Happy Earth day!

On Friday evening I headed out to Lithuania to celebrate Easter in the countryside. This weekend was all about gardening, picking up radishes in the greenhouse, braiding hair with flowers, eating Cepelinai, knitting outside, having long walks, and of course barbecues. I really intended to capture more of these beautiful days, but I was SO in the moment, that I totally forgot to snap these precious instants.

On the way back home, I realized how much the Spring has settled. When I left, the branches on the trees were completely naked. But when I came back, they were full of tiny pink and white flowers. It was such a nice surprise! And my tomato seeds grew so so much that it was to repot them to let them grow even more.

 Oh, and remember to step outside today, just for a bit, to enjoy nature. Happy Earth day!

The little creative room

In the tiny studio, there's a beautiful light in the afternoon, some plants, a lot of yarn, collected treasures from the woods, tiny boxes of yarn samples& swatches, inspirational cards and logos from crafty shops, a few pillows, empty cups of tea and coffee, a pile of notebooks & many ideas.

What does your creative space look like?

Heathered cardigan

Not a long time ago, Karen shared her thoughts on slow fashion & how she would like to be able to make 25% of  her clothes. Since that day, her idea is stuck really deep in my mind. Over the years, I started to change my buying habits completely - I changed from being this unconscious girl, who would buy a 100% polyester dress without any concerns, to the girl who's actually selling that same dress on ebay to by herself more yarn. There's still a long way to go, until I reach these 25%. But I'm so happy with the choice that I made to embrace this path. Heathered is the second cardigan that I made. Since I wear dresses not only in the hotest days of the year, but also in the harsh winter days, there's always plenty of space in my wardrobe for a new cardigan. 

After working with merino wool on my first cardigan, I wanted to use a fiber that what totally new to me - linen. I never thought plant fibers could be that soft. It was such a nice surprise when I opened up the box that contained the luxurious fibers. For this project I have used BC garn Alinno, which is a blend of organic cotton & linen. If you ever thought of starting a summery project with natural fibers, I would highly recommend you this yarn.

Heathered is a very simple yet sophisticated cardigan. I love everything about this pattern & I'll probably knit it again this winter.

Ps: Welcome to my woods!

A swap, stash enhancement & a new design

A few months back, I got in touch with the dear Grace a.k.a Juniper Grace. She's hosting the most wonderful podcast, and I'm always hoping that she's going to release a new episode every week. So when she asked me if I would like to swap yarn + goodies with her, I was thrilled. I asked her what kind of yarn she'd like to receive from me. She immediately pointed the yarn that I've used for my very first cardigan -and she could not make a better choice than that. Ulysse is by far one of my favourite yarns. 

Then she told me that she could send me yarn that I cannot find easily in Europe. And when she mentioned Quince & Co, I'm sure you could see two stars shining in my eyes for a second. I've been dreaming of their yarn for months and months and months. It is so hard to get one tiny skein here in Europe!

I've also received the dilemma yarn from De Rerum Natura. Could Giliatt be better than Ulysse? I don't know, but it's perfect. 

And finally, I'm working on several projects. One of them will take place this summer. There's a lot of work and homework to be done, but that's something that I enjoy with all my heart. I'm also working on one more personal project this time. If everything goes well, I hope to publish it in the early days of fall. Have you ever knit with plant fibers? Nettle yarn?

Happy Spring!

The last hat -Sea to sky-

At the same time last year, my friend Charlotte and I decided to challenge ourselves, and knit every single month of the year, our favourite accessories - hats.

And I cannot believe that it's been twelve months since the challenge started already! I got to meet amazing people through this experience, discovered gorgeous patterns, got in touch with talented designers, played with beautiful yarn and acquired more knowledge and techniques about hat constructions. You can check my Ravelry project page to see which hats I've been knitting over the past year, you'll also find blogposts links.

For this month -the last month, I have decided to knit Kate's most recent design. I stumbled upon her work on instagram, and fell in love instantly. Her "Sea to Sky hat" has been inspired by a beautiful coastline in Canada. She reproduced this landscape by dividing her design in three parts: at the bottom, the ribs represent the waves in the ocean. Above are the seabirds, flying over sea, probably searching for some fishes. And at the top, Canadian mountains to frame this amazing landscape. "A huge expanse of ocean, mountains beyond and a vast open sky that all blend together so seamlessly. In that sky you will often see bald eagles soaring high up on the thermals or a flock of seabirds over an undulating sea."

Since I"m more into knitting to get a final product,  think I would categorize myself as a "product knitter". But I think that this project made me appreciate the time that I spend knitting so much more. I really took my time - this time, and tried to enjoy the beauty in every stitch.

My most precious & worn knits

My most precious and worn knits. Top down: Orchids and fairy lights in Malabrigo worsted, Pearl / Dustland in Mirasol Miski, Storm/  Heathered in BC Garn Allino cl21 / Praline in De Rerum Natura Ulysse, Aster.