I Wanna Wish You A Merry Christmas....

I went away to villa for the Christmas holiday with my extended family. All I did there was eat and sleep. And of course I knit too. Here's my Christmas FO...

Cabled Beret, modeled by my very cute nephew, Brian.
Pattern from Sirdar leaflet
Yarn used Sirdar Denim Tweed, 1 ball(though the pattern specified 2)
Finished in 2 days!

Anyway, don't you just LOVE Christmas? I know I do. Even though Christmas spirit isn't as visible here as it is overseas, I still feel the love. My dream is to have a Western style Christmas with my family one day. You know, with the real Christmas tree, presents wrapped in red and green under the decorated tree, family dinner, Christmas pudding, etc. And of course, one very important part, hand knitted Christmas stocking.

Yeah, enough for day dreaming, I wanna share with you another FO. I knitted this one earlier this year, before I started blogging.

Cabled Vest for Brian
Yarn used Sirdar Snuggle 4 ply, less than 2 balls.
And here you can see the benefit of knitting in larger size for toddler, it fits longer!

Well, new year is only 4 days away, I'll be back with my new year resolution! Being ever so lazy to write diary, I always wrote at least once, right on new year's midnight. This time I think I'm going to share it with you guys ;).

Once again, I wish you all a Merry Christmas. Hope everyone had a great Christmas ;)

Updates...(okay, I'm bad at titles)

Hiyaa!!
I just came back 2 days ago from a 4-day holiday in Bali. Now, holiday in Bali should be easily described as "fun on the beach and under the sun", right? Not so in my case..."lots of rain and bargaining" is more like it. I did get some great bargains though ;D.
Anyway, I'm at my cousin's house and we just baked some brownies! The kind with LOTS of chocolates. Yumm...
Well, here's the FO and WIP pictures promised...

Mini sweater
Pattern from Glampyre.
Yarn used, Madil Eden, 100% Bamboo, 5 skeins.
Alterations, very different gauge, no puffy sleeves, yarn-overs increase. I still haven't decided on the closure though.

Backyard Leaves Scarf
Pattern from Scarf Style, thanks Janet!
Yarn used, 3 skeins of Filatura Di Crosa Zara. Did 12 pattern repeat for each side.
This is the WIP pictures, since I haven't blockes the scarf yet. Don't you think the popping leaves are just so cute?

I've done the back and started a sleeve of Jemima, but then...I cast on for another project and have been completely neglecting her. Sorry girl, will get back to you as soon as this is done.

And this is what I've been knitting for the past few days. Glampyre's Bulky Cabled Cardigan in Rowan Polar. I LOVE the pattern. It's so simple and easy...and fast too. What more could you ask for? After knitted 3 Glampyre's top-down pattern (OSW, Minisweater, and this), I think I might be ready to knit my own.

My days are currently filled with lots of shopping for school preparation. To be honest, I'm really nervous since I've never lived in an English speaking country before. What if nobody understands me? I'm worried about cultural clash too....so...will everyone who'd been to UK or is living there give me some advice? It would be really appreciated.

I'm still alive!!

Well, I've been meaning to post for few days, but never got around doing it, thanks to the very slow internet connection.
I just want to tell you guys that me and my stash have both reached home safely, though I did have to pay for the excess baggage(16kg!!).
A lot of knitting have been going on, and pictures taken. I just haven't figured out a way to connect my cam to the cpu without getting electric shock.
Here's some knitting updates:
-Minisweater, done but still without closure
-Backyard leaves scarf, second piece, 4th repeat
-Jemima, back done
See? Holiday is good for my knitting.
I just got back from the dentist, and though that was absolutely the best dentist I've ever visited, my teeth are still aching like crazy. They took an rontgen of my teeth, and it turns out that there are lots of holes.
And anyway, I'm having a medical check-up tomorrow, and Mimi, I take my words back, I don't think it's going to be fun.

Pack & Tag

As if I don't have enough yarn to pack.
Left to right : 2 skeins of purple for gloves, 5 skeins of yummy red for a scarf, and 3 skeins of grey, cream and pink for a hat. ALL FOR MOI!
I visited my LYS for one last time yesterday, wanted to say goodbye to the owner who taught me to knit. And I just decided that was my last chance to get those yummy Zara I've been fondling everytime I went there for years, but never bought.

Anyway, I'm leaving in 15 hours. Curious about my packing? See this.

My yarns and UFOs(compressed) fit in 2 bags and a box except for 2 packs. They weigh about....15 kg.

Now, let's do the calculation. My baggage allowance is 30 kg. My stash is 15 kg, and there's no way I'm leaving even a skein behind. So...that leaves me only 15 kg for my clothes, books, shoes, bags and other LOTS of stuffs. Some sacrifices MUST be done. So I bid goodbye to my comics and novels collection(which is big, but I have an even bigger one at home). Then to my shoes and sandals...which have a wardrobe of their own. To 80% of my wardrobe. To 90% of my socks collection(yes, I have a sock collection). To 80% of my bag collection(there must be about 30 there, took only 4). To my CD collection(uhm....most are pirated, so I only took the beloved originals). And to other stuffs(these includes a whole box of lettersets, a box of origami papers, LOTS of very heavy universities prospectus, hundreds of magazine, my makeups, my baking supplies, my art and crafts supplies, hundreds of gift-wrapping papers, 9 boxes of long-forgotten stuffs, years worth of textbooks, and a guitar.

OK, that list is totally unnecessary, sorry for that, but it's just a little hard to leave what I've collected for the past 7 years. And if you can't tell yet, I've been a "stuffs collector" since a kid.

Well...I still have to leave anyway, leaving is hard, isn't it?
I still remember clearly when I came here to study 7 years ago(we missed the plane and had to sleep at the airport's playground area, but that's another story), and suddenly it's time to go. I always feel sad everytime I'm leaving, even if it's only for 2 weeks. But this time, I'm not coming back in years.

Anyway, let's do a meme to cheer myself instead. Thanks for tagging me, Mimi!

1.What is your all-time favourite yarn to knit with ?
For cotton, Jaeger Siena.
For wool/merino, Filatura Di Crosa Zara.
For mohair, obviously KSH. I feel like buying every colours, and make a KSH collection. Sounds good, eh?

2. Your favourite needles ?
Addi Turbos, hands down. Same old complaint though, wish the tip is more pointy.

3. The worst thing you ever knit
That stockinette acrylic scarf, of course. Wanna see? Now, where did I put it..oh here it is

Judge for yourself.

4. Your favourite pattern
Ooh....this one is hard. I think I'll pick OSW. It's nothing with complex design, just a smart little beauty with endless possibilities.

5. Most valuable knitting technique
Magic loop and seaming.

6. Best knit book or magazine
VK, IK and Rowan.

7. Your favourite knit-along
I'm a bad KALer, really. Joined in lots of KAL, but never really participating. But if I have to pick a fav, it'd be Socktoberfest.

8. Your favourite knit blogs
Umm....way too much to mention. I have many favourites, some I read religiously, some I enjoy reading. I'm really thankful for Bloglines, though sometimes it doesn't work well.

9. My favourite knitwear designer
Kim Hargreaves, Debbie Bliss, Glampyre, Elsebeth Lavold, Anna Bell.

10. The knit item you wear the most.
Well...OSW and Gabby, both worn ONCE.

11.Who to tag?
I must be the last person to answer this, so I'm not tagging anyone!

I'm back!

So...I was planning to stay in Singapore for 4-5 days...I even thought that bringing 2 pants and 2 skirts was too much. How could I know that I would ended up staying for EIGHT days, and having to wear my pants for more than 3 days each.
And...and...I went with such good intention, bringing a very heavy, full luggage with me, for my cousin to help me take back to Indonesia. She even brought me a bigger, empty luggage so that I can pack more easily when I'm going back to Jakarta. But...you know me...the luggage is no longer empty when I came back. In fact, it was full. Full with these...

Of course, these are only the knitting related one. You can see that I've successfully added another 31 skeins of yarn to my as-if-not-big-enough stash. And my other purchases? I'll just say that I left with a pair of earrings, and came back with 6. You get the idea.

I had a great time in Singapore though...shopping till I drop. Who was I fooling when I thought that S$700 would be enough? Lucky I've got that atm card.
For the first 3 days, I stayed with my cousin and aunt, went shopping everyday and didn't have to pay for a thing (my aunt loves me, you know). I know that my mom would've done the same for my cousins anyway. Then after they left, I stayed with my friend, one of my best friends. So yeah, we had a blast, even though my friends complained that they can't get any studying done when I was there, and that I made them spent so much. Hey, it's not my fault if they can't control themselves, right? I've been told that I have an ability to make people spends though.

Guess what? I finally get to go on a knitting meetup! My first one ever!
First I get to meet up with Erin, and we went to a yarn shop together. The yarn shop might not be the best, but I really enjoyed meeting her(Hey Erin!). I was a bit nervous at first. I mean, I would consider someone insane to meet up with someone they knew only from blogging. My friend even thought that I'd get kidnapped. But hey, we're talking about knitters here!
Then next...I got to meet up with Lois, Cara and other Singaporean knitters.
I didn't have any knitting going on then...so I basically just sat there and browse through the knitting books. Everyone were so nice though, and I can safely say that I had a good time and I'm well prepared for more meetups in the future.

On the knitting part...I finally get back to knitting Orangina again. This time with different yarn and different needle. This is how it looks so far...
I think it looks quite promising this time...

Anyway, I'm going back to Jakarta in less than a week, and my stuffs are still very much untouched. Gotta start packing soon! But looking around my room, I really have no idea how to start. Trust me when I tell you that I've collected quite a lot the past 7 years.

Hey, I almost forgot to tell that I taught another friend of mine to knit! She's not likely to be hooked though...she swore that she'll never touch knitting again. Oh well, at least she know how to knit and purl now.

can't think of any...

It's been a hectic week for me....no real knitting had been done for more than a week! Fortunately I still have an FO to show ;D
So....may I present to you....Clapotee!



And yeah, that's my prom outfit. I don't want to wear something too formal, so I wore these...


The outfit that took me a whole day of shopping to buy. I walked SO MUCH for days, my feet were killing me. Believe me, my toe thumbs are still numb till now.
Still...I had a wonderful night...and took LOTS of pics.
Hey, remember the scarf I knitted for my teacher? I gave it to her that night...


I was told(by other teachers) that she wore it everyday in the teacher's room ;D. It sure feels great when your work is appreciated.

I'm leaving for Singapore tonight, meeting my cousin there, so that she could help me take my stuffs back to Jakarta. I'm still in the middle of packing now, and my bus is leaving in 3 hours! Anyway, while I'm packing, I noticed this...


My stash used to fit the blue box on the left....but somehow flood from the laundry bin on the right now. Gee...I hope that somehow my parents won't notice this...

Um...what knitting should I bring with me?? I just realised that I actually have NO project going on. Well...nothing that I'm in the mood to knit anyway. So I might just knit a sock or bag or something small...

And...thanks so very much for everyone's comments on Gabby ;D It means a lot to me.

Cya guys, I'm hoping to have some meetups and yarn shopping spree to report on my next post!

Gabby

Remember her?


I finished her during my weekend break, after leaving her without a neckline for months in my knitting bin.
Anyway, I'll try to be more organized and wrote down the pattern specs from now on ;D I think it might be useful for future reference, though I can't imagine in what condition.
Here goes...
Pattern : Gabby, my own
Yarn : Jaeger Siena, 5 balls plus a few yards
Needle : #3 Clover circular, #3 bamboo straight
Details : The body is worked in the round, then divided for neckline. I originally wanted sleeves, but got too lazy and decided to make a tank instead. The straps are knitted from the front, then grafted to the back.
Then I added some picot crochet edging, too bad it's still curling. I think it fits me quite nicely, though I'm still too concious about my flabby arms to actually wear it out. And that was quite a lot of stockinette in such small gauge. But the yarn feels so nice to knit with that it became quite a pleasure.

You might notice that I joined the Peaceful Palms KAL hosted by nona. Now, who in their right mind would wear gloves at 35 degrees? Yah, not me. Anyway, I joined because I had been wanting to knit the Hurry Up Spring Armwarmers from SnBN. But then I realised that I don't really like the cable pattern after all. But I'm determined to try something....so this is what I came up with.

Knitted in Peruvian Baby Silk from Lyn. The yarn is so soft, but it took me quite a while to get used knitting with it. I used the same lace edging as I did with Gabby (haven't blocked it yet, so it can't be seen). I wasn't following any pattern, so...ehmm...I'm feeling quite smart here ;D I added some more picot crochet edging too! It was really quite easy ;)
I think 1 skein would be enough for a pair...yeah, and I'd be better cast on for the second one, if not it'll stay as "a handwarmer" and have the same faith as my previous socks.

I know....I still owe you Clapotis pictures...soon....soon...
Anyway, I just found some blackhead on my chin! Gah! Need to make a facial appointment soon.
And yeah, I just had some pattern idea for a lacy cardigan to knit with my RYC Cashcotton. Inspired by Van, Doreen, and Lois who all knitted the Rebecca wrap cardi using this yarn. Since I don't have the mag, and look much bigger wearing anything cropped, I think I'll knit something longer, with nice short sleeves and pretty buttons. Not so soon though...I'm a bit lazy lately ;D

a pair of sockS

Yep, that's right. I finally finished a PAIR of sockS. Woohoo!!
Thanks to Janet for the yarn, Anna for the beautiful pattern and Lolly for hosting Socktoberfest. Without them, I would have to wear different socks on each foot. Ehm....not that I would mind.
What about another picture?

I finished another TWO FOs during the weekend, but they're both unblocked, so I'll show them later ;)

Well, my dad originally wanted to come here to see me, but since I'll be busy preparing for the prom(the decorating, not the shopping), he decided not to come. BUT then, today he told me that he's going to Hong Kong tomorrow. Not just him actually, but my whole family. Not fair! I haven't been to Hong Kong for 4 years!
I'll be visiting Singapore again soon though, so...I'll make it up by buying some more nice yarn for myself ;D
I don't think I'll have much time to knit this week, but after the prom (which is next Monday), I'll be free, really free. I originally wanted to stay here longer, but since most of my friends are leaving, and those who stay only intend to be with their bf, I might as well go back to Jakarta earlier, get myself a sewing machine, and have some fun!

Happy Halloween everyone!

P.S : Thank you very much for everyone's comments and supports on my last post. I really appreciate it :)

I'm a high school graduate

and I'm so sad now.
We had an amazing graduation ceremony this morning, with lots of laughters and tears. Everything was so special and touching. Everyone hugged, and some cried together. I didn't cry, I never cry like that, I need to be alone and let everything sink before I can cry. Like now.
I'm feeling so lost. Thinking that I might not be able to meet lots of people ever again.
Thinking that I won't be coming back here again in a long long time. Everything won't be the same anymore.
In a part of my speech today, I said, " Saying good bye is never easy, but we have to go, because we still have a long journey ahead of us." True enough, everyone will go to our own separate ways. Some are lucky enough to go together. They'll go to Taiwan, Singapore, KL, US, Aussie, etc. And I'll go alone to UK. I really hope that I'll like it there. It's been my dream since I was 14.
I know that I'll miss this place a lot. This little island where I have spent 7 years of my life. 7 precious years.
Did you all feel this way when you graduated?
Anyway, what can cheer up a girl better than chocolate in this kind of time? And my SP sure knows that. Look what I got in the mail today.

Thanks dear, you got it just in time when I needed it the most ;)
I'll have a time off for myself for this weekend, then it's back to work with decorating our school hall for the prom, busy busy me.

Notes : I'll remember this day for the rest of my life.

S.E.X...

...virtually on eBay.
Care for some yarn porn?


A pack of Elsebeth Lavold's Silky Wool in shade Chocolate. Not exactly my colour, but I just had a sweater idea in mind. Anyway, I accidentally cut some of the yarn when I opened the package, ugh.


Some bamboo goodness....yummy yummy yarn.


Some Summer Tweed just got here today...feels a little weird to my touch, like it's lifeless...hopefully will get better when knitted.
And 2 skein of laceweight yarn from Ukraine. I was thinking of a lace shawl, but the yarn is really fine, I'm not sure I can handle it now.

Yeah, judge on my self control now.

Hey, guess what? My exam IS over. Finally. No more studying till next year, yipee!!
Uhm...don't ask me how the exam went, please.
And I can finally call myself a high school graduate in 2 days. I hate being late, most of my primary school friends are in university or college now. But whatever, I get to relax for one year extra anyway.
"What next??" you might ask.
Let me tell you then, Art and Design Foundation in Brighton, UK. YAY!!
It'll be some kind of transition phase for me, I'm hoping that it can help me decide on whether I really want to take design as a degree. Or what matters more, whether I have the talent.

Enough talking, remember my Kiri? The pretty one, that's too small for me that I had to endure the pain of frogging the lace edging AND putting it back on needle. What strain it gave my eyes. Well, I finally blocked it yesterday.

Isn't she a beauty? I used up almost a hank of Shimmer for the 5 repeats I added.

And....for the Socktoberfest I knitted Elfine Socks, using the pretty pattern from Anna, thanks!!
Ohh...lookie here, we have not just a sock, but one and a half socks!!

The yarn is from Janet, my SP5. Thanks dear, for supporting me to cast on for the second sock for the first time!! SSS? Bah!
Too bad the yarn and the pattern don't get along really well. I can hardly see the leaves pattern on that splash of crazy colours.

I also started a scarf with Colinette Giotto. It's my first experience with ribbon yarn, and it's getting really messy. I'm not following any pattern, just mixing openwotk with dropped stitch. It'll become a quiet funky scarf, I think. I'll show you when there's more to it.

I'm expecting Clapotis to be done soon. By soon I mean in another half an hour or so. Well, expect an FO report soon, then.

*cough* I'm having sore throat and runny nose. Gotta drink piles of water.

Dear SP,

THANK YOU!!!
Look what I got in the mail 2 days ago...

I really wanted this book, thanks SP!!
Actually, the only thing that makes me really wanted it is the sweater on the cover ;) I LOVE those cables. It's knitted with Rowan Wool Cotton, and that's why I bought 15 skeins of it, but sadly it's part of the yarn that got lost. But maybe I'll knit a vest with my Knitpicks Merino Style using that pattern *happy*
And this is what I got today...

More Jaeger Trinity!! The colour will look great with the one that you gifted me last time ;) There's also a Body Shop soap, moonflower, definitely my favourite Body Shop scent, and a delicious mango-peach lip balm, yumm....Wait, there's more! A really adorable Nici photo frame. For those of you who don't know, Nici is a sheep with a big mouth, cute!
Anyway, pal, what you said about unexotic yarn choices, I'm pretty sure you'll learn fast ;) Be careful with online stores and ebay though, you'll get addicted(and I'm a a good living example).

Well, on the knitting side, I've finished "enlarging" Kiri. Now I think it's a decent shawl size. I haven't blocked it though, don't think I have that much blocking pin, and I'll have to do it on my bed, since nowhere seems big enough.
And Clappy? Well....
(excuse the messy bed)
finished the second hank about 3 days ago, but haven't started on third hank yet. I'm done with the straight rows, so it seems that 3 hanks would be enough. Anyway, the colourway of the second hank is much lighter than the first one, fortunately it doesn't really show when the stitches are dropped. Actually, I thought that this will take me forever to knit, so I'm quite surprised at how fast they knit up.

No knitting for these 2 days. I had to spend my times at the school library and study, because I can't study at all with my laptop and knitting within my reach.
I'm really tired now, been having a little imsonia lately. I HAVE PANDA EYES!! Need to get some sleep, that's my reason for this crappy post. And my *******(put a swear word here) left clicker (yeah, the one on your mouse) that had been acting really weird lately.
Happy knitting to you all!!

Not in the mood for title.....

Frogging the silk was painful.....not the frogging part, but when I started knitting with it again, the silk broke even more. I've got these after 2 rows

I got stressed out, you see, feeling ready to break down. So I put it away for my the sake of my sanity, and knit this instead

Meet Mr. Bubby!!
He's still faceless, since I have NO black yarn in my stash. I even made him a little red scarf

I intended to put him as part of my sp gift, but looking at those flaws, I guess not.
So, after a nice break, I finally get back to my Clapotis, this time with much much more patience, and managed to finish the first hank.
I got quite bored, and knitted this drawstring bag.

using the ingenious Turkish cast-on method. NO seams at all!! I was trying to figure out how to knit a whole sweater with this method ;)
Then I spent my whole weekend knitting Clapotis, which is coming along nicely. I've dropped 7 stitches now!! Anyway, the second hank is behaving quite well, only 5 breaks so far.

Yesterday was my last day at school. I'm having a week holiday(which hopefully will be used to study), before THE EXAM. Then I graduate, just like that. I can call myself a high school graduate after 28 Oct. I'm feeling....well....kinda sad.
Anyway, there will definitely be some knitting done next week, I'm just worried whether there will be some studying done.
Can you guess my priority?

Yes, I've been gaining even more pounds(lots of it!), and it's pretty clear for everyone to see. I really need to be on diet now, if I don't want to wear SOMETHING BAGGY for my prom. I just don't think I could do it, especially with the exam coming. All the stress, you know.

Edited soon after:
I just joined the Socktoberfest 2005 hosted by Lolly, so I might cast on soon, and hopefully knit a pair.

Giftie and Clappy

I got this little package from SP yesterday. Thanks SP!!

Jaeger Trinity! I've been wanting to try this yarn since I saw it on Van's blog. Since 2 skeins definitely won't be enough for any clothing(not for my size anyway), and I look totally washed out wearing blue, I'm brainstorming on little projects to knit with this. I'm thinking cushion or bag.
And, as you might've guessed from the title, I'm knitting Clapotis!! Finally!!
I'm using HipKnits silk in colourway 'Pretty In Pink', which is, well, pretty. I did a false start, and when I was about to start again,

*sigh*
Anyway, I was worried that the 300g of silk that I have won't be enough, so I emailed Kerrie from HipKnits. True to my fear, I'll have to miss some repeat and knit a smaller version. So I missed 3 repeats from the increase section and here's my progress...

The colourway is so fun and pretty!!
Here's a backview...

And a funny shot of me sneezing because some of the fluff get into my nose

This looks quite promising, right? But I'll be frogging it soon.
Why? Because the fabulous Kerrie just emailed me saying that she's got another hank of it and ask if I wanted it. Of course I do!! I thought that I only have to frog it till the increasing part, but then I remember that I've done my first drop....and I've got no idea how to put them back onto the needle.....help?
My Kiri is growing at an alarmingly slow rate....it will probably take another 10 years before it grows to my ideal shawl size...

Note : Someone left a comment on my second previous post, saying that my pants are too tight for me. *Sigh* I'm going to wear skirts for my posts from now on, until I lose 10 pounds.

Just a little funny story.....

that I want to share with everyone.
Last year, when I just started to knit again after my failure 4 years ago, I decided to start with something small and simple. So I bought super cheap yarns, and decided to knit a simple scarf. My colour choice back then was this neon bright fuschia *roll eyes* and real white stripes. The yarn was acrylic, but I seriously didn't know the difference back then.
Since I used to think that knitted items consist only of stockinette stitch(I didn't even know stitches have names!), I used it. Of course, my so-called-scarf was curling like crazy and looks a lot like yao char koay. I was getting really frustrated after about 60 cm, and I decided to bind-off and get over with it.
I was just starting to discover a whole new world of knitting in the internet back then, where I found out about felting. I got really interested and decided to give it a try and found an instruction to felt by hand.
Looking back, there I was, standing by the kitchen sink, with my so-called-scarf folded on a baking pan, hand holding a scrunched plastic bag. I spent hours there, boiling water, scrubbing the scarf with the plastic bag and liquid dish soap.
After seemingly forever, I decided to rinse the scarf to see if it's felted yet. When I see those perfectly normal stockinette stitch, I was ever so confused. I wonder where it had gone wrong.Could it be that the water wasn't hot enough? Or didn't I scrub hard enough? Or didn't I use enough soap? I wasn't willing to give up, so I checked the instruction and repeat the whole process for three time, until my hand was numb. Those stitches still looks the same.
I put it aside and forgot about it soon enough. Until tonight, when I realise that I was trying to felt acrylic.
I'm feeling so silly and think that it's hilarious.
Wanna know what my second project was?
Another striped scarf, in 3 shades of brown, which should turn out great, if I didn't choose to use rug yarn, which was only soft enough for my feet, with shoes, that's it.

Anyway, thanks to everyone's comments on my silky OSW!! I always love getting comments, you guys really made my day!! ;D
I'm currently getting back on my Kiri, after spending a painstaking hour putting the stitches back into needle. I thought that I must have patience of a saint.

The Silkroad Journey

So...it all started with one little hank of this beautiful bunch,and the ultra cute OSW pattern. See the lovely green one? That's the one I'll be talking about.

I skipped school yesterday, just being plain lazy. It wasn't such a big deal because we're done with the school exam. And, can you believe it? I was actually running out of WIP! So what a girl to do? Cast on for more, of course.
There I was, being the lazy knitter that I am, I put it around my pillow while knitting(thanks to Tanti for the advice!).
I cast on confidently, without bothering to check the gauge and everything. Then, when I was about to knit the first stitch....*here's the horror part*...the yarn BREAKS. Can you believe it? I was a little shocked, but decided that it was just a little accident, or maybe that I pulled it too hard. So I cast on again, and was knitting happily for a few rows.
The yarn was sooo....soft and smooth. And the sheen....pretty, just pretty.
Then it came...the yarn BREAKS AGAIN. AGAIN, and AGAIN and AGAIN...
When I was done with the knitting part, I got this

People, that's a total of SIX breaks, 7 if you count the beginning. I'm sure as hell I didn't tug the yarn THAT hard. In fact, after that first break, I tried to be as gentle as possible. Now, I never thought that silk would be so...weak? delicate? vulnerable? I've never break yarn by hand before, except for when I was seaming Lucky, and I did pull really hard then.
So, well...this yarn without a doubt is beautiful and unique. But please, people, BE WARNED.
I'm not about to give it up though. And I've planned to try something else for the edging, other than the simple seed stitch.
It took my hours today to weave in those ends, they're pretty tricky to conceal, you know.
Ladies(and gentlemen), may I present.....Silky OSW!!

Here it is a little dressed up. Well...maybe not for you, but for me, black means dressed up. And to think that I my wardrobe consisted of only black, white and grey few years ago.....my black piece can be counted be fingers now(1 hand!).
And a close up of the crocheted scallop edging for the arms...

I was quite unsure about this, since it's quite big, not the small nice picot I initially wanted. And yeah, the yarn breaks once more time here. That makes it 8 times.
And here it is with a more cheerful(read : bright!) colour...

Please pretend that you don't see those bulges...*blush*
I still think that the finished shrug is lovely, even though I got the gauge wrong, and the whole thing didn't fit quite as nicely as my first one. And yeah, I think I can see more OSW coming in the future....
Note : I "accidentally" won another ebay auction, so I currently got a total of 2.6 kg of yarn coming my way. Not counting the 47 skeins from Jannete that's seems to disappear into thin air. I think I'll have to start selling part of my stash, since I can't take all of them back to Indonesia with me. Anyone interested?

Ta Daaaa....!!!

I had to frog this thing twice, but it's finally done!!

Sorry for the blurry pic, I gotta get a decent digital camera soon, one that could work with my shaky hand. If you can't see clearly, there's a cable running in the centre.
I'm so glad that it's done!! Hope I'll get a chance to wear it soon, but I'll need to find those transparent bra straps first...I know I've got them somewhere.
Wanna know what I've been doing lately?

Yep, crochet!! I desperately want to make this bag from a Japanese pattern book I bought back in Jakarta.

Pretty, isn't it? I took me quite some time to understand those Japanese pattern. Now I know that I'm more of a literal than visual person. I can understand written pattern much better than charts. And I cried when I read novels much more often than movies.
Remember the scarf for my teacher that I said was waayyyy too short? Well...since all I can get here is a much finer yarn(same brand, same colour), I decided to do some crochet(again!) to add some length.

See? Instead of admitting to being stupid enough to knit something knowing that I don't have enough yarn, I can say that I've been planning to do this from the start.
I know, I know...I've been doing more crochet than knitting lately. I think crochet is great and fun, but I don't think I'll be able to crochet anything big. I'll stick to those cute little stuffs. I think I can see more crocheted flowers in the future. Anyway, I'm in love with Kim Hargreaves collection. Too bad the pattern only comes in kit, and since I'm supposed to be in yarn diet, I think I'll stay away from it for good.
And yeah, my exam ended last Friday. So I was kinda taking some rest for this weekend. Catching up with lots of much needed sleep.
How did I do? Oh well....I, just as expected, did really bad in Physics and Biology. Told ya I never like those subjects. I failed my Advance Maths too, but at least I'm not as clueless as I was with my Physics. I'm quite pleased with my Chemistry result though, I love Chemistry!! If I found out that design is not for me, I think I'd love being a cosmetic chemist.
Anyway, I got a little gift from my SP ;)

Thanks SP, those candles are really cute!!
Anyway, I just found out that my SP is from Singapore!!

Well...my next exam, a.k.a THE EXAM, is in less than 3 weeks. I really don't want to mess up with this one. My dad had been asking about my marks lately. He always has this sky high expectation in me, which is really annoying and pressuring. I hate being pressured, especially when he expects me to be the best in every thing. But since I've been using LOTS of his money, I'll try to do my best. Talk about being a good daughter.