Smith Rock Revealed

Last month, I finally visited the local spinning guild. When I stepped out of my car, I had no idea where to go so I just followed the woman carrying a spinning wheel. There was yarn, fiber, spinning wheels, and spindles all over the place. Yep, I was definitely in the right place. The meeting and people were great so I wasted no time joining up. There were even a couple local vendors selling fiber and supplies. Resistance was futile and I bought 4 oz of Targhee dyed by Abstract Fibers. The reds, browns and oranges of Smith Rock are a bit outside my usual color spectrum but were exactly what I wanted.

 I split the fiber in half lengthwise and started spinning singles for a 2-ply yarn. The Targhee was wonderfully soft and drafting was easy so I was able to focus on the color as it moved through my fingers. The Bearded One noticed it too. Subdued red might not be my first color choice but it’s definitely his. He called dibs on the finished yarn. He denies it but he definitely called dibs. 

In knitting there’s a “rule” that says if don’t like something about your project, you should fix it immediately instead of pretending it’s okay for another thousand stitches. If it’s bothering you, the only difference those thousand stitches are going to make is that you’re going to have go through them first to get something you’re truly happy with. It’s a good rule. Saves time, energy, and hassle. I motion that this rule should apply to spinning and life in general too. It’s better to fix something immediately than to make a mistake worse by pretending it didn’t happen or that it’s just fine as it is. Who seconds?

The reason I bring this “rule” to your attention is that we can all stand to be reminded of it from time to time. I certainly could have used the reminder when I started plying this yarn. Sometimes the colors matched but, most of the time, it was a wild barber pole. I kept telling myself I liked it and it would come together in the end. Unfortunately, the more I looked at the plied yarn, the more I didn’t like it. The only fix was un-plying the yarn and doing detailed surgery to get the colors to match. Leaving the yarn as is and shoving it into the back of the closet just wasn’t an option. Un-plying, separating the singles, and matching the colors more than doubled the amount of time I spent on this yarn. The whole misadventure involved a spinning wheel, a cardboard box, a spindle, a ball winder, scissors, and felting. A few days later I had a well matched ball of singles ready for their fourth trip through the spinning wheel.

 All the extra work was worth it. The finished yarn is wonderful, soft, and there’s no need to shove it into a closet. The Bearded One agrees since the colors are great and look good on him. I can’t wait to knit it up as we figure out what to make with 430 yards of worsted weight. 

Spun for Spinzilla

Spinzilla is in the bag for the year. I started a day late. I spun along to podcasts, tv shows, and video games. On Saturday, I finished my third and last single. The final day, Sunday, I finished plying. Ended with 929 yards worth of singles which I turned into 310 yards of chain plied yarn. Not a bad haul of knit worthy yarn for any week.  

Spinzilla was pretty fun and I enjoyed the competition. I didn’t go all out and spin in every free moment. If I wanted to read or play video games, that’s just what I did. My wrists and ankles are thanking me for it. So what if I didn’t get to spin that happy little bump of color I got from Gwen Erin? I hit my only goal of spinning up the rest of my stashed Perendale wool.

Thanks to the push from Spinzilla, I’ve reached a turning point in my spinning. Before last week, I had only spun small quantities of fiber at a time, 4 oz max. Spinning more than that on a spindle just seemed like a giant time suck that I’d get bored of halfway through and never finish. Didn’t think I could spin a consistent yarn over numerous skeins either. Well, my spindles sat out last week and I worked exclusively on my Sidekick. I spun three separate but matched skeins of yarn which I’ve never done before. Now I feel like I can spin yarn for blankets and sweaters and large projects without getting quitting halfway through. I’m even looking forward to it!

A week and a half later, I’m glad I signed up to compete at the last minute. It was fun even though I didn’t join a team. Can’t wait to try again and beat my yardage in next year’s Spinzilla.

Fortunately Felted Handspun

...or how I thought I ruined my handspun yarn but loved it instead. Whew. 

The story starts during Tour de Fleece when I bought some blue pencil roving. I started spinning it once my Tour de Fleece skein was finished and the roving promptly turned my hands and spindle blue. First single finished and after giving the spindle a good bath, I put the whole project on hold to find a way to keep dye off the spindle. So, it sat for a few weeks. Wrapping the spindle in paper didn’t help and it went on the shelf again. When my wheel arrived, I dealt with the blue just so I could get finish the second single and quickly ply on the wheel. The bobbins didn’t turn blue, thankfully, but my hands certainly did.  

I’ve done a little research on this fiber and brand through Ravelry and being excessively bleeding dye doesn’t really come up. The one mention of bleeding dye was for red dye, a color notorious for bleeding, and only from a small portion of a 1 pound bump. I must have just gotten a bad batch.

Now all the yarn needed was several good baths to set the twist and get rid of all that extra dye. It took five dunks. During the first bath the water turned so dark that I couldn’t see the bottom of the sink  through 4” of water. The skeins were still dripping blue when I hung them up to dry. They probably could have used another soak or two but I’d been a bit over zealous squishing out the dye. My yarn was starting to felt. I did my best to ignore the giant, clumpy messes and hoped I hadn’t ruined them.

Dry, not only was the yarn salvageable but I like it much better after it’s impromptu felting. Just wish it hadn’t taken me an hour or so to pull it all apart and re-skein everything. The good news is that I didn’t have to cut a single strand.

 Post felting, the yarn is entirely different wooly beast. The color went from a bright gym-short to a subdued sky. Still soft, the yarn is denser but not stiff so it turned out to be a good thing I under-plied. Didn’t lose much yardage either, only about 18.5 yards, which means I still have 277 yards to play with. 

The Specs:

277 yards (225 + 52)

Worsted to Heavy Worsted

9-10 Wraps per Inch

4 oz of Wool

Dyed by Pagewood Farms

Straight off the spindle and the wheel this was an okay yarn. It would have gone into the stash and, eventually, I would have knit it or gifted it away. After a bath and mild felting, I want to knit it up right now into something cozy. Maybe a cowl or a scarf but, in the meantime, the skein makes a nice neck warmer all by itself.  

3 Skeins Spun

My Sidekick has been here for just over a week. I’ve spun on it everyday and I’m still amazed at how much faster the whole process is compared to working with a spindle. Seems like I’m just throwing fiber at the wheel and it magically turns into yarn. Okay, it’s not quite that fast and there’s no poof of smoke and glitter when unwinding the plied yarn from the bobbin. Should be though.

The first skein to come off the wheel was 2 oz of chain plied Perendale. When I won the fiber from Louet I immediately knew that I’d use it to learn to spin on my wheel. The first few yards are definitely lumpy and bumpy and chain plying the single elevated it to art yarn status. The yarn shrunk a bit during finishing so I’m not really sure how many yards there are. I have no plans to ever knit this yarn, so mystery yardage isn’t really problem. The skein gets to be a memory of my first time spinning my first wheel. It’ll be a nice and inspiring pet.

Fiber stashes are awesome. I heartily recommend you build one of your own because when I got bored of spinning the Perendale I was able to pull a lovely bump of teal out of my stash.  I split the fiber in half and just started spinning. Boredom immediately solved. With no real plan in mind I started spinning a 2-ply. The singles looked like they’d come together to make a fingering weight but turned into a worsted weight yarn instead. Fine with me since it’s about 300 yards of next to the skin softness. Just might turn into a cowl. Any pattern suggestions?

 This blue yarn and I have had quite the history by the time the Sidekick showed up at my door. Since the first few minutes of spinning, the roving has been turning my hands and spindle blue. When the wheel arrived, I finished up the second single so I could ply it on the wheel and finally be done with it. These photos are before the skein was washed and, ahem, partially as well as unintentionally felted. More on that debacle later. Spoiler alert: I like it more after the felting. 

With these three skein under my belt, I’m at work on the fourth. There’s one single waiting on the bobbin and I’m about to start on the second. Just might have it finished before Spinzilla starts on Monday morning. I only have three bobbins and I’ll need all of them for this grand spinning challenge.

Grab Bag Goodness

Reason 3,548 to love the internet: You can see something you absolutely love and, after a few clicks, it’ll show up on your doorstep. That’s exactly how I ended up with these little bits and bobs of fiber from GwenErin. I slightly stalk her Etsy shop and, when she posted about having grab bags of fiber for sale on the cheap, I couldn’t resist. That was last week. This afternoon, the package was waiting for me when I opened the door.

The longer lengths I’m going to spin and use for a  few of the constructions in The Spinner’s Book of Yarn Designs which is horribly inspiring. As for these smaller bits, I’m not sure since they’re not in large enough pieces to spin. Maybe I’ll use them for felted balls or take another try at needle felting. Hell, if none of that works, I can just use them as stuffing. Waste not, want not. 

Do you have any suggestions for what to do with small, leftover bits of wool roving? I’d love to read your suggestions.

Time to Design

It’s been far too long since I’ve put my needles to yarn and designed a knitting pattern. Feeling just a bit rusty but ready for the challenge. My first opponent, 80 yards of Noro Taiyo leftover from a Doublish Shawl, has only been mocking me from the stash since April 2012. I don’t know what it is about this particular cake of yarn but I just have to knit it all up. Other leftover balls have sat in my stash for years but they haven’t enticed me to knit them up with the same fervor. Maybe it’s the way the colors are presented or the silky hand of the cotton but I’ve been racking my brain to come up with a pattern for this yarn. 80 yards of fingering weight isn’t much to work with, after all, but I’ve relished the constraint. It’s made things so much more interesting. After much swatching and ripping (and even more swatching and ripping), I finally have a workable idea.  Folks, I’m running with it. See you at the finish line.

Finished Fractal

My Tour de Fleece yarn is finally finished. Only took 1 extra week, 2 skeining attempts, 2 washes, and 3 days of drying time. Seems like I could have saved a few days if I’d had the patience to re-skein the yarn correctly the first time around. To reiterate, bicycle handbars are not the best option for skeining yarn. Over turned laundry baskets, on the other hand, do a decent job.

All that extra time working with the yarn did have some benefits though. Not only is the yarn well blocked and balanced, I really want to knit it. NOW. Usually, my handspun likes to marinate in the stash for a bit since I don’t spin with an eventual project in mind. The yarn, itself, is the project. If I want to spin a fingering weight yarn, I spin a fingering weight yarn. That’s all there is to it. Any potential pattern comes much later. With this yarn, I just wanted to try my hand at fractal spinning for Tour de Fleece. Spending double the time finishing the yarn, let me better appreciate the final yarn and absolutely fall in love with the colors. Sometimes the colors stripe, sometimes they barber pole, and sometimes they create an amazing gradient. Knitting this skein up is the only way left for me to truly appreciate it. 

 What was it like spinning a fractal yarn? No different than spinning any other yarn. Certainly nothing to be afraid of. The hard part is finding a bump of fiber dyed just the right way. Splitting it and spinning it are the easy parts. Just remember that you might have to pre-draft the undivided half of the fiber to get a matching single for the divided half. 

The Finished Specs

Fingering Weight Yarn with 18 - 22 Wraps per Inch

512 yards

4 oz of Bluefaced Leicester 

Dyed by Yarn Geek Fibers

Colorway: Big Yellow Taxi

512 yards is a lot to work with and I really don’t want to split it up in a bunch of smaller project. Shawl, it is then.

How to Not Skein Yarn

Desperate times came for desperate measures, my friends. There I was with my finally plied Tour de Fleece yarn ready and waiting for its bath. Unfortunately, my swift didn’t make into the car for the cross country trip (too big) and  my niddy-noddy, which I meant to bring, didn’t either. Both might as well be in another dimension right now. With my swift I could have easily wound it up in a skein, see this tutorial. Same with the niddy-noddy. So, I went looking for alternatives.

Say hello to Allie, my new bike. The handlebars seemed like the perfect thing to wrap fresh yarn around. Alas, this was not the case though that wasn’t apparent until much later.

I put the spindle into the front basket for easy yarn dispersal and got to work. It didn’t take me too long to empty the spindle and tie off the skein. 

Now that it was time to take the yarn off the handlebars, things went south. See, the handlebars don’t go straight back but angle to the side . I had hoped that if I wound loosely, getting the skein off the handles would be pretty easy. Nope. I had to slide the skein off a few too tight strands at a time.  Nothing snapped, thankfully. Just for good measure, add in a few too long stands that accidentally got wrapped around the break grip too. The skein was a mess.

A more patient person would have re-skeined the yarn around something else but I was not feeling particularly patient. There was yarn to wash! and, adding insult to injury, I had to first wash dishes to free up the sink. I had no patience to spare after doing the dishes. So, the yarn got its bath and I got the pleasure of thwacking it afterward. 

Now that the yarn is dry, I’m not sure I did the right thing. The accidentally too long strands are still kinked and curling on themselves. Looks like the yarn wasn’t properly finished the whole skein through. At least I know I managed to spin a nice fingering weight, which was my goal, instead of a lace weight. With today’s bolstered patience reserves, I’m going to re-skein the yarn but not around the bike’s handlebars. I’m going to do what I should have done yesterday and wrap the yarn around an upturned laundry basket.  Wish me luck.

Stash Enhancement

When I was perusing Wild Fiber last weekend, I found something new. Something that I’d only seen in photos, written about in blog posts, and occasionally added to my Etsy cart: pencil roving. It’s basically thin roving that’s about the thickness of a pencil. Hence the name. You can either knit it as is or you can spin it. Me, I’m going to spin it.

For this year’s Tour de Fleece I wanted to practice new techniques which means trying new materials as well as learning new skills. Pencil roving is new to me so it’s a suitable addition to the stash. I might not get to spin until after the tour but I’m still on the path to try new things.

I also found some teal roving while I was at the shop. Not sure about the fiber type it is but it’s soft with a long staple length. It’s nothing I haven’t spun before but, sometimes, you just need some good old fashioned stash enhancement.

Always Leave Room in the Car for Yarn

I’m always on the lookout for yarn. It’s just a subprocess that’s always running in my brain and I don’t bother trying to shut it down anymore. Just means that I find yarn in all the right and sometimes unexpected places, like on the way to the Grand Canyon. During our visit, the Bearded One and I took the slightly longer route to the Canyon through The Painted Dessert, The Kaibab National Forest, and the Navajo Nation. The national parks were desolate but once we entered the Nation, houses and road side shops and stands popped up frequently. At the Navajo Arts & Crafts Enterprise there was a wall full of Brown Sheep yarn. They had just about every color you could think of in wool/mohair single and I was not immune. I blame yarn fumes and several cramped days in the car. We found space in the back seat and headed on our way several skeins heavier. I’m still not sure what I’ll make with yarn but it’ll tell me eventually. 

Moral of the Story: Always leave room for yarn in the car. You never know where you’ll find a few skeins to take home with you.

Scales help Knitting - 4KCBWday6

One of the great things about knitting is that it requires so few tools to accomplish. All you really need to start is yarn, needles, and a pair of functional hands (thanks to SillyLittleLady for the reminder). With those three things you can knock out garter stitch scarves till you run out of yarn. Tape measures, stitch markers, tapestry needles, stitch counters, and scissors are helpful tools that help kick your knitting up to the next level. It’s worth having multiples of that list and, especially, multiple tape measures since they seem to pop into an alternate dimension whenever you’re not looking. Honestly, with a full set of those 8 items you’d be set but I’m going to suggest one more. The humble and handy kitchen scale. 

• Scales can tell you exactly how much yarn you used for a project such as pair of socks of or a kid’s sweater. If you’re making multiples of an item, you’ll know exactly how much yarn you’ll need for the rest.
• Have yarn or handspun and don’t know the yardage? This tutorial from FreshStitches details how to use a digital scale to calculate yardage. 
• Scales make it trivial to split skeins of yarn in half to make socks and sleeves easier to knit. Making kits and dividing yarn for a group project is also much easier with a scale. 
• Like tracking data and knowing how much yarn you’ve actually knit in a month or a week or a day? The scale is your friend.
• There are patterns with the instruction, “Knit half of the skein before beginning the next section.” Baktus Scarf, I’m looking at you. Measure the yarn before you cast on and regularly weigh the remainder until you’re at the right number.

I knit for years without a scale but, now that I use one and know how helpful it is, I don’t want to be without one. My scale hangs out with my knitting needles and other helpful gadgets which are always close at hand. Plus, you don’t have to use it just for knitting. Use a scale to help you cook or mail packages or spin yarn. 

Today’s post is part of the 4th Knitting and Crochet Blogging Week. See what it’s all about at Eskimimi Makes. ​

Starting off Green - 4KCBWday4

The Answer: Green

Today’s Questions for Knitting and Crochet Blogging Week: What are your favorite colors for knitted projects? What colors do you seem to favor when yarn shopping and crafting?

I did not even have to think about the answer. Whether I’m wandering around yarn shops or shopping for clothing, I’m drawn towards various shades of green first. I pick up the green yarn first even when I end up buying a different color. I have never knit a sweater and yet I have at least two sweater quantities of green wool ready and waiting to be knit.

​Green isn’t the only color I go for though. My stash page on Ravelry is showing a strong trend towards blue, grey, and a particular shade of earthy, mustard yellow. The colors I design and knit patterns with are also varied though green does make a strong showing. 

At the moment I’m feeling a bit bored from all the green. I’m knitting a green pair of socks. I just finished spinning green handspun. Plus, there’s a secret project on the needles with green stripes but more on that later. To combat my boredom I picked out a very not green bump of fiber called Winter Pinoak from Yarn Geek Fibers. The bump is 4oz of Blue Faced Leicester in blue, orange, brown, and white. Looks so fun to spin too. 

What color or colors are grabbing you right now?

It’s funny. When I first started this post I thought it would be green, green, and more green. Instead its mostly blue. 

Relaunch!

Over the past two months and especially during the last couple of weeks, I’ve been doing a lot of work on something not strictly related to yarn - this site, studiostrategos.com. The name and the address will stay the same but there’s a whole new look and layout. I could not be more thrilled and I’m excited to finally be able to share this with you. Please take a look around and let me know what you think.

Along with the site’s brand new look is a brand new RSS feed (though it looks like the old one will still work)- click here for the link. The link, along with a few other ways to stay connected, are also located in the “Follow” tab up top.

​Oh, and just because today is “I Love Yarn Day,” here’s some cushy yarn goodness. I’ll be back next week with talk of 5K training, knitting, and lots more yarn.

​Araucania Coliumo Multy - 23

On Stash and Storage

I was updating my Ravelry stash page yesterday and was feeling rather pleased with myself that I hadn’t acquired much yarn in the last few months. Cold sheeping, and all that. Then I realized that I had switched from yarn to spinning fiber as my acquisition of choice. Oh well. I’m not going to feel guilty about it since I’m buying things that I like, that I’ll use, and that support people I like. As much as I toy with the idea of only buying fiber/yarn when I have a project in mind, I like having a fiber stash to inspire me and pull from when the muse strikes. Plus, it’s nice to bury my head in all that lovely fiber when I need to hide from the day. 

The latest addition to the collection is 4 oz. of Blue Faced Leicester from The Copper Corgi. I’m rather smitten with all those blues and especially the bright green. I have visions of bright green popping out from a swath of dark blue. Maybe 2-ply or maybe 3. I haven’t gotten that far yet. I’m still in the middle of spinning a polworth/silk blend which means the blue/green vision will have to wait in storage. 

Fiber storage here at Chez Strategos is both digital and physical. Digital storage is means that the fiber(or yarn) is photographed and said photographs are uploaded to the fiber’s very own Ravelry page. All pertinent information - breed, weight, color, dyer, price, etc - is included. Before I pull every bin and bag out, I like to peruse the stash through photos and choose my options. The physical side of storage is a giant bag left over from buying a bedding set. It’s see through, zips closed, and  has a very convenient handle. For the moment, it’s just the right size for all of my fiber so long as I keep spinning.

I’m really curious how you store/organize your fiber stash. Is it photographed and up on Ravelry? Does it have it’s own trunk? Or does it roam your home like a lion on the savannah? Any tips or tricks?

In Atlanta

Adventure time in Atlanta is officially over since I’m driving back to Chez Strategos today. Atlanta was great even if The Bearded One and I didn’t make it to DragonCon after all. We spent the long weekend driving, inspecting potential future residences, eating all of the food, and playing Diablo in our down time. We also took a break to watch the latest episode of Doctor Who. I’ve been waiting for the Daleks to show their metallic appendages again.

It seems like the two of us spent most of the weekend in the car which is probably true based on how much sock is on the needles. Over 8” worth, all told. I’m letting the self striping yarn - discontinued Cascade Sassy Stripes - do all the work and knitting a simple 3x1 rib. Not even worrying about the heel, afterthought all the way, until I get I get home.

While the Bearded One and I were still driving around town, I couldn’t help but wonder about local yarn shops. I had Tuesday mostly to myself and decided to visit a shop or two since seeking yarn is a large part of any adventure, you know. I ended up at Eat Sleep Knit and had to wait for my mind to reboot after seeing the walls of Madelinetosh along with enough hand dyed yarn to happily bury myself in. Somehow, I walked out with just 2 skeins of Malabrigo Worsted - Sunset which might turn into the Arroyo Shawl from D’oh!mestic.

Time to hit the road. There’s a 2.5 hour drive ahead of me but I’ve got podcasts, chocolate, and pretty yarn to keep me company.

Stash Enhancements

This year I used my birthday as an excuse to splurge on some hand dyed spinning fiber from a few choice Etsy shops. Up to this point, I only had 2 criteria for new fiber. Number One, the fiber had to be mostly wool or a natural fiber which I could spin some awesome yarn from. Number two, pretty colors. No further explanation required. 

During the Birthday Shopping Fiber Binge, I was prompted to add a third criterion - will I actually wear or use those colors (or will any of my friends)? - and it’s all this pattern’s fault: Unleaving by Lee Juvan. Okay, a hank of my handspun named Rhonda takes some of the credit too. I was cleaning up my Ravelry queue and came across Unleaving which is a scarf pattern knit with handspun. I looked at the materials list and I looked at my handspun. I look again and my brain reset. In my stash was the perfect skein of handspun and it even had enough yardage. I’d spun enough yarn to knit way more than a hat or a pair of fingerless gloves. I had enough for a lacy scarf. Honestly, after more than a month, I am still really excited about this. 

So, when I was shopping around, I had to ask myself what the fiber would eventually become which added a whole new level of excitement. This lovely bit of Blue Faced Leicester from Yarn Geek Fibers will probably turn into a slouchy hat. 

Also some BFL from Yarn Geek, this bright explosion of yellow and grey will potentially become a pair of long fingerless mitts. 

This lovely bit of superwash wool roving is from Dawning Dreams. Not too sure what this is going to become but it’ll be great.

Future Shawls

A few weeks ago at a Madelinetosh yarn tasting, all the yarn fumes went to my head and I ordered 3 luscious skeins of yarn. I have grand plans for these babies. The Merino Light (Antler) will be pair up with some Plucky Knitter Primo Fingering to become a Stripe Study Shawl. The 2 skeins of Tosh Sport (Grey Garden) might become a Secret of Change Shawl. Nevermind that both of these shawls involve garter stitch, “short rows”, and are by Veera Valimaki. I might be obsessed.

I’ll get started on that Stripe Study right after I finish my giant, 2 skeins of Malabrigo Sock, 49 teeth and counting Hitchhiker. I’ve only got 53g of yarn left. Shouldn’t be too much longer, I hope.

The Creative Spark

On the second Saturday of most every month, I head over to the Greater Birmingham Fiber Guild for our regular meetings. I know I’ve said it before and I probably will again but I love getting together with people who share this passion for fiber and art and knitting and making. It sets off this happy little creative spark in my brain. Plus, it’s just fun.

At this month’s meeting, we had a visit from the lovely Gale Evans of Gale’s Art and her also lovely fiber. The topic was fiber and handspun yarn. What can you use it for? Anything. What’s the best fiber to learn to spin with? Blue Faced Leicester was a favorite. How many yards can you get from 4 oz. of fiber? It depends on the weight and the spinner.

Along with the usual knitting in public component of the meetings, people also brought their wheels and were happily spinning along. There goes that creative spark.  

Besides from a variety of different wools, alpaca, and blends, Gale also brought a colorful bunch of silk hankies. I’d heard of silk hankies before and the fact that can actually knit straight from them but I didn’t give it much thought at the time. Just filed it away in my brain for later. It wasn’t until Gale demonstrated how to pull them apart, stretch them out, and cast on that my eyes got all big and round. Creative spark number two. 

Of course, I couldn’t leave without picking up a few supplies. How could I resist the silk, the colors, and a name like ‘Velvet Elvis’?

Next month’s meeting is going to focus on spinning yarn with a spindle and I am so excited. I’ve been meaning to get back to my spinning for months and this is just the push I needed. I’ve already started practicing. Creative spark number three.

Potential

Yarn. It should come as no surprise that I have it. Lots of it in fact. I track its acquisition and usage on Ravelry and in a giant, handy spreadsheet. I photograph it. I pet it. Hell, I even sniff it. There’s nothing like yarn fumes to start off knit night. Of course, I knit with it too. 

When I look at yarn I see a pair of socks, or a blanket, or a hat, or a scarf that can change someone’s day. Sometimes, I just see yarn and that’s okay because I can still see its potential. Yarn will become anything you or I put our minds to making. This is why I can’t get rid of leftovers. I might have only have a yard or even 10 or 20 but I know it has potential. That it can still be used and made into something new. I can’t just throw it away. That’s why I snapped these balls up at Knit Night from a friend that was getting rid of them. They have potential even if I don’t quite know what it is.

I have a few ideas though.

• Winter Leaves by Leethal because leaves are awesome.
• Buttony Chevron Cuff also by Leethal because chevrons enthrall me.
• A random hexipuff from The Beekeeper’s Quilt by Tiny Owl Knits because they’re just cute.

Any suggestions? What would you make with 20 yards of bulky yarn?

At Stitches South

Friday was a fun bit of adventure. I woke up early, got ready, and headed out the door. By 6:00 AM, I was on a bus headed for Atlanta and Stitches South. My purse had traveling knitting, cash, my camera, and a list of yarns to buy. I thought I was prepared. As it turned out, not so much.

Once I figured out the lay of the land, I headed off to the Sanguine Griffin for 2 skeins of Bugga! Everything after that is a bit of blur. There was so much color, so much variety, and so many yarn fumes that everything just tangles up in my mind when I try to recall it. I can vaguely remember wandering the aisles, picking up yarn, sometimes sniffing yarn, and then buying yarn. If you sniff yarn, you have to buy said yarn, right? I think it’s an unwritten rule.

I do remember meeting a few really cool people in the midst of the yarn fumes. First off, I met Liz, the dyer behind MacKintosh Yarns. I’ve been using her yarn and reading her blog for years now. It was great to finally meet her in person.

I also had the opportunity to meet Ysolda Teague at a book signing. This was pretty great too since I really admire her patterns. Book signings rock!

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Stormy weather cut the trip short and bus headed for home in the early afternoon. The ride turned into show and tell based on one question: “What was your favorite purchase?” I didn’t have to think about that one at all.

One skein of MacKintosh Yarns Chubby Sock in the appropriately named color, Sex Kitten. A cluster of colors so outside of my normal palate that I can only wear it on my feet. Also, totally awesome. I’ve only wanted a skein since it first showed up ages ago on her site. This yarn is going to a great pair of socks.

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I’m definitely looking forward to Stitches South 2012. Maybe I’ll have knit up all the yarn I bought by then.