I actually finished something

It is a shock to me. I finished knitting something. And almost on time.

This is my mother's 60th birthday present, given to her in the sunny Californian Desert.

I asked it to be given immediately back to me, because, yes the knitting was complete, but the blocking was not.


It is made with Handmaiden Rumple in Ivory. It is a shimmery gold colour. Lovely yarn, but a true pain in the butt to work with. Think of novelty yarn made out of 100% silk and hand-dyed. Gorgeous but frightfully annoying (kind of like my kids).

Happy birthday Mom. You'll have it to take back with you to the desert.

Your guess is as good as mine

What do you think this is?

This yarn was plucked out of a bin of seconds and mill ends from the store LK Yarns in Halifax. The lovely ladies at this store go to visit the Fleece Artist studios about once a week and are lucky enough to often get a grab bag with goodies such as this. The only catch - many times they have no idea what it is. They don't know the weight, the fiber, nothing.

So during my lengthy visit at the store, I would pull out a skein (while sitting on a stool the owner had provided me with - she must have known by my look that I would be there a while) and touch it, turn it over, look at the plies and try and guess what it was. Then I would ask the ladies what they thought it was. They were pretty darned good at knowing (or thinking they knew) what each skein was. Except for the one above. They admitted that after much pondering they still have no idea what it might be. Their conclusion - a heavy weight Casbah. It's softer than a merino (can you imagine?) and more tightly wound than a lot of their 100% wools. But really, it's all a guess.

To me - that was the best part of the store. The pulling out of these gems (and there were so many of them I can't even explain) from a box or a bin and trying to guess what it was. Then getting input from the 2 wonderful ladies working there. It was truly was one the best LYS experiences I have had - and more because of the interaction with the ladies at the store, than the yarn itself.

When in Halifax - go to LK Yarns. You will not be disappointed. And when you're done...there is a gorgeous patisserie down the street that makes a mean Lemon Square.

Coveted

That's what this yarn is (Handmaiden Swiss Mountain Silk Cashmere). I keep it close. It stays upstairs with me as opposed to the rest of the stash in my basement. It gets pulled out from time to time for a quick visit, a pet and a snuggle, then gets gently put away again.

I surf Ravelry at least once a week to see if there are any new patterns that are worthy enough for this yarn. Something that will use up every single one of the 187 yds of luxury this little skein has. Nothing has met my requirements, yet...

But one day, I will find something that will match with my desire for this yarn.

Until that time it will retain it's place as my most coveted skein.

What's your most coveted skein?

On the road again.

I am home but packing again. My family is off to the mountains for a mini-holiday. This will be our only holidays this summer, so we need to get the most out of our 3 days.

My trip to Victoria was event-filled. There was a lot of meeting, greeting, eating, and some learning. My boss is kind of a move and shaker in our world, so these things involve trying to keep up with him (I actually don't even try anymore). It was fun, but I was busier than I thought I'd be and therefore got little to no knitting done.

I did manage to sneak off for a bit to Beehive Wool Shop. My friend Stace came with me (she's not a knitter) and she did so with absolutely no issues (maybe we have a future knitter in our midst). I showed her the way of the knitter. The touching and feeling involved in checking out a new spot. And this place was lovely. I didn't get to spend a lot of time there. It was much larger than I expected, but after I found some Handmaiden Swiss Mountain Cashmere & Silk I couldn't really afford to look any further. They had some things I've heard of but never seen in person: lots of Berroco and Cascade. And an entire wall full of Handmaiden and Fleece Artist.

I could not resist the Handmaiden and came away with this:


It is a colorway that is specially dyed for Beehive; you can't find it anywhere else. It is yet to be named, but they think it will be called "Cedar". It is a mix of a silvery green, silver and cream; and possibly the softest thing I have ever felt. I kept it beside my bed in Victoria and kept petting it. I've never done that before but couldn't resist with this feathery soft blend of all things good.

I still am not sure what it will be. Likely a small scarf or something close to my skin (no J., not a thong like you suggested). For now I will enjoy it in it's current state. And know that it will be something fabulous.

Struggling with Monogamy

I've been married to my knitting for the last 6-7 years. Our relationship has grown steadily, but has always had a bad side. My inability to maintain monogamy - of any sort, to any project. It's definitely me, it's not the knitting. I have always said that I suffer from some manageable, adult form of ADHD, but it's never been more apparent than in my knitting (or reading... but we'll leave that one for now).



If I'm to be truly honest, I would say I have 7 (I think) - things on the needles right now. Yep, seven. Some things have been on their needles for years (yes, years.). Others are socks which I just keep stashed here and there to work on a stitch or two when I get a chance (like in the car, when I'm driving and stuck in traffic - don't tell my husband). So those things move very slowly.



As a polygamist, I've noticed that nothing really advances. And this makes me start something new out of frustration of not completing anything. Therefore, I never complete anything, because I'm always starting something new.



So, I'm saying it here, and I'm saying it now. I will not start anything new until my Tuscany shawl is complete. You heard it here. I said it, and I will now hold myself to it. I'm asking for your help (that means you J.) to keep me an honest monogamist. I will not cast on that beautiful skirt from Handmaiden, or the new Koigu that J. picked out for me. I will not start a baby sweater for my new neice or nephew, even though I can't wait to see the Baby Surprise Jacket take shape. I'm will be a monogamist!!

(anyone got some spare yarn and needles I can borrow....need to cast something on....don't tell J.)

Expanding my Yarn Universe

Up until recently my knitting circle consisted of J. and me. That's it. It was good - we shared patterns, ideas, thoughts on different yarns, websites and the usual things you would discuss with a knitting circle. But the loop was pretty small. There is only so much the two of us know (I mean really brilliant and all, but we aren't all knowing).

Then J. came up with this idea to go to a Stitch and Bitch. She googled SnB and found one that met in a nice little coffeeshop not too far away. So we went.

Wow.

There are knitters out there as crazy as us. I know our husbands don't believe it, but it's true. There are people who know what we mean when we say yarn diet or Handmaiden or Knitty or Yarn Harlot. They know these words with no explanation. They understand the pain of waiting till next month to buy more yarn. They understand how frustrating a piece can be that you want to throw it away and never look at it again, but you keep at it.

We went again last night and got to see so many amazing projects. A shawl from Victorian Lace Today, a 'cursed' sweater from Knitscene, a scarf made with beautiful Noro. Someone brought a new book they'd just bought so we could all peruse it. Seriously, this group is good. They got their knit-on.


I'm still attempting to finish JW's Father's day socks. He is aware of their existence which means I can actually knit them in his presence. Also on the home stretch of Rusted Root - hopefully I'll reveal it soon.

Next on the list...figuring out what to do with this. It is by far my favorite yarn in my stash. J. picked it up for me when she went to Vancouver for her half-marathon. Does she know me well or what? This yarn (Koigu KPPPM) has all my favorite colors. I need to really do it justice - just not sure how....