Buckle in, this is going to be a long one! I have lots to say and lots to show you.
First, my obsessive project of the cabled hoodie is done, and I love it. It’s knit in Kathmandu Fingering, a lofty blend of wool, silk and cashmere, which is wonderful to work with and reminded me how much the right yarn means when you embark on a complicated project. The sweater takes a lot of yarn, so my first search was for reasonable price with good stitch definition. I started it in a very nice wool and cotton blend, got 1/3 into the project, and said “Nah. Not gonna happen.” No bounce, no pizzazz, no love. Threw all my practical requirements out and went for a yarn I love, and enjoyed every single stitch of the months-long process. Here it is:
It’s just great, the instructions are good, the charts are massive. This might become a knit-along later in the spring if there are enough masochists out there who would like to give this a shot. Come in and try it on!
Here are some other finished projects that will inspire you:
Periann Rhoads made this Harry Potter-themed scarf and it is spectacular in Worsted Merino Superwash. Soft and smooth and delightful to wear (and to knit with). And she’s going to do another!
Deb Griffith made this gorgeous and humongous shawl from Poema Color and a solid color. The way the colors played out in this complicated design, full of short rows, is a tribute to her vision for the shawl:
Vera Kochon came in to model her Rainham from Deb’s class this winter. She chose Remix which is a great blend of recycled fibers and perfect for wearing in right-now’s cool weather. Her first sweater, and a great job!!
Our Eidola Shawl class had beautiful finished projects (apologies if I missed some, you can tell it was a while ago!) They were all so varied, you would hardly know it was the same pattern:
Congrats to all for great jobs with a challenging project!
Want to show you some new yarn that just came in:
Here is some new Jawoll Sock yarn in nice, wearable colors:
And some new Twin Sock (that gives you a “leader” to show where to start a second sock):
And this is Kinua Fingering-Weight, a new yarn that is a blend of fine merino wool and suri baby alpaca, dyed sustainably in Peru. New to me, I’m looking for the perfect project!
And (almost) finally, a lot of you saw these three yarns grouped together on our front table for – hmm – a long time:
Usually when I play around with yarn and color, the yarns eventually go back on the shelf and I move on, but this pretty combination never got put away, so it had to be made into something, and here is what I made:
A super-soft combination of Smooshy Cashmere and two colors of lace-weight mohair made a really pretty chevron scarf. It’s long and luxurious and a great travel project:
Just a mention that the Public Library is collecting donations of books for their Book Bonanza at the County Services Building. Every reader has books that they’d like to re-home, and this is a great and convenient way to do it: You can drop off your donations from 9am – noon on Mondays and Tuesdays and 5 – 7pm on Wednesdays. They have nice volunteers to help you unload, and then you can go to the sale July 8th through the 12th and get a whole bunch more!
