trip to habu headquarters

Olga and I made a quick trip to NYC habu headquarters earlier this week. Here's some images of the new items we saw at their show room. Aside from their amazing fibers, Takako the owner of habu brought in some beautiful textiles and small handmade items that I absolutely adore. The delicate sling bag that you see hanging on the wall is made out of a type of sheer netting like textile. I was a little bummed for walking away without getting one. The shibori cotton fabric is also another mind-bogglingly gorgeous new item. To read more about our trip, check out the Ori Ami Knits blog.

this week...

Thank you so much for all your support on the book. It's been such a pleasure reading all your wonderful comments and encouragement. Please come see us at fibre space next thursday if you're going to be around in the area. Today, I'm busy cleaning the house, packing for the trip.... and I thought it might be nice to sneak in a post before I leave.




I've been wanting to write a post about my experience growing succulents in our tiny apartment for awhile. But I haven't really had the chance to post anything with all the stuff going on lately. I might still do that at some point. I found a couple cool websites that I would love to share with you guys. Anyways, few days ago, I got some new additions for our house. The lady at the nursery said these air plants are really easy to take care. So I'll see how it goes.




We got a bunch of cool stuff from this week's farmer's market.  Some tiny little cherry apples and pineapple guava which I have never seen before. I've not try the cherry apples yet, they were just too cute to past on. They cost me like 50cents, I think. The pineapple guava definitely has some interesting flavor profile. The fruit have a juicy sweet seed pulp and slightly tart nearer to the skin. I read from somewhere that it was used to infused vodka. Interesting! We also got some yummy heirloom cherry tomatoes, winter melon, persimons and a bunch of other stuff.




Lastly, some knitting news... a hat that I finished for P during our many road trips using leftovers cashmere + malabrigo. The picture below is a new project - thermis that I just cast on yesterday. I wanted something simple that I can knit on the plane. Looking at the weather, it might come in handy if I manage to finish it before I land. Alrighty, I hope you all had a great halloween. Enjoy the rest of your weekend and happy all souls day!

unveiled

I felt like I've waited so long to announce this but I'm super excited to share with you. For the past 6 months I have been working on a new book project - Ori Ami Knits with Olga Buraya-Kefelian also known as her blog Olgajazzy . With the help and encouragement from friends and family, our website went live early this month. Ori Ami Knits consists of 15 designs knit entirely out of Habu Textile fibers. To read more about our creative process and information about the upcoming publication, come check out our blog.

There's still lots to do with our new adventure but I hope to come back and post on a regular basis. On another exciting news, I'll be flying out to east coast for a special event at Fibre Space, a yarn shop in Alexandria, VA. Danielle the owner is hosting an exclusive book preview on Thursday, November 5 from 6-9pm. This will be the first exclusive opportunity to preview all designs from the book. If you are in the area come see us and try on the garments as well as enjoy our company and delicious treats!

wedding diptychs

Just want to pop in and say hi.
Things are good just a little hectic with life.
Will be back blogging soon.
Hope all is well with you.

p/s: Photos from our friends Monica & Dustin's wedding in Eugene, OR

i miss knitting too

I've been knitting but just not for myself. I got a message from Maryse saying that she miss reading about knitting. So here's a little project that I finished quite some time ago. For some of you that have a flickr account, you might have already seen this in my photo stream. It's the habu bag kit 13 knitted in linen paper and tsumugi silk. If you're curious about the yarn, it's actually pretty sturdy. I've been using the bag on and off for about 3 months now and it hasn't sag or loose its shape. However, I strongly recommend that you line the bag with fabric in order to keep it's shape and longevity. I know, it's an extra step for some that do not like to sew, but I must say, it's definitely worth the extra afford.

Not much news to share on the knitting front or any patterns that I can't wait to cast on. I saw the latest Rowan, nothing really jumps out at me. I did noticed they started offering free patterns on their website. The habu bag is also available for download at selvegde magazine if you're interested. Oh before I forget again, last month I did an interview with Priscilla at knitBuddies and Caitlyn at knitter in the kitchen also wrote a review about flow. Thank you for all your support ladies!

coveting

Beautiful type work by Craig Ward - words are pictures...



I came across Elaine Kim while searching for something to wear to a friend's wedding in a few weeks. I really like this eco friendly cupro-cotton dress, but it might be a little too casual, the camellia asymmetric silk dress is also cute. Decision. Decision.



If you going to be in NYC, don't miss the opportunity to see the latest exhibit at the Cooper-Hewitt National Design Museum . The new exhibit Design for Living World is very inspiring. Industrial designer Yves Béhar created a tool for scraping bits of cocoa off the patty; the cocoa shavings collect inside the hollow tool, and when the user turns the instrument over, the cocoa falls into a cup. The user then adds hot water or milk and stirs the beverage with the tool. A traditional Bribri drink. Read more here .



I'll probably look really silly walking around with this big grey bag. But it looks so cool!


I love our Riedel wine glasses but these Italian wine carafe stemless glasses by esque studio are like work of art. If you have time, take a look at their website. Stunning glassware!

I'm a dreamer

titled : solitude | taken on february 8, 2009 at andante dairy in petaluma california



titled : looking up | taken on july 2, 2008 during a hike in bend oregon


I think it has been awhile since I post or write anything about knitting. And to my dismay, it'll probably have to stay that way for awhile looking at the amount of projects I have on my plate. Our internet was down on friday. According to the comcast guy, some giant truck drove over a cable outside of our building causing major service disruption. I unplug our poor router and airport for like a hundred times thinking there were something wrong with them. Anyways, no internet for a day is probably good. I caught up with some non work related stuff and watch a little bit of tv. Well, as usual nothing caught my eyes last night, so I switch to cnn my regular news channel. Christiane Amanpour was on, she did an incredible segment on muslim youth in ‘Generation Islam’....I was glued and watched the entire two hours documentary. So many emotions ran through my head while watching the report. I have so much respect for people that are there fighting the battle and for people like C.A. willing to risk her life to tell the stories. For a moment I wish I could do something, evethough I wasn't sure exactly what I could do. Anyways, that reminds me of a beautiful story a friend told us not long ago, that she would volunteer her time and help out woman in needs in poor country when her children grew up and left the house eventually. I thought it's so inspiring and noble. And the idea of volunteering had stuck with me ever since. I know I might be a dreamer but I'm going to start with something small. I just signed up with local non-profit to volunteer my professional skills. I have no idea if my help will ever make an impact on anyone lives but I do know it reminds me everyday of how lucky I am.