I Knit London

This September was our first time participating in a Weekender show, and everyone was amazing. Build-up was the night before the show and when I wandered in at 9pm Gerard was all helpful and bubbly. It's obvious he put a lot of work and energy into the event.

The show was full of really fabulous vendors, some I've met before, and it was only a shame that so few turned up on the first day, as a lot of effort had gone into it by both the I Knit people and the vendors to make it a great knitting event. Debbie Bliss, Alice Stanmore and Erica Knight were there, too, which says it all.

I had a great time talking to people about my Ebru Needles, the Oya embroidery (which was a huge hit as expected)

and the cotton yarn (the Black Ink being very popular with men knitters as well)... 

It was also fun to have people dig in to the stitch marker basket like a treasure hunt - there were so many varieties. All in all, I met some lovely people and had a lot of laughs, it was a very warm and friendly crowd.  

A photo pilfered from Nicky's blog A Life Like Vera! 

Meeting knitting friends...

Well, we're back from London and that was a quick 18 days... or so it seems to me now. I'm a bit under the weather at the moment with a very sore throat and I'm positive it's a combo of climate shock and severe tiredness.

The I Knit London 2010 show went very well for me, and I came away with a lot of happy memories, brilliant sales on the second day, a lot of experience and best of all was meeting a few very special women. Nicky, whose blog is A Life Like Vera! and Heike, who I felt like I knew already as we had developed a very special bond this past spring. I ran into a Knitting Haven Parlor friend, which was a lovely surprise, too. And I was also really lucky to meet some of my newsletter subscribers finally!

Heike had made me a beautiful book cover, the inside of which was handmade paper from India. Gorgeous.

Heike added a beautiful button and a leather strap to the knitted journal cover. It's perfect for autumn musings. (A knitters' favourite season!)

I will post about the show specifically next time, but I wanted to first mention these lovely people, and also another nice surprise which was waiting for me when I got home. Patty, whose blog is Dream a Little Dream and knits wonderful things for wonderful little Angels, had sent me a lovely card. I first 'met' Patty when she shopped with me, but I don't see her as a customer at all and it's a great blessing that I've gotten to know her as a friend.



Lavender farm card from Patty.

The rock'n'roll of needles.

Our needles to be showcased at I-Knit Weekender this September. The Ebru needles in bamboo have turned out incredibly cool after our latest workshop efforts and I quite think I don't want to sell them at all... Here they are in pink/green, blue and lilac/woodtone:

All three colours of the Ebru Needles ~ lilac/woodtone, blue, pink/green.

Ebru Needles in blue ~ All cloudy and dreamy.

Ebru Needles in Lilac/woodtone. These evolved into a more exciting colour than planned.

Good enough to eat ~ pink/green ebru'ed needles.

Are you sure you want to wrench these away from me?

Ebru Needles in Turkish wood and the longer length. The wood adds a more textural dimension to the colour.

The Ebru Needles will be at the I-Knit Weekender show on 10-11th September, 2010 if you'd like to have a look.

Cotton fields forever

There's always a lot of debate and difference of opinion about natural over synthetic but I think cotton is the one fiber that unites everyone. The sheer simplicity and natural goodness of cotton is what makes me love it so much and I've started working with it more than ever before. Anyone who knows me knows that my life in Turkey took a new direction when I started to discover the natural fibers and their history here. When I first moved here, I honestly never knew that Turkish cotton had quite such a dignified reputation. I've been especially interested in the cotton which is cultivated in the Aegean region and apparently Turkish organic cotton is classed top in the world and has a slight edge on the others because of it's incredible natural sheen which can't be matched by any other unless enduring a lot of processing.

Locals picking their own cotton in Izmir. Image: www.egedesonsuz.com

The cotton plant itself was actually introduced to Turkey in the 1st century and was successfully cultivated throughout the Byzantine, Seljuk and Ottoman ages. It is predominantly harvested in the Southeast, Mediterranean and Aegean regions of Turkey, and I personally prefer the cotton of the Aegean because of it's culture, climate and personality. Villages grow cotton in addition to producing olive oil and the combination is an inspiring, heady sensation. There's also something about the Aegean which is fresh, clean and friendly. An Anatolia steeped in beautiful history and a cradle to ancient civilization. Especially in Soke. Close your eyes, concentrate on smell and sound and imagine yourself in a prospering Byzantine setting...

So, if you happen to be visiting this region around late August/early September, make sure you visit Soke in Aydin for the Annual Cotton Festival held between 30 August - 6 September, 2010.

Cotton Twirl; made from Turkish cotton with a twist of viscose. Available in Lemon Sorbet, Strawberry Sorbet, Golden Syrup, Bluberry Sorbet, Orange Sorbet, Turkish Blue, Parma Violet, Cotton Candy.

Cotton Cutie; pure Turkish cotton. Available in Sunrise, Lavendar Twilight, Opal White, Desert Stone, Sky Blue, Sultan Tulip, Harem Pink, Ink Black, Pistachio Green, Aegean Blue.

Mid-week break

The 19th of May is celebrated each year as Ataturk Remembrance & Youth Day and is a national holiday, with the next day being an extra day off for schools. It felt like a Sunday during the middle of the week as we went for a stroll along the tree-lined boulevard in Izmit, listened to a military band in the park (who were really game and played nursery rhymes for the children), had pizza and then went to a book fair.

The 2nd Kocaeli Book Fair, 15-23 May, 2010

You would think an active little 4 year-old would get bored and restless at a book fair but it turned out to be quite magical for my little son. There was a shadow puppet game which he never tired of, and a brilliant concert by a Peruvian band - comprising 35 ethnic members, making Native American-Indian music and promoting world peace and unity - who had traveled to Turkey just for the event.

'PUCARAMANTA; Spirits of the Sounds' gave a concert at the Book Fair

Article in Let's Knit

I just wanted to share the great news that I've been featured in the May issue of Let's Knit! They've also put together a giveaway of my products for one of their competitions and I'm very excited that a lucky participant will receive such a lovely set of knitting items, such as these:

KB Yarns Orient Mohair & Velvet

A set of 'Harem' sitch markers

A pair of one of these sets of handmade Iznik ceramic buttons

They're also including a pair of KB Marble Knitting Needles, and I'm really blown over by all the interest people have kindly shown toward KB Knitting as a result of reading about me in Let's Knit. Elaine, Assistant Editor from the magazine, did a great job and I'm now left a bit envious of the lucky people who get to work for knitting magazines...

Back to work!

The Stitch & Craft Show at Olympia was a great experience, although overwhelming by the sheer magnitude of paper crafts, supplies, and artists.


One of the highlights was meeting up with online friends from the knitting forum Knitting Haven. We all met each for the first time ever, even though we've been chatting online for years! They came from different corners of the UK and we all had dinner and drinks afterward.

Me, Kath, Liz and Kathryn

Scored a hit with visitors - 'Orient' and 'Sifa' yarns

The cotton 'Koza', handmade buttons and 'Harem' stitch markers.

Citara's: Tara's incredibly gorgeous handpainted ceramic and silver pendants.

Weaving without tools

Weaving with pure wool, using vibrant colours and creating fabric...

I won't be presumptious and talk a lot about this extraordinary piece - I barely understand how Pelin managed to do this without any tools! But, Pelin, I just couldn't resist sharing this...

Vibrant earthiness - by Pelin Tezer

If anyone would like to know how she did it, just go on over and visit her at her blog knit...stitch...crochet - she's lovely!

Acknowledgments : Images used here are the property of Pelin Tezer

'Igne Oyasi' - traditional Turkish needle lace

A typical length of pre-stitched oya lace which will be added to a headscarf, home linens or made into jewelry.

Every country has it's own unique craft steeped in tradition and Turkey is no exception, apart from the fact that it has so many and all of which have been influenced by many different civilizations over the centuries.

I have always been fascinated by Oya Lace, and was even more influenced by the attentions it attracted of my expat friends Rose and Tara.

Rose, as an artist and designer, used vintage pieces of crochet and oya lace in a myriad of ways to create modern items and Tara is very good at sniffing out Oya lace wherever she goes - she loves it!

Artist, designer & writer Rose Deniz blogs about beautiful things in Love, Rose.

Igne Oyasi bracelet by Turkish jewelry artisan Birsen Sonmez and available through Citara's.

There's so much history, stories and techniques involved in Oya Lace so you might be interested in finding out more. Read my article about it all on valleyfiberlife.com