In the mood!

I didn't really find any time to decorate our house for Christmas yet. Our house is in fact a mess. All I managed to do so far was sew some little cedar chips filled hearts and only because I had to. I still owe someone one of these and my guilt finally got so strong that I couldn't ignore it any longer. I figured if I had to get my sewing machine out anyway I could make a couple more...
I took some of them to Johanna when I visited her and got in the mood for Christmas right away. Her place looks wonderful and I used the chance to take a pic of the hearts with her decoration.

Johanna also had baked some yummy cookies which we enjoyed while crafting a bit. These are so delicious!

Always look on the bright side!

We returned from our trip on Monday, because I had another exam on Wednesday. That one did not go so well. I was really angry at first (with myself and with one of the profs), but now I try to look at it like this:
On to the next one!

I got some seriously awesome stuff for my birthday which I'll have to show off tomorrow...

What else?

I also enjoyed...
the view from our living room,...

visiting curious tiny ponies and thinking about putting two of them into our trunk to take them home with us,...

returning to our house after a walk on the beach,...

watching Lale behaving like a puppy,...

being served breakfast in bed while looking at my birthday flowers!

We are back!

We enjoyed our vacation a lot!
I particularly liked...

rose-hips, blue skies and fluffy clouds,...

looking at Lale and C when they'd return from their daily run,...

walks on the beach,...

strolling through the city of Ebeltoft, looking at cute stores like this or...

pretty name-plates like this,...

To be continued!

We are off!

Pretty soon we will be off to Denmark for a couple of days.

Going on vacation with us is Lale's most favorite thing.
Eventhough I will have to study a lot I will also enjoy watching her go crazy on the beach.

See ya when we return!

Seriously!

You need to try these cinnamon rolls - they are the best ever! The recipe can be found here. It's one of Meg's Vegan Recipes. Totally awesome... every single time.

This is actually a picture I took last year when I made them for the first time. I was looking for another picture when I came across it and now I can't stop thinking about cinnamon rolls. I need to go and make some...

I made a sweater!

But only a tiny one. A Baby Yoda Sweater.
My Stitch 'n Bitch book was put to good use. Mattress stitch, fake grafting, i-cord,... I got to try it all.
I made some modifacations to the pattern since I wanted the sweater to match the striped hat I had made for the little baby girl a while ago. I think it came out pretty well and I'm eager to try some more challenging things.

Right now I'm working on my pair of fingerless gloves though and they are not exactly what you would call challenging, but they seem to fit nicely and look alright too. I used pretty much the same pattern as last time, but casted on only 33 stitches. No cables, instead some stripes. (Can you tell that I bought way too much Debbie Bliss? When will it come to an end?!)

Hip, hip, hoo'ray!

Yesterday I had my second oral exam and it went nice, even better than the first one. Minutes before it started I thought that I hardly knew anything I learned, but then the exam started off with my favorite subject and both of my profs were so nice that it all went smoothly from there. I'm so happy, I can't stop smiling! I really wish all my exams would go like this one...
Another thing I'm really happy about is the fact that my first pair of fingerless gloves is all done. This pair will be a gift for my boyfriend's sister. I started on a second pair for myself, but had to frog it (didn't like the pattern). My mom and a friend would also like a pair so I better get busy - it's getting cold around here! WIP pictures coming as soon as I found nice patterns!

And then there is yet another totally awesome thing I found out about on Moonstitches! She put up a tutorial for the cutest Zakka Style Owl Pennant ever which is part of this very cool thing:
Go check out this great idea from Karen aka Cotton Spice!

Winter Wonderland Coffee Swap: Weekly Posting

Registration for the Winter Wonterland Swap has closed. Matches are going out (I already know who'll be my downstream partner!) and the whole thing is going to be lots of fun.
Part of this swap are weekly postings to a given topic. Since I think my answers might be at least interesting for my secret upstream pal, I'm going to give it a try...
(And to keep all the answers together I'm going to edit this post each week and add a link to the sidebar so it's easy to find.)

Well, here we go...
1. When did you first start drinking coffee? What age were you? Was it about the caffeine, or do you love the taste and smell? Tell us how your passion began!

Coffe and me: there is no passion! I like coffee... sometimes. For example when we are at a coffee-house where they can make something fancy and flavored AND only if they have soy milk. I would never drink black coffee.
At home I hardly ever drink coffee and if I do then it will probably just be because I figure caffeine could help me at that moment. And actually I'm not sure if it really does. Right now though, with my next oral exam getting closer and closer, I want to believe so and I drink a mug or two during the day... if I don't forget to.

2. As the cold of winter approaches, do you change the projects you work on? Do you work on gifts for others or do you continue working on projects for yourself?

Except for when I'm making tiny baby stuff, my knitting is very much related to the colder season anyway. So the kinds of projects I make stay pretty much the same all the time. I usually knit for myself and everybody else who I think might appreciate the things I make. I am a fairly slow knitter so I don't get that much done during one season and I get bored quite easily, therefore small projects are my first choice.

3. So let's all just share a post with what it is we're thankful for.

Of course I'm very thankful for the wonderful people that surround me (C, my family and friends). I don't know what I would do without them. I'm also thankful for being able to share my life with the two most wonderful cats in the world and the most sensitive and gentle dog there is.
...Wow, this is harder than i thought, so I can say I'm very thankful that I will never receive an Oskar or anything of that sort, because that way I don't have to make this a public speech...
There are so many things in the world I'm thankful for. I could start with sunshine and end with moonlight and will be thankful for everything in between as long as it has nothing to do with cruelty against any living creature.
Oh and I must not forget: I certainly am thankful for Isa's recipes! (Buy her books!!!)

4. What is the ideal setting for enjoying the perfect cup of coffee? Who would be there - or would you be alone? Inside or out? Morning or night? With food or just the steaming cup of joe?

First of all my perfect cup of coffee would probably be cold chocolate soy milk. I can imagine a perfect setting with no other person around as well as with a friend.
In the first case it would be me, my chocolate, Juri, Mücke and Lale sitting in front of a fireplace - which we don't have by the way -, I'd be knitting or maybe stitching, while everyone else would be sleeping. (The cats would for once not ask me every other second to go outside just to come right back in letting me play the window-woman (get it?)).
In the second scenario it would be some stitch 'n bitch without the stitch, because I don't have friends that knit. I think there'd be some toffee popcorn involved or even better: some homemade cakes or cookies.

Halfway there!

I finished my first fingerless glove! Knitting this one was really fun. I got to use my brand new pink stitch markers which I got from YowlYY - so very cool! For a second I was thinking that maybe I should knit them into the glove, because they looked so nice. And then I also thought that I need more stitch markers. I really do! Of course I also will have to knit more projects that ask for stitch markers, so it would be reasonable...

Pattern: SWTC Fingerless Gloves
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Pure Cotton, 1 1/2 balls
Needles: bamboo, size 4,5 (US 7)
Modifications: None, at least I didn't change anything on purpose. Maybe I added some extra rounds? Mine looks a bit longer than the originals.
If I'd knit these again, I would make some changes to the pattern. I don't like the "cabled pyramid" too much. You can't see this in the picture, but the cables have different lengths. Only the two in the middle go up all the way.
Also I'd probably cast on only 36 instead of 40 stitches, when using the same yarn.

Let's see when I'll be done with the second one. I don't have enough yarn left and therefore had to order some.
Meanwhile I'll start a second pair - I just have to decide on a pattern.

I have no words!

(Actually I do have some at first, but later on I'll start to stammer and repeat myself.)

Two days ago I got a secret e-mail, telling me that I would get my Vegan Pal 2 swap package the next day (so that's yesterday!). Usually UPS stuff arrives at around 2-3 p.m. I was here, I was waiting, nothing happend. At around 4 I didn't really believe that it would still arrive. At 5.15 I called Johanna, who had asked me to inform her the minute I got my package, that we could give it up for the day. At 6.30 my package arrived. I swear never ever has UPS delivered something this late to our place. It's like they did this on purpose...

Anyway, I settled down with my package in the living room and dicovered that my package came from the UK, from YowlYY aka Bunnies, needles and books to be excact! I carefully opened it up. I was oohing and aahing the whole time. I got out all of the things you can see here. (No, not the cat!)


See the package in the middle? That's not wrapping paper, that's a beautiful piece of fabric! Of course I had to take a picture of everything right then, even though the lighting was bad.
Mücke came to inspect right away...

Inside that package were the magic yarn balls (yes, you heard that right, there were more than one!) and inside the magic yarn balls were two (!) sets of stitch markes, some luxury chocolate and another (!) crochet hook. See it all?

YowlYY really put together the most amazing package ever. I'm so so happy! I can't tell you how much I like EVERYTHING!

Here are the yarns and the crochet hooks for better viewing:
I got two balls of the amazing 100% organic Pakucho cotton in "Brown Cafe" and "Brown Dark" and two stunningly beautiful wooden crochet hooks.

Like that wasn't already enough I also got a ball of NORO Ganpi abaka surabu:
I didn't know at first that it was Ganpi abaka, but this yarn felt so special when I was winding it into a ball. Isn't this the most gorgeous yarn ever? I think I'll make a very nice summer scarf out of this...

Here is a close-up of the two stitch marker sets:

And let's end this post with some very yummy stuff:

The Falafel Mix has already been turned into this:
So very delicious.
Now I'm off to give the Cream of Lentil Soup (YowlYY's included recipe) a try!

Thank you so much, YowlYY! The package you put together was more than perfect. I still can't believe how you managed to meet my taste with every single thing you picked out. Fabulous!
I was so so lucky with this swap. I couldn't be happier to have gotten you and Chan as my pals. You guys are awesome!

Another swap!

I'm going to participate at the


Registration is still open, so hurry over there and get the details. I know this is going to be a fun swap!

Here's the questionnaire (Most of you won't be very interested in those details so you can skip right to the bottom of this post, where I'll show you something pretty!):


Coffee

What are your favorite kinds of coffee? (Brands, Roasts, anything at all you'd like to share!)
I’ve got to admit that I’m not a very big coffee fan. I don’t drink it regularly. And even though I’d say that my taste buds are quite good when it comes to food, I must admit that I can’t really taste much of a difference when it comes to coffee brands or roasts... shocking, right? I’m very willing to learn though and my mom will probably very happy to help me here!

Do you prefer whole bean or ground coffee?
It gets worse. I’d say instant would be good, since we only have a Nespresso machine and no regular coffee maker. Whole beans would be fantastic too though. My parents, who are our next door neighbors, have a super fancy coffee maker (something like this) and I’d love to go over there to have a cup of “my” coffee with them.

This time of year, there are often Holiday Blends available, and many flavored coffees - do you drink flavored coffee? Do you enjoy special blends?
Flavored coffee is the best thing ever! Vanilla, cinnamon, Lebkuchen, ... I’ll try everything!

How do you take your coffee? Cream and Sugar? Straight up? Decaf?
No coffee for me without soy milk and sugar/flavored syrup!

Do you prefer drinking from a nice thick mug, or a matched cup and saucer?
A big mug is wonderful, but a travel mug is in most cases even better!


Winter and Holidays - PLEASE be descriptive! Your pal will need this information to be sure to put together a package you will enjoy!

What is your favorite part of Winter?
Let it snow and I’m happy! Well, I might have to say it has to be “good” snow, the kind that sticks around for a while and will let you build snowmen.

Do you celebrate a holiday in December, and if so, which holiday?
Christmas

If you celebrate Christmas, do you put up a tree?
Unfortunately our house is so small that there is actually no room for a tree, but I always get some twigs and decorate those... as well as the rest of the house.

Would you enjoy items related to the holiday, or would you prefer a Winter themed package?
Tough question. I think I’d go with Winter themed, but if my swap partner finds something holiday related that she or he (yeah right!) likes better it’s fine with me, too.

Do you collect anything? Are there any holiday or winter-themed items (Snowmen, Angels, Snowflakes, Santas, etc) that you collect?
No, I don’t. I do like snowflakes a lot though.

Do you wear scarves? Mittens? Hats?
Yes, I do. Love them! (And can’t seem to stop knitting hats these days...)

What is your favorite holiday or winter treat?
Anything that’s vegan. (Did I mention I’m vegan before? Well, I am and I really hope this is not causing too much trouble for my swap partner! If you have any questions, please feel free to ask. I don't want to be complicated and I don't really think I am...) I’m quite easy to please when it comes to food. Cookies and chocolate will always work for me.

Please share a favorite Winter or Holiday memory.
I’m not good at this... Let’s just say this would be my perfect winter:

(Please note: It needs to have a decent amount of snow and at least partly blue skies!)


Yarn and Crafting

Do you Knit or Crochet? For how long?
I knit and crochet. For a really long time! My great-grandmother taught me at a very early age. Both crafts are very much related to the Fall and Winter season though and I always make just fairly small projects.

Do you like wooden, metal, or plastic needles\hooks? Circular or straight?
Almost anything will work for me. There might be a tiny preference for bamboo or wood though. dpn’s are great, but I don’t like straight needles too much... I keep poking myself with those. I don’t know why.

What sort of projects do you enjoy making?
As I said I sort of only make small projects. I love hats, mittens, scarves and socks. But wait socks almost don’t count as a small project for me. Doing the same thing twice is just too boring for me. Therefore I’ll sometimes try to get my mom to knit the second one.

What are your favorite types of yarn to work with?
Everything vegan is perfect. Cotton and bamboo (blends) are types I love, but I’d also love to try out yarns made of soy or corn (those are types that are impossible to get around here!).

Do you spin or dye?
Nope.

Do you do other crafts such as scrapbooking or needlepoint or anything else?
Sewing, counted cross stitch: I love it!
Scrapbooking: I love it too, but not for making a photo album. Instead I love making tags or cards and small stuff like that.


General

When is your birthday?
November 19th

Do you have any children? (Furry kind count!)
I don’t have any children. We share our house with two cats and a dogs though.

What are your favorite colors?
It really depends on the project I’d say. For socks almost anything will go – variegated yarn is something I love for socks! For scarves and mittens it would probably be more earthy or softer tones, nothing extremely bright.

Edited (because I didn't notice this was more like a general question): If you look at my blog you might think my favorite color is pink, but in fact that is not true. If I had to choose one color only it would be a soft green, but in general I like almost any color, as long as they are not neon or sort of close to neon. I always thought I didn't like blue that much, but found out that is not true, if it's a softer tone.
Our living room is mostly green with spots of pink and red here and there, while our kitchen is mostly yellow with some red and orange. Any color will be fine for bedroom or bathroom.

It's easy! You can't go wrong here!

Do you have any allergies?
None that would matter here, but as mentioned once or twice before: I’m a vegan. So please no animal products or fibres for me. Wait, a skein of cotton yarn covered in cat hair would be fine! I have some of that already.

THE END

Now, here's a sneak peek of something amazingly pretty I got yesterday. My Vegan Pal 2 package arrived. I'm still so exited...

I'll give you the details in an instant!

Stripes hate me...

...but I love them anyway!
Ravelry is really great. So many wonderful projects, so many great patterns and so many of them available for free. I saw a very cute hat and the pattern for it can be found here on the great Dutch blog of KNITTING AJOUR. I knew I had to make one the minute I saw it.

Stripes always seem to mean trouble for me. While knitting the hat I noticed that mine looked slightly different from knittinajours', but that didn't make me stop and check the pattern. No, I carried on regardless. When I was sort of done with my hat, the mistake was very obvious. Instead of decreasing every third row I had done it every fourth. I had no other option than to rip my third (!) striped hat and start over. Once it was finished for the second time I wanted to check if it would look good when worn. With no cute little baby around, I had to improvise.

Now it's getting a bit ridiculous...

?!? - But I must admit he was a very patient model...

My friend already received the hat and it fits her baby girl very well. I got the cutest mms ever and would love to post it here, but my mobile won't let me.

Sewing and knitting united!

A while ago I asked Chan if she could recommend a good knitting book that would provide the basics. I do have a German one, but now that I'm on Ravelry I wanted to be able to understand English patterns as well. I'm really glad I asked Chan, because her recommendation was "Stitch 'n Bitch" and this is a great book! I don't think I will use many of the patterns provided, but I really like the explanations and all the helpful tips, plus it's such a fun read.The first thing I wanted to do, after I had flipped through the book, was getting my needles organized. So I got them all out and sorted them by size and filled out the needle tracker copy I had made from the book (Great idea!). After I was done with that it didn't feel right to cram all the dpn's back into my ugly storage box, where they would easily be messed up again. Instead I decided to sew a needle case. There is a pattern for one like this inside "Stitch 'n Bitch", but that one is for single-pointed straight needles (and I don't have many of those - I actually don't like them that much). Therefore I had to make some adjustments to the size. I cut the outside fabric and the inside surface fabric for the roll 26" wide and 11" long. For the inside needle holder I used a 26" x 13" piece and folded it in half, so it would measure 26" x 6,5". I also didn't attach a flap, because I was too lazy and I don't think I'll carry my case around much, so falling out needles hopefully won't be a problem. (And should it become one, I can still add that.)If you don't have the book and want to make a needle case anyway, you can follow Pink Chalk's great tutorial for the super cute pencil roll instead!See my lonely bamboo needles? I inherited all the other needles from my great-grandmother and grandmother. They obviously prefered metal.

Enjoying fall!

The weather is fantastic these days. I'm truly enjoying the outdoors! We went for a long walk in the woods with our dogs. I took lots of pictures while trying to keep up with my parent's pace.


When I'm not outside and not studying, I try to get as much off my to-do-list as possible. Today I did some applique on these two shirts:

I really hope the two girls have not outgrown them already since the shirts were purchased/given to me months (!) ago.