This is the bomb

I recently scored a skein of Sundara Yarn in the most beautiful colorway ever.

It's called Peacock and Purple, and when I opened the box, the sheen from the yarn shot a sea-blue glow across my face, and I wept. I wept. Then I wound it into a shiny blue cake and I knit with it, I immediately knit with it.

Here is a preview of my so-far unnamed socks. It's going really quickly, so hopefully I'll have a finished pair to show in no time.

Yarn is awesome.

Comments [14]
Filed Under: Socks | Yarn Stash

Sweaters to start, sweaters to finish, sweaters to wear

Oh it's been a long loooong time since I've had a finished sweater in my knitting portfolio. I've been trying though.

Here are 2 of the 4 skeins of heavyweight Socks That Rock yarn I bought to make the Rambling Rose Cardigan from the IK Winter 2006 issue. I think the magenta/pink cardigan in the magazine is a little jarring, a little not my style, too much cotton candy and Hawaiian Punch, like a junior varsity cheerleader threw up all over it. So I'll be taking the cardi towards more of an Edgar-Allan-Poe-ish direction: Pond Scum (pond scum!) and Haida, from the new Raven Series.

Here is a tunic sweater, knit in the round with Malabrigo worsted, that has been stalling at the underarms for several weeks now. I can't decide how to proceed next, mostly because I don't know what kind of sleeves I want...and also because I don't know what kind of new knitting technique I want to try. If any at all. Cast on more stitches for capped sleeves, and then continue knitting in the round? Divide for front and back, working separately, and then seam raglan sleeves to it? Long sleeves or short sleeves or 3/4 sleeves? Make it a vest? Steek it (eee no)? Yoke it? I just want to finish it with the least amount of thought as possible, really. Wish I had just done this from the top down.

Until I finish those up, I have a few things that will tie me over, cuz I just scored me my most favorite thing in the world: a sweater on sale at anthropologie.

Let's be honest here, it's still kind of expensive even with the mark down. anthropologie is like that, hit or miss with the styles and the prices. But let's be honest again: those 4 skeins of yarn cost more than this finished cardigan (which totally looks handknit, by the way), and Rambling Rose cardigan, assuming that it will actually turn out to my liking after spending 10,000 hours to knit it, does not have penguins for pockets now does it?

Comments [9]
Filed Under: General Knitting | Tunic Sweater | Yarn Stash

My own sheep and wool festival

While everyone and their cats were at Rhinebeck this past weekend, I was at WEBS. I had a strict game plan, I had a strict list, I had a strict timeline to keep the store experience to under 15 minutes. Any longer than that and my system starts to shut down. Still, from the second I stepped inside my mouth got real dry, my brain couldn't distinguish between sport and aran weight, acrylic from wool, I couldn't add or multiply, I couldn't read, I couldn't decide, I became color-blind. It was horrible.

I can't imagine what a few minutes at Rhinebeck would have done to my health. I don't want to know. I want to stay sane for a little while longer.

So this is what I managed to crawl away with from WEBS.

Noro Garden Silk I mean Silk Garden Lite, enough for 3 pairs of thicky socks. I wasn't going to do Christmas knitting this year but changed my mind.

Malabrigo worsted in Azul Profundo. My first Malabrigo! I'm so into blue, I'm so into this blue. They only had 4 skeins so I'm not sure if I can squeeze a simple sweater out of this, but I'm gonna try.

Remember my decree at the beginning of the year that I would not buy any more yarn for the rest of the year? I had included sock yarn in that decree, which was pretty stupid and is anyone surprised that I lasted for about a second. But aside from sock yarn, I pretty much adhered to the rules of the game: no new yarns purchased at all - until just this weekend.

Not too bad!

Comments [12]
Filed Under: Yarn Stash

Fiberlishuss!

I'm taking a short break from packing to energize myself with a heaping, nutritious bowl of Koigu noodles.

Why, yum!

I bought this during knithappens' crazy blowout sale a couple months back. I ordered two, but unfortunately only one skein came in the package. I called and emailed and emailed and called about the error, but nothing ever came of it because no one ever answered. :-(  Oh well. Only $4.50 lost so it's not a huge deal...that said though, I'll probably not shop there again anytime soon.

It'll be Chevron Scarf to the rescue!

Comments [10]
Filed Under: Yarn Stash

Eye Candy Friday 4 U

First Socks that Rock purchase as possible yarn to use for my Sockapalooza socks.

Socks That Rock | lightweight | Midsummer's Night shaded solids

I had no sock pattern in mind when I bought the yarn, so I picked out a something from my Japanese stitch dictionary. It's got some mini-cables, some 4-stitch cables, and a whole lot of ktog's and ssk's.

It is quite an interesting pattern. A little fussy, a little whimsical at the same time.

For the heel, I continued the mini-cables and the purl gutter down each side, and knitted a slip-stitch heel using the stitches from the main "wave" pattern. Then I finished it with a square heel.

This is a fine example of the technique commonly known as Making It Up As You Go Along.

I think I like it. Not sure yet.

Another thing I'm not 100% about is them STRs. I really love the base yarn, love the way it feels in the hand and the way it knits up, but I must say the dye job is completely underwhelming. The colors are muted, unremarkable, doesn't induce me to want to eat the yarn the way Koigus usually do. But it's the pooling, my GOD ALL THE POOLING, that I just can't ignore. Even for a shaded solid it does that icky, diagonal pooling, the unintentional blotchy striping which seems to be its trademark.

Seriously though. What is up with the diagonal pooling. You know of which I speak, I know you do. I noticed it on the first STR I ever knit with, so kindly given to me by Scout. Since then I've seen the diagonal pooling all over flickr. I see it now with the solids. It's so consistent that it drives me crazy, because, wouldn't it be easy to "fix" if you wanted to? Now I say this without having ever dyed a single skein of yarn in my life, and assuming that others want it "fixed" too, which they clearly don't because those things sell out like kittens at the kitten store.

But like, could you paint/dye shorter lengths of yarn in the same color? Dye the each color interval more randomly? Something? Then there won't be so much pooling? Maybe...?

I do wonder a little how these socks have achieved rock-star status. Kind of like Obama. Hmm.

******

Has everyone forgotten Dottie, because I sure have! Eeks oops sorry don't hate me! She's been reposing all this time in the office cubicle. Now she's finally enjoying the great outdoors, reposing on a bed of soft frilly peonies. It's one last hoorah before the flowers start fading away.

Comments [41]
Filed Under: Postcards from Dottie | Socks | Drunken Bees | Yarn Stash

Brought to you by the color Green

Now I like Christmas probably as much as you do, but let's get one thing straight: Christmas is not the Most Wonderful Time of the Year. Spring is. Spring. Especially when you've had to slog through five, six months of cold, detestable winter that make your fingers swell indoors, spring tastes that much better when it finally arrives.

I'm so happy that spring's green is here that I'm going to overload this page with a gazillion pictures.

Golden Creeping Jenny

Glamour shot of BFL yarn custom-dyed for me by Scout

Unfurling peonies. Soon they will become this.

The season's first batch of mojitos.

More sock love.

I love you Spring.

Comments [26]
Filed Under: Life | Yarn Stash

Another swap, anyone?

I have: Two skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Amethyst Stripe
I want: Two skeins of the same yarn in a solid/semi-solid colorway (or equivalent sock yarn in a solid colorway). Firefly and Cranberry are really nice though I'm open to any colors - just need them to be solid.

Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Amethyst Stripe
color 503 | dyelot 8610 | 215 yards each

Interested in trading? Lemme know!

Comments [11]
Filed Under: Yarn Stash

Eye Candy Friday

Look at us, so romantic and glamorous in the glow of the setting sun.
Oooo aaaah.
Why don't you knit us already? 

Here is a skein of Sundara Yarn in "Troubador" on top of a skein of GEMS Pearl in a light green. I bought the Sundara Yarn waaaay back when pureknits was selling them. It's definitely vintage, and I still don't know what to do with it, having bought just one very inconvenient skein. I attempted this awhile back and decided I didn't want to knit socks with them. I still don't. I think it's about time I knitted something other than socks for a change.

I smell the heady scent of a Chevron Scarf...

Comments [6]
Filed Under: General Knitting | Yarn Stash

I lasted 34 days

What we have here is a skein Fleece Artist Merino Sock yarn in Autumn. I've been very curious to try it, and by the looks of it it will probably be no different than CTH, Koigu, et al.

I bought new yarn. Shut up. I just can't resist a good sale.

Game over! Thanks for playing!

Does it count though if I bought this yarn at the behest of a friend who wants socks for her birthday, which is this weekend, and since I'm way behind already these are going straight onto the needles and will therefore have no chance of marinating in the stash...or am I just making excuses at this point?

(PS: My own addendum to the knit-from-your-stash rules forbade yarn in ALL forms, so that included sock yarn, gifted yarn, and yarn to be gifted. Yes I have quickly realized these rules are seriously flawed. And they make no sense. If you were to gift me yarn, would I then have to decline it? 'Course not. That would be rude.)

Before the yarn could be wound, I took it back to my Fancy Pants Photography Studio so it could have its official portrait taken. 

The yarn was subjected to many minutes of sitting very very still inside this state-of-the-art lighting box during the shoot.

But all that hard work in front and behind the camera is worth it.

Heh. I might have added another skein into my shopping cart... another FA sock yarn in Forest.

Comments [21]
Filed Under: General Knitting | Yarn Stash

Eye Candy Friday

Yes, new yarn! No, I didn't cheat! I'm still yarn-free in 2007, all the way!

I received the yarn recently but the transaction went down in the beginning of December 2006, one whole month before I knew I was going to disallow myself from buying more yarn. For an entire year. (?? Really? Did I really say I that? Outloud?) So I'm still good, I'm still good.

PS I photographed the yarn above in a makeshift lightbox a la HelloYarn. I've never tried to "properly" shoot anything or play with lighting techniques. I don't like to use flash usually, but the resulting photo looked good and easy enough to set up. I used a plastic shoebox and lined the bottom and one side with sketching paper, set the prop inside and positioned the box so the sunlight (indoor) hit full from behind, and used a small burst of flash from the front.

Not too bad for fooling around. It made me a feel like a real photographer. Heh.

Photograph on right taken in natural lighting. Yummy.

Comments [12]
Filed Under: Yarn Stash

I can do this

This is a well-fed red chest.

*burp*

Yarn is literally bursting out of the red red drawers that once you manage to wrestle a drawer open, the yarns are like RAAAAAAR IMAGONNAEATCHOO!!! I have more laying around in other cubby holes around the house, and probably still more in bags lurking in some corner of some closet that I've totally forgotten about.

Sometime between Saturday and Sunday, the yarn stash became unacceptable. I toss and turn at night thinking of my treatment of those poor yarns that are constantly being one-upped with newer, more exciting purchases. Sitting there, unloved, depreciating with every second.  The madness! It must stop!

So I have deemed 2007 as The Year I Buy 100% No Yarn Ever At All I Mean It. There's that knit-from-your-stash-along going on that has some exceptions built in - sock yarn is ok, new yarns for a knitted gift is ok, etc. But because I am a SUPERHERO with amazing SUPERPOWERS, I can tell the world with full assurance that there will be NO EXCEPTIONS for me. Absolutely no more purchasing yarn in 2007. None. I won't even accept yarn for free.

The path to stash freedom is clear. I am George W Bush. I am Condi Rice. I am possibly very, very stupid. But nothing will shake this resolve. Do you see my hand? How it doesn't quiver, not even in the slightest? I don't even blink! It is because I am strong! I am determined!

(I am going to fail!)

But look, I've already made progress. I picked up a little something-something that has been in the WiP state for over a year. It's about time!

Hi. Remember me?

I can't wait until it's finished, so - yay! -I can move onto the other yummy yarns in my stash!

So this new year will be a good year, full of new socks and sweaters. But no yarn.

None.

Zero.

I mean it.

Really.

Hold me.

Comments [35]
Filed Under: General Knitting | Yarn Stash

Out with the old, in with the older

Is it just me, or does everyone get all morose and pseudo-philosophical on their birthdays? I take way too much stock in numbers, that's for sure. I'll always find a reason to be unhappy about turning whatever age. For example, after I turned 8 years old I was all, "Oh my god I'm going to be 9 soon and that's just one year away from the double-digits." Turning 17 was depressing because it meant I had only one year left before I became a legal adult which meant probably having to act like one too, even though I wasn't close to even looking like one. Turning 27 was especially difficult, for no reason other than "27" being an aesthetically unpleasing number to look at. Yeah.

So my mother called a few days ago, and we were discussing birthday plans and gifts and whatnot and I just so casually mentioned how last week I decided to buy myself a nice camera and a nice lens and maybe if she wanted, if she were a nice mom, and I am a nice daughter, she could buy me another lens to add to my collection? She bettered the offer and said she would reimburse me for the camera and accessories I already bought. WOOOoooOOOOT!

Now I have the resources available to buy myself another lens sooner than later. I'm looking for a nice telephoto lens to capture wildlife, landscape, and nice, clear shots of people unbeknowst to them, such as this one:

"We love trespassing! Don't worry honey, if we fall and break our necks, we can sue their pants off! Now come on! JUMP!"

Hi, have we lost all sense of propriety? And our minds? These two middle-aged jackasses drove up our street, parked their car in front, walked right up through our driveway, brazenly scaled the stonewall on our property, hopped that very rickity fence to the property behind us, so they could take a close look at the house with the nasty chain-link fence and above-ground pool behind. OH that's ballsy! Was the open house not open enough?? 

I didn't have a rifle to shoot them with, so I used my camera instead. Then scribbled down their license plate number.

As if one day's worth of trespassing wasn't enough, they came back the next day. Luckily we had just pulled into the garage ourselves and oooo I stared them down, I stared them down with my narrow evil eyes, and they quickly hustled away.

Anyway. Presents in the form of unnecessary stash enhancements came in the post just now.

Two skeins of Lorna's Laces in Poppy from the first contest I've ever won, and two skeins of GEMS Pearl that I don't need but bought anyway because there was free priority shipping. I'm thinking of making mitts with the Pearls, but what to do with my first LL's? Hmmmm...

Tonight I'm going to a nice dinner at my favorite restaurant with Duck and friends, and that will be all the birthday celebrations for today. Nothing as exciting as last year, but it'll pick up again this weekend when we go on vacation with my parents. People ask if I hate having my birthday so close to the holidays and I have to say, I really love it. Since I'm usually so silly and sullen about birthdays, I welcome any and all enhancements to festiveness and cheer this time of year. Birthday, Winter Solstice, Christmas, Hanukuh, Kwanzaa, Boxing Day, New Years, snow, twinkling lights, fireworks! Let's all celebrate!

P.S. I'm turning 29. Again ;)

Comments [22]
Filed Under: Life | Yarn Stash

Trying out some new things...

Koigu (in blue) pilfered from Kathy's yarn stash.

Cherry Tree Hill Supersock bought for cheaps on ebay.

Bunny's first portrait

Mr. Sleepy Head McCurltongue

Comments [7]
Filed Under: Life | Yarn Stash

Comparisons

It will be a miracle if I can one day manage to finish socks back-to-back for a matching pair, instead of jumping from one sock yarn to another.

Ripple Weave socks, one in blue Wildfoote and one in plummy Sundara Yarn. I think I know which I like better between the two...

But what about these?

Poma vs Ripple in the World Series of Sock

Ripple and Pomatomus are very similar in design. Both have accentuated patterns from the raised bumps of the twisted ribbed stitches, both are yummy squishy to wear.

But if I had to choose, I'd say Pomatomus wins feet down (ha ha. sorry. ok bye). I've finally had a chance to wear my little rose Poma's since finishing them this summer, and when I do I can't stop staring at my own feet. I can barely walk. My gnarly, Smeagol feet are gooorgeous in these things!

I do like the way the ribbing continues all the way through the toe on the Ripple sock. I'll have to replicate that in my next pair of Poma's.

New additions in el yarn stashio:

Two skeins of Cherry Tree Hill sock yarn from the littleknits.com sale. I can tell already that these babies are a home run. The yarn is soft, is wonderfully beady like Koigu and Sundara Yarn, except that it is oh so plump! So succulent! So US3 or US4 dpns!

So about to have another mismatched pair of socks in no time!

A new segment of Cultural Weekend is about to commence, once again. The weeks here are just flying by, so fast that before we know it the car will be packed and we'll be installed back East again. I've already convinced Duck that we need to stay in Santa Fe for an extra week. It wasn't hard sweet-talking him into another week of green chiles and carne adovada, but for whatever reason Duck was convinced we'd only want to be here for 6 weeks. Nuh uh! I haven't nearly had my fill of sopaipillas, chile hot chocolate, Tent Rocks, and of course the stunning, spectacular sunsets.

Since being here, blue and orange has become my favorite color combination.

So for this Cultural Weekend, we'll be experiencing some more fun and new things. First, we will get to see a lot of hot air balloons flying about in the sky over Albuquerque. I have only seen one balloon in the air at any given time, and even so that one was tethered to the ground.

Second, WE WILL BE GOING TO STRANGER'S HOUSE FOR BREAKFAST! This is a huge deal, being the jittery bug-eyed hermits that we are, so all-caps was necessary. Also I'm excited.

We haven't even stepped into her house and already she's all "Would you like another breakfast burrito?" and "One or two sugars with that coffee?" and "Stay as long as you'd like!" Scout is so super friendly I am in awe. It also highlights the fact that I'm super not. I mean I AM friendly. I mean I have POTENTIAL to be friendly,given enough sleep. And tequila shots. I know, too many parameters. So to be so naturally effervescent! To actively seek out people to befriend, while sober! That is something.

Let the weekend begin! Ooooo and happy Friday the 13th! Of October!

Comments [8]
Filed Under: Socks | Ripple Weave | Travel | Santa Fe | Yarn Stash

Taos Wool Fiesta!

Foliage near Taos

Me, at the Taos Wool Festival

Take-home goods: Two 500 yard-skeins of mohair from Brooks Farm

And now we're off on a mini-road trip to Carlsbad Caverns in southern NM, to visit the bats. All the bats! Hi bats!

Comments [6]
Filed Under: Travel | Santa Fe | Yarn Stash

Socktoberfesting!

Finished one Ripple Weave sock using Wildfoote. First time with this yarn, first time with the pattern. Wildfoote is not bad. Not the softest but definitely not the itchiest I've used. The fit of the sock is great save for the gusset. It's the first time I've knitted a sock where the gusset was too big. Will pick up fewer stitches next time.

The sock yarn stash continues to grow...

Sundara's Somewhat Solid in "Plum over Slate." I am head over heels. She ought to name her yarns Somewhat Edible. I wound it myself into a center-pull ball using a toilet paper roll. Worked great! I've already started knitting with it - another Ripple Weave sock on the way!

The yarn stash grows some more...littleknits.com is having a sale on Cherry Tree Hill supersock yarn, plus another 10% off on top of that, and as soon as I received the notification email this morning, I was ON IT. Two skeins in Purple Rain and Emerald City. Why not?! I gather more sock yarn in the spirit of Socktoberfest, and in this case, I am trying NEW sock yarns, for my own sock edification. Good thing I nabbed these colorways; within minutes they were gone.

Will try to post more again and more often. It's been a busy busy week. Can't believe it's October already. We've been in Santa Fe for nearly a month!

PS Backstory on the drunken post from last week (which was 100% authentic by the way). I don't know what possessed me to blog in that state except that I'm a loser or I was just in the really happy giddy drunken haze that I wanted to talk. I'm a fast typer, no looking at keyboard, but I was typing even faster when tipsy. Like wheeeee! Type type type type! There was no stopping me!

As soon as I logged off, a horrible "oooooOHluuurrAAACK" issued from the bathroom. My Duck, he got sick. In all the years I've been with him I've only seen him sick twice before, and that second time was earlier in the month. Fruitful month, September. Anyway, I myself did not get sick. The trick is to not let yourself lay down, no matter how dizzy or groggy or tired you get. DO NOT LAY DOWN! It increases the dizzy factor one million percent! Stay upright, drink water! I sat up half the night propped with pillows.  

Despite the sickiness, that stuff we drank was so effective and so good that there was no hangover the next morning, at all, that we went right back the next evening. But only one drink per person this time...:)

Comments [6]
Filed Under: Socks | Ripple Weave | Yarn Stash

Show and Tell and Comment

Books
The Japanese knit books I ordered over a month ago finally arrived, minus one, the Let's Knit magazine. It's just as well because I found I wasn't totally excited about the ones that did come in.

New Style of Heirloom Knitting is just too heirloom-y for my tastes. I love cables and bobbles and fairisle patterns, but I don't love the shapelessness of all the pieces. Also, SCARY SCHEMATICS. So diagrammatically advanced! Information overload, cannot process! Hold me!

I might give this to my mother. She'd appreciate it more than I do. Or maybe you might appreciate it more? Anyone up for a trade perhaps?

KNIT has lovely photographs. Of some weirdassed patterns. I see one too many safety pins. The schematics, while not as intimidating as the ones from Heirloom Knitting, are intruiging and mysterious. All of them have this wavey thingamibob slicing through their charts, sometimes more than once, sometimes horizontally or vertically, or both. I don't understand what this means. Anybody?

There are a couple of items I would make in KNIT, but it's the last time I buy books solely on the basis of their cover. So last week at Kinokuniya in NYC I was excited to be able to peruse some real gems in person. Unfortunately their knitting and crafting section in general was rather small, and what they did have was meh. I was totally prepared for an onslaught of kawaii overload that to not experience it left me empty and sad. But I did console myself with this:

1000 stitch, cable, fairisle, intarsia, and even crochet patterns.

Yarn
I'm ready to show the yarns I bought on Monday at WEBS. The scene there was like December 31, 1999 except instead of people stocking on water and battery and shotguns, they were stocking up on spindles and sheep fur. Loads of it.

No fights broke out, however the store was very close to witnessing a double homicide/suicide. I wanted to murder the lady in front who bought $500 worth of yarns that were all ONE of EACH kind. I then wanted to murder the old dude at the cash register who was unable to scan and instead typed in the SKU - slowly, so slowly with so much squinting - for each miserable item. I wanted to kill myself for choosing to stand in the wrong line. Again!

I bought 3 bags of of Filatura di Crosa yarn:

One bag of 501 wool, one bag of 501 tweed, one bag of Super Soft. I don't know what the 501's will be turn out to be, but I've started Erin (Rowan Ribbon Twist) with the Super Soft. I might be super screwed because I've already used up 3 short skeins and haven't even reached the armhole. Uh oh.

The end of the show and tell.

Happy 2006
Since this will probably be the last post of 2005, I'd like wish everyone a very productive new year full of new yarn and new finished objects.

I'd also like to thank everyone who visits and takes the time to leave a comment here, ESPECIALLY those who regularly comment even though I do not reciprocate the gesture nearly as much as I should. My blogging shortfalls have been weighing on my conscience, and as part of my news year's resolutions I vow to say hello and thank you all over the internet!

It's scary though. Half the time I don't know what to write beyond, "Nice!" and the other half I'm too busy ploughing through my list of reads to stop to comment.

But really most of the time I have nothing interesting to say. (This is why I also hate talking on the phone, fyi.)

And I'm not good at being nice. Heh.

I'm not good at reading for that matter. I skim and I scan, which might also account for why I don't comment in general. I don't know what you've written, ha ha!

Hmm. I've offended you. But maybe not beacuse you too are skimming.

I won't be mad if you have.

I also won't be mad if you don't comment. But. According to bloglines there are over 100 subscribers to this feed, and I am just so CURIOUS who all of you are? I know I'd be a hypocrite to ask, but...Would you indulge me for two seconds and, for those who haven never commented, just tell me who you are? Please?

(If I know you personally, and I never told you about this site, please don't tell me. Shhh.)

As a reward, you will receive a 3-sentence long comment from ME on YOUR blog, if you have one! Wow! Or, I'll pick a number now between 1 - 100 and whoever is the nth commenter gets Veebs for a day! How 'bout it?

Happy New Year and happy knitting!

Comments [37]
Filed Under: Japanese knits | Yarn Stash

Spring Stash

Cotton Fleece in teal, Blue Sky Organic Cotton in sand, AV Allegra in ocean and AV Dianna in...ecru tinged with lime. Enough materials for 4 pieces. Also in the bag: AV spring 2005 and fall 2003 pattern books. I only spent a total of 40 minutes at WEBS, even though with the bounty they had it could easily have been 40 days. I deliberately stayed away from the warehouse and stuck to the store and stuck to my list.

Comments [4]
Filed Under: Yarn Stash

Starting the Eyelet Cardi. Help me.

Eyelet Cardi from Rebecca 29 has begun. Also alternatively called the Rebecca Mini Cardi or the Mini Wrap from Rebecca or the Rebecca Wraparound Mini Cardi knit with GGH Soft Kid that is the Bane of My Existence.

I'm officially calling it the Eyelet Cardi. So there.

Look at me, I'm on FIRE.

I knit 5 rows last night and it took me an hour. Murderous. Could not get the needle underneath both stitches for a k2tog to save my life. Today during my lunch break I stopped at Newbury Yarns for a pair of circular Addi's. Hopefully it'll be easier knitting with those.

I've been thinking of substitutions for the Soft Kid, something airy and light and about the same gauge. I think the Peruvian Highland Wool would actually work pretty well, being extremely light and the same gauge the Eyelet Cardi calls for.

There's also Wings from Classic Elite, made from alpaca, silk, and hollow core wool. If that doesn't sound light and airy in a feathery kind of way then I don't know what does. It also has the feel of cashmere so another plus.

I haven't given up on the Soft Kid. Yet. It's always good to have alternatives.

Comments [3]
Filed Under: Rebecca 29 | Eyelet Cardi | Yarn Stash

More more more!

These just came in, and now my yarn-buying spree is complete. All projects in the project queue have their respective yarns, and I should be all set, if not for the rest of the year, then at least til May. In theory. Hold me!

Peruvian wool for the Ribby Cardy.
Purchased from elann.com

Peruvian Quechua for Angelina.
Made from alpaca and tencel. Oo la tencel, what the hell is tencel!
Purchased from elann.com.

I might have to inflict some hard self-discpline in order to rest my hands and my eyes but not my pathetically out-of-shape bod. Need to get moving. Somehow I pulled a shoulder muscle from sneezing. Who's ever heard of having to warm up before sneezing? I'm going to turn into one of those crabs with the one goofy extra large claw while the rest of my useless body slowly atrophies.

Comments [5]
Filed Under: Projects | Yarn Stash

Yarn Stash 2005

Lately the postman has been doubling as Santa Claus.

Merino chunky is for the Sweater with Diagonal Ribs Sweater with Cables, from Rebecca 28.
Purchased yarn from yarn.com.

 

Kool Wool is for the Sweater with Cables Sweater with Diagonal Ribs, from Rebecca 28 also (they need to come up with prettier names).  It's the same gauge as GGH Savanna Aspen, the yarn called for in this pattern, and it's also made from 50% merino wool and 50% acrylic. But unlike Aspen it's unexpensive, by decent yarn standards anyway. I have this thing with buying yarn for a sweater that will cost over $80 in total, especially if it's made from synthetic materials. I've realized that no one knits for economic propriety, but I still have my limits. If I can purchase a lovely cabled cashmere sweater at Anthropologie or bluefly.com for just over $100, then you're insane if you think I'm going to make that sweater on my own with 10 hanks of cashmere at $30 per unit. I don't like knitting that much.

I'm sorry. I just caught myself in an unscheduled rant. Anyway there's just one more package coming in and that'll be all the purchases for the rest of the...year? Season? Month? Week?

(oops I got my yarns/pattern combo all confused)

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