Knitting content not.

I can't help but to share this wonderful Japanese drama 1 Litre of Tears (1OT). It had been sometime since I watched a Japanese series, it was a Korean one a couple of months ago. 1OT is really touching, its about a 15 year old girl diagnosed with a disease called Spinocerebellar Degeneration, and how she continued on for the next ten years of her life before the diease took her life at 25. More synosis here.

This is a real touching story, i was bound to cry after the 3rd episode. I guessed i might have collected a litre of tears towards the end of the story. If you like tear jerker stuffs, this is for you.

You can also find snipets of the drama at youtube.com

Sorry for the lack of knitting content, as you can see, I have been watching the drama for the past 3 days.

Tagged again.

I have been tagged by Jade of Bee Knits.

Four jobs you have had in your life:

1. Asst Engineer
2. Marcom Asst
3. Product Engineer
4. Customer Service Exec

Four (random) movies you could watch over and over:

1. Sleepless in Seattle
2. Matrix
3. Silence of the Lamb
4. Lion King

Four places you have lived:

1. Singapore

That's the only place but I have travel to a few places.

Four TV shows you love to watch:

1. Sex & the City
2. Desperate Housewives
3. Lost
4. Grey's Anatomy

Four places you have been on vacation:

1. Thailand
2. Australia, Gold Coast, Brisbane
3. Malaysia
4. Hongkong

Four websites you visit daily:

1. google.com
2. Yahoo
3. Knitters COmmunity
4. knittyboard.com

Four of your favorite foods:

1. Mum's cooking (anything she cooks of course)
2. Pringles chips
3. Taiwanese Oyster Noodles (Ah Zhong Mee Sua)
4. Macau Almond Biscuit

Four places you would rather be right now:

1. Korea - for skiing
2. Taiwan - for skincare shopping
3.
4.

2 at the moment, and any fiber fest in the future.

Four Bloggers you are tagging:

1. Erin
2. Vanessa
3. Kessa
4. June

No obligations at all. :)

Frappr Bug

As always, I'm late to the Frappr party.

Click on the title of this post and leave your mark on my Frappr map.

Ruth: take a look at your map. :)

anything Japanese

I have always been fascinated by yarns from Japan. Noro is definitely one of them. An Angel called me while i was having a cold over christmas, asking me about yarns and stuffs. With her help, I was able to get a ball of Noro Silk Garden in #82. So what can one do with just one ball of silk garden? A Silk Garden Beanie of course!

Pattern: Silk Garden Beanie from And She Knits Too
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden #82
Needle: 4mm DPNs
Size: n/a
Time to finish: under 4 hours while watching TV.

Consider the above as the first FO for 2006. In fact Marilyn's Not-so-shrunken Cardigan should be the first. Somehow its in the washing machine doing a few spins while I'm documenting, will talk about it when i have pics for it.

More Japanese stuffs...
no prize for guessing the pattern to the photo on the left. The yarn was actually meant for a Rebecca pattern, but i found something more suitable for it and so i need to destash this Katia yarn. I might have enough to do another Orangina. or more than enough for this

By the by, thanks for the recommendation on the cable cardi. However, I just can't bear the idea of knitting loads up and having to frog everything. So the plan's to stall it away and follow nature's path. Good luck to those who will be knitting this up, can't wait to see the cables popping out.

And have you watched Memoirs of a Geisha yet?Definitely a must watch. i have not read the novel but i hope the movie covers most of the important details. And now I need to hunt for a copy of this book.

Cheers!

Pre-knitting jittery

I can't believe I'm experiencing this for the cable cardigan. Am I losing confidence or what? The cardigan seems too large for my liking. Take a look at the comparsion between my favourite cardigan and the ribbings. There's about 1.5 inch extra which means 3 inch extra. Furthermore, according to the instructions, there's a need to increase stitches. The final results will be at least 6 inches bigger then my usual garments. I don't think i need something so big in my wardrobe. I'm thinking through whether to carry on this project.

Types of Knitters

Being in a knitting forum, I get to meet knitters. Thus i met different types of knitters. This post is my personal views, no names will be mentioned. I'm not talking about anyone in particular, so stop being over sensitive. *winks*

Everyone starts as a beginner, and as a beginner, I was always overwhelmed with the pattern and FOs I came by. Very quickly, I became a pattern whore. I'm still one till now. Better to get that magazine in case one fine day I found something interesting to knit. Regrets will become a frustration.

As you gain more experience, you start to buy more expensive yarns or just more inexpensive yarns. a yarn junkie i became. you start to stalk online retailers if they have sales or free shipping promotions. you start to calculate the economy of scales. you start yarn sprees. you breathe, dream, sleep on yarns even. then you start salivating on yarn not available at your LYS.

then when it comes to yarn fiber, you detest most acrylics, going for merino wool, the superfine alpaca, silkiest silk and cashmere stuff. oh, what a yarn snob might i claimed. I just wanna do away with the itch which acrylics and superwash wool will cause. serenade me with Filatura di Crosa, Rowan, Colinette, Lorna's Laces...etc

you start to change your tools. no longer are you using Birch but Clover metals and bamboos, even interchangables like Clovers, Denise and Boye Needlemaster. you have the 4mm needles in all lenghts (16" ~ 32") and brands (include Addi Turbos) and materials (rosewood, how luxurious). not only that you buy 101 beads and start making your own stitch markers.

with so much yarns and needles at your disposal, you start whipping up a lot of projects. promising yourself that you will finish them. and before you realise, you have a basketful of WIPs and UFOs. you are always so tempted by the things done by others and knowing that you have so little time for knitting each day, you knit straight into the dark nights, waking up to lament about the eyebags and dark eye circles.

think that's enough for the day. i shall go out to catch some sun for photo taking on my FO and more time for my sock.

2006 knitti start.

These are the fronts of Lacy cardigan. I added beads to it using Paula's method of threading them on. Very useful, if you do not like the idea of having tons of beads on your yarn while knitting.

on another note, my gauge had been deviating between the 2 fronts. The right is a tact shorter. I think i will stick with knitting both fronts/sleeves at the same time. And that means winding another hank of alpaca cloud in order to restart this project. I shall wish for a ball winder.

Working on something while i have the extra time and yarn. The instructions are found in VK Holiday 2005, Twisted Stitch Rose. I shall try it with bulky yarn for a bigger rose. This was done with DK weight yarn on 4mm needles.

The swatch for this cable cardi is done but I'm not happy with Knitpicks Merino Style. I did achieve the required gauge for stockingnette stitch but take a look at the picture, the cables just wont stand out. Should i swatch Wool of the Andes instead? That would be a cheaper alternative but I prefer merino on my skin.

Lastly, i need buttons for my first FO in 2006.