Well, the Shibui mix party was a lot of fun. Everyone got samples of all Shibui yarns to combine and try out, Antonia Shankland brought her swatches of all the different combinations to feel and compare, the trunk show from Shibui, along with our many shop samples and Antonia’s beautiful cowls, was inspirational, and her color rings of every color of every yarn gave everyone a chance to see what I go through picking and choosing yarns and colors for the shop. If you weren’t there, though, you’ll just have to take my word for it because we got so wrapped up in patterns, colors, and fibers, that I totally forgot to take any pictures!
Now everything is back to normal and I’ll be sorting through the special order requests to see what is to be ordered. If you have any special requests for Shibui yarns, now is the time to let me know!
Meanwhile, I have started and am possibly halfway through Trailhead Jacket from Brooklyn Tweed. The pattern is described as being for adventurous knitters, which is a little intimidating, so I started with the sleeves. I don’t love sleeves, even when they’re done flat as these are, so I figured if I got them done, I would be motivated to finish the jacket no matter what. I love the fabric I’m getting! BT uses a double strand of Loft, but I’m using one strand of Fine Donegal from Debbie Bliss, a tweedy wool/cashmere blend, and one strand of Herriott Fine from Juniper Moon Farm, a soft baby alpaca/nylon blend…it’s pretty heavenly:
The back is tricky, mainly because of different shapings happening in different places and at different rates. I made a chart for my size with every row of every chart listed and what is supposed to happen on each one – so far so good:
Never mind the weird coloring in the photo, there really is not a gigantic pink area in the middle of my knitting. Anyway, the pattern is very absorbing and all I want to do is work on it. If you want a challenge, try it, and if you want a challenge with a little guidance, I’m thinking that this may be a winter knit-along at the shop!
So many new yarns to tell you about, but I’m photo-less today. Come see us!
