Trip to the old time

So before my extra busy and hectic season started we (of course me and my dear boyfriend) planned to have a little fun. The weather gets chiller day by day here so we better act quick.

In Korea we have a huge ‘OUTDOOR’ folk museum called Korean Folk Village. It demonstrates lots of great traditional things and you can experience some cool things just like old Korean used to live. My boyfriend from the States seems like overly excited about the place like this. For me simply hoping out of my little studio and taking a good walk while getting fresh air were absolutely sweet reasons to join him.

 

The weather was per~fect for shooting photos. Nicely overcast day so things look softer and warmer than as they are. Just my kind of day!! So we made sure we had enough batteries to feed our cameras and happily hopped out. It means… I have plenty to show you today~ J I am wondering how many of you are interested in old Korean living style but hopefully you’d like my photos. Things are not-so-fancy but pretty cool-looking. We don’t live this way anymore yet it used to be an efficient and cozy way of living in Korea. Now it is fun to look back and learn some of our ancestors’ wisdom and wit. So why don’t we take a look together?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Those are old houses. (Can you believe that the museum exhibits more than two hundred and thirty something houses?) Shapes and materials of houses vary depending on the regions and classes of people who lived in. Houses have two to three rooms generally (Well, some rich folks lived in houses with more than five to ten rooms though. How glamorous!) and a little kitchen and a separate toilet.

 

 

 

 

 

With a help of gorgeous fall foliage the village looked amazingly beautiful! Since we visited on weekday we missed chances to experience something fun like traditional dyeing (which I really wanted), wooden craft, mask-making, pottery-making, and silk thread-making… However, walking around the village was so enjoyable and lovely as you see.

 

 

About the middle point we arrived the bazaar area. Yay!! How long did I wait for this moment? I was super hungry. Time to feed ourselves and have some extra fun. We ordered traditional meat soup with rice, Korean pancake and some traditional alcohol drink. What a fun feast we had!! Those were so delicious, too!

 

 

 

Oh, I almost forgot little something I really wanted to share: a hat. While I was preparing my next BIG project (Yes, I said it! I am trying to start something advanced after the success of my last sweater. Well, I am probably overly optimistic, but at least I am more confident now.) I was able to finish this little thing for my boyfriend. I didn’t use a fancy yarn, but I think it turned out pretty nicely. Extremely quick and simple yet the texture is so unique and fun. You know… I am a huge texture freak. J The cool thing is the hat is knit inside out so it reveals its beauty at the final moment when you turn it inside out. Waiting isn’t so fun but after you put all your heart in it ‘voila!’ you will know all your effort was totally worth it. So here it is. My handsome boyfriend voluntarily modeled for the hat again. I start to think that he is really natural and he knows how to be photogenic. What do you think? J

 

 

 

 

 

Anyway I am glad he enjoys being a model for me. The most important thing is he really loved the hat and gave me a beautiful smile while he was walking in the village. How sweet of him! BTW, if you're wondering the pattern is attached here.

The weather got colder and darker quick so we had to leave soon. We barely finished half way though. Kind of sad to say good bye but we decided to come back later when the weather gets better. No matter what it was a lovely fun day-out. I hope I have more chances to get out and have little joy like this. Are you having some fun in this lovely season? If not go out and enjoy the last moment of the gorgeous season before it says good bye to you.

xo,

Soyun.

My first ever sweater

It’s finally done. This is official. My first ever knitted sweater is completed. I’ve been intimidated by lots of sweater patterns at Ravelry at least five years and finally got enough confidence after successfully finished my first and wearable skirt and decided to challenge myself further. Can you believe that I waited ‘five years’ to attempt something I’ve always wanted to knit? What’s wrong with me, seriously? Why wouldn’t I try first anyway? I am not a girl that worries of making mistakes. I still don’t know what kept me from trying sweaters that long.

 

 

I tried to choose my first sweater simple yet lovely enough. So once I finish it hopefully I get more inspired and ready to try something more advanced. There are just little too many lovely sweater patterns at Ravelry. I ended up with screening down to thirty candidates and finally chose one guy that calls for the yarn weight similar to what I already have. (Yes, I have yarn stashes I must let go of to get new fresh ones if you know what I mean.) So, here it is: the simplest sweater I found and yes, it IS simple.  

 

 

So, now you ask how was the actual knitting? I don’t know where to start but one thing I can say is the process was unbelievably easy and purely enjoyable. I was a bit concerned about attaching arms and finishing up underarms since I’ve never done before. However, they were way easier than they sounded. The pattern was pretty clear and easy to follow. The yarn did absolutely wonderful job as you see. I simply admire the texture and the colorway the yarn generously created here. I cannot believe this is my first sweater I've tried ever. It looked so beautiful and stylish that I got great feedbacks already. I still cannot believe I waited this long to dive into this rewarding and enjoyable knitting.

 

 

Here’s a takeaway from this amazing experience. Be brave and do try anyway to see if it works for you or not. Without testing you would never know what you will get! Now I am off to knit my new jacket with even more comfidence! What's on your needles?