The Constant Crafter

Moving Day!

2012-01-28T20:26:00.000+09:00

Rocketman had a going away dinner Thursday night with all his co-workers. He came home not too late (around 11pm) and with these wonderful gifts. This picture is of what I would call Buddha's sidekick. I forgot his name and what it symbolizes. I will have to ask my Korean girlfriends and then write it down. His co-workers are sad to see him go and like ourselves, surprised at how quickly the year passed.

They also gave us this beautiful tea service. I was really touched at their generousity.

Moving day, Friday morning, came way too quickly. This is the luggage we are taking on the plane. The movers showed up shortly before 9 am and got to work quickly. I offered something to drink while they were busy packing our things and we also gave them money for their lunch. Jennifer, from the relocation agency, was supposed to come with Jeff but Jeff is really sick so another co-worker came.

The furniture was supposed to be picked up the same day as our move but things didn't turn out that way. We're not sure what is going on where that is concerned but our relocation agency is working it out with Rocketman's company who owns the furniture.

Jennifer taking an important call. The boxes went out the window and straight into an ocean container. The movers had to pay 100,000 ($90 USD) just to use the elevator although they didn't use the elevator that much. We were surprised to hear that. But it is a common practice here in Korea.

The relocation agency loaded up all our luggage and off we went to Seoul to our hotel. We are staying in Seoul for a few days to do some sightseeing but I have a feeling Rocketman will be working some of those days.

Jennifer, Rocketman and I met Hannah at Seoul Station for dinner. We ate at the food court and this is what Rocketman chose.

This is Jennifer's dinner.

I chose kimchi jjigae but I didn't like the kimchi. It was really huge pieces. I like it when they cut it into small bitesize pieces.

Jennifer was taking the KTX train to Daegu for her father's 60th birthday party. It used to be a huge celebration when people rarely lived that long but now it's just a little party. We were all very tired from the day.

Crazy Wednesday! Part 2

2012-01-27T18:49:00.000+09:00

I arrived at chilbo an hour late and to my surprise Metal Guy was already there. He had designed and made me a butterfly (nabi) brooch. Since I was so late, he painted it for me while I worked on another project.

This is what it looked like before it went into the kiln.

He even fired it for me. Usually Nan-Young does all the firing.

Here is what it looked like immediately after being taken out of the kiln.

Here it is after a little more cooling, about 30 seconds or so.

And here it is in all it's glory. He did a great job and here I thought all he did was metalwork.

This is what I was working on. Nan-Young had me hammer some copper pieces and then I applied the enamel.

Nan-Young also made these for me as gifts.

She also painted the gourd I had gotten at hanji class.

Then it was off to dinner! It was a cold walk but the restaurant was really warm. This is Nan-Young with her boyfriend.

Here is Young-Soo with her boyfriend.

Nan-Young was taking a picture of the two of them.

The arrival of the side dishes!! They put the kimchi right in front of me.

Then came a kimchi jeon (pancake). Nan-Young started to cut it with a scissors but Young-Soo stopped her and wanted me to eat like a Korean. I couldn't agree more.

They had also ordered a fish soup. I'm not a big fan of Korean soups that contain fish and not because they taste bad because they are delicious. It's the fish bones that I am so afraid of. Even the insides of the fish were in the soup and of course, they wanted to put them into my bowl. No thank you. Young-Soo and Nan-Young gave me pieces of fish that did not contain any bones but I was still pretty nervous. Young-Soo even took a part of the spine and was sucking the meat out of it. I was so scared for her and she thought I was hilarious for being so concerned.

Then the waitress brought out this piece of dough.

And ripped it up and placed it into the pot where the remains of the soup were.

Here is what my bowl looked like. It tasted just like a noodle.

My bodyguard came late and had to point out this work of his. He says it's very ancient Chinese characters. Yeah, right.

I had to use the restroom and this is what I found on the bathroom wall. I guess that's how they sell beer in Korea.

My bodyguard gave me this picture of him being a Master. I'm not sure what martial arts he is a Master in but he is intimidating. He says if I'm ever in trouble just to call and he will defend me. Pretty cool!

I bought this for Rocketman from my bodyguard.

He also gave me this picture of a bird. I wanted to buy it also but he wouldn't let me.

Here he is with Nan-Young. After we finished dinner, we went back to Nan-Young's shop and Metal Guy gave me a ride home. I was really, really trying not to cry but as the goodbyes started so did my tears. I will miss them soooooo much.

Crazy Wednesday! Part 1

2012-01-26T15:44:00.000+09:00

Thursday morning started out with bojagi class. I finished my one project along with the socks.

It really turned out great. I thought it would be my last class but we are meeting in Seoul on Saturday to do some shopping at a shop that is either giving away or selling cheap fabric scraps. Then she is going to show me how to do a bojagi made of triangles. We are meeting at three at Dongdaemun so I think I will show up early and do some last minute shopping at my favorite place, Dongdaemun Shopping Complex.

Hannah's sister was driving down to pick up some leftover food from our refrigerator and freezer. When Rocketman suddenly had to be gone to Japan last week, it left basically a week's worth of meals to be eaten. Hannah's sister speaks very good English and she was really surprised at all the stuff we had to give her. Her son, who is 10, was a hoot. He ran around the apartment looking at everything.

We loaded everything into her car and she knew I wanted to close my bank account so we drove to my bank. It was incredibly easy to close my account. I had also brought a years worth of Korean coins to deposit and he was shocked to see the bag. Apparently, Koreans don't save their coins. Even the machine was too small for all my coins and it got bogged down with the amount of coins and the caculating. I ended up with a little over 80,000 WON ($70 USD) which I deposisted in Rocketman's account.

Then we went off to a famous restaurant for lunch. It is owned by a famous trot singer. I loved the front of the building and it was huge.

The inside was really cute with lots of plants. I loved that we didn't have to sit on the floor.

This was just the first round. They brought additional dishes ending with rice. I was so full and the food was delicious.

I loved her lighting. Hannah's sister had been there before and had never noticed the lighting.

She had a couple of her gold records near the cash register.

And a couple of pictures of herself.

Hannah's sister knew I needed to be at chilbo by 3 and it was 3 when we left the restaurant so I had her call Nan-Young and tell her I would be late. Then we realized that her GPS was sending us in circles, she said it was unreliable. So she also had her IPhone GPS telling us the way. Hannah called while we were pulled over trying to figure this out and she was shocked that we were lost so I had to give my phone to her sister because she wanted to see what the heck was going on.

She did get me to chilbo but I arrived after 4 pm. She went in and explained what had happened to Nan-Young. I am breaking this post up into two parts because there is just too much to tell with too many pictures.

Hanji People Class

2012-01-24T18:46:00.002+09:00

Saturday was my final hanji people class. I had my teacher all to myself since it was a warm and rainy day which kept the crowds from the palace. This photo is what my hanji people looked like to begin with.

Here my teacher is showing me how to attach the hanji to the body form.

I was able to snap this quick picture of my hanji teacher.

Here si what they look like when I finished. I also have a display case for them.

Nan-Young showed up about an hour after I did. She is still busy working at the palace.

The hanji teacher brought me a little container of kimchi even though I told her I would only be in my apartment another week. It was delicious so I'm glad she brought it for me.

Rocketman returned from Japan with this Japanese candy. It's hard candy and I gave it to my friend, Hannah for her nieces and nephew.

Rocketman also brought his Kindle home and promply took it apart. It fell into the bathtub while he was in Japan not once but twice. It was sitting on the edge of the tube when it accidently fell in. He took it out immediately but as he did that, the Kindle fell out of it's case and back into the tub.

When he got home he went onto the interview and found a video by a guy who took his Kindle apart and was describing the parts. Rocketman was in heaven and loved every minute of that video but alas, it didn't helpt him bring his Kindle back to life. So guess what I'll be ordering as soon as we arrive back home?

It's funny because I bought it as a birthday present for Rocketman a few years ago even though he had no desire to own one. But I felt it was perfect for him with all the travel he does and in the back of my mind I thought that if he didn't want I would use it. But as soon as he got it he LOVED it so I was happy. He was really bummed about the whole situation and wonders how Amazon will handle the books he already purchased but I told him we'll figure that out too when we get home. We just have too much going on right now. I can't believe the movers are coming in just three days!!

Happy Seollal!!!!

2012-01-22T16:01:00.001+09:00

It's the year of the Black Dragon something that only occurs every 60 years. I'm hoping for a great year for everyone. It will be a new beginning for us with our move back to the U.S. I haven't driven a car in a long time so that should be interesting.

Rocketman is at a photography class today and tomorrow but my Korean friend Hannah is coming down and should be here anytime. It will be a day of great food and great conversation. I've spent the day gathering all my hanji into one spot for careful packing by the movers and also bagging up all our liquids and gels. They have filled a small suitcase. I never knew we had to many until I went around and gathered everything.

The Start of the Goodbyes - Hanji

2012-01-21T18:51:00.000+09:00

Friday was my last hanji class so we all went out for lunch. My favorite hanji gal, Tae-Soon, had just gotten back from visiting her daughter who lives in China. I hadn't seen her for a few months and I was so glad she got back in time for me to say goodbye.

We went to a restaurant very near to the hanji shop, but off the beaten path. It was in a hanok that had been modernized but still had that old charm of days gone by.

My hanji teacher is on the far end, and that is Hannah, her daughter, next to her. Hannah had recently returned from a year in Canada. Her English is really good.

We took quite a few pictures and then the food arrived.

It went on and on and on. I loved it all too.

This dish had jellyfish in it and I have always been afraid to try jellyfish. But they really wanted me to try it and I did. I was surprised at the taste and texture. It wasn't bad and if I hadn't known it was jellyfish, I would have eaten more.

Can you believe the food? And this was only the beginning.

Finally some kimchi but it can at the end of lunch and I was too full to eat more than a few pieces but it was also delicious.

Dessert

The outside of the restaurant.

We went back to hanji for some coffee and some of the girls got back to work. This is a light that one of them is working on.

I also got my finished jewelry box. It turned out beautiful.

Inside.

Top

Then they gave me a bunch of gifts. The pencil holder was made by my hanji teacher.

Another gal gave me these hanji shoes she had made in my favorite color.

My hanji teacher also gave me a business card holder. Rocketman is using the one that I had made.

Tan-Soo made these hanji bowls for me. They are breathtaking. She is such a talented lady.

Here is a closeup. She made the flowers herself. The center is an old time coin design.

She also gave me this letter that her son-in-law translated for her. He is Chinese but knows English. I will cherish it forever.

More presents from hanji girls. This is a cross-stitch design.

My hanji teacher also gave me a hanbok for my grandson, Noah. I can't wait to see him in it and I'll be sure to send her a picture of him in it.

I also got a key holder. The keys are hidden on the inside.

And finally, this wonderful letter from Hannah. She was embarassed thinking her written English was poor but I read the letter and told her she wrote great. This was when I got emotional. I was really trying to keep it together but the letter was too much for me. I gathered my things and made a hasty retreat thanking them for all their kindness they had shown me through the year I was with them. It is something I will never forget. I just wish the goodbyes were over but they are just beginning. It's going to be a difficult week.

Dakgalbi in Chuncheon, South Korea

2012-01-20T18:30:00.001+09:00

My dear friend, Hellena, arrived in Korea for just a couple of days and I got to spend Thursday with her. She is a flight attendant with Quatar and she lives in Doha. She rarely gets to Korea so I was thrilled to see her one last time before we leave.

She always loves to take me to new places and had decided to take me to Chuncheon which is about an hour and a half East of Seoul for lunch. She was pouring over subways and bus routes when her boyfriend took pity on her and took a "sick"day to take us in his car. I took the bus to Seoul and they picked me up at Sadang Station. We also picked up one of Hellena's friends.

Chuncheon is famous for dakgalbi which is a spicy chicken dish. In Chuncheon, there are tons of dakgalbi restaurants but Hellena's boyfriend knew which one was the best and that is where we went. It wasn't much to look at from the outside.

Or the inside for that matter.

But it's all about the food and I know from back home that some of the worst looking dives have the best food.

I was unprepared for how much food they brought. I thought this could feed a small army and to prove my point shortly after we arrived, a bunch of guys with military uniforms came in to eat too.

This is what it looked like as it was cooking. It smelled delicious.

Afterwards we went to a nearby dam to look around. It was really beautiful.

Next we had to find a coffee shop in downtown Chuncheon because that is what you do when you eat a HUGE meal in Korea. The girls were remarking that you could really tell we were in the country and I asked why. They told me to look at how people were dressed. Women had on jeans and tennis shoes. I didn't see one person wearing high heels. They told me that is how you can tell you are in the country. Hmm.

Then it was back to Seoul and we dropped Hellena's friend off in Gangnam. The traffic was horrible. We were meeting Hellena's flatmate from Doha for dinner who also happened to be in Korea at the same time .

We went to, of course, a very famous restaurant for Chinese food. There was already a long line of people waiting but when the owner saw me, he immediately found us a table. We all felt bad about it and didn't want to be treated differently. The owner also kept a special eye on our table and we wanted for nothing.

This picture is me with Hellena and her boyfriend. He really was a trooper and never complained once.

I ate maybe two small bowls of food. I was still stuffed from lunch but someone they managed to finish everything.

Hellena and me waiting for of all things after all that food, ice cream. I told them not to get me any but they did anyway and I could only eat one small bite. I was sooooo full.

We even managed to find my favorite store, Art Box, and I bought a few things. The thing in the lower left corner is a passport holder and Hellena told me I had to have one. It's what all Koreans do and you know me if all Koreans are doing it, so am I. I took the subway all the way back to Suwon Station for the first time with Hellena making sure I got on the right one. The Incheon subway and the Suwon subway are on the same track. How confusing is that! I got to Suwon Station, caught the 777 bus after a few minutes and made it home shortly after 10 pm.

Hellena flies back to Doha on Saturday but returns on Monday. She invited us to her sister's house for Seollal and her mom is going to cook for us. I'm so excited and can't wait. Rocketman is flying back tomorrow afternoon so he will be in town too.

Rocketman informed me that his Kindle is not waterproof. He has a habit of reading in the tub and guess what happened? He dropped it. So I got another thing added to the growing list of things we need when we return to the States.

Here are a couple of videos I took of the dakgalbi:

The Hanbok Rap

2012-01-18T21:03:00.002+09:00

Pretty cute video!

Chilbo (Korean Enameling) Class

2012-01-18T20:34:00.001+09:00

Chilbo class has been real interesting this week. I had class on Tuesday and Wednesday. When I arrived on Tuesday I found Nan-Young painting kits, one after another. So I worked on my chilbo projects as she painted. Today I finished them and you can see them above.

Nan-Young hadn't been eating lunch because of working everyday at the Palace so I told her I would make her lunch and bring it. I was going to make shrimp alfredo but I forgot and left the shrimp out all night so I thought they would be bad. I went for something easy and I cooked a chicken breast and added it to some Rice a Roni I had brought from the States. She added the rest you see above. Kimchi and Rice a Roni, not bad.

Metal Guy also stopped by to drop off some things for both of us. Nan-Young had these made for cellphone charms.

She loved the backs. The one on the left says Nan Young's Goban (Shop) and right one is just her name.

A funny thing happened while I was there on Tuesday. I decided to stop my work and video Nan-Young painting a kite. All of the sudden a bunch of Korean officials came in and to my surprise there was the city official who I have met many times and who also speaks good English. He was so happy to see me. He seems to always have an entourage around him.

We talked for quite awhile and then he took the brush from Nan-Young and began to paint a kite. He told me how much he loved ABBA and especially the song "Dancing Queen." He said he loved to go to noribang after a little soju and sing it. He even sang a few bars for me without the soju.

Then another guy wanted to paint. They call him noodlehead because of his curly hair. I told him I would love to have his curly locks.

I thought to myself would I ever see one of my government officials doing something like this. I didn't think so and it made me sad. These guys were really enjoying themselves.

My Bodyguard was also with them and everytime he sees me, he opens his arms wide waiting for a hug. It's so cute.

He even had to paint a few kites. He is the artistic one and does amazing wood carvings. It was one of the best days I've had in a long time.

I shot some video of the painting:

First was Nan-Young and you can hear at the end that the entourage had arrived:Then it was Noodlehead guy:Then we had two painting at once:Then it was my Bodyguard's turn:

Bojagi (Korean Quilting) Class

2012-01-17T18:48:00.001+09:00

This is my final bojagi project. A Korean sock. I started it last week and will finish it (hopefully) during my last class next Wednesday. It won't have the chasu (Korean embroidery) but I think I will be visiting my favorite chasu shop in Dongdaemun to get something to decorate my socks.

She also brought me this scissors case that she has been working on.

My homework last week was to stitch all these pieces together. I am making two socks.

Today I started the quilting. I will be quilting both sides and the center so it all looks like the bottom right side. I get to do this to both socks and I have until next Wednesday to finish it. I have a lot of work to do.

This is what my kitchen table looked like at the end of today. I also have to finish the center of that orange bojagi you see in the photo.

KJ also brought me some satin for my final project. I'm going to make a bojagi of only triangles. She'll get me started on it next week and I'll work on it and finish it back in the States.

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2012-01-16T17:49:00.002+09:00

Today I covered my jewelry box with the hanji paper I picked out. Purple is my favorite color so I decided to make the box purple and the inside lavender.

Here is the jewelry box covered inside and out with hanji paper waiting to dry. My hanji teacher told me that she would finish it for me since my last hanji class is this Friday.

Here is what my teacher was working on. I have no idea how she did the mother-of-pearl but it turned out gorgeous. It was pretty small about six inches wide and maybe four inches tall.

I also picked up the coasters I had finished last week. I am bringing some extra forms home to make some for my Etsy shop.

We were eating some cookies that I had brought when the girls starting looking at me a lot and saying "pretty" in Korean. I was curious to why they were saying that and found out that they love my BIG nose as my teacher called it. They love that my nose sticks out so far and they really envy me for my nose. The funny thing is that I've always hated my nose and thought it was too big. I would have loved to have a nose job back in the day. It gave me a whole perspective.

Since Friday is my last day of hanji class, we are meeting at 12 to go out to lunch and are having a "Going Out" party. I tried to correct them from saying "Going Out" to "Going Away" party but they were so happy to be speaking in English that I gave up. So I'm having a hanji "Going Out" Party on Friday. I'm going to try really hard not to cry but it will be very hard. These women have become so dear to me it will be hard to say goodbye. We have become a little family in a lot of ways. I know each one of them would do anything for me and I feel the same way about each of them. I'll make sure to take a lot of pictures.

Making Hanji People Class

2012-01-15T18:37:00.001+09:00

I showed up at class on Saturday only to find out that my teacher wasn't there just her assistant. She tried to tell me what was going on and kept holding up four fingers. I understood in Korean that she was telling me I didn't have my teacher but that was all I could understand and she was getting more and more upset as I tried to question her in my attempt at Korean.

I finally gave up and went looking for Nan-Young at the Palace where I knew she would be working. I found her and explained in English what was going on. We have this strange connection between us. I have always been able to talk to her in English even though she doesn't know English and she answers in Korean and we understand each other completely. It has always been this way from the first time I met her. I remember when my Korean girlfriend Hellena first came to some classes with me to translate only to find that she wasn't needed. It really is quite remarkable and I wish could do this with all the Koreans but she is the only one.

She came over and talked to the assistant and found out that class would be at 2 pm (love that) instead of 1. This happens to me a lot here in Korea and I've learned (most of the time) to go with it. I was upset only because there was a first birthday party that I could have gone to if I had known this. So I spent an hour hanging with Nan-Young in the refreshment tent at the Palace. This time there were a lot of parents having their kids ask me for things in English. It was so cute to see them ask me for water and asking how much something was. The kids and the parents had a great time practicing their English with me.

We went back to the classroom at 2:00pm to find the teacher there and she was very sorry for the mixup. This photo is Nan-Young

The teacher brought egg covered veggies for a snack. I stayed away from the octopus and mushrooms. I'm still a picky girl in a lot of ways when it comes to food. I'm a lot better than I was but not great about eating anything.

While the teacher set everything up for us (see the first picture) I took some pictures of other kits she had available.

I like this one but she didn't offer it as a choice. The dolls are premade so all we did was make the clothes and do the hair. It still was a lot of work.

I'm making this set next Saturday.

Nan-Young is so careful with the job she does. I love to watch her work.

I got the girl done and then I started on the boy.

Here is the set. I also bought a case to make it easy to display them. They turned out great!

I was helping out in the refreshment tent before class when my Body Guard showed up and grabbed my hand along with this gigantic kite. He said, "Let's go." So off we went to fly the kite. I took some video of it. I can't tell you the last time I flew a kite and as I gazed up at his kite so high in the school, I was in awe of the beauty and fun of watching a kite fly. I tried to remember if we had done this with our kids and I couldn't remember.

But then he gabe me the kite to control and helped me to hold it properly. I couldn't believe the pull of it. I had a hard time just holding on. I only did it for a few minutes when he wanted me to bring it in. I could only do a few turns and I had to give it back to him. The second video is him brining it in. It almost hit me in the head.

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2012-01-14T18:19:00.002+09:00

I was surprised to find everyone waiting for me to arrive at hanji on Friday. We were going to the restaurant across the street for lunch. WooHoo!!! First we were served this sidedish above which was really delicious.

Then we were given a bowl of I think it was barley but it resembled rice to me. I was show by the girls and a lot of "Becky-she" how to add the sidedish and a little gochujang (red pepper paste) to make a little bibimbap.

Of course there was kimchi and the girls made sure the bowl was never empty.

Then they brought out a HUGE pajeon and I mean it was HUGE. I was getting full by this time when

they brought out a huge bowl of soup. It was so good.

Then a return to hanji class for a cup of instant coffee where my hanji teacher showed me that she had made the same piece I had just finished. I love the colors she chose.

This is another piece I saw from a fellow hanji girl.

She did a really great job on it. I know how much time it takes to cut all that out.

My very last project. It's going to be a jewelty box.

The first step in a new hanji project is gluing and a lot of clips to hold the glued pieces together.

This is how it looked when I left for the day. My friend, Hannah, was contacted by my miniature teacher to see if I could take my final class on January 26th. Her father-in-law was given only a week to live and since her husband is the oldest son, it is her duty to stay at the hospital 24/7. She feels so bad about my class when I feel who cares about the class. Her father-in-law has cancer and I'm not sure if it is something they knew or if they just found out.

But the 26th was going to be my last hanji class so because of that and Seollal (the Lunar New Year), my last hanji class will be this Friday, the 20th. I can't believe it is ending but I'm taking a lot of hanji home with me to continue to make things. But I really enjoy hanging with all the girls. We have such a good time. I will miss them so much.

Chilling at EMart and Dinner with Friends

2012-01-13T18:53:00.003+09:00

My miniature class was canceled last minute due to my teacher's father-in-law being hospitalized and in intensive care. So I found myself with a free morning so I went to EMart to kill some time while the cleaning lady was at our apartment. I found all this cool clay in of all areas, the automotive section. These are decorations for your dashboard. I'm pretty sure things like these are illegal back in the States.

Everyone leaves their phone number somewhere on their dash in case they park their car and it needs to be moved. You just have to call them up. This decoration has room for your cellphone number.

As you can see, they had a wide assortment of car decorations to choose from.

The clay was all air-dry and really lightweight. I'm a sucker for anything in clay. I was at EMart to try and find rubber bands (binders if you live in Minnesota). I had looked all over Home Plus to no avail so I thought I would give it a try at EMart. I looked all over the home office and school supplies section and was about to give up when I walked down the party supply aisle and there they were in party supply. Who would have thought.

Then I grabbed a bite at Burger King and saw this sign. First, what the heck is a Justin Caser. I've never heard of it. Second, a thief. I was told that ajummas used to take toilet paper and that's why you couldn't find any in the subways (that has changed now). But this sign was in English not Korean. I really didn't understand it at all.

This is what I came home with. This is for the grandkids when they visit us.

I also picked up this car set for under $15.00. I love the police car and airport limousine. This is for the grandkids too when they are at our house.

I also got Rocketman a Matiz. It's the smallest car I have ever seen here in Korea but it sure is nice for parking.

Jeff and Jennifer came down from Seoul to walk some resellers through our apartment to get quotes for the furniture. Rocketman's company wants all the furniture sold. We went out to a local Korean BBQ for dinner. This was Rocketman's noodles which came after the BBQ. I was stuffed from eating too much kimchi.

Here they are, Jennifer and Jeff.

They are also coming down to handle our moving day just like last time. Then they are taking us to our hotel in Seoul where we'll spend a few days before flying home. I can't believe we have less than three weeks left here in Korea.

Korean Chilbo (Enameling) Class

2012-01-11T19:33:00.002+09:00

This is what I've been working on in chilbo the last few weeks. It's all about blending or gradation according to my teacher, Nan-Young.

This is what another student did. I'm nowhere near doing this kind of work and I don't think I ever will be. I don't have the patience.

Metal guy was at Nan's today and gave me a ride home. We are working on a project together that I'll reveal when I return to the States. I can't wait to show you.

Tomorrow is my final set of miniature classes. We're making some more Korean street food and I can't wait!

Shopping with My Hanji Teacher

2012-01-10T17:05:00.001+09:00

We had a grand time today in Seoul. My hanji teacher and her daughter, Hannah, met me at my apartment building and we took my 7770 bus into Seoul. I guided them all the way to my Satin Guy and I think they were impressed.

They recognized me but were surprised that I should up with Koreans. So they had a lot of questions about me and now they know everything. Hannah was getting a little bored and I don't blame her especially if satin or fabric isn't your thing. I told her I could stay there forever and just look at all the satin they have. I also took them to my chasu place because my teacher wanted some chasu. She was good about getting business cards.

We then took a taxi to a little shop that only sold hinges but they were the most beautiful hinges I had every seen. I would have taken a picture but they seemed nervous and it was such a tiny place. They were pretty busy too.

We took a taxi to Sindangdong which is famous for ddeokbokki and we ate at a very famous ddeokbokki restaurant.

It was huge and it was packed.

We ordered ddeokbokki with noodles. This is what it looked like when they first brought it out.

There were a couple of tables filled with kids who were really enjoying their lunch.

Starting to boil.

You ate it on a small metal dish which reminded me of a lid to a pot. It was delicious!

Lots of famous people have eaten here. I wanted to take more pictures but we happened to leave with all the kids. A lot of the kids wanted to say hi to me.

This is the outside of the restaurant.

The street is called ddeokbokki street. I definitely have to bring Rocketman here. He would love it too. It was a great day and I got to show my Korean friends one of my favorite places in all the world.

I also took a little video of the place:

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2012-01-09T19:01:00.001+09:00

When I got to hanji today I found a whole lot of cooking going on. I have learned to eat a light lunch before hanji class because I never know when they will have lunch. It's not an everyday occurence so I usually eat a tangerine or salad at about 11 pm and when I get to hanji at 1:30 pm I can eat if there is a lunch. Today, my teacher even brought out the huge container of kimchi.

One of the hanji girls had made homemade mandu guk and it smelled delicious.

There also was the purple rice with beans in it getting dished out to everyone. It was going to be a great lunch.

This picture shows a watched pot doesn't boil. I always amazed at the strength of my teacher's knees. I can get down but it's getting up that can be tricky (impossible).

After our delicious lunch I got down to making some hanji coasters. I am bringing extra forms back home to make them back in the States.

This is what it looked like as the glue dried.

Then my teacher took some hanji paper and a circle punch and hammered out a bunch of hanji circles for me. Tomorrow we are going the Seoul together and I'm going to introduce her to Satin Guy. Hannah, her daughter who speaks English, is also going. I can't wait.

New Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2012-01-08T17:01:00.002+09:00

I started a new series of Korean craft classes that will take up the next two Saturdays, from 1-5pm. It is different from my other hanji class in that I will be learning how to make hanji figurines. The classes are being held in a building to the right of the Hwaseong Palace. She also welcomes walk-ins and lots of kids showed up too. This week I went from 3-5pm. This is a picture of some of the hanji shoes my teacher had for sale.

These were also for sale.

This week it was all about the shoes. Nan-Young, my chilbo teacher, was also taking the class with me. We started with these shoes.

We got to pick the hanji paper we wanted to use and I picked the chartreuse paper. We had to rip the hanji paper into thin strips, then paint the strips with hanji glue and cover the shoes with ripped, random pieces of paper. It took quite a while to cover two shoes.

Here is Nan-Young have a blast. She must have put a sign in her shop because a couple of customers showed up and she had to leave for awhile.

Here are my finished shoes.

I also made these shoes too. The forms were already done and I just covered the outside with hanji paper.

If you are keeping count, I now have Korean craft classes every day except Sunday until they come to pack up our apartment on the 27th. I will be one busy girl but I figure I can take a good rest once we are back home. The next few weeks are going to fly by.

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2012-01-07T18:59:00.002+09:00

On Thursday, I finished my final big project in hanji class. It was truly bittersweet because there are still so many things I want to make but I just don't have the time to complete them. You can see where the black hanji pieces I cut out before had been placed to mimic hardware.

Here it is finished. I love it. While I was applying the final coats of varnish, a couple of young Korean girls came into the shop to look around. One of them came over to me and starting speaking to me in English quite to my surprise. She was surprised to see me doing hanji and she asked me if I liked it.

We talked a little more as her friend looked around. She then said to me, "Everyone knows Samsung in the U.S." I told her that it wasn't true as far as I knew. I told her that in the U.S. there are many choices like Panasonic and Sony. She told me she had been told this in school. She then held out her Samsung Smartphone and said, "Samsung smartphone is number one in the U.S." I looked at her puzzled and said that I thought Apple IPhone was selling better. She got such a sad look on her face and her eyes actually started to tear. I quickly added that I had not been in the U.S. in a long time and maybe what she said was true.

That brought a smile to her face and then she told me, "Everyone in the U.S. knows Korea." I told her that it is mainly North Korea that we hear about in the news because of the tensions between the two countries. She said, "But everyone in the U.S. knows about Korea and the 2002 World Cup." I told her that professional soccer wasn't that popular in the U.S. in comparision to football and baseball. When I mentioned baseball she eagerly named a Korean that is playing on a U.S. baseball team. I had never heard of him and again I clearly upset her. I quickly told her that I didn't keep track of baseball.

Her friend had bought a few things and she left saying goodbye to me. I felt and still do like a heel. I was really caught off guard by her comments. Thank goodness I didn't tell her that until I moved to Korea in 2007, I thought Samsung was a Japanese company. I'm also glad that I didn't tell her that until I moved to Korea that I didn't know Korea had even hosted the World Cup.

I don't know where she got her information but it seemed very important to her that South Korea is known in the U.S. I don't disagree and infact that is what I am trying to do through my blog and learning of Korean crafts. But I know that North Korea gets a lot more press than South Korea right now and that's not going to change anytime soon. But I do want people in the U.S. to know there are two Koreas and believe me, I have received emails from people concerned about me living in North Korea. I have corresponded with many from the U.S. that think there is only one Korea and that is North. I just hope I didn't burst her bubble. It was humbling to see someone so proud of their country.

Eating Out in Korea

2012-01-06T19:01:00.001+09:00

A new little eatery opened up near my chilbo class and I had been eager to try it. On Friday, I ended up running errands all morning and missing lunch. I was early for class so I stopped in to see what it was all about.

It looked like a kebab place but on closer inspection...

I saw that it was a souvlaki restaurant. I had no idea what that was at the time but it looked good so I went in and ordered a chicken souvlaki.

The owner spoke pretty good English and I asked if it was take out only because there was only a small bench to sit on. He told me there was seating in the back through a narrow hallway. This is what I found and I sat down to wait for my food.

This is what I got. It had a really interesting taste. I recognized chicken, lettuce, green peppers, onions and tomatoes wrapped in a soft shell taco but the sauce was very strange to me. It was delicious but I couldn't figure out what it was.

I got the set which also included potatoes and a Coke. The potatoes were delicious. They were fried with onions and other seasonings. They were pretty soft and it would have helped to have a fork or even chopsticks to eat them.

Then today we went into Seoul to visit Hannah in the hospital. The hospital was near Itaewon so we stopped there for some lunch. I had heard a lot of good things about the food at the Wolfhound so that's where we went. Rocketman had me check on their homepage to make sure they did open at 11 am. It said they did and we arrived at 11:30 a.m. to find them closed. I was so mad that when I got home I checked out their website again and found the I had read it wrong. It's only weekends they are open at 11. Weekdays they open at 4 pm.

This fish truck was looking pretty good by that time.

We settled on 3 Alley Pub and Rocketman got the hash with a goulash soup. He loved the food.

I had a philly cheesesteak and a Caesar's side salad. It was huge and I only managed half of it. The cheesesteak was chunks of beef not thinly sliced and no Cheese Whiz. It still was tasty and don't worry about what I didn't eat, Rocketman is good at finishing my plate also.

Then off to see Hannah. You would think it was easy since we had her room number. Nope! We went into the first building up to the sixth floor to find the room numbers didn't go high enough. We went into the second building and up to the sixth floor to find the same thing. We asked a nurse and she pointed us to a third smaller building. Just to let you know that the elevators in this hospital were sooooo slow and there were tons of people in them. It took us forever to get up and down each building.

By the time we found her, I was so crabby and mad but to see her face light up when we walked in made me forget what we went through. We had also stopped to buy her a bunch of things at Etude House and they were having a 30% off everything sale. She loved the skin care products. I had thought to bring a plant but I'm glad Rocketman talked me out of it.

I saw this sign in the hospital and I really wondered what the heck went on in there.

Bojagi (Korean Quilting) Class

2012-01-05T19:09:00.002+09:00

I love learning new things in bojagi. Today I was working on these tabs which the Koreans call pine nuts.

I am making four to fit into each corner of a bojagi piece.

This is what is looks like after stitching it into place. Tomorrow we are heading into Seoul to visit Hannah, my Korean friend. She had some minor surgery and is in the hospital. Rocketman is going along and since the hospital is near Itaewon, I'm pretty sure that's where Rocketman wants to eat lunch.

Chilbo (Korean Enameling) Class

2012-01-04T19:09:00.001+09:00

Last week I had two chilbo classes, on Wednesday and on Friday. While I was working on this (and I think I'm getting better)...

Nan-Young was painting on hanji shoes. She did it so fast and I was distracted a lot. I couldn't take my eyes off of her paintbrush.

I had a pair of hanji shoes at home that my hanji teacher had given me and so I brought them to class to see in Nan-Young could work her magic on them.

She even painted on the inside of mine. A Taiwanese couple came in with their teenage daughter and they were speaking English. They wanted to a pair of the hanji shoes but they wanted some painting on the inside like mine even though they had not seen mine. I saw Nan-Young struggling so I stepped in to help and I showed the couple my newly painted hanji shoes.

That was exactly what they wanted and I told them that she could paint them in a few minutes. They wanted them so I told Nan-Young and she laughed and began to paint. The family was so happy with the results. I'm thinking she will be painting all the hanji shoes that she has.

It's always a special time when this little cutie patottie shows up with her mama. Her mom is also a chilbo student and helps Nan-Young out from time to time. She used to be afraid of me but we have hung out together a few times and now we are fast friends.

Four weeks from today we will be returning to the U.S. I knew we would have to return but I never thought the year would just fly by. I'm afraid that's what is going to happen with the rest of this month.

Festival at the Hwaseong Haenggung Palace

2012-01-03T15:12:00.000+09:00

Everyday at the Hwaseong Palace from 10-5, you will find all kinds of fun going on. You can try out some Korean skating.

It was so much fun to watch the kids with their daddies. Korean dads work all the time and it warmed my heart to see them so attentive to their children.

There were also games to be played. You can even buy a kite and fly it outside of the palace.

I made my way to the refreshment tent to check on my friends, Nan-Young and Young-Su who were working there. They work every day of the week right now until February 10th when it ends.

I found Nan-Young who was very busy with coffee orders.

Young-Su was manning the odaeng part of the refreshments. I wondered how she had grown so tall until I saw the box she was standing on.

Of course, where food is involved Rocketman had to get a piece of the action.

And so did this cutie patootie.

I also took a video of the fun:

Maedeup Monday!

2012-01-02T18:55:00.002+09:00

A few weeks ago I visited my favorite maedeup shop to stock up on cording. I haven't really done any maedeup this year because of all my classes but I will get return to it upon our return to the States.

It's always a feast for my eyes when I enter the shop. The shop is quite small but it is packed with eye candy along with maedeup supplies.

I took a video of how to get to the shop and a second video from inside the shop:

Happy New Year!

2012-01-01T19:19:00.002+09:00

On New Year's Day, Rocketman and I ventured out to a Buddhist Temple to take some pictures. I love visiting the temples because they are so beautiful and they fascinate me to no end. This one was right in the middle of Paldalmun. I thought it was the perfect place to reflect on the 2011 and our hopes for 2012.

How can you past by an entrance like that?

Even the roofing is beautiful.

This one had quite a few steps to navigate.

I saw these two woman come up to this statue (I'm not sure what it is) and begin to walk around it again and again. I have no idea what that was all about. I do often see people in the temple areas bowing with their hands together like in prayer.

I could look at this all day.

Everything about it was magical and I couldn't help smiling as I took it all in.

Even the doors make me sigh.

I was trying to figure out what the sponges were for bu they were very near two huge plastic garbage cans that smelled of rotten food so it might be where they do their dishes.

I love, love, love this. I wish Rocketman could do this to our windows back home. I love the nabi (butterfly) hardware.

I wondered when they ring the bell. It was enormous.

If you are lucky, you might see a monk. Some speak English and I have met several during my visits to different temples throughout South Korea.

And if you are really lucky, maybe he will invite you in.

This is my schedule for January. I picked up another class with Nan-Young, my chilbo teacher. I going to learn how to make hanji people from the artist who was at the hanji exhibition the other week. I heard from my hanji teacher a long time ago that it is very, very difficult but I'm excited to see what I can learn. If it wasn't for Seollal (Lunar New Year) January 22-24th, I would have classes then too.

It will be a very busy month and the movers are coming the 27th. We will stay in Seoul for a few days and fly back to the States, February 1st. It means the end to my Korean lessons but not the end to my Korean crafting. It will continue back in the States. Rocketman will also have trips back for work and I'm sure I'll be tagging along on the ones that included Korea. This won't be my last time in Korea.

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2011-12-31T18:44:00.002+09:00

Last week I was able to complete covering my hanji project. This is what it looked like after being completely covered in white hanji paper.

This is the hanji paper that I will be using. My teacher picked it out and I was surprised to see that it's the University of Minnesota colors, maroon and gold. How appropriate since that is where we live back in the States, Minnesota.

This was the hanji paper for the inside of the drawers.

My teacher also showed me this antique pot that she had just acquired. She said that it was an old time water jug and that women would carry it on their head.

She also had an antique water ladle that she said was a gourd cut in half. She sent me home with the other half as a gift.

This is an old time rice box that a fellow hanji girl is working on. It looks like a painting but is completely made with hanji paper.

This is the side of the box.

This is a picture of the two drawers covered in hanji paper.

Here is the front completely covered with hanji paper.

This is a photo of the back and the side.

I was sent home with this homework to cut out for class on Monday.

This is what my homework looked like when I finished cutting it all out. It's going to mimick metal hardware on my hanji piece. I have no idea where it all goes but I'm confident my teacher knows.

I Wish Target Had This

2011-12-31T16:04:00.001+09:00

We were at Home Plus the other day and decided to eat in the food court. We looked at the plastic food in the cases and decided on this. It was a new offering and contained a lot of Korean fast food.

It was two trays full of food for only 12,000 WON ($10 USD). As we ate, I kept thinking how will I ever live without this and why can't Target carry this kind of food.

This sauce was really sweet and it was served over cold noodles.

Ramyeon, spicy and delicious. Enough said.

Ddeokbokki with the fishcakes. I love it with the fishcakes. It's also a spicy little number that will clear out the stuffiest nose better than a decongestant.

I'm way behind on my posting with the Christmas Day extravaganza so I'm hoping to do a couple extra posts to get caught up.

Christmad Day in South Korea - Part 4 Dinner!

2011-12-30T18:27:00.000+09:00

We met Hannah near the Jamsil Station which was close to the restaurant where we were going to eat dinner. Hannah called to try and make reservations but they didn't take them for only three. They opened at 5 pm and it was a little after four when we met so we stopped at a local coffee shop to wait.

I love to people watch at coffee shops. Couples are so cute and entertaining.

When we got to the restaurant with 10 minutes to spare to find the place packed already. We got our beeper and sat down to wait. It was only about 20 minutes and our beeper went off. This restaurant is so popular because the food is delicious and it's only 14,000 won ($12 USD) a person.

A picture while waiting for our food to arrive.

It arrived very quickly.

We ate till we could eat no more. Then Hannah wanted to go to a coffee shop. Hey, it was only our third time to a coffee shop that day.

We saw this couple playing a game that we did not recognize.

This was mine.

You should have seen this guy's hair! I thought he was a girl at first. It was so cute, they were exchanging Christmas gifts.

Hannah and me. I really need to do something about my bangs.

I have a video showing how the food was delivered at the restaurant. They use a cart and just push the tabletop fully loaded with food onto your table. They remove it the same way.

The second video was at the last and final coffee shop of the day.

Christmas Day in South Korea - Part 3 Myeongdong Street Food!

2011-12-29T19:44:00.002+09:00

I'm going to let these pictures speak for themselves. The food was plentiful and everything you could imagine. Korea is truly an experience not only for your eyes but for your taste buds.

I also took a video of this amazing ajumma working like crazy to keep up with the demand:

Christmas Day in South Korea - Part 2 Myeongdong

2011-12-28T19:29:00.000+09:00

After Namdaemun, we went to Myeongdong to do a little sightseeing. When we exited the subway we saw this sign.

Koreans were posing and taking pictures. I thought it was a great opportunity to get some photos too.

They were really trying to get their little girl to smile but she wasn't having any of it.

But she still was a cutie patootie.

It was fun watching the couples pose.

This couple was especially good at posing. It was so cute.

I don't think I could have ever gotten one of my boyfriends to do this.

Rocketman also caught this couple...

Sneaking a kiss.

We decided to grab a cup of coffee at a Starbucks to warm up.

Then it was time to explore. I love all the cute socks. I just wish they came in my size.

This was a real dog we saw. I was really surprised.

It was a little windy but not that windy. He used a lot of product to get his hair to do that. I wanted Rocketman to try that look out but he wasn't interested in changing his hairstyle.

These girls were charging for hugs. We had always seen them free. Maybe times are getting tough here in South Korea.

Did I mention there were A LOT of people in Myeongdong?

Some were even wearing antlers.

We saw this poor little girl trying to navigate her way through the crowd of people.

Sometimes it looked like she was going to give up.

Sometimes it looked like she wasn't going to make it.

But she kept going.

She started to lose steam and we thought she might give up.

But she finally made it through with the help of her Dad.

At the other end of the street we found they were giving away hugs.

I wonder if those feet were as cold as I we were?

We saw two Santas just hanging around.

Did I mention there were A LOT of people?

I was waiting for them to start to do a high kick.

She was a happy little girl.

We couldn't believe how crowded it was. I even did a little video on the crowds:

Christmas Day in South Korea - Part One Namdaemun Market

2011-12-27T16:04:00.001+09:00

We ventured into Seoul on Christmas Day to meet Hannah for the afternoon and check out any Christmas displays. We decided to start in Namdaemun mainly because I wanted to buy a thick warm scarf. We didn't see a lot of decorations. This photo was from a storefront.

We couldn't believe how dead it was especially on a weekend. There was nobody there and we had the streets to ourselves. A few business were closed but most were open and shop clerks were standing outside in the bitter cold.

I find that I still don't like to see slippers and leggings sold this way. It kinda creeps me out.

We saw this Christmas display as we walked around Namdaemun but as we walked past it when we left, they had already taken it all down.

We even saw a saxophone player.

This a scrubbies for dishes.

Awwwww, now if I just had a little girl to buy this for. It was darling and I should have bought it anyway.

Gotta love those silkworm larvae that you find all over during this time of year. I just haven't been able to get up the nerve to try them. Maybe if they served them with ketchup.

I loved these boots. There were tiny and pencil holders.

I made a couple of new friends.

Where were all the people? We would find out later in the day.

Does that really say "Little Pussy?" I had to explain to my friend, Hannah, later that day why that was so offensive and on kid's clothing to boot.

I felt so bad for the street vendors. It was really cold and windy on Sunday. My fingers even went numb.

But Mama...

This restaurant is ready to serve!

I LOVE the street vendors. The food looked sooooo delicious and it's beautiful just to look at.

I felt bad for the baby octopuses that were in that tank.

This was near the entrance of Namdaemun Market. Where were all the people? My next post will tell you where. I broke up Christmas Day into several posts because it was photo heavy and Blogger has been giving me a lot of trouble when I try to upload more than three photos. It locks up and then I have to start all over again.

As you saw in my previous post, we went out with my yoga buddy, Choi, and his family. Rocketman were home about an hour when I received this text from Choi.

It was so cute that he was worried about me. Rocketman was not amused. He just can't let go of the past. If you don't know the story, Choi, my 76 year old yoga buddy, wanted me to be his girlfriend. And yes, he is married to a wonderful woman.

Christmas Eve in South Korea

2011-12-26T18:42:00.000+09:00

I got a call from Choi, my yoga buddy on the 23rd asking what we were doing Christmas Eve and I told him that we weren't doing anything. He wanted to meet for dinner at the famous Chinese restaurant that is very close to our apartment. I had been there once before with him and his family and the food was really good.

We got there early so I took a few pictures. This is their coffee machine which is located in the entrance to the restaurant. A waiter with a tray came out and made coffee for some customers and then brought it back into the restaurant to their table.

There was also this display of cool looking things.

Luckily, Rocketman and I had did some last minute Christmas shopping and we bought Choi's granddaughter a jewelry making kit. It was so cool I wanted one for myself. She was so excited. She had seen it with her parents and they didn't let her get it. We also got her little brother a Lego set and she said it was the one he wanted.

Grandma was helping her put it together as we finished up dinner. We ate the course set which was about five or six different servings of food. We were stuffed by the time we left.

Rocketman took these pictures without my knowledge while we were leaving the restaurant.

The is the larges maedeup I have ever seen. It is HUGE.

We also had the hostess take a picture of us. We had the best time.

I also got this as a gift. They sure know what I like. It is beautiful.

I loved the hanji wrapping paper and I saved that to use in my hanji. We had a great Christmas Eve. Now wait until you hear what we did on Christmas day. That will be in tomorrow's post.

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2011-12-24T15:45:00.002+09:00

The last two weeks of hanji I have been making these two small boxes. I order a bunch of extra to bring home and to continue my hanji back in the States. My teacher also made me templates so I don't have to measure everytime which is what everyone does in class. I'm lucky because my teacher has always cut everything out for me.

This is the second type of box I made and will make at home. I plan on putting some of my hanji projects in my Etsy shop which has been on vacation all year while we've been in South Korea. This box is so cool with all the angles.

She also has been gathering supplies for me. She made me up a batch of hanji glue to take back. It fit in that tall plastic container you see. Don't tell Rocketman but that hanji glue will be in my suitcase.

She also gave me these supplies so I would have everything I need.

My teacher surprised me. She knew I had wanted to do one last big project but I didn't have the two to three months to complete it. I figured that I would just continue with the small weekly projects. She brought out this package you see up above. I wasn't quite sure what it was but isn't that part of the fun anyway.

It started with my gluing these pieces together.

Binding them together with clips.

Then gluing the two drawers together.

So they looked like this.

I left class with it all put together. There is one more piece that will be hinged where you see the open space. Isn't it cool?

Here's the backside. It's about the size of a small nightstand. She said this was the last thing I will be working on. WooHoo!

Chilbo (Korean Enameling) Class

2011-12-23T15:53:00.000+09:00

I am having a really hard time with blending (Koreans call it gradation). It's defintely a technique that takes practice. This is my second attempt and I think I am improving ever so slowly.

Here it is against the original drawing by Nan Young's teacher.

Nan Young also surprised me with a big container of homemade kimchi, made by her sister. Now that's how they show their love here in South Korea. It was the best Christmas present ever!! My kimchi refrigerator is now full of kimchi.

I couldn't wait to get it home and try it out. It was delicious but very, very spicy. I'm used to spice here and it really made my mouth burn for a long time. Yummy!!

Bojagi (Korean Quilting) Class

2011-12-22T17:40:00.000+09:00

I finished my bojagi thimble homework so I was excited for class to see how the thimble comes together.

There are a lot of steps and all the steps are pretty easy. But that being said, it takes quite a bit of time to complete. This is what my thimble looked like by the end of class.

I just have to do this fancy stitch which stitches the two sides of the thimble together.

Now I just have three more to complete as my homework.

I also have a short video to share. Last week I took a taxi home from Home Plus. The taxis are lined up in front and you go to the first taxi and get it. As I entered, the driver was talking on his cellphone very loudly. I sat there for a minute while he continued. Only when I went to open the door to get out did he turn his head and ask where I wanted to go. I told him and he nodded and off we went. I videoed a little bit of the ride. He was talking soooo loudly. I've never had this happen to me before:

A Great Christmas Gift Idea!

2011-12-21T17:30:00.003+09:00

When I was in Dondaemun yesterday I walked by a shop that sold calendars. I'll tell you in a minute what caught my eye initially. It was the first I had seen calendars with things about Korea instead of Monet and kittens. I was excited as I looked through several. I chose this one because of the hanji.

Then I chose two more that had gorgeous pictures of Korea. These pictures are worthy of framing they are so good. I paid less than 5000 WON ($4.70 USD) each which is an unbelieveable good deal. It also got me to thinking that these would make great Christmas gifts especially for those on a tight budget. It's a little late for this Christmas but it's something to think about next year. I took some pictures of the calendars for you to see.

Now comes the part where I tell you what caught my eye. Skip over the next two pictures if you don't like to see boobies. That's what I saw when I walked by and I was shocked!

They were right next to the calendars of women in hanboks. It's just not something I see in the U.S.

I also bought a newspaper for the first time. I thought actually living in South Korea when Kim Jong Il died was pretty amazing (scary but amazing). I bought the newspaper as a keepsake.

This was the front page of this particular South Korean newspaper.

Mourners in North Korea.

Family tree.

And I left wondering how this sweet and innocent looking child could grow up to be such a monster. I will never know the answer to that but I hope this family tradition stops now.

Hanji Exhibition at the Hwaseong Palace

2011-12-20T16:59:00.001+09:00

When I got to hanji class yesterday I found my teacher missing and everyone trying to tell me what was going on, of course in Korean. I still had my coat on when one of the gals put her arm through mine and off we went. I figured out there must be an exhibition as we made our way to a building next to the Hwaseong Palace. We went into the basement to find a hanji exhibition. There I found my teacher and others from hanji class. I had them ask if I could take pictures and they said no until they saw me and then said I could. I was so grateful. I took a ton of pictures. Now you can see why I love hanji so much. I couldn't believe the talent I saw.

A closer look.

Here is a picture I took of the top. See all the intricate detail. That was all cut out by hand using an Exacto knife.

The hanji people are a favorite of mine. My hanji teacher told me they are very, very difficult to make. I was amazed at the detail.

This was huge.

I would be amiss if I didn't comment about the death of Kim Jong Il. I am scared to be quite honest but that comes from never having to live in a world where your next door neighbor is an enemy. I hope for not reunification between the Koreas but peace and harmony. This penisula has been through so much, too much and deserves peace.

My Miniature Korean Pojangmacha (Street Food Cart)

2011-12-19T20:07:00.000+09:00

I finished my Korean street cart yesterday in class. I was amazed by the details my teacher included from the toilet paper (used as napkins) to the plastic bag that covered the ddukppoki (떡볶이) plate. We worked hard and my teacher worked especially hard helping each of us out.

I was absolutely thrilled how it turned out.

This is a look from the backside.

Side view.

Here are my bungeo-ppang (fish-shaped bread filled with red bean paste). Aren't they cute?

Here's my teacher. She knows her way around power tools. She is really amazing!

My odeng ready for the broth.

Rocketman showed up at the end to take me home. He was amazed at what I had made.

My teacher is on the left of me and her sister is on the right. She owns the coffee shop right next door and she makes us our lunch.

Everyone is busy working. I finished first and that was still way after 4 pm. I finished at 6:15pm and I left happy but exhausted. I don't have anymore classes lined up but I'm hoping to learn some more before we have to leave.

Happy Birthday Little Sister!!

2011-12-17T17:25:00.003+09:00

I was almost four when my little sister was carried in through the front door. She was definitely a keeper!

She loved animals especially horses. But I have no idea who's cat that is in the picture. I don't remember us ever having a cat.

She loved being the center of attention.

Always ready to strike a pose.

And the way she can keep her emotions in check, well, let's just say I'm working on that one.

Happy Birthday, Heidi!!! Love You and Keep on Rockin!!!!!!!!

I Found Satin Guy!!!!!

2011-12-16T17:35:00.002+09:00

It was pretty cold on Thursday but that didn't stop me from going to Dongdaemun in Seoul to find Satin Guy. I took the Light Blue subway line and got off at #421 Dongdaemun and went out Exit 9. You will see the Dongdaemun Shopping Complex as you exit. Actually, right now there is a big gray wall to the left because those clever people at Marriott decided to put a hotel right next to my favorite shopping center. I bet they will even have a walkway so you would never have to go outside. We might have to stay there on visits in the future.

Satin Guy is on the second floor of the shopping complex. He is right across from some the hanbok sellers. His booth is HUGE now. It's number 2126. It is right across from his old booth 2135 (if you go, you can see how tiny it was) and no wonder I didn't recognize the booth, he has anew girl working with him.

He even has a guy with a blue hat working for him too. You can see Satin Guy by the girl sitting by the computer. I felt bad keeping her so busy. I don't know what happened to me there. All the colors were too much for me and as she cut, I kept pulling out more and more bolts until I was sweating like crazy. I took a breather from that and ran my fingers through the satin and it started all over again. It was so soft and smooth. A meter of this, two meters of that. I was possessed! I finally had to turn my head to keep from grabbing more bolts of satin.

He had a huge selection of satins and I couldn't stop myself. This is what I came home with. I had never seen this satin at his booth before.

I bought the chasu pattern in every color combination he had. It is sooooo beautiful.

Then some plain satin but it was so hard to decide. He had every color.

This is used as a slip or liner for hanboks but in bojagi it is also used as a liner.

Then some last minute additions because I couldn't stop. It doesn't help when I think, "girl, you can't get this back in the States." I wasn't thinking how I would get this back to Suwon and it was darn heavy.

Satin Guy also gave me this bundle of scrap satin! He was so glad that I came!! Now when was the last time that a fabric shop gave you FREE fabric.

Since my purse guy was only a few blocks away, I decided to visit him too. I wanted to pick up a purse or two.

No surprise that I ended up with two. I had a difficult time hauling all my loot home. I had a twelve stop subway ride and luckily, I got a seat only after one stop. Then hauling everything up a ton of stairs because the light blue line is way below the green line and Sadang Station. Then hauling everything out of the subway to catch the 7770 bus to Suwon. I was tired and sore by the time I got to our apartment but grinning like I won the lottery.

Here is the business card of my Satin Guy if you are ever in Dongdaemun.

Here is the business card of my Purse Guy. He is in the Migliore Building which is a few shops south from Doota.

I came home to find a Christmas gift from my cleaning lady. I wonder how she knows how much I love Etude House???

Rocketman made it home this afternoon safe and sound (soundly sleeping right at the moment).

This Used To Be My Playground

2011-12-15T17:07:00.000+09:00

While walking to chilbo yesterday Madonna's "This Used To Be My Playground" started to play on my IPod and it got me to thinking how true it was. The area of Paldulmun where most of my craft classes are has changed dramatically over the last month. This isn't a new phenomenom because businesses open and close almost daily here in South Korea.

But when I first returned to Korea and found Nan's new chilbo shop, I was surprised at how rundown the area was. I live in the North part of Suwon which is the old part of town. Recently the government has put serious thought and money into revamping the area. But they are not just updating but making it so much more. As you can see above, they are using Korean artists and all of their wonderful talent. I've been walking around with my mouth hanging open and sighing at the beauty around me.

Here is Nan Young's shop which they have most completed. I thought they did a beautiful job.

Even the area around Nan Young's shop has incorporated a lot of her and her student's work.

This is Nan Young's work.

So after class I decided to continue down the street to see what other changes I had missed. I'm a little concerned about the Human Contact in Pressed Flower. It sounds painful.

I got a chuckle out of this sign with the "sweat red-bean soup." I'm sure it's delicious but the name kinda puts me off.

Here's a larger photo of the restaurant. I love all the color.

Gorgeous!

All that you see is new. I wish I had taken pictures of what it used to look like. It's a complete makeover!

This was intriguing to me so I glanced inside the tiny door.

It's a tiny restaurant. There were people in it so I didn't want to stick my camera all the way in.

I love all the paintings on the buildings.

I even stumbled on a Buddhist temple. I was freezing or I would have stopped in for visit. I want to come back with Rocketman.

There are bunches of little shops and restaurants. I loved these backpacks.

This "love" motel rolls out the green striped carpet and I swear it went on for a block! I want Rocketman to come with me with his fancy camera to take more pictures. It was getting dark so I didn't walk more than six or seven blocks. I wanted to get home before dark and my fingers were freezing.

Rocketman comes home tomorrow. Yeah!! We'll see what he is up for this weekend. I have a chilbo class tomorrow and the second half of my Korean miniature class all day Sunday. We are making the food and finishing up the Korean street cart. Can't wait! I did shoot a video on how to get my hanji and chilbo shop and to give you a little look at the area:

Rocketman! I Found The Perfect Christmas GIft For Me!!

2011-12-14T21:09:00.001+09:00

Rocketman is a real busy guy but he does try to keep up with my blog. I had to mail a package at our local post office and look what I found on the way.........a squat toilet! I'm thinking that maybe if I had one at home to practice with, I could get up the courage (and thigh muscles) to really use one in the subway bathrooms instead of waiting forever for one of the conventional toilets to open up. It's just a thought, honey.

I also found out that one of my blog posts is in a contest at buzzKorea. It's the one called "buzzKorea's Bucheon Hanok Village Tour. You can vote three times every day here You do have to register in order to vote but I would appreciate it very much. It ends Dec. 18th. I'm just honored to have been included in the contest.

I'll let you know if Rocketman picks up that toilet for my Christmas present.

More Bojagi From Yesterday

2011-12-14T19:08:00.000+09:00

I finished my bojagi pouch. I love the colors of the satin. I'm going to Dongdaemun tomorrow to check out Satin Guy's new shop. I also love the "tulip" cord endings. They look just like a tulip to me. I used maedeup cording to tie it all together.

I love to pick up children's books here in Korea. You can really learn about the culture and it's an inexpensive souvenir. I have one other book by the same author that I had purchased a few years ago.

This is a common afterschool sight. Kids drawn to video games positioned outside of stores.

This is a great picture of a typical street food cart. The artist really captured everything you would see.

This is a common punishment for Korean children even in schools. Holding your arms up until you are told to stop. I think it's pretty common since I've also seen it alot on television with the reality shows which feature Korean families in daily life. Maybe I should ask the expert at Ask A Korean or my Korean girlfriends.

Bojagi Thimbles!

2011-12-13T17:09:00.002+09:00

Oh Korea, just when I think I've seen all the beauty your country has to behold, my bojagi teacher brings this to class today. Now, American thimbles are functional but just plain ugly. They are not meant to stimulate your mind but to protect your fingers from a rogue needle. I told KJ that they reminded me of tiny paintings, so beautiful and delicate but very useful.

She even had some with a chasu (Korean embroidery) on them.

These were some unfinished ones that she had.

This is the type of thimble I am going to make.

I started with three layers of ramie which is very stiff and my homework is to complete the circle. This is how it looked when class ended.

This is what it should look like when it is finished.

She also left me a couple of these. Now get your heads out of the gutter.

Wearing one helps you pull the needle through the layers of ramie. It keeps the needle from slipping.

After class I ran to Suwon Station to pick up a couple Christmas presents. As usual, I was drawn into Etude House by the cuteness. I bought more facemasks. They are only 1000 WON (80 cents USD) each.

Then I saw this little French maid perfume bottle and added her to my basket.

This was something new they had. It's a perfume roll-on and Ms. Twinkle was saying "Yes, Yes" as I put her into my basket.

But the coolest part of Etude House is the free stuff they put in your bag. It took a few minutes for the checkout girl to gather all the things she gave me. I love that place!

I better get to my homework. KJ wants me to complete three circles for homework. I miss my Rocketman but he will be returning on Friday.

Maedeup Monday!!

2011-12-12T19:13:00.000+09:00

My maedeup shop also sells finished jewelry made by students. I saw this and it was only 20,000 WON ($18 USD) and I just had to have it. I still need to go back there and restock my supplies.

This is what I had for lunch today before I did a little shopping at Home Plus. Kimbap Heaven is right next door and they make all the Korean comfort food from jjigaes to kimbap. I mainly videotaped this for myself to remember just how hot (temperature) kimchi jjigae is when it is served. It honestly takes 15-20 minutes for it to cool and I have burned my mouth many times. But it is so worth it and it really tastes a little like heaven. It was a perfect meal for a cold day in Korea:

Korean Miniature Class - Street Food Cart

2011-12-11T17:18:00.001+09:00

This is the Korean street food cart that we were going to construct in class. Everything you see is handmade. It was the largest class yet for me with six students including myself. It was also the first class I had ever had that was taught by the owner. You can see her to the right of this photo on her smartphone.

The first thing we did was to cut out the stools and glue them.

Next we cut out the tops of the stools and had to sand them.

These are my stools, spraypainted and glued together.

Next was welding. We welded the top of the cart. My teacher had a chart and all the pieces were cut to size. I was lucky that she used constructing mine as the demo so I didn't actually do any welding.

The top was first cut out in cardboard and then the awning was cut out. Both were patterns we traced. Then we used doublestick tape to attach.

This was a piece of foamcore board without the cardboard on top which makes it soft and easy to score. That gave the bricks their realistic look but I never know it could be so easy. I used a pencil to score it.

This is what it looked like when finished and it will be the base for the display.

Next we made the fence.

The last thing we did was make the cart top. I had a great time and I can't wait for next week when we finish the cart and make all the street food. I don't know how we will get it all done in six hours.

I usually find it difficult to catch a taxi after class but today I got lucky. When I got in, the taxi driver immediately understood where I wanted to go (maybe my Korean is improving). Then he did something surprising, he changed the radio station from Korean trot to American music. He smiled at me when he did it and I told him thank you in Korean.

It would have been a perfect day except Rocketman left this morning shortly after 7 am to fly to Japan. If you are keeping track, he's been gone for the past three weeks. But at least he is home for part of the weekend, usually arriving Saturday afternoon and leaving Sunday morning. But it's better than if we were in the States because he would be gone the entire time including weekends. He is also less fatigued, instead of the 14 hours, it's 3. He figures it will be crazy like this for 4-6 months.

Amazing Ajosshis!

2011-12-10T18:46:00.001+09:00

This video is of an amazing ajosshi who makes the coolest bento lunches. It is very popular here in

Shopping for Fabric at Gwangjung Market

2011-12-09T20:27:00.001+09:00

Today I went into Seoul to meet up with KJ, my bojagi teacher, to do some serious fabric shopping at her favorite place to shop, Gwangjung Market. The day sure didn't start out like I had hoped. I was waiting to cross the street to catch the bus to Seoul when I saw my bus pull up. I hate when that happens but I was finally able to cross the street and I took up the spot as first in line for the 7770 bus which goes to Sadang Station in Seoul. There is a sign for the bus since it is a popular bus and people always line up for it. As I waited the line grew to about eight.

An ajumma (older Korean woman) came to the stop and took a look at the line and came to stand right beside me. I have a really hard time with people cutting in line. It just makes me fume so I stood there fuming waiting for the bus. The bus approached and as luck would have it, the bus driver stopped right in front of me. As I started to enter the bus, the ajumma tried to shove me out of the way but she didn't realize that I was also an ajumma and i wasn't going to let her. I was able to shove her back and entered the bus.

The bus was really empty which surprised me for being 9 in the morning and I took a seat in the second row next to the window. Guess who sat next to me? Would you believe it was the ajumma? I was shocked since there were many open seats including a seat in the same row on the opposite side. Then she put both feet into the aisle and also leaned her head and body into the aisle. This made it difficult for people to enter the bus since they had to step over her feet and maneuver around her body. This went on at each stop until we arrived in Sadang.

I was shocked, angry and disgusted. Ever time someone got onto the bus and encounter her they first looked at her and then looked at me. It was embarassing. I don't know what possessed her to act this way but she sure hightailed it off the bus as soon as she could. Reflecting back on it, I should have just let her cut in front of the line but it seems to be hard for me to do that. I always hope that she will remember what happened and not do this to someone else. Rocketman says that I'm dreaming and that ajummas will never change.

Enough abou that, let's talk fabric. I met KJ at Dongdaemun and we walked towards Gwangjung Market. Right on the way is my maedeup shop and she really wanted to visit it so we stopped it. The owners were soooo glad to see me and I wished I had made a list of things I wanted to get but I know I will visit again. KJ was surprised and how happy they were to see me. We truly are like old friends. She loved the place and was surprised that I had known about it and she didn't.

Then it was off to the satin lady. She was on the second floor of Gwangjung Market, Booth 1103. She had beautiful satin which was very high quality. The prices were 13,000-14,000 WON ($11-12 USD) per meter. She even gave me something to drink as we oooed and ahhhed over the fabric. We both bought quite a bit.

Next it was Ramie Guy. I felt bad for him. KJ had him climbing the walls to retrieve rolls of ramie. I thought the white all looked the same but KJ definitely could tell the difference. I bought a roll of white and a roll of off white and then a meter of a bunch of colors. He charged 5000 ($4.70 USD) a meter. He even gave me a special price on one of the rolls because he said the fabric was uneven. I honestly couldn't tell. KJ did tell him that I felt sorry for him and he thought that was hilarious. His booth is on the first floor, cell phone #011-742-5638. He didn't have a booth number.

Nearby there is underground shopping. It is huge and she took me to a place that sells satin in tons of colors as you can see.

Here is the outside of the shop. We didn't end up buying anything this time. The fabric in the front are remnants.

I suggested lunch since it was that time. KJ said that there was a mandu guk restaurant in Insadong that was delicious so we grabbed a taxi to get there. On the way, I saw this coffee shop.

The mandu was spectacular! So flavorful and homemade. I definitely need to bring Rocketman. After lunch, we visited a few galleries in Insadong and then I made my way home.

This is all the fabric I bought.

This is what I got free. It's good to be a foreigner!!! I had a great time but came home so tired. I definitely want to go back soon.

Hanji (Korean Papercrafting) Class

2011-12-08T18:17:00.001+09:00

I finished my latest hanji project. Everyone loved the turquoise and black. Originally my hanji teacher wanted me to cover the knobs with turquoise paper but I thought the black would be nicer. Then she decided I should cover the sides with this funky, wrinkly black hanji paper with silver streaks in it. I used this paper to also cover the knobs.

I love how this turned out which was made by a fellow student. It is gorgeous.

I also made a small box. I am bringing several of these forms home to make some hanji boxes to sell in my Etsy store.

I've been meaning to take a picture of how the hanji shop is heated. This is the only heat she uses and it also doubles as a tea warmer so we always have hot tea available at all times.

Usually there isn't a pan of water under the tea kettle but one hanji students was putting another student's hand in the hot water and then she was pinching a couple of her fingers hard enough that the girl yelled out.

I asked my teacher about it thinking she had a sore hand from cutting out hanji patterns. But no, she actually had a sore lower back. The lady then came over to me and took my hand and started pinching me pointing to what part of the hand related to what part of the body from stomach to head to heart. It was really interesting but my fingers really hurt where she was pinching me. I learn something new just about every day here in Korea.

I finally had all my girls together with me. It had been a long, long time. I think it's been a year and a half since Hellena was with us from Quatar. From the left: Jennifer, Me, Hannah and Hellena. Jennifer and Hellena had to leave around 12:30 am to head back to Seoul. Hannah stayed overnight.

Rocketman's flight got in late and for some reason all the foreigners in immigration were required to have their suitcases xrayed. He was royally you know what. He also counted and his suitcase was the 341st off the plane. Not a happy camper. He arrived home at 11 am but his mood quickly changed when he saw the girls.

We were stayed up until 1:30 am and both Rocketman and Hannah were up before 7 am. Rocketman had a teleconference at 7 am, the first of three for the day. I made a bunch of American food and we eat and laughed a lot. We all wished we could do this more often but I'm so glad we were able to do it.

Bojagi (Korean Quilting) Class

2011-12-07T17:40:00.001+09:00

I finally had some downtime and was able to finish this bojagi. It turned out great.

This was the original plan and if you look closely things didn't go according to plan. There was a few pieces that are backwards but nobody knows that but me.

My bojagi teacher, KJ, is meeting me in Seoul on Friday to take me fabric shopping to all her favorite places. I make sure to take pictures and get booth numbers. She says that prices go up every January so you want to get your fabric before January 1st. I'm so excited.

I'm going to have a full house here in a few hours. Hellena just called and she is on the bus on her way to our apartment. She flew in from Quatar where she works as a flight attendant. Hannah, Jennifer and maybe Jeff are coming after work and Rocketman should be landing around 8:30 pm. He should be home by 10 pm.

Hellena will only be here until 12 am and then she has to go to her sister's place in Seoul. She is leaving for Busan early tomorrow morning for her best friend's wedding. I worry about her because every time she has returned to Korea she has become very sick. She doesn't understand it either.

I'll try to remember to take lots of pictures. I made some food but we'll also order some delivery. It's something we can't do here and the food is fantastic.