Hats for boys~

It has been a while since I've done some crocheting. Didn't mean I didn't want to. Just had to pay more attention to Holiday stuffs here and there recently. Such a busy season of the whole year for all of us. Finally I sat down and played with my crochet hook and soft yarns... Yes, it felt great. You know the feeling the soft yarn dancing around your fingers when you work with it. Just heavenly!

I've wanted to make those football hats since I've seen on Ravelry. I don't really know about football much but my hubby is going crazy. So I made one for my sweet man. He really enjoys wearing it all the time. So I decided to make some more for all of men in his family: father-in-law, grand father-in-law, brother-in-law and his little son. I am gonna send them next week so they can receive their hats before the Super Bowl and wear them while watching the game. :)  Don't you think it is pretty cool? Super easy to make, too. I might make one for myself in pink. Do you crochet? What are you working on now?

 

The time has come!

Again, the time has come! What time?? Kimjang time! (preparing Kimchi for winter in Korea) After my first post of Kimjang last year (Here it is if you missed.) I realized many of you are so excited about this Korean long time tradition. So I decided to share the story one more time with you. This is my hubby's (who likes kimchi more than I do.) first time joining Kimjang. After he received my parents' invitation he got extra excited about it. I (who has done this every year) think that's extra nice. For Koreans this is a big load of hard work as a part of preparations for  long and brutal winter time. Lots and lots of itsy bitsy works are required about 2-3 days. So for my family his help is such a relief. :)

I am sorry in advance if you're expecting exciting nice photos. If you cook you know. You will not have a free and clean hands (enough to hold a camera) during your process. Kimjang is one of this kind. The weather is pretty chilly so we all sit down indoor. It means there's no enough natural light, hence the photo could be pretty blurry. Everybody gets bloody-hot-pepper-red-sticky hands. So we just had to take photos here and there in a 'quick' way. Yes, basically not so great photo-friendly situation. Hope you understand though.

My parents already prepared lots of things before we arrived. Picking out (many many)cabbages and radishes from my dad's garden. Washing them and socking in salt water overnight. Washing (lots and lots of) garlic and ginger and skin them. Prepare other veggies and fish juice and... of course clean up many many containers to house kimchi after we finish.

So here me and my hubby took care of crushing garlic and ginger. He's paying a good attention to it as you see. My dad was slicing lots of radishes and my hubby joined to try out. Yes, that's right. Kimjang requires lots of washing, soaking, dicing, slicing and chopping before we start anything. 

 

Finally we all sit together putting all the yummy ingredients together. Getting messier yet more fun. Now time to stuff cabbages with this beautiful red source.

 

While stuffing cabbages everybody got pretty messy hands so we were not able to take photos at that moment. I am so sorry about that. We all got pretty excited at this point and we must've forgot about it.. This is the most fun part I can say. Here's some finished products.

 

 

Finally we put them in containers. Look at those! Pretty cool, isn't it? We will enjoy this until next spring when fresh veggies available again. We already feel happy, cozy and warm after getting this big job done. Yay!! We hear this winter will be extra cold and snowy. But, you know what? At least we have huge stacks of yummy kimchi to finish. We will make lots of good food out of it: kimchi soups, kimchi pizza, kimchi fried rice, scrambled kimch-egg... Already mouth watering, isn't it? :)

 

A sweater that would set a milestone.

 

After finished my pullover (Here it is. If you’re curious.) last year I started to grow extra-confidence about my knitting ability and attempted a new big project right away: A cozy-looking jacket I had been wanting to make, wear, and show off..  Obviously I was little too much excited about my first pullover that generated lots of compliments from friends here and there. However, the new one I started was a bit heavy garment taking a good deal of time and attention. The beginning wasn’t so bad but I was slowly losing my interest in it. Time goes by... During the hot and humid summer I totally forgot try to forget about the thick and chunky piece in deep deep bottom of my heart feeling pretty guilty. Frankly this unfinished business has bothered me so bad. Finally a few weeks ago when the weather got significantly chilly I decided to come clean and retake this challenge. Nothing fancy really. It is just a work of simple stockinet stitch but the construction was rather unfamiliar to this first time-sweater knitter at the begining. It took a little while to understand how ‘mitred hems’ work.

This time I didn't want to let it go. For some reason I felt this shouldn't take too long. So a few weeks of straight work (NO! I didn't get distracted by other projects as I used to.) I finally managed to complete this baby! I feel awesome to finish this Un-Finished-Object after a long neglect and also great to use up lots of this yarn stash. (Well, do you remember? I made a skirt last year with this yarn. It is going down but still I have lots left. Anyone, interested in swapping?)

Here I proudly present my new first ever sweater! (I know I knit a sweater before but that was a pullover style. Pretty easier than this. This one I could call a legit sweater! Even a jacket!)  Such a simple and minimal design yet it is rather cute and sweet!

Just one thing I am not completely happy about this is the ‘mitred hem’. I like the idea but it didn’t come out neat enough. This is the look from the back. The hem looks little too bumpy and rough to me. My knitting wasn't consistent? Maybe one more blocking would help? Well, I could try.

 It took a while to finish but I am generally happy now. I've learned lots of new techniques from this pattern that I want to use later on and enjoyed knitting quite well. It just required a bit extra patience to finish. I think totally worth it though. What do you think?

 

 

My next project? I am thinking.... something to gift. I know not so much time left. So... I might crochet something as last-minute gifts. Still I have to brush up my crochet skill but I think I crochet faster than knit. I am gonna share them on my next posting if they turned out good. (Please wish me luck!) What about you guys? What's on your needles or hooks? Are you ready for Holiday season yet? Hope you are~ :)

Learning Lace Work

Since the last summer I've started (re)learning something I've wanted long time: Knitting Lace. A while ago I've done  just a piece or two lacework (I don't really remember what I knit exactly. Well, obviously I didn't really get into it then.) but this time I get rather serious about it and go for it again. One thing I remeber is doing YOs and counting stitches were so troublesome that I had to pull my hair out almost every other row. So, I decided to put it away little while until I am ready to take a next level (and hopefully soon). Oh, well. It took roughly almost 10 years for me to have a gut for starting over. Yes, it is incredibly long ago I admit but I am glad I decided to rediscover lacework. I learned it is fun and most of all, the finished project looks nicely surprising.

For the safe attempt I chose this simple yet interesting scarf from Ravelry: Feather and Fan Short Scarf. I needed something easy to follow but still the finished product is charming enough that I might discover further and do more lacework. I think this was a perfect call I made.

I didn't have a yarn called for this project but instantly felt one ball of delicate linen yarn I'd been saving for some special project could make it work. Still this was so new to me. First time using fingering weight yarn, first time using 100% pure linen yarn and.. ALMOST first time to do glamorous lacework. Hoping it went well (at least okay) I ackwardly and nerversely started YOs. Always tough at the firtst row as we all know, but it got better and smoother as the knit went.

  

 

I forgot to take photos in the middle of my knitting so sadly I don't have work-in-progress photos to share with you, but I confess it didn't look good at the beginning. Actually it got so crinkly and wringkly I had hard time to keep going. I wondered if it wolud ever make it. Around 6th row I finally started seeing the texture being recognizable and the garment  grow pretty nicely. I also started to memorize the pattern and develop my rythm for handling needles and the yarn. How fun, finally!
 

So I guess my little practice turned out pretty successfully. I think I am going to knit this again with different yarns later. Considering such small attention and effort I invested this piece turned out little too marvelous!

What's next? I am not sure yet. But, I think I have little more confidence now. So what about a big fancy shawl then? Am I going too crazy? Well, we will see. I might find something just for my level but looking just lovely!

Happy stitching every one!
 

What’s for dinner?

Hello everyone! Hope your season is going fun and creative! Today I am so~ excited to introduce something I’ve been waiting so long. This is originally my fiancé’s recipe that I adore so much that I hope you have a chance to make one for yourself someday. Are you interested in a quick and simple recipe? (Do I hear lots of “yes!”?) What about summer pasta with little extra? Sounds tempting? I bet you will like this.

 

 

Strangely enough I’ve never been into pasta. Don’t get me wrong. I love, love tomatoes (I eat at least 20-30 of those cherry tomatoes everyday recently.), but tomato sauce? Well, not so much… So as you guess I might not be friendly with pasta or pizza covered with thick tomato sauce on it. I felt sorry to J cause he loves pasta with the sauce. I had to take some break (at least a few months) between meals with the tomato sauce in it. Generally that made me stay far away from pasta until J surprised me with this wonderful kind. Now I am in love with this eating more than J could eat at dinner table. The base of the sauce is light olive oil and little bit of white wine. Doesn’t it sound already refreshing and sophisticated? 
(Sorry, tomato sauce. I will find time to make friends with you soon.)

So here we go. We need a chunk or slices of fresh salmon. I think chunks look better on the pasta (Surely, it gives absolutely hearty look.) but slices are tastier (The texture is more chewy and flavor is more savory in my humble opinion.). Well, it is your call so try here and there and find what you like best. First and very importantly don’t forget to lightly cover the bottom and sides of an oven-safe container with little bit of butter so the fish will come out neatly after you oven it. If you miss this part the fish will stick to the container and you might end up with lots of fish flakes rather than chunks. Put the fish in the container and sprinkle fresh herbs and lemon juice on it. Adding little bit of lemon slices on the top as you see in the photos would give an awesome look for a final touch later. Oven about 10-15 mins at 360F(180C) until they turn to gorgeous light coral.

 

 

Now time to prepare noodle. You can play with many different kinds of noodles. J and me finally settle down with this thin and wide Italian noodle called ‘fettuccine’. We tried a few kinds and so far this works best for us. (Don't be afraid of trying new kinds. You will be nicely surprised with whatever you choose.) Once you choose your kind of pasta boil and rinse it as you usually do.

While fish is getting hot and yummy in the oven and the noodle is dancing in the pot we will prepare the fabulous wine sauce. One of the most important ingredients is minced-garlic. In Korea we eat garlic all the time and this (early summer) is the season of garlic. In the markets we can find lots and lots of fresh chunky garlic cloves. It smells incredibly pungent. I know some of you wouldn’t appreciate this strong fragrance but that’s a beauty of this healthy and lovely herb. Garlic gives rich and savory flavor that no other ingredients can do. The smell of minced garlic in olive oil simply makes me sing.

 

 

Prepare garlic, olives (brown, green, or any kinds), onions (yellow, purple, or any kinds), mushroom (again any kinds you like) all nicely diced and sauté with olive oil. Once onion pieces get soft add some white wine and simmer in light heat until the sauce gets thicker. When you’re happy with the thickness of the sauce simply add the prepared noodle and cook a couple of mins more. By now you will be enjoying the rich and savory aroma and wowing the gorgeous color of the sauce. This is a signal that you’re doing it right! J

 

 

 

Finally time to put all the beauty together and enjoy. Place noodle on the bottom of the plate and add your gorgeous salmon stake on the top. If you’d like sprinkle more herbs. If you need some veggies to go with here is what I would do.

 

 

While J was preparing pasta I stopped by our little garden and took some babygreens for our salad to compliment the pasta. I love the idea that we enjoy veggies freshly picked 5 mins. before we eat. I am pretty sure veggies at markets I buy usually travel at least a few days until I cook. How awesome that we can enjoy this perfectly fresh organic things so easily and simply! Nothing fancy really! 4 assorted green leaves and cheery tomatoes with nuts and dried cranberry topping. Looking pretty good, isn’t it?

 

Voila!! Here’s our awesome dinner! As I like simple and easy, and… extra looking good. We wished we had a glass of wine but realized we poured up all of our wine for the pasta. Well, that’s disappointing but at least the pasta and salad taste simply amazing as we imagined. So we are happy anyway!

Hope this little recipe is inspiring enough that you try sometime soon. It would make wonderful summer dinner. Please try and let me know how it goes. Do you have your own special recipe? Don't be shy and please feel free to share. I'd love to try!

Have a wonderful season and talk to you soon!

xoxoXOXO,

Soyun.

One season goes and the other one comes...

Hi everyone,

Hope your world is turning more beautiful and lovely. My side of the world is getting warmer way faster than previous years. I don't want to say good-bye to spring just yet though. I am just not ready yet. :) Spring is one of the perfect seasons to enjoy creating. As always, as we all know, so many projects we work on but too little time we got. New fabrics, new designs, new color schemes, and new methods keep making me busy. I saved so many ideas and inspirations but often I wish I had more time to play with them. Once things get going I sing, I dance and I simply fly with what I create. Any of you feel that way while crafting? :) Anyway, my new line of bags and pouches are so excited to meet you very soon. I am trying to experiment with rich natural color schemes and more rustic textures in coming season.

 

As my life craves more nature my creations resemble nature more. I think that's a good thing (isn't it?) and I want to keep it that way. Hope you get to enjoy and get inspired by what I offer for you. Please know that I am always appreciated your feedbacks whenever you’d like to share. So if you have something please let me know.

Before I leave here're hats I did for my fiance this spring. For some reason, this spring was unusually windy and chilly in Korea. Those two hats have been helping him in the early morning commuting and late night walks keeping him cozy and toasty. Am I alone in thinking he looks adorable in any hats I knit? :) He purely is a great model for hats I've been knitting so far. I like my hats most when they are on his head.

This is the same pattern as my skirt I knit last summer: (Here it is!) So easy and stylish. Looking great with wheather solid or variated yarns. This is warm and toasty kind of hat.

 

This one has a rather stylish and delicate look. The texture is elegant and the colorway is subtle yet soft. Simply perfect for windy spring days. I guess he likes this one a bit better. If you're interested here's a pattern. As I always like easy and simple.

What are YOU working on recently? What do you usually knit/crochet during the warm season? Whatever you do I hope you enjoy and get lots of happiness and love out of it. Have a wonderful start of the summer and happy creating!

xoxoXOXO,


Soyun.

Hello, hello everyone, I am finally back!

How've you been? Hope your spring has been fun and enjoyable with lots of projects and you're excited for a new beautiful season with something green and refreshing. I also hope you missed me and wondered what I was up to as I missed you so much while I was away. Ohh, how much I missed you and wanted to talk to you. It was so hard to live away from my little blog and friendly readers. It was so darn hard... :) I apologize for being little too lazy and not able to talk to you so long. Obviously, it isn’t such a good idea to ignore my blog this long. I feel guilty and sorry. I found many new fans were joining subscription even when I was away. How sweet! I must keep going forward. You’re my true inspiration and reliable supporters. I am so~ blessed to have you! 

 

 

Spring is my kind of season. Spring in Korea used to be so lovely and glorious: full of warm sunshine, calm and peaceful breeze, indescribable colors of flowers, refreshing green carpet of grass everywhere. Recently it is changing so dramatically though. Most of all, the air pollution from China attacked so bad that me and my fiancé had to suffer serious throat and lung pain couple of weeks. We sneezed, coughed, sneezed, coughed and over and over again..

We went out to get fresh air hoping to get healthier but ended up being so sick. Our attempt to get healthy turned out to be poison to us. We realized we should be extra careful when we out in spring. Well, spring is not the same as I used to know.

Here’s one more story made me think further. The other day I was watching news about air pollution. In Korea we pick up some herbs and plants during the spring season. We make rice cakes, teas, salads and many other foods out of those greens. However, the news was warning for those grow near the busy car streets. What they found is poisons from cars stay on the surfaces of plants and some of them don’t go away even if we wash or boil them. When we eat them they will stay in our organs and make some serious problems.

After those depressing experiences we decided to carry out what we’ve been planning long time: start gardening by ourselves. Providing green and clean environment and eating healthy and natural. Since we are living in the city it is not easy to find enough fields to grow our greens so we made this tiny garden as a starter near the windowsill. If this goes well we will extended it and grow more. J said he would make the area just like a jungle. Well, we will see. J

So here are some little ones we bought at the market. This is our first time so instead of sowing seeds we chose shortcut. The moment we bought them they were pretty tiny and weak just like preemies but overnight they got way healthier.

 

 

So we got those little boxes for free at the market. Well, they were about to be thrown away so we just adopted them as our pots. Little baby plants are about 1 buck per 6. Aren’t they marvelous? So we got about 5 sets. I went just like a crazy kid after we got all set. That was the most exciting moment since I was proposed! J

We carefully put everyone in place. J got excited, too. He looked so happy while he was planting little ones. Hope he gets more inspired and becomes a passionate gardener.

 

Here is our little garden. Aren’t they adorable? They already look so amazing to me. Those are all edible babygreens but we are planning to add some herbs, plants and flowers next few weeks. This is purely a great idea and real joy! Nothing fancy but obviously plants nurture us calmly and peacefully while we nurture them. We will enjoy this all around the year. I am already feeling like I am a mom, kind of. J

 

Any of you garden? I am sure many of you have an outdoor garden, too. If so, you guys are so blessed. Keep growing and enjoying and if you’d like to please share your story or your blog. I will be so happy to visit yours. If you’re hesitating this is a great time to start! You know I am all about something simple and easy. Gardening perfectly fits the department. If I can do this you can, absolutely!!

Thanks for visiting and supporting me generously. I will be back with something fun very very soon. Please stop by often and say hi~

 

 

OXOxo,

Soyun.