I will now share with you my thoughts about my most recent destashing experience. I was motivated to lighten the psychic and spatial load after digging through my stash and realizing that I could knit in a 24 hour-a-day (with time off to pee) kind of way and die before having knitted it all. Yes, it was a life expectancy sort of issue. That, and I really wanted some cash money, because for the first time in our marriage the DRMC has asked for a specific, big ticket item for Christmas. So, I listed my wares on Ravelry and the Destash sight and was able to unload sell most of it. This was a good thing. After spending the weekend feeling like a Wall Street Yarn Day Trader, I mailed all of the packages off today.
Unappealing aspects of the whole destash experience include receiving super enthusiastic emails from people that absolutely-have-to-have-this-yarn but can't pay until they get home from work, you hold the yarn for them, and they disappear into the ethers. You email them, but get no response. And you feel like an idiot. And then there is the shipping to Canada issue. YOU KNOW I love my north of the border peeps, but dumb ass over here just paid $17.50 to ship 10 skeins of ho-hum yarn to someone in Ottawa. Hi, read the postal regulations much? It was 100% my fault...and I made like $6.00 in the end. Poor me. I am not cut out to be on anything but the receiving end of internet retail transactions, it would seem.
Speaking of receiving, just look what one of my Frenchies sent me, a box of Kinder bottes de Noël and a ton o' Phildar mags! So exciting to receive a Christmas parcel in the mail. I have a strong love of the parcel, so much so that I just seem to keep getting a steady stream of them in the mail. Why look at the most recent additions, Sophie's Toes Christmas Lights and sKnitches Be-bop sock yarn in Baltic. I am sure the ridiculousness of a destasher receiving more yarn in the mail is not lost on you, but just keep it to yourself. Thanks!
Better yet, help me find a justification for it. Post a comment that allows me to justify this non-stop merry-go-round of yarn purchasing/destashing, and Peeeper-lou will reach her little hand into a hat and choose two winners to receive my last two balls of Opal, pictured below. I'll shut the fun down on Friday, so knock yourselves out!
Dude. It's Legendary. It's Epic. Dude.
Visit Destash for the gnarly details.
Perhaps like me you were under the mistaken impression that the single greatest predictor of Chevron success (i.e. no pooling, striking yet not-hideous color admixture, a pleasing outcome) would be the look of Color a and Color b when next to one another in the their pre-knit, still in a lovely little ball, state. In point of fact the likelihood that the Chevron will turn into a scarf that you will love and cherish and not one that you use a noose to hang yourself in shame is inverse proportion to the initial going-togetherness of Color a and Color b. I offer the following exhibits as proof:
Exhibit A: Socks that Rock Silkie Jade and Walk on the Wild Side. Two stunning yarns that by all accounts should produce a Chevron to shake you to your foundation and bring you to your knees.
Cute, right?
Wrong. It's all wrong. Hells bells, how could two positives make such an anemic negative? It's just weak, people, weak. Just look at that pooling...Next!
Exhibit B: Koigu p133 and Koigu p429 :
Puke-o-rama! Gag me already. But in their knitted state?
Yowza! How could yarns that look like vomit together produce such a appealing garment? Chalk it up to the mystery of the Chevron, a counter-intuitive phenomenon which defies rational explanation...also, a little FYI: The Winter Knitty is out and the mighty Romi has another pattern on the cover (woo-hoo!). Her Ice Queen is luscious. The only other pattern that is strongly calling my name is--shocker--the Matrix mittens, because a. I love the color orange and b. well, you know, they're mittens for Chrissakes!
I have realized something about myself and my yarn affinities and attachments. What is my favorite yarn? My favorite yarn is the one I am knitting with at that particular moment. Whatever yarn is gracing my needles and captivating my attention at that point in time, that is the yarn that I am most obsessed with and cannot ever imagine knitting without. Last week I was all about Malabrigo, you might recall. I mean HOT and HEAVY. We had plans to run away together and hole up in some remote location and have a real torrid affair. That softness, that generous yardage (I'm a size queen after all), those luscious brown on brown tones, all of it captivated me and made me feel that it was the only yarn for me...
Enter Cash Iroha.
Sure Malabrigo is pretty enough, but is it on final markdown sale at The Skein Attraction, in Teaneck, NJ, ? Does it have the perfect combination of silk, cashmere, wool and nylon? And most importantly, is it Japanese and therefore just cooler by definition? The above mentioned qualities when considered together made me realize that I'd be an utter fool not buy the 24 skeins I bought on Black Friday for a mere $7/skein.
I am a yarn floozy. A serial monogamist. Oliver Sacks should study my condition. Luckily my constant dithering doesn't prevent me from actually knitting! Because in the end, that's what it's all about. Here you see yer basic Ann Norling mittens, begun on the fly and completed after only several hours of knitting. I must strongly assert to all of you the power of the mitten. It will do you right every time.
The Cash Iroha specs
Yarn: Cash Iroha, colors 106 and 108
Pattern: Basic Mittens on 4 Needles, Ann Norling
Needles: Addi Turbo, size 6
Mods: Knit without a cuff
The 14 skeins of Cash Iroha pictured below are destined for a popular project that Babs and I have been wanting to do for almost two years. Cash Iroha is the yarn that the pattern was written for, and it is almost as legendary as the Clapotis. Can you guess what it is?
I know I have spent a good deal of time here talking about 'Chocqua' and all that it has to offer, but I am starting to wonder if it isn't the 'choc' part of the equation that I am truly gaga over. Recently I have been all about brown. It's the perfect foil and never fails to make the other part of whatever it's combined with 'pop'. The above-pictured Hazel Knits 'Chocolatier' was just about the most exciting yarn I have ever received in the mail. Can you believe how utterly gorgeous it is? Such depth and rich color. If you haven't given Wendee's yarn a try, you should, because she is also one of the nicest Etsy people ever!
Over the break I also indulged in another brown passion: Malabrigo. This matchy-matchy hat and mittens combo were knit in the car between PA. and NJ. while listening to the kids battle over the center seat while they called each other 'fat' and 'retarded'. I have so much to be proud of as a mother, don't you think? Once at our destination, I finished them up while chewing glass listening to a relative talk about how global warming is a 'liberal hoax'. Happy Holidays!
Peeper-lou was an obliging FO model and noted that these were "the softest hat and mittens ever". Malabrigo: you come for the unbelievable array of colors, you stay for the almost criminally indulgent softness.
The Specs:
Hat: Dulles hat--a fun, trippy pattern that yields a fun, hippie hat
Mittens: Basic Mittens on 4 Needles, Ann Norling
Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in #181 Marron Oscuro
Needles Addi Turbo, size 8
My house has been transformed into a Meathead Knitting Factory as I simply can't stop making these hats. I missed the knitalong craze last year and felt positively taunted by the delightful hats that were madly popping (up) like popcorn on Flickr and Bloglines. Being on the outside looking in isn't such great place to be for this knitter--I even contemplated emailing the mighty Larissa and offering to give her a tidy sum for the privilege to get in on the Meathead game, but I didn't want to come across as impolite, or worse yet, weird. So imagine my pure delight when Miss Leslie i.e. one of the hottest knitbabes out there, posted her Hershey's Meathead along with a comment that Larissa was indeed selling the pattern via pdf to knitters who are too craven or impatient to wait for her much anticipated book Knitalong. So $4.50 on Paypal later, I was in business.
This pattern is satisfying many needs at once. I have spent no (recent) money on yarn for these hats, can you believe it? Being that I have gobs of chunky and super chunky yarn in my stash from the early pre-discipline days of just randomly buying yarn before you really understood what you were going to do with it (as opposed to the rigorous regime of discipline that I'm so clearly adhering to these days), I already had loads of yarn that would fit the Meathead bill. The knit is super-fast, and the pleasure of thinking of an appropriate embellishment is not to be underestimated. Plus, there is the joy of wearing a hat that makes people wonder if you are either a gnome, a character from an Elsa Beskow book, or just plain crazy. Talk about killing many birds with one stone!
Above you see Meatheads in Karabella Soft Tweed--pink (3 strands), Lamb's Pride Burlyspun--fuschia, Artful Yarns Museum--green, Classic Elite Two.Two--white, and Malabrigo Chunky--blue, and Peeper-Lou. I'm going to ignore the fact that Tween thing said that I looked like 'a demented hobo' in my Meathead hat. This project is #1 with a bullet by far for 2007. Meatheads for everyone!
The pictures say it all:
I am exceedingly happy with this bad boy (the sweater and the grouchy scientist wearing it). The design is quintessentially Elizabeth Zimmermann as it's simply constructed, stylish and fits like dream. Jared took her common sense formula and turned it into something decidedly modern. The Classic Elite, while slightly 'chalky' (Babs' hilarious adjective) does produce a sturdy, appealing fabric that is tweedy yet not too hairshirt-like. Luckily I had enough in my stash as I never quite got around to the Central Park Hoodie that I had originally purchased it for. CPH's loss was Cobblestone's gain, and I am so happy with the results.
The Specs
Pattern: The Cobblestone, IK Fall 07
Size: L
Needles: Addi Turbo, Size 7
Yarn: Classic Elite Skye Tweed, color #1238 'Highland Brown Cow', exactly 13.5 balls
The yoke did seem to go on much longer than anticipated, but such is life when you're making a sweater, right? Patience has never been one of my strong suits. I highly recommend the pattern, especially if you need a project that you can knit in the dark (like while screening movies for your class), at 30,000 feet when turbulence hits and you are knitting on for dear life, or zoning out in front of the tv, something I know precious little about...
We are now officially on Thanksgiving break around this joint, and I will be setting up a Meathead assembly line. I ordered the pattern yesterday from Larissa (thanks Leslie!), and have deemed this my official Christmas knit of 2007™. Everyone will be getting this from me, and I mean everyone!
Time to seriously destash. I MEAN it this time. Here is the link to the Destash trainwreck in case my pain needs to become your gain. Sock yarn will be coming soon once the sweater yarn is kaputsky.
Short of a clinical evaluation, the arrived-in-the-mail-yesterday evidence below (Shibui orchid, isn't it a looker?) is the closest thing I have to a verification of my state of mental disorder. I wasn't kidding about the not-right-in-the-head thing.
You know you're not quite right in the head when you are experiencing a bit of the November doldrums and call your husband at work and have the following conversation:
Me: Can I buy an I-Phone, just to make myself feel better?
Him: Ummm, no. Retail therapy doesn't work.
Me: Oh but it truly does...
Him: I love you.
Me: I like you too.
Yeah, I'm a wench, it can't be helped. I was a homecoming queen in the 1980's named Heather (for real), so I'm used to things going my way. But apparently not this time. Oh well. At least I managed to obtain the above pictured Hazel Knits 'Sailor's Delight' sock yarn (my new fave) before finding out that 'retail therapy doesn't work'. Then again I am dealing with the person whose personal motto is "...any day that I'm not dragged into the street out of my bed and beat into a bloody pulp by the State is a good day."
This was supposed to be a triumphant 'I finished my Cobblestone, y'all!' post, but instead it's a 'how long is this freaking yoke going to take?' post. I'd show you the picture, but I am not sure that looking at an inchoate mess of Classic Elite Skye Tweed would really do much for you. Jared, I love you, but the whole purling thing is really not helping this knitter's blues.
Luckily I started a frothy, side-dish of a project that I am enjoying, mainly because I simply can't wait to get to the pompon and do the Kate Gilbert tutorial! Elliphantom's Herringbone Mittens are proving to be a real gas and a major stash buster.
I'm using some Cascade 220 that I have repurposed (remember the whole argyle socks in-the-round fiasco?). I know that the whole Chocqua thing is played out at this point, so I promise this is the last iteration of it you'll see chez A.D.D.
Did you know that there is basically a Wikipedia article about everything under the sun, including Baked Alaska? My brother calls Wikipedia 'Master Plots for life', and he's right. Did you also know that in French, Baked Alaska is called 'une omelette norvégienne'? These things I know because Peeper-lou had her 10th birthday this week, and Baked Alaska was her humble dessert request. As reaching double digits was always a big deal in my family, we tried to give the kid a day to remember, although I can only dream of attaining Leslie's birthday planning and crafting acumen . The dessert was a hit, as were the presents, (although Tween Thing wasn't so thrilled, I'm sure those of us with siblings recall that particular grievance) which included not one but two One Skein Wonders, hand knit in transit recently by yours truly.
Making these little gems was a true delight as Peeper-lou not only has the smallest back of any 10 year old I know, but is the only person I've ever met who actually wears shrugs on a regular basis .
The one pictured above was done in Lorna's Laces Shepherd Worsted (colorway: Bucks Bar), a lovely yarn that I do my best to acquire lots of whenever I can. Luckily Chicago is where it's from, so I am very well provisioned at the moment. My only modification was doing the sleeve and hems in seed stitch rather than the called-for ribbing.
The shrug below was done in Malabrigo Chunky (colorway: Bobby Blue). It is my favorite for obvious reasons: the color is a dream and the softness....wow. I see what the hype is all about and I am a true believer now. Imagine knitting with cotton candy, but without the stickiness. Or if a cloud landed on earth and was spun into a substance that you could knit. I now want to sell off my entire stash of all other sweater yarns and go all Malabrigo, all of the time. *sigh*
The yarn that you see pictured above is all that remains of the Koigu (a.k.a. the yarn with the most notoriously short yardage this side of Jitterbug) for my sock swap. But guess what? The sock is completed and shipped off to its recipient, and since today is the deadline for mailing, that's a good thing. If only I could've adhered to such guidelines when completing my dissertation! But then I wouldn't have had the grand ole time with Effexor, and thus never known what it means to live on The Dark Side. In any case, after the dust had settled from me changing my mind as many times as Peeper-Lou and Tween Thing changed their minds about their Halloween costumes, this was a fun sock to make, and Koigu does come through for me once again.
The Specs
Pattern: Socks that Rock Central Air
Yarn: Koigu KPPPM P116
Needles: size 1 addi turbos
Those of you who predicted and inferred that I am making the December Lights Tam out of the Finullgarn are correct! It is my next weekend project, but since the Cobblestone is only moments away from completion, I figure I should wrap that one so as to earn some points with the Darling Resident Marxist Curmudgeon. As I'm going to Chicago this weekend for a conference and will be hitting Loopy Yarns for some Malabrigo, a yarn that I have had a heck of a time getting my hands on, I'm sure to be on some thin ice when I get back. So Cobblestone, you have been warned, you are next!
