New Year Resolution and Knitting FO

December is always crazy, why are we always surprised? This last month always been loaded with tons of works and deadlines.

Every deadline gives us lesson to learn: never delay doing your task; that we tend to forget again and again. Now here I am, try to calm down and wipe away my crochet and knit WIP, to make progress in this semester's final exam. I have two (advanced-level) papers, a final report, a proposal, and some middle-level college tasks to complete before the holiday season. And the holiday season will be coming in next week!

Oh just forget it. It is frustrating, really. Let's just have some minutes break, I've been sitting here in campus all day and only made some rows progress instead of some pages. But I will appreciate it since it is still called a progress, so I deserve a short break. Yes, I bring my knitting beginner project, but it would take a long time once I touch it, because I might have some difficulties to stop it. So just in order to refresh my mind, let's just doing a nonsense chit chat of what's already been going in this year, and what we could plan for next year.

This year is fabulous, literally. I finally was able to pass semester 2 in my college, the heaviest semester I ever had since my undergraduate years. I am so appreciate it, my self 😌. This year was also my handmade years, I even accepted some orders, I am so happy with it. One more good thing, I completed my goodreads reading challenge woohoo! Err... yes most of it are comics, and I even had to put my college text book as the last book I read to complete the challenge 😂

This year I finally learned (again) to knit and finished my first scarf *dancing*.

It was an easy peasy scarf made from one local big ply cotton cake, only used knit and purl stitches.

We're a week into January already, can you believe it? I have few resolutions for next year: finish my study, keep reading, keep making (and keep buying yarn, needle, fabric, and all that craft supplies…😄)

Well, whatever your plan, I wish you a great and happy upcoming year. 

Happy new year everyone!

A Scarf for Beginner

I've been falling for knitting since long time ago. I learned basic knitting from an owner of local yarn shop in the city where I spent my college years. She was a sweet, kind, talented old lady (she spoke Indonesian, Javanese and Dutch in mixed language), and she ran the only local knitting yarn shop that I knew at that time. It was just a short class, and I was able to finish a scarf. It was years ago. After that short class I was pushed to go back again to my regular yet under-pressured activities in the final year of my study, then forgot to practice knitting (she called it breien, it is knitting in Dutch). I never touched knitting needle again.

Then years later, I learned crochet. I learned with the help of a local crochet community in my town. The crochet habit and the fun in doing it last till now, I'm still crocheting stuff for me or for fulfilling orders. While crochet gives me a very enjoying and relaxing activity to do - and I love it, it is way different from knitting, especially the final result. Crochet makes bulkier stitches, and in some ways it creates "hole" more than knitting. Crochet, for me, is more suitable to make decorative stuff as bag, jewellery, rug, or blanket. Some crocheters made a very stunning and beautiful wearable stuff, but - for me again - it has different impression comparing to wearable stuff created by knitting. I love how knitters all over the internet made their clothes, or hats, or sock, or scarves. I befriend some avid knitters on instagram and impressed by their creativity. I am still curious and want to practice it again, like years ago. Oh, I tried to knit hat several months ago but it was frogged since I made mistake and didn't know what to do.

Then I tried again. I bought a needle from a needle craft fair. It was a circular metal needle in 3,5mm size, and it matched the requirements for big ply cotton yarn. I only have few cotton yarns in my stash, since most of my yarn are polyester (I crochet decorative stuff from polyester yarn). So with that circular metal needle, and a big ply cotton yarn, I started knitting again. A scarf pattern for beginner, very simple, only knit and purl stitches. I enjoy it so much. Some messy parts here and there, but just let it flow. Gotta start somewhere, right? At least I know I am on the right track. Just keep going.