STITCHES West 2008!!

I joined Erin and her mom at the knitting/yarn vendor show over the weekend. Was it just me or did it seem more overwhelming than it did last year? I'm sure it's because we went on a Saturday this year when the majority of attendees go. We did go late Sunday and it was pretty mellow, although I felt ill and was in no mood to shop.

I made a list of what I wanted and stuck to it. This is what I found:

• 2 more skeins of the Malabrigo Silky Merino I need to finish up my Clapotis.
• I bought enough Malabrigo Merino Worsted in Burgandy to make a jacket.
• Addi circular needles (Sizes 1 to 3, two diferent lengths each) to make socks.

I couldn't find yarn for 2 other projects I want to do and didn't feel like finding substitutes. When I get to them I'll know where to find it at the LYS or online. I talked myself out of buying a different color of silky merino since I didn't have a project in mind. I always know where to find it at LYS's that don't mark it up higher. Most of my budget went towards the Addis. *pout* I needed them so I can make more socks without dpns and other lace items on my To Do list.

Oh wait, let me geek out for a sec. I have to share my knitting celebrity sightings! Yes, I'm a dork. First stop at Stitches was the Ravelry booth and saw Jess and Casey! They were crazy busy of course with all the Ravelers swarming about them. We picked up a Ravelry Passport and played the stamp scavenger hunt. For those of you who are familiar with Knitty Gritty on the DIY network, I saw Vickie Howell!!! We were waiting to get a stamp on our passport at a vendor. I hear a familiar voice...I turned around and there she was standing next to me talking to the vendor. She's petite up close as I imagined. There were other Ravelry regulars I recognized on boards I frequent. It was kinda cool actually seeing them in person. Anyway...

It was pretty fun looking and shopping but soooo exhausting. Can't wait till it's in town again next year!

Do you like it raw? Silk...that is.

I forgot to mention that I'm done with the Filigree Scarf. It's gorgeous!

It's made with Artfibers Golden Chai. It's a very nice light scarf. I like the idea of wearing raw silk but it's very "sticky". I probably won't seek out any 100% silk yarn any time soon but I'm finally happy with this finished knit. =)

I attended the local knit group down the street from my house for the first time tonight. Why the hell did I wait so long?! I truly enjoyed meeting the people I met...everyone is so friendly. Knitters generally are really nice people. =) I hope to attend regularly from now on.

Silk + Merino = Luscious

I finally found Malabrigo Silky Merino at Imagiknit earlier this week. YAY! This stuff is dreamy soft. They had just got in 3 colors, 4 skeins each. I took all the Nocturnal. I just LOVE purple. I had decided that if I ever found a good deal on Lorna's Laces Lion and Lamb or found something similar to it I would make another Clapotis. I hate the first one I made using Noro Silk Garden. It's pretty but so scratchy on my skin. I've barely used it. Silky merino is very similar to Lion and Lamb but a smidge lighter in weight.

I couldn't wait so I casted on Clapotis. It's beautiful :) I'm probably going to buy every color of Silky Merino I can find at Stitches West!

I should be fixing (or frogging) TD but I don't wanna. Not ready yet.

Last week I went to Daiso (Japanese dollar store) in Union City. Lookie what I got:

- stitch holders

- bamboo crochet needles

- buttons

- foamy mats to use for blocking

All $1.50 for each item. Daiso is awesome.

I love it. I can't have it.

*sigh*

This lovely pea coat pattern that calls for a bulky wool is so cute. Problem is bulky wool and my bulky Jean-sized body don't mix. As much as I want to make this I can't. I'll end up with a sweater that will make me look like a linebacker. Not the look I'm aiming for.

I'd knit it up if I could figure out the math/stitch count using a different weight yarn for this pattern. I'd rather not think that hard. On with my quest for another pea coat.

Another lesson learned after knitting a sweater

I'm done with the Tilted Duster with the exception of button placement. It's blocked and the sleeves were a bit damp but I tried it on anyway with the anticipation of loving everything about it.

Before blocking, the ribbing was ridiculously tight and I was concerned. There was a lot of "butt hugging" going on. Last thing I need is attention in that area of my body. Fortunately I found other Ravelry TD knitters who gave tips to assure others that the hugging will become drapey after blocking and they were right. The back turned out great. It's the front and sides of the skirt that came out too big. *pout*

The sides of the skirt. Oh man. Where do I begin? They look like wings. OK, I'm being way to critical but it's just not how I expected this sweater to turn out. I wasn't expecting so much positive ease when I thought I was going to have too much negative ease. There must be a way to re-plump the wool without fucking it up. I swear there's an article somewhere...


So my hard lesson learned this time? Wet block swatches before casting on and be patient. No matter what. I read this tip all the time regarding swatching but I never do. Now I know why. I could've gone down a needle size or gone down one sweater size.

Once I move my buttons to a better spot on the collar I'll take some pics. For now, I need some time to grow to like my TD because I'm not sure if I want to take her out in public.