Stitches 2013!

It’s that time again, the time when a knitter’s heart turns to thoughts of yarn. Okay, a knitter’s heart never strays far from thoughts of yarn but we’re even more obsessive when Stitches comes around. Last year I said that Stitches was going to be my only yarn purchases. It wasn’t, of course, but maybe I can stick to that this year. No promises, though.

That said, let me show you what I did get. First, I ran to the Southern Yarn booth to buy Signature Needles.

Her booth was full of nonwool yarns but none of it caught my eye. My rules for shopping were that I could only spend the cash that I brought and that I had to love what I bought. I already love these needles. I got a set of 7s two years ago and sometimes knit projects just because they can be made on those needles. They really are wonderful.

Then I visited the ArtFibers booth and discovered that they now have recycled cotton denim yarn.

This red one had to come home with me. I think I already know what to make with it and it can be made on one of my pairs of new needles, so that’s a plus.

I also succumbed to a skein of RedFish’s new sport weight Silk Floss.

This picture doesn’t really do it justice. It’s very pretty. I am looking forward to knitting with it.

I was hoping that A Verb For Keeping Warm would have Paso Dolce chocolates again. They didn’t but they did have tiny Tcho samplers.

Love Tcho chocolate. The other item pictured above is my door prize! It’s a travel pack from Bar Maids: a cuticle stick, lip balm, and lotion bar. They are yummy and lanolin-free. I am so pleased that I finally won a prize! Maybe this means it’s my year for the grand prize.

In other news, I finished a cowl. It’s the Abby cowl from KnittySpin a couple of years ago.

I love how light but still warm the silk lace yarn feels. Again, I don’t love the color. It is the other half of the hank of silk I used to make the Annis which I ended up giving to Teenuh. She has hinted that she’d take this off my hands too. First I want to take it back to Stitches and show it to owner of RedFish Dyeworks, since it is her yarn. She said she’d love to see it.

Yes, that does mean I plan to go back to Stitches. I still have some of my cash left and if I want to win the grand prize I have to be there, right?

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a few finished items, stitches

I am back to my non-regular posting schedule with pictures of finished stuff like once a month. Here we go.

First of all, bike helmet ear warmers for Niels

bike helmet ear warmers for Niels

No action shot because he doesn't like them. They're too tight under his helmet or something. Live and learn.

Next up, things knit with Blue Sky Alpaca Dyed Cotton that I got from the BobaKnit yarnswap. I was seized with the desire to knit it all up immediately.

Blanket for Pete and Surgirtha's baby (born a few days ago, I better send it off).

star blanket

star blanket

Baby Bolero from One Skein for Diana's baby, also born a few days go, also not yet delivered.

one skein baby bolero

Single Cable Scarf, also from One Skein, for my mom.

green cabled scarf

green cabled scarf

The two babies are also getting bunny buddies, of course.

more bunnies

I have no idea what this yarn is. My aunt gave it to me from my grandmother's stash, I believe. It's some kind of cotton plied with a thread so it's bumpy. It makes a nice bunny.

My Anhinga is also finished but it is blocking right now. I'm trying to see if the pleat stays in just from blocking or if I'll to sew a tuck it. We'll see soon, I hope.

Last weekend was Stitches West. I took a class on sweater finishing that was mostly about swatching, including washing your swatches so you understand your fiber and then about seaming. I do think I learned some new techniques that will help me improve my seaming but I could have lived without the instructor trying to convince me that I am allergic to dyes and not wool. Trust me lady, I am sure I'm allergic to wool, just ask my nebulizer.

As I mentioned, my lovely Boba friends gave me a gift card for WEBS. I used it to buy a sweater's worth of Seduce.

I also got the books I mentioned previously (Berroco booklet #294 and Norah Gaughan Vol. 6) from WEBS and Whimsical Little Knits by Ysolda Teague from Verb For Keeping Warm. I want to make Ishbel out of the Handmaiden Sea Silk that I bought at Stitches two years ago… I think? (I looked it up, yes, it was two years ago!)

pattern books

Last but not least, I got a few tools and notions.

tools

Three bone "wandas" by Lacis from Carolina Homespun, they're a crochet hook on one end and a knitting needle on the other. One of my friends described it perfectly: it's an "oh crap!" tool. Perfect for fixing things; the Sinature circulars were too hard to resist once I learned that the point rotates on the cable! If you knit on circular needles you'll probably understand right away why I think that's a wonderful idea; last up: highlighter tape, red from the wooden sock blocker people and yellow from The Mannings. The highlighter tape has already enabled me to go back to my tapestry cowl, a double knitting colorwork project with no repeats in the pattern. NO REPEATS. I might get it finished by the time it's cold again, which would be a Good Thing.

Just because they're so awesome, here are the points of my Signature Needles.

pointy points

I find Stitches to be inspiring and exhausting at the same time. It inspired me to finish my Anhinga and then to pick up two UFOs that had been hanging around but by Sunday night I was so tired, and I didn't even spend time in the marketplace except on Thursday evening and Sunday after my class. I'm not sure what it is: the crowds, the wool fumes, the sensory overload. I'm going with all three.

I'm glad Stitches is over and now I need to focus on finishing the projects I have planned with this year's yarn AND last year's! That sweater still hasn't been knit either. Oops.

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