I'm rich!

Or, more to the point, I'm poor and broke, but with alot of yarn. BECAUSE of the alot of yarn.

See?



This is my birthday yarn loot. It doesn't include the alpaca I showed y'all in the last post, but it shows everything else. The Knitpicks order got in at 8 am today. I'm so happy!

Disclaimer: I know, I know, I don't use the highest quality yarns. I do love that pricey alpaca, and Lorna's Laces is awesome, but how often can I justify a $20 pair of socks? I can justify a pair of $6 in Essential, or, better yet, a $3.50 pair in Palette, though. I generally try to use the best yarn I can afford, but right now, that's not much for how much I want to knit. In any case, I'm generally happy with my projects, so neener.

Anyway, in case you're wondering what all this yarn is and what it's for, lemnme tell you. In case you're not wondering, you may want to scroll down...wayway down.

From the top, going from left to right:

1. My work basket, containing the sock showed below and the Circle Cardi

2. 9 balls of Aunt Lydia's Fashion Crochet thread, 100% mercerized cotton, in Natural. To make two of these dresses. This is my first time working with this yarn, or thread, or whatever; I'll keep y'all posted.

3. 4 skeins of TLC Cotton Plus in Red (51% cotton/49% acrylic), to try some sort of camisole or tank top. I ordered 6 skeins, but only got 4 (only got charged for 4, too), so I'm not sure what I'll be able to make with it yet. It's got a pretty nice feel to it, but, again, it's my first time using it.

4. My very sad aloe plant, which fell off the windowsill and broke half its leaves. It seems to have recovered nicely, though, and I froze down lots of aloe for burns and soap-making.

5. (second row from top) 3 hanks of Knitpicks Shadow
, 100% merino wool, in Lost Lake. This is to make the the Sweet Mary Jane cardigan, which I ordered a while ago. By the way, I loooove this yarn; it's soft, sturdy, and works up beautifully. I've tried 4 of the colors, and they're all very vibrant. This green is a bit less green than I expected, but I like it.

6. 4 hanks of Knitpicks Palette, 100% wool, in Cream, Sky, Red, and Hyacinth. The red and cream will be mittens; the rest will be baby socks. The remainder of the red and cream will also be baby socks. This is my first time working with this yarn.

7. 4 skeins of Knitpicks Merino Style, 100$ merino wool, in Frost, to finish the Circle Cardi. So far, I can't tell the difference between the two dye lots, so it shouldn't be a problem. But yes, it means that you can expect to see the finished cardi soon! Yay! I hope I like it...

8. 16 skeins of Wool of the Andes, 100% wool, in Blue Bonnet. These will be a sweater for my husband. I did not expect this color to be so dark -- he wanted electric blue, and this is more cobalt blue -- but we both like the color anyway, and I learned a valuable lesson on color cards. Again, first time using this yarn.

9. (Bottom 2 rows will be done together) 4 skeins of Aunt Lydia's Fashion Crochet thread in Warm Teal and 4 more in Lime, for making the flower dresses from Adorable Knits for Tots. One dress will be teal with the green flower, and the other green with the teal flower. Or that's the plan, anyway :)

10. A bunch of Swish Superwash, 100% superwash wool. I have 3 skeins each of Trufle, Capri, and Bordeaux to make thick, warm, washable socks for two friends and a sister-in-law who are expecting soon. Then there's also 4 skeins of Dublin, to make Trellis for one of the new babes of the abovementioned friends :) This is new yarn, and I don't know anyone who's used it, but it feels quite soft.

11. And finally, 8 skeins of Wool of the Andes, 100% wool, in Mist, to make a vest for my dad. I'm going to be "making it up," incorporating the DNA helix pattern down the center, because he's a virologist. I'm not sure what all else it'll have on it, but it'll be equally thematic.

So, overall, here is about 16 projects (actually more, because each skein of Palette should crank out a couple of pairs of baby socks). I feel so rich :)

And also, I finished that Lorna's Laces sock:



The top was a bit loose -- I bound off using Eunny Jang's yarnover method from the last issue of Interweave Knits. I did a YO after every stitch, because I have big calves and needed alot of stretch, but it turned out a bit too loose. So I'm going to go back and do YOs every other stitch, or something like that. Anyway, I'm pretty impressed with how long these turned out -- this is all just one skein. If I were shorter and/or thinner, these really would go up to my knees. As is, they're a couple of inches shorter than knee socks ought to be. But since I'd never wear them in knee-sock capacity -- with a skirt or something -- it really doesn't matter. They will, however, keep me warm in the winter by closing the gap between my long coat and my boots. Hooray.

By the way, let me just tell you how great Lorna's Laces sock yarn is. It is so great! It just feels so...silky. Yeah. Silky. I love how sturdily spun it is -- it's not nearly as loose as Essential, and softer, despite having the same fiber composition. And the colors -- so rich. I'll definitely be buying some of this yarn...once our finances recover from my little yarny shopping spree (in my defense, the Joann's order was covered almost completely by a gift card, and I haven't bought any other yarn in, like, two months!).

Oh, I also have a sewing question for all you crafty ladies out there: For my wedding, I got the bridesmaids these wraps to wear with their dresses. One wrap was extra, because one girl already had a wrap, and one of the other bridesmaids knew she'd never use hers again and gave it back to me after the ceremony. These wraps are, I dunno, 2 square yards each? Something like that. They're polyester, and they're satiny. I have no idea how else to describe it. Anyway, I'll never use them as wraps. What would you do with them? I was thinking of making a dressy skirt...or top...or, depending on yardage, a dress. Or not, because I'm bad at sewing!