Yarn Haul: Pepperberry Knits and Knitter's Pride from Loop

How does a knitter sped the day before New Year's Eve? Why, yarn shopping, of course!

Nick and I were visiting my friend and her husband in Philadelphia to enjoy the delectable tastes of a modern Indian restaurant called Tashan. I should stop here to note that the food did not disappoint. Each couple split one of the larger entrees, while we all shared multiple smaller plates that were so good, you could kill for it (which we essentially did since it was all meat!) It's a fine dining experience right on Broad Street and worth a visit if you're in the area. End sidebar.

Anyway, I've mentioned in many earlier blog entries that my friend lives literally a block away from one of my favorite yarn shops, Loop. When Nick and I showed up (delayed by only 20 minutes on the Surekill), my friend and I decided to head to Loop while the boys stayed in and shared some beer. An ideal night in any crafter's book, if I do say so myself.

Now, Loop can be overwhelming because everything is so beautifully yummy. Their displays are organized, colorful, and represent my wet dream of a craft room (maybe someday). It's never easy to pick just one thing to buy, so I browsed for at least 20 minutes before resting my eyes on this mini skein bundle from Pepperberry Knits.

The bundle is actually their Lucy Fun Size Cowl Kit, 100% cashmere yarn that's currently only available to purchase through their partner stores (like Loop - convenient!) The bundle includes mini-skeins in various colors with enough yardage to complete a Lucy Cowl, whose most difficult feature will be the provisional cast-on. In other words, this is perfect potato-chip knitting with a gorgeous, luxury-yarn-induced end game.

Although there are several colorways to choose from, I selected Crazy Redhead. From my browsing on Ravelry, it looks like different versions of this colorway are available, so I just went with my favorite color combo (for example: you can purchase one combo that includes blue).

And because I can never have enough needle brands to experiment with, I also bought some Knitter's Pride Size 7 16" Dreamz fixed circulars. I didn't think I'd like them because their tips are relatively short for my preference, but I used them to knit up a custom order a couple days ago and loved the experience. They're smooth and light, making knitting fun and fast.

Hmm... I didn't think it would be possible to ramble on this much about one yarn purchase. I learn something new every day :)

Stay tuned for my Lucy Cowl once I'm finished with a couple KALs and my KnitCrate projects.

KAL: Grace Akhrem's Crashing Waves

If you follow me on Instagram, then you already know I'm participating in designer Grace Akhrem's knit-a-long for her Crashing Waves shawl/wrap. I thought I'd venture on over to my blog and invite you to do the same!

So far, the pattern is moving along just swimmingly and I'm having a lot of fun. I reached a point in my Lapidary (picking up stitches for the border) where I couldn't go on anymore and needed a fun distraction that still allowed me to knit - just not picking up something like a million stitches :)

I'm using madelinetosh prairie in Holi Festival and loving every minute of it! I have to admit that knitting a garter tab cast-on for the first time in lace-weight yarn was a bit of an adventure because the stitches were more difficult to see (and boy, did it ever look wonky with that open weave)! But it came out fine and I can add a new technique to my repertoire.

The KAL started on January 10th and ends on January 31st. As of today, we're only three days in, so it's not too late to join if you have access to some lace weight yarn in your stash or an LYS that carries your yarn of choice!

Plus, one lucky KAL participant will receive a pretty neat yarn and pattern prize combination (more details on the exact pattern and yarn coming soon - it will be good)! And two lucky winners will receive a pattern bundle prize. Your chances of winning are pretty good right now, so I'm encouraging you to hop on over and have some good old-fashioned knitting fun with us!

I'm an AllFreeCrochet Top Blogger of 2014!

So perhaps one of the things on my list of "Top News to Wake Up To" would be an email announcing that I'm a Top Blogger on AllFreeCrochet.com. My Really Easy Slouchy Beanie has made their list of Top 100 Crochet Patterns (and it's the first one listed under Crochet Hat Patterns, too)!

I've been doubting my abilities lately, mostly because I just put out a couple patterns that had a great initial response and then tapered off (that'll teach me to launch something right in the middle of everyone's Christmas gift-making extravaganzas). This news made my day, though, and maybe got me out of my designer's rut.

Many thanks to AFC for the honor; I'm enjoying checking out the other patterns, as well, and seeing a lot I haven't come across yet. You should do the same :)

Finished: Gallatin Scarf for Mom

With everything that happened in December, I wasn't sure I was going to finish any of the gifts I had planned. While last month's events were reminders that procrastination is my enemy, I still knew I needed to get some handmade gifts done in time for Christmas. So off I went.

The first gift I finished was another Gallatin Scarf, this time for my mom at her request! I used the same type of yarn I had used in mine: Mountain Colors Twizzle, but in the Winter Sky colorway. She had seen the one I made and wore to Vegas in November and wanted one for herself, so I was more than happy to oblige!

The Gallatin Scarf is a great project and, as promised in the pattern, very fast to knit up. Even with working full-time and pumping out orders like a crazy person, I was able to finish this in a couple evenings. Just grab your favorite worsted weight luxury yarn and a pair of huge circular needles and you're set. The lace stitch and its increases are simple to memorize, making this perfect TV knitting. Considering I was glued to the Hallmark Channel all month, I was happy for that.

I didn't dive into a description of Mountain Colors Twizzle in the post about my own scarf, but I'd like to get into it here. The yarn is lovely - no doubt about it. The colors are super saturated and I love the contrasting flecks plied throughout. But... I ran into a few snags. It sometimes looked like the yarn was cut or frayed. It's not something that happened often, but being a pricier yarn, I thought I'd either see if anyone had experienced the same issues or inform anyone who was wondering if it's worth the money. Like I said, the colors are so vibrant that I absolutely do think it's worth the $20-whatever I paid for it - just without as many snags. If it had happened only with the hank I used for my scarf, I'd have thought it was an odd-ball and let it go (it's bound to happen on occasion, which we knitters know); however, it happened in two different hanks from two different dye lots. Have any of you used this yarn and encountered a similar problem?

That's all for today. Lots of yarn goodness and other finished projects coming soon :)

2015 Calendar: Men in Knitwear (alternate title: "Rawr")

I was going to come to you today with news of fantastic Christmas vacation yarn stashes and projects. Instead, I bring you the 2015 Men in Knitwear calendar, available to download on Ravelry from Stitch Seekers for $15.

Why? Well, I think that's obvious. And you're welcome.

I mean, scantily-clad eye candy at its finest and coordinating patterns for what little clothing is featured? My printer won't know what to do with its sudden use of color ink.

From the website:

Subscribe to the digital MIK calendar and enjoy a new man in your inbox at the start of every month. That's 12 small to medium sized projects on a larger than life man + the bonus cover design; a total of 13 super cool knitting patterns brought to life by our handsome models. We don't want to distract you from the knitwear so the models won't be wearing loads of other clothes. You'll never forget an appointment again! If you've only just discovered MIK and the year is already underway - no need to wait till next year. Subscribe at any time and you'll receive all the months you've missed, wow! The only question is, can you handle all the excitement at once?

I don't know, but I bought the calendar today and I'm not upset about it. And you won't be, either.