at the moment, particularly with the Boyfriend Sock at the moment. You see, the first time the cables travel to the outer edge, I ended up twisting that set of cables one time too many. I hadn't touched the sock since I noticed the mistake. Only when I started talking about it on the podcast and then saw MondayLunchCrew's finished pair did I had the courage to rip out the needles and frogged back to the offending point. I succeeded in that, but I still haven't knit any further. Right now I'm too engrossed in lace projects....

Clementine Shawlette: Progress, first half completed - unblocked blob, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

My fav at the moment is the Clementine Shawlette (for MEEEEEEEE!!!!). This first half had been completed like a week and a half ago and had been sitting there waiting to pose for a photo until yesterday. I've already started knitting the second half and half of that is already done. I just can't wait until this one's finished! Then I can have fun with blocking lace for the first time and pinning out everything. I haven't got blocking wires and the thought at pinning out everything with hundreds of little pins kinda make me want to go cower in a dark corner. So, anybody out there has any tips for me? Bockstark Knits, how did you block your Tiger Eyes scarf?

Icarus: Progress, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Lastly, the Icarus for my mum's coming along, albeit slowly. I actually got hooked on knitting it on Saturday evening and got a bit done. Yeah, I know it doesn't look as though it had grown at all...but it had.

It's going to be my Christmas '07 present for my mum...so I still have time to do this one, but I shouldn't leave it off for too long. ;-)

Well, I guess that's all I have for the moment. We're recording the second episode of this coming Thursday...and it's going to jam-packed with loads of fun! So, keep a look out for the second episode coming soon!

Have a great week, y'all!

Current Mood: Great!
Food for the ears: Did you think - Adrina Thorpe, listen to the song on my Vox

On taking another trip to the frog-pond (or the JayWalker Curse)

Iris Sibirica JayWalker #4, going to the frog-pond (again), originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 21st April 2007
Finished: Going to the frog-pond for the 2nd time (or 3rd, depending on how you look at it)
Yarn: Rohrspatz & Wollmeise superwash sockyarn, colourway "Iris Sibirica"
Needle: 2.5 mm/ US #1 Addi Turbos circs
Pattern: JayWalker by Grumperina on MagKnits
Modification: I'm doing this using the toe-up version modified by Natalia Knits and I'm also using the Magic Cast-On instead of the provisional cast-on suggested

*Lacrimosa dies illa*

Yeah, it's a sad day indeed. I spent last night and this whole morning working on my Iris Sibirica Toe-up JayWalker. I'm not sure whether I've mentioned already, but well, this is the third time I'm frogging this particular one. The very first time I was doing the gusset increase and did something wrong, so I frogged back to the toe and started again (so this might not count as total frogging). The second time I found that the thing was going to get way too long and frogged the whole thing to start over again.

This time? Well, before that second frogging I measured my row-gauge (yes, I did) and did all the maths to calculate the length after the toe at which I'm supposed to do the gusset increase so that the sock won't get too long. I cast-on again with a new fervour and started the gusset increase early enough. I then neglected the project for almost a whole month until I picked it up again last night and actually knitted 2/3 of what you can see in the picture...well, up to the heel flap which I did this morning.

As I completed the heel flap and tried the sock on....well, you can see the heel in the picture. It turned out too long...and if I pull it, it will go well over. I didn't get angry, I didn't cry, I didn't throw the project across the room. I just felt....defeated.

This is the fourth time I'm knitting Jaywalker. The very first pair I had to frog the whole thing because it was too tight to even go over my ball of foot. Then I knitted it too long and the first ball of yarn wasn't enough for a second one, so I had to hunt for another ball, which my LYS luckily got in for me (even though it wasn't the same dye-lot). The second pair went okay, but my gauge got tighter by the time I started the other side. So one was kind of sloppy and the other was snug.

The third one is now in hibernating mode...since I started the toe decrease too late and it turned out too long, so the toe's being frogged and will have to be re-knit.

Then there's this one. Not only am I having problem with the length, but the fit isn't as snug as I would like it to be.

*sigh*

I'm just going to leave it rest for a while and will re-start it again doing the smallest size (I knitted - yeah, I'm using the past already - it in the second smallest size) and will have to re-calculate for the gusset increase and re-do the heel flap (this one's too wide for my taste). And no, I'm not going down in needle size. Knitting with 2 mm / US #0 is hell for me.

So, I guess that for now, I'll pick up one of my hibernating socks up again (and no, I won't be doing JayWalker #3. I need a break from Jaywalkers altogether).

However, I kind of finished something:

Trekking pro Natura Test-Knit for [Maschenkunst], originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Trekking pro Natura Test-Knit for [Maschenkunst], originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 31st March 2007
Finished: One down, one to go (if there's enough yarn), halfway on 17th May 2007
Yarn: Zitron's "Trekking pro natura" sock yarn: 75% New Wool, 25% Bamboo; colourway # 1640
Needle: 2 mm/ US #0 Addi Turbos (using MagicLoop method)
Pattern: Universal Toe-up Sock using Magic Cast-On
Note: Test knit for [Maschenkunst]

Yes, I finally finished one side of the Pro Natura sock and I can tell you, I don't want to knit with 2 mm / US #0 again. That just takes way too long. But anyway, at least I have one side down and for the purpose of test-knitting, I think that suffices.

As to what I feel about the yarn. In the beginning I didn't really like it. The yarn feel somewhat more fibery than usual, almost kind of like paper. But after a while, the lightness of it grew on me. And when I tried the sock on, it felt light and warm, but not stiflingly warm as 100% wool would do. I could imagine that this might even be wearable in summer, well, not when it's like 40 centigrade out, but when it's still a bit milder. In spite of the fact that it's 75% wool, it feels really light. I would give this wool 2 out of 10. Two points deducted from the papery feeling to it and another two points for turning out so thin that I had to knit it with 2 mm / US #0.

Well, that's all I have to report. If you're on , then make sure to add me to your friend! Have a great start to the week!

Current Mood: Defeated about the JayWalkers, but otherwise fine
Food for the Ears: Call me irresponsible - Michael Bublé (Call me irresponsible), listen to the song on my Vox

On....Ravelry much

Pink & Green Bike, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

(The photo above is for for April-May, with the colours: Green, Yellow and Pink)

Please, don't mind the title. If you're not a knitter/crocheter, you probably won't know it. I'll get to the knitting content a bit later on.

So, hey everyone (not that anyone's reading at all....coz I hardly get any comments nowadays *sobs*). Yes, I'm still alive and well. I'm still in Germany. Yes, I haven't been kicked out of the country and I shouldn't have had worried that much anyway. Thank you for all of you who expressed kind words and encouragements.

What's the story then?

Last Tuesday (8th May), I finally summed up enough guts to go to the foreigner office (henceforth "KVR") to face my doom. I was armed with a letter of confirmation / prognosis from my university, the four certificates of participation from the lectures I attended last semester, positive thoughts and a lot of charm. :-p I got to the KVR, filled out the form, went and get some horrible ugly fugly fubar photo of myself done in the photo booth (EUR 6, thank you very much) and then waited for my number to be called up with something akin to a brush with nervous breakdown going on in me. I decided to do some learning (I brought some uni stuff to read) against knitting, because:

a) I might look menacing with knitting needles and thus would make a bad impression of myself,
b) I was so nervous that I think I'd probably drop 50 zillion stitches on whatever I was going to work on, which would lead to;
c) me swearing furiously at whatever, which would then lead back to (a)

So, I settled down and read and try to forget what ever else was going on around me.

My number was called up and I went over to the room I was supposed to go to. I was half expecting the stern guy who processed my stuff two years ago, who also gave me the hard time at KVR and who was one of the causes for my fear of dealing with the KVR at all. I knocked and open the door only to be greeted by a not-German-looking woman who seemed to be very sympathisch, i.e. likeable.

I said hello in the most polite Bavarian way possible and seated myself down before handing her my visa extension application form, my fubar photo and my passport. She flipped through everything briefly and walked over to the shelf to get my file. She got that, flipped through that briefly and remarked whether I have done my pre-diploma yet, because I should've done it already but the certificate isnt in my file. Yes, I've done my pre-diploma already and there should at least be a letter from my university in my files. She found that, at which point I also have procured my Studienbuch (record of study book), where there's also a confirmation that I've passed my pre-diploma already. In that time, I noticed that she found my last extension application from two years ago and the letter of agreement that I should have finished my studies by now or I could be kicked out. I started to panic and tried to draw her attention away from that letter of agreement by telling her that if she still needs any more confirmation, I have this letter from the university and that I know about the fact that I have at most 10 years to do my first degree, blah blah blah....she just looked up and told me that I was still on good terms with the time limit. That just took loads off my psyche!

So, I thought that I should just grease up a bit and fished out my four lecture certificates and gave them to her asking whether she might need them as evidence of my studies. She took them and copied them and flipped through them....she raised her eyebrows and asked me whether I've done all these in the last semester. Yes, I said. She went on to remark that I was diligent comparing to some other foreign students who always come in totally empty-handed and haven't done a thing at all during the semester!

Yeah, I was being extremely charming.

To cut it short, she gave me until March 2009! (Another EUR 30 processing fee, thank you very much). Yeah, I'm sooooo grateful for that and I definitely will not be dilly-dallying around any more.

I'm so relieved that I have this time-limit pressure lifted off my back. So, I'm constantly working on my papers now, but am not rushing them like a mad man anymore. Thus I could relax a bit and pick up my knitting again...

...which brings me to my next point: Knitting (okay, so y'all who aren't interested in knitting content, that's all there is to read. Glad you dropped by. Do leave a comment, because I'm a comment whore :-p )

Icarus: Progress, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 24th April 2007
Finished: WIP
Needles: 3.5 mm / 60 cm Inox circs
Yarn: Rohrspatz & Wollmeise Lace-weight, 100% superwash virgin wool, 300g Hank (530 m / 100 g), colour: "Poison No. 5"
Pattern: "Icarus" by Miriam Felton from Interweave Knit Summer 2006

Yes, that's how much I got so far with the Icarus. I'm going slow on this one, as it's for my mum (as her Christmas pressie) and I don't want to muck it up by being impatient. Besides, I've 100+ stitches now with each row....but well, it's still a long way away until it's going to be finished.

Apart from that, I've been busy with this:

Clementine Shawlette, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

.....which during the meantime had grown into this:

Clementine Shawlette: Progress, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Started: 11th May 2007
Finished: WIP
Needles: 3 mm / 60 cm Inox circs
Yarn: Rohrspatz & Wollmeise sock yarn, "Drachenblut"
Pattern: Clementine Shawlette by Michele Rose Orne from Interweave KNITS Spring 2007

(NB: The colours in the latter photo are darker in reality....but I had to lighten it up on the photo, otherwise it's just going to look like a lump of something dark. You can compare the colour of the yarn to this photo)

I started the Clementine Shawlette partly as a reward relieve project for getting the visa extension and partly because I'm getting on the lace-binge. For the first time after my catastrophic encounter with lace last year, I finally found the courage to knit lace and see the beauty of lace.

Now, thing is, the Clementine Shawlette's going to be for myself. No, I'm not about to cross-dress. But I can see the beauty of a lace shawl and I find it unfortunate that men can't wear it (yes, men can wear it, but have you ever seen any men walking around in public with a lacy shawl wrapped around their shoulders?)....and well, I just want something lacy for myself. So, I decide to knit myself one and to use it in my own privacy at home (and no, I will not take any photos of me wearing it and post it here). I think that's fair enough. ;-)

Also, please take note the gorgeous stitch markers a friend from Cologne (who I got to know through Daniela) made for me. She made two sets of four markers. One set is on the Icarus and one marker is on the Clementine Shawlette. Aren't they just beautiful and the perfect complement to the project?

And I've learnt something new today:

Entrelac try-out, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Yes! I can finally do Entrelac! And thank goodness I've already learnt how to purl backwards...otherwise all the turnings would've driven me nuts.

Lastly, is there anything more that I could say about ? Most of you knitters/crocheters out there should know about it by now. ;-) And Oh.My.God! This is one of the best thing that could happen to the knitting community! I just can't tear myself away from it. I'd been spending so much time taking photos of my FOs, WIPs and stash, just so that I can upload it onto Ravelry and get everything organised.

Okay, they're still in beta and not everyone can get on yet. But do put your name down if you want to join. I was so happy when I received the invitation in my email (it was 11 p.m.) and I started to squeal and jumped around until my neighbours thumped the ceiling. *oops* But yes, I'm so glad that I'm on Ravelry now. ;-)

Lastly, do you remember these two hanks of Wollmeise?

Wollmeise Sockyarns: Rhabarber & Kräuterbeet, originally uploaded by elemmaciltur.

Well, now I can talk about it a bit, because they're now being loved by their recipients, who are ! ;-)

Well, that's all for now. I hope you guys have a great week! Thanks for dropping by (and please do say hi if you were here!)

Current Mood: Definitely a whole load better than last week
Food for the ears: You are always on my mind by Michael Bublé (Call me irresponsible) - Listen to the song on my Vox