This week, while I was sick, several packages arrived for me at work. Three, to be exact. In the interest of not boring you to tears, the arrival excitement has been distilled down to this:
The first two packages were part of stuff swaps. I sent Anmiryam copies of some very obscure out-of-print patterns and she said she’d send me “something fun”! Indeed – it’s the gorgeous Cherry Tree Hill Supersock on the right below (color Dusk). Thanks, Anmiryam! (Please ignore the blob, which was not received in any of the aforementioned packages.)
After I got my new digital camera, I swapped my old digital camera with Eileen for “something fun.” What she sent me is on the left side of the picture above. (Mostly – the two amazingly decadent looking Legacy Chocolates truffles are tucked into my freezer, waiting my return to tiptop health.) Near the top, you will note a lovely reddish-pinkish ball of Cherry Tree Hill laceweight mohair silk, which will handily take care of the first color challenge (red & pink) in Project Spectrum!
The pattern and Clown sock yarn are for a sock yarn baby sweater – I’m on a quest to find the perfect sock yarn baby sweater, as Eileen is well aware, since that quest led to our “meeting” here in blogland! Additionally, that Clown sock yarn might take care of the second Project Spectrum color challenge (orange & yellow). Bless you, Eileen!
And the last package… Well, Kim, this is the one that might have me out of Stashalong. Two skeins of black Brooks Fiber Farm Four Play wool silk blend.
I had five skeins of this yarn, ordered at the end of December with the rough idea of making a sweater for myself from it at some point and without realizing that I had the bare minimum yardage to make a sweater from it. When I started swatching for the Hourglass Sweater (my project in the Knitting Olympics), I started with yarns that I had plenty of in my stash. Alas, I either couldn’t get gauge or couldn’t get a pleasing fabric with those yarns. Finally I wound up a skein of the Four Play, swatched, and knew I would be using it for this project.
By the pattern, I would have exactly enough yarn for the sweater. Unfortunately, even the pattern corrections mentioned that some people found themselves running significantly short on yarn… Oh oh. When Kim posted a list of Stashalong clarifications, I thought, well, maybe it would be ok… I contacted Brooks Fiber Farm to see if they had any skeins of the same dye lot left. They did, but just two or three, making it pretty much then or never to get more yarn for this project… So I ordered it.
Do I stay or do I go?
Let me make sure I understand. You are making the hourglass sweater and you needed to order extra skeins of yarn to add to what you already had in your Stash from December in order to actually be able to finish the sweater during the Olympics? I think that would be okay if that is the case–let me know if I understood that correctly 🙂
oh, none of those packages count as new yarn. and neither does the yarn i bought yesterday, because i used a gift certificate. 😉
cricket says that the brooks farm is pretty yummy – you know, just as a friendly FYI to chaos. 😉
Brooks Farm yarn is just heavenly! I did a Clapotis out of their mohair/wool/silk/ blend and am starting a lace pattern scarf with some more of the same blend.
Sounds like it should be OK since you will be using it to finish a project. Just make sure you actually need it 😉
It sounds quite simple to me: you needed to augment something already in your stash and the other is just swappery. Stay stay stay!
It can’t be the end of the stashalong road. Yarn wants to be something specific (it does too) so just buying what you need to complete the project can’t count against you. It’s like buying the right sized needles.
I love my hourglass plus the pattern makes for perfect olympic watching knitting.
Ooh, I love opening parcels of yarn! And if I don’t have any to open, then watching other people open theirs is just as good!
I think you’re right about the extra skeins – it was pretty much beyond your control.
And it’s good to see you have such a thorough customs inspector.
The clown sock yarn is delicious! I really like it.
Lovely packages. The Brooks Farm looks wonderful!
Good luck with the Hourglass for the Olympics, Chris! It has taken me a long time to work on it!
Great new stuff you got! Perfect for Project Spectrum 😉
Sock yarn is addictive. Please don’t tell me I can use it for something besides socks ;)***CV
**lives dangerously through Chris’ yarn photos** ;o)
You remind me so much that my purple socks aren’t done yet. :o( But I cleaned the desk today!
With that kind of nosing around, I bet Chaos knows what is in your stash better than you do! j/k
Oh, you get to stay!
Lovely acquisitions! I’m looking forward to seeing your hourglass sweater.
I don’t know if you’re in or out, but the four play is so gorgeous that I think it’s worth it. I don’t knnow what the deal with the yardage is, but I needed about 150 yards extra for the hourglass. I wouldn’t chance it.
Stay!
Re: your comment on my blog, I reallyreally love Billy Collins. Both of those poems are from Picnic, Lightning – I highly recommend picking it up next time you’re at the bookstore.
🙂
BFY is my all time favorite yarn to drool over…. if there’s a yarn to get you kicked out of the stash-a-long, BFY is the way to go. But it sounds like you’ve been given a reprieve by Kim.
I think you are in the clear – I think the overall good of the Olympics outway the slight addition to the stash. Besides you really did try and you are still using up yarn from your stash for the along. Really should be getting bonus points! 😉
I’ve already weighed in on your stuff this week–just passing through on official Stashalong patrol–have a great week! I can’t wait to start seeing everyone’s Olympic patterns take shape next week!
Stay. The order was just to flesh out a project. It wasn’t for no good reason what so ever. It doesn’t count. it only exsists because of the origical purchase of yarn, although not enough. It’s just a continuation of the previous purchase. Have I justified it enough?
What fun to open such lovely packages of yarn! Good luck on the Knitting Olpmpics too and I hope Chaos will help you .
Cant wait to see your hourglass! You’ll definitely finish in time.
Ill have to check out brooks farm at MSW this summer
Surely emergency yarn acquisition doesn’t count against you. You need that yarn!
(And now we see why I could never join a stashalong.)
Since the Brooks Farm acquisition ensures a net depletion of stash, I think it should be allowable.
I’m not biased, or anything…
;D