It looks like we’re going to get blasted tonight and tomorrow, 7 – 10 inches from winter storm Quinn. (So glad we’re naming them now; it makes having a load of snow dumped on us so much more friendly.) The store probably won’t be open tomorrow. This is one of the benefits of being a yarn store owner, and not an emergency room doctor or a snow-plow driver or a Met Ed lineman (just a few of the other career paths I considered, along with lumberjack and fashion model.) I can just stay closed and deal with the darn snow. I hope no one loses power or has to go anywhere and we can all just stay home and knit!
I have been knitting quite a bit. I finished my Beachgrass Socks, which were very fun to make. I use Magic Loop for my socks and I have both socks going at one time, but on separate needles so everything is still portable. I do the cuff and leg on both, then the heel on both, then the gussets, then the feet and then the toes. That way it’s easy to match them up and I don’t have an entire second sock to do. Which would never happen. These were in Paca Peds yarn from The Alpaca Yarn Company, lovely to knit.
Did I show you this little brioche beanie? The pattern is free on Ravelry, called Ohboy by Katrin Schubert. I used Edition 3, a subtle color-changing yarn in extra fine merino, and Tenzing, a heathery merino/yak blend, both very soft and dreamy to work with.
I love the top of the hat:
I didn’t care for my German Twisted Cast-on, which turned out too tight even though it’s supposed to be stretchy. Maybe I just need more practice? Anyway, I think I’ll be teaching this hat, because it’s a fun way to learn brioche without a huge investment of time and trouble. You want to learn brioche!! Brioche is big and there are wonderful designs on Ravelry. Plus Karen is embarking on a brioche project that may be a class in the fall!! Or some fall, some year…
We received some new yarn – yay! I’ll show you just one today and then I promise I’ll work on the class schedule for at least a little while before I turn my mind off to watch podcasts and do some random Ravelry-browsing.
This is Girandola from Louisa Harding:
About 600 yards of multi-colored cotton/acrylic/rayon in a cake. It only takes one to make a great summer wrap. I used the pretty turquoise colorway to make Stephen West’s self-striping version of his Dotted Rays shawl – very much fun in this yarn and it turned out quite nice.
You can sort of see how the yarn goes not only from color to color but from matte to shiny as well. The shape is an easy-to-wear swoop:
I like the i-cord edge and bind-off, and the knitting is very relaxing. No blocking required. And it’s pretty!
More to show you, but that will come later. Enjoy the snow, hope it’s our last, and stay safe!
