Maja (my.a) Mitts

Here's my latest pattern offering, check it out!

I started this way before the Awaiting Spring mitts as a gift for my friend/flatmate/travel partner Maja. I lured her into my room, proceeded to show her my stash (enthusiastic would be an understatement), while she being a good sport that she is, nodded and even managed to oohs and aahhhs at the right yarn. She picked out the yarn herself, and I have to say she made a great choice. Filatura di Crosa Zara has got to be one of my favourite commercial yarns. Back in Malaysia, it was the only good quality merino wool I can get from my LYS, and I'm pretty sure I brought the two skeins I used for these mitts back from there.

These mitts definitely triggered my desire to design my own knits again. Back when I first started knitting (eons ago!), it never occurred to me to follow a pattern. Seems like the more I know, the more exposed I am to the world of knitting and the amazing array of patterns available out there, the more reluctant I become to design my own and make mistakes and have no one to blame. I think that's one of the reasons why I've been enjoying sewing so much; I know very little about it, hence I'm more willing to learn from my mistakes and experiment. It's a tough shell to break, but I'm doing it slowly, starting out with simple and easy design projects. Hope you guys are enjoying it as much as I do!

Awaiting Spring Mitts

One way I've found to make myself feel more productive, is to design my own knits and publish them!
Hence the Awaiting Spring Mitts!

You can now purchase the pattern from Ravelry(I hope!), I tried purchasing it but I can't so please let me know if it works!

The yarn I used was mentioned in this post, it was one of my travel score from Florence! After having them in my stash for over 3 years and looking for a project special enough for such a special yarn, I thought designing one for it is the perfect way to go! Best part is, I only used one of the two skeins!
BTW, thanks to the almighty power that is Google, I found out that this yarn is fairly easy to purchase online, but traveling around Florence to find it was undoubtedly more fun!

As the name of the pattern suggests, I started these last month, when it really should be spring here in London. There were signs of spring everywhere, which made it all the more frustrating when I was clad up in a coat and still freezing! Even when we do get the random warmer days, the wind is so unpredictable that I could've been seen in shorts, sandals and these mitts!

trying to stay afloat

A lot of people have asked me this question lately (well, past couple of months),"So, what do you do?", and I've find it really tough to answer.
What DO I do? I knit, I weave, I sew, I cook, I read, I design, but surely those are not valid occupation. Ever since I graduated I've somewhat been struggling to find a job. And with the condition of the job market in the UK right now, I think I've picked the worst possible time to be job hunting as a graduate with no experience in a somewhat expendable market.
I have to admit that I'm hating this junction of my life.You know the saying idle hands are the devil's workshop? Well my hands are rarely idle, but idle mind can be just as dangerous, I tell you.
So the point is? Well, I guess there's no point to this, other than me feeling the need to get it out of my system, and hoping you guys can give me some advice or share your experiences :)

Anyway, because I try never to post without pictures, here are some of my recent (and not-so-recent) FOs.