When the Cat's Away, the Mice Will Play...

My husband leaves me alone for just a couple of days, and I've fallen in love. Intrigued? It's his fault for leaving me alone with my two little monsters (who have been abnormally well-behaved these past few days) - thus the infrequent blogging. You want to hear about my new love, I'm sure....

I recently ordered some yarn online and it came over the weekend (rather quickly, I might add). One is a Jaeger Baby Merino in "Buttermilk." Nothing particularly special but at such a great price, I figured it was a shame not to get it. I'm usually not a huge fan of superwash wools, but I just can't get yarn of even that quality in the shops around here for such a low price. So, I plan to make a blanket for the baby my sister-in-law is expecting. I've been wanting to play around with cable stitches, and I think making a cable sampler blanket will let me play around with different stitches without making a ridiculously obnoxious sweater that someone would be forced to wear.

The other yarn that came, though, is what I was really excited to see. It's my very first Koigu, and I have to say, it's the nicest yarn I have ever laid my hands/eyes on. It's soft, it knits well, but oh, the colors... Well, the colors remind me of an old Saturday Night Live skit - they're "like butta" (said with the appropriate accent, of course). No, I guess the buttermilk one from Jaeger is more like butter, but if you've seen the skit, you'll understand. One color flows into the next so smoothly. And, so many colors! The yarn is bursting with life. Like butta, I tell you. Like butta. Anyway, I've been playing around all day today trying to get a sock pattern to work out just right (Koigu's a bit pricey, so I only got enough for a pair of socks for now). I've frogged and reknit countless times, but I'm getting there. I am wondering, though, if I wouldn't like the ankle a bit tighter. It fits nicely, but it's far from snug. Of course, if I change that part, it changes everything, because the number of stitches would change, but I do want it to be right. I may finish the whole sock and try it out to see if I like it. I can always rip it out and do it again. Take it as a learning experience, and it's not like having to redo a whole sweater. I like the way the sock is looking so far. The only part I'm a little unsure of design-wise is the heel. I opted for a sturdy stitch that should last longer, but it doesn't look as delicate as the rest of the sock. You never see that part, anyway, so I think I'll keep it that way. After all, at the price I paid for this yarn, I want to be able to pass these socks down through several generations!

The Kiri shawl is finally advancing a bit. I know there are tons of errors in the very first section, but with this yarn, you can't see much of anything, anyway. So, I figured I'd keep going so as not to get discouraged and quit the project entirely. I have finished two sections of the chart, and it's finally starting to look like there's a design to it. So, maybe my mistakes weren't as frequent or as bad as I suspected. After a while, I started to get the hang of it, and I'm going to continue on and see what happens. It's really inexpensive yarn, anyway, so I figure I'll use it as learning yarn. That way, when I want to try a lacey project with some really pretty yarn (like Koigu, for example), I'll have a better idea of what I'm doing.

I'll try to post some pictures of the lovely Koigu when I get a chance. For now... suspense.