Summer 2017

Oh my, last post on this blog in ... August?! I didn't even notice that the time was passing so quickly, even though I've had it in the back of my head that I really, really should be back to blogging soon after the summer break.

Well, there are several reasons for this long break but one of them is certainly instagram; another reason I will write in another post soon. So, instagram happened in a moment of boredom and I immediately got hooked in spite of my initial reservations (the fact that I was already a very late starter didn't make those reservations smaller). Then I got really into it. And now I'm kind of out of it again.

I still think instagram is a great way to share visual information and for example I discovered some interesting calls for testknits which I would have never seen on Ravelry otherwise. But the main reason why I'm less busy with it now is mainly that it took the focus away from my beloved blog! And there are certainly many things that you cannot do with instagram that the blog can do. I have the impression that I'm not the only blogger that got sucked into this because many of the blogs I follow regularly are also updated less frequently or seem to be hibernating.

So I decided to turn my attention back to the blog, where I can go into more detail with many things and which I still like because it feels a little bit more "permanent" than the fleeting nature of likes and comments of instagram. Let's see how I get on!

For now, here are some snaps that we (because for many pictures I can actually not take credit myself) have taken over the summer months with our new camera - an investment that now only requires that we actually learn how to use it properly. 

Summer reading

A slow summer allows for more reading! I actually started similar posts before but I never got round to publishing them - usually I was waiting to finish one more book to put on the list and by the time I finished, I had already started another one. Also, I don't have any logic or system to selecting my books but it's usually just what I have on top of my "unread" pile (currently surprisingly small).

My main criteria are that it should be 1) entertaining and 2) relatively light in physical terms so I can easily carry it around and read on the metro to work. This has unfortunately worked against some books, such as Murakami's 1Q84 trilogy which I bought last year but never got round to reading it because it is just too damn heavy! In hindsight it would have been better to buy each volume separately but that was just some saving on the wrong end.

Long story short, here are the books I've read over the last few months:

• Elena Ferrante - "My brilliant friend"

Quite liked it but I absolutely cannot agree with the general  hype around her books. Yes it was a good read but I didn't like the characters very much and I kept on thinking "what is the point of this?". Maybe there will be a big revelation in book 2 or 3 but so far I didn't feel the need to continue reading. 

• Gabriel Garcia Marquez - "Love in the times of cholera"

I used to love Garcia Marquez and I even had a newspaper clipping of him pinned on the noticeboard above my desk - which I actually took down and threw out after finishing "Love in the times of cholera". It doesn't have any of this mystical realism that makes "One hundred years of solitude" so amazing and in most places it's just gross and not at all what I expected. What did it for me was when the old guy, Florentino Aziza, starts an affair with a 14 (!!!) year old girl and thinks that is totally ok. Whatever this contributed to the storyline I don't know but the last part of the book I was just hoping that he wouldn't get together with Fermina Daza because he was simply an a**hole and didn't deserve a happy end. Well, maybe this is again me not liking the character and this might not be a very founded criticism of the entire book (I agree that the writing can still be good even if the characters are not likeable) but I just didn't enjoy reading it anymore. 

• Ben Okri - "The famished road"

Didn't finish it. And this is one of the few books I didn't read until the end because I usually hope there's some redeeming turning point. It was just too confusing and abstract with the dream world being a little too crazy for my taste - but I can see why people like it and in general I could get into the "mood" of the book very easily. It just wasn't for me. 

• Erich Maria Remarque - "All quiet on the western front" ["Im Westen nichts Neues"]

Now, this is a classic about which I can wholeheartedly say it deserves its place in the hall of fame of books in history. Personally I'm a pacifist so I thought this should be a compulsory read but for some reason I never got round to it, not even in high school. So I'm a bit late but I nevertheless really liked it and I think it brings across the horrors of WWI perfectly through the words of the young soldier who goes straight from the classroom to the Western front. Just thinking about it gives me shivers again: imagine nowadays a 17-year old young person being recruited by his/her teacher basically to go to certain death - and a not a nice death, that's for sure. In places it was very difficult for me to continue reading simply because of the awful scenes the author describes. But then again, I couldn't put it down because you want to know how things play out, even though (spoiler alert!) you already know that the narrator will die.

• Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - "Half of a yellow sun"

I picked this book up in a charity shop and when I went to pay the shop assistant already told me "I cried so much when reading this but it is so good!". This pretty much summarizes also my reading experience! I LOVED this book and it one of those stories that captures you from beginning to end plus you have the added benefit of learning about a chapter in West African history that I personally only had a very hazy notion of. Set in the Biafran war, the author does an amazing job of mixing the personal storylines with the political and historical facts and putting things into perspective. After reading this book you will look differently at those pictures of starving children and I think it really helps to put it into the right context. I'm not an expert on Nigerian politics but I'm pretty sure some of the conflicts today are also a result of this. Finally, another reason to read this book (if you need any more) is that there are not many young, female, well-known contemporary African writers so it is even more important to experience this new angle. 

• Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie - "Americanah"

I got this book straight after finishing "Half of a yellow sun" because I didn't want the magic to stop! I was a bit surprised that "Americanah" is completely different, though. Different but not less good, actually. 

• No-Violet Bulawayo - "We need new names"

I had been planning on reading this book since I visited Zimbabwe a few years ago and only now got round to it. In spite of what I just said, there are some other young, female, contemporary African writers and Bulawayo is one of them (even though she is much less known than Adichie). Even though the basic storyline is comparable to "Americanah" (a girl leaves Africa for the US), it is much darker in a way and displays strikingly the poverty and difficulties that people are trying to leave behind and start a new life in the US. That is, of course, not much easier as the narrator faces a life far away from most of her family as an illegal immigrant in the US. I liked it but compared to "Americanah" it was just a bit too rough for my taste.

• Jonas Gardell - "Torkar aldrig tarar utan handskar" (Trilogy)

Loved this trilogy. It's so well written and has such a personal touch to it that I read each book in less than three days. I didn't know Gardell and his previous work  but he's famous in Sweden and he has been a gay rights activist for a long time, so the subject of the books - the start of the HIV/AIDS "epidemic" in Sweden in the 1980s - is well informed, I suppose. I liked it also because we mostly know about how HIV/AIDS became known in the US and the hysteria that it caused there. Personally I still remember all the information campaigns about safe sex at school in the early 90s, but  in the small town where I'm from it seemed very far away and somehow unreal. Reading the story of a young gay couple, Rasmus and Benjamin, in Sweden in the 1980s and into the 1990s and how one of them dies from HIV/AIDS brings it really, really close to home. The family situations are described  well so you can empathise with the protagonists and Gardell uses headlines from newspapers of the time to show how negative and hateful the public image of gay men was. HIV/AIDS which was described as the "gay plague" seemed to fit right into the awful public rethoric - and all that in a country like Sweden, which we often hail as so tolerant, open-minded, and advanced. The only tiny little criticism that I would like to make of Gardell's books is that he only and exclusively portrays HIV/AIDS as a problem of the male gay community, even though it must have affected women, too. Especially women that were brought in connection with prostitution when it turned out they were HIV positive, which must have caused an equally strong stigma for them. Also, I would have appreciated a connection to the views on HIV/AIDS today because many prejudices and stereotypes still exist - even though many issues are now played out on a different stage, far away on other continents. But I certainly don't want to discount the struggle for the rights of gay men and the specific issues of that community, since this was clearly to be chosen at the centre of the novels. Many more interesting novels could be written on this topic!

Now I'm looking for new books to read this autumn, any ideas are welcome!

Textile Travel: Estonia

Estonia has a very interesting and rich textile tradition that deserves its own blog post. It may not be as well known as the famous Latvian mittens but nevertheless, there is actually even more to discover in Estonia if you are interested in textiles and especially knitting!

Folk costumes

To start with, once only has to have a look at the colourful folk costumes that are specific to each region of Estonia and which are an important part of the national identity and consciousness. We were lucky enough to visit during the 12th Youth Dance and Song Celebration ( XII noorte laulu- ja tantsupidu) which takes places every four to five years, alternating with the general Dance and Song Celebration which is a national institution. Through work I was able to attend the general rehearsal of the dancing celebration which was a truly impressive experience: almost 5000 children and young people dancing different traditional and modern choreographies and all in the different regional folk costumes. Such a beautiful, colourful, inspiring sight I can hardly describe it!

 In the pictures you can see a small selection of the costumes I spotted in the parade that led up to the singing celebration but one of the most impressive things was the logistics of it: thousands of kids, some as young as 7 or 8 from all over the country travelled to Tallinn to sleep in schools and practise a whole week with their dance teachers to form this enormous dance celebration. Many of them were away from home for the first time without their parents and you could tell that the parents were extremely proud, watching them from the sidelines. In the stadion were the dance celebration was held it was most impressive how they managed to get the kids on and off the field on time and in order to be precisely where they were supposed to be. It involved a lot of running and sometimes I felt bad for the little ones. But everything went well and I have a lot of respect for the teachers to manage everything so well.

Anyways, I can definitely recommend attending one of the Dance and Song Festivals to get to know the Estonian culture and tradition better, even if it is only to look at the beautiful traditional costumes. Sometimes it was a bit too nationalistic for my taste but maybe that's just me as a German, for historical reasons I think we're often quite uneasy when too many flags are being waved around but I give it to the Estonians that their history is quite different in many ways! 

Embroidery

As you can see in the pictures above, embroidery is one essential element in the beautiful designs of the costumes. Since we didn't travel to all regions in Estonia I will take as an example the traditional costume of the island of Muhu, which is also one of the most "spectactular" ones because the decorations are so lavish and the colours so vibrant and recognizable. Muhu also has a particular knitting tradition which I will describe in more detail below.

Joking around at Muhu museum: traditional costumes for both men and women

Muhu embroidery is famous for its intricacy and also for its colours, which are mainly orange, red, and pink as well as yellow for the woven fabric of the skirts (you can see this best in the picture above at the parade). We visited the Muhu museum which showcased some very nice examples of the embroidery both on the folk costume as well as on blankets and other textiles. Some are more geometric based patterns in cross-stitch such as the apron in the picture above and another tradition is the flower embroidery which is more free but equally beautiful. Unfortunately I'm not the expert on embroidery or folk costumes but I really recommend reading this blog post on the blog "Embroidery and Folk Costumes" which gives a lot of details and is a great resources. 

Knitting

Handknitted mittens for sale in Tallinn

I didn't know this book but it looks like the equivalent to the "Latvian Mitten Bible" 

Of course, knitting! When I arrived in Tallinn I immediately made a plan to go yarn shopping (see also details below) which led to Thomas' suspicion that I had only chosen to go to Estonia in order to fuel my addiction. Not true, but I did spend a fair amount looking at and shopping for yarn.

The Estonian knitting tradition is very rich and similar to its neighbour Latvia: multi-coloured patterns mainly used for mittens but also used for socks, hats, vests, sweaters, and other garments that are typical for each region. Since my mum is a regular visitor to Estonia she has often brought me books and yarn which I have already used in different projects such as this one or this one. One book that I liked in particular is Aino Praakli's "Kirikindad - patterned mittens" which is a great resource for traditional patterns, based on original mittens she documented in museums.

Knitting is everywhere in Estonia and many small towns have shops where local people can sell their handknit products for next to nothing - and they are beautiful! I was so tempted to buy a pair of mittens but I restrained myself because I already had 1.5 kg of yarn in my suitcase. Nevertheless it was a lot of fun to check out the colour combinations and styles. 

Muhu knitting

I'm picking the Muhu knitting as one example of regional styles, partly because we happened to go there and see the samples in the museum ourselves but also because it is one of the most beautiful ones.

 Even within Estonia, the Muhu style sticks out because of its flashy colours and some typical pattern elements such as birds, plants, and certain geometrical patterns. You can see some examples in the book pictured above. What is also interesting are the stockings - because they are actually knee-high - which don't feature in all the Estonian regions but which seem to be typical for Muhu, too.

You can read more in Kate Davie's book review which has a lot of additional information which I wouldn't be able to cover all in one blogpost. (I'm actually not sure if she reviewed exactly the same book pictured above because I forgot to note down the title but I think it is.)

Haapsalu lace

The second knitting style I wanted to highlight is the tradition of knitted Haapsalu lace shawls. It is very different from the traditional mittens and the Muhu style described above, and also probably "younger" since wikipedia defines the Haapsalu shawls as  "a knitted lace shawl that originated in the seaside resort town of Haapsalu, Estonia during the early 19th century."

Indeed, we had the pleasure to visit the Haapsalu Lace Centre and check out some of the samples you can see above. Besides the fact that Haapsalu is a cute little seaside resort, the Lace Centre is an excellent place to learn about the shawl tradition and even learn how to knit one yourself! I'm personally not a big fan of lace so I skipped this opportunity but I think it would be a real achievement to finish one of those masterpieces - just to prove that you can!

Other crafts: woodwork

Finally, I can't really leave out another important Estonian craft which really impressed me: woodcarving and woodwork in general is everywhere. It kind of makes sense - considering that much of the country is covered with trees. But still, the skill is remarkable and I admired the smooth buttons and jewelry as well as the cutting boards and hand-woven baskets.

Especially the baskets made from birch bark are wonderful but unfortunately I couldn't take back as much wood products as yarn - airline luggage restrictions suck. But I couldn't entirely resist and bought a necklace and a bracelet similar to the ones pictured above.

The carved buttons totally made me swoon and they felt amazing but I decided against them because Thomas had already promised to make me some himself. Now, this will be a difficult challenge to live up to!

Useful addresses and information

Flyer of the Estonian Handicraft Association with the addresses of the different regional handicraft centres

Map with the location of the regional handicraft centres

I have to admit that I relied heavily on the information my mum collected on her extended trips to Estonia and then passed it on to me and she even wrote an own blogpost about it but unfortunately it is in German.

The two pictures above show a publication by the Estonian Handicraft Association (Eesti Käsitöö) which has its main centre in Tallinn and then local antennas in the different regions, as you can see on the map above. It's definitely worth visiting if you are looking for affordable handknits but they have only a smaller selection of yarn. The focus is on knitted products.

But of course there are also regular yarn shops and the ones that my mum recommended are actually all within 5 minutes walking of each other, very close to the new Tallinn bus station. Here I'm summarizing the addresses and directions for the Tallinn shops, translated into English:

• Karnaluks (K.A. Hermanni 1, Tallinn, Entrance C)

An amazingly huge shop with everything that the knitters' (or crafters') heart could desire. It resembles a warehouse and has stacks and stacks of yarn boxes that reach up to the ceiling so you need some time to go through everything. It has a lot of acrylic rubbish yarn but also some Rowan (I saw felted tweed, fine tweed, and fine lace) and the prices are very good. Of course they also have the traditional Estonian yarn in many colours that you can use for mittens or jumpers. Besides the yarn it also has the biggest selection of needles and other knitting accessories I've ever seen in a single place and again, you have the choice between well-known brands at decent prices as well as cheaper local makes. The shop is a bit difficult to find and the entrance does not have a sign (to be honest, it doesn't even look like a shop) but if you stick to the C Entrance and take the stairs up to the second floor you will know immediately when you're there.

• Abakhan Fabrics (Tartu mnt. 63, Tallinn)

Supposedly on the same block as Karnaluks but I couldn't find it - maybe it was closed? It definitely confirms the general trend of Estonian shops and restaurant that like to be hidden and ideally do not look like anything special from the outside!

• Wool and Woollen (Tartu mnt. 60 d, Tallinn)

Accross the street from Karnaluks, this is a small and cosy shop completely dedicated to yarn. It looks more like what I expected a yarnshop to be like - unfortunately it was also closed due to the summer holidays. But what I heard from my mum and what I could see through the window was very promising.

If you happen to travel to Estonia and you want more knitting-related advice feel free to get in touch!

Praline

I'm not always so excited about a knitting pattern but the "Praline" shrug immediately caught my eye when I saw it on Instagram. I was even more excited to hear that Dani, the designer, was looking for test knitters! Even though I was a bit late to register was super happy to get the pattern just in time for the holidays so I had a nice project to follow me to Estonia and Finland.

The pattern was really well written and actually the best case scenario for a test knit: there were hardly any mistakes so my job was very easy. Maybe I'm too used to badly written patterns from Ravelry but this was a nice change. There was actually not much "thinking" to do because every step was described in a lot of detail so it's less likey to make a mistake. 

I recycled the yarn from my frogged "Louise" cardigan which I didn't wear anymore and the turquoise yarn was just about enough for the shrug. I actually wanted full-length sleeves but I could just make the 3/4 sleeves with the yarn I had left over. I have to say I'm not too thrilled about the texture and you can clearly see the difference between the recycled yarn I used mainly on the bodice and sleeves and the "fresh" yarn that I had leftover and I used for the cuffs and the button band section.

All in all I really love the pattern and the result - maybe I should spend some more money on buying decent patterns in the future.

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Pattern: "Praline" shrug by Dani Sunshine (@lionessarts on instagram)

Yarn: Recycled Schachenmeyer Merino Extrafine 120, Colour 176, Dyelot 4588

My ravelry project page