wiwo wednesday vol. 18

Welcome to this year's first edition of 'What I'm Working On'. January used to be my most productive month of the year; there weren't any exams when I was in high school and it was the beginning of a new term when I studied in Vancouver. Also, January is usually dreadful weather-wise so I didn't feel guilty when I stayed inside to knit instead of spending time outside.
Unfortunately, January is the most stressful month for German university students, because all the research paper deadlines are in January and exams start at the end of January, so the whole month is basically spent in the library studying / paper writing.

There won't be much progress in the next couple of months, but I wanted to share with you what's on my needles (& on my nightstand) anyway.

First, let's talk books. I used to read a lot and I miss it. So I'm determined to start a new habit that involves banning my phone from my nightstand so I can't browse instagram before I go to sleep. Alas, I'm more likely to read in the evening. Depending on my mood I either read in Mindy Kaling's book or the first volume of Rita Falk's Bavarian crime novel series.

I never thought I'd be much of an audiobook person but I started listening to Fall of Giants last year and loved it. So I started listening to Winter of the World the other day and I'm loving it. I especially love listening to it while sewing. Also, John Lee is an amazing narrator.

I spun a roving of alpaca finer. I bought the fiber at a small local store in Idaho and it's so soft and squishy. For now it's still on the bobbin because I can't decide whether to attempt a Navajo ply or to ply it with a commercial yarn. Any thoughts?

Eventually this will be a sleeve for a sweater for my dad. But somehow the yarn doesn't seem to like my style of knitting. The gauge is either off, the stitch definition is awful, or the fabric is too dense. Sigh... Once I'm done with all my finals I'll frog it and re-knit it beautifully, no matter how many attempts it might take!

These 'Christmas socks' have been mocking me for... well, since before Christmas. I'm gonna get them done eventually. Maybe in time for this year's Christmas?

Finally my Elfreide scarf. It's gonna take me approximately two more years if I keep going at the same speed. Maybe I should write 'knit one Elfreide repeat' on my weekly to do list until it's done. If I'd be disciplined it might only take me one more year to finish it...

I have one exciting FO to share on Friday. So until then why don't you tell/show me what you're working on? I'd love to see!

hey 2015

It's 2015 - yay!

I'm excited for a new year with new opportunities. A few things:

There will be some posts showing you the Christmas presents I made but never had a chance to share on here.  I'm talking the 3 S's - socks, shawls & sweaters.

I'm embarking on a new creative journey in 2015 called 4 out 1 in. Basically it means I'm gonna use up(or sell or give away) four items from my stash before I can buy materials for a new one. That way I'll - hopefully - reduce my yarn stash a little and use up some of the lovely fabrics I have. Ideally, I won't have any old WIPs at the end of the year. Feel free to join me. The more the merrier!

Do you have any creative challenges planned for the new year?

ps: The shop reopens 5th of January but there won't be a shop update until January 19.

some sheep and a lighthouse

I'm back from a two-week vacation to the land of the sheep and lighthouses - also known as Denmark. The lighthouse pictured above is called Rubjerg Knude. It's been mostly covered by shifting sands for the past years and it attracts lots of tourists every year. To get to the lighthouse and the dunes you have to walk for about 15 minutes. On the way to the lighthouse we found some sheep. Should I mention that we didn't actually make it to the lighthouse because we considered the sheep to be more interesting?

We spent quite a while watching and photographing the sheep. There was a huge variety of sheep in all different colors and with different furs; not to mention all the different characters.

Watching sheep always reminds me of 2nd grade. My elementary school class had 'adopted' two sheep that were in the school yard. We would feed them and take walks with them across the yard. They were definitely responsible for my love of wooly animals and all things fiber related.

This particular lamb reminds me of alpacas - doesn't it have the same cute, friendly look as alpacas usually have?