The Postman Always Rings Twice

It was deja vu, all over again. It was Christmas except with my postman playing the role of Santa Claus. He didn't have a tummy like a bowl full of jelly or a long white beard or even a sled pulled by reindeer. Nor did he come from the North Pole. Nonetheless, he came, bearing gifts of yarn for the good boys and girls in Normal Heights, and only a week after Christmas, too. It occurs to me that, in fact, he might be an agent of the devil, sent to test my resolve. After all, wouldn't you rather start on Clapotis instead of finishing up some dumb old sweater that you don't even like when Satan's little elf comes to the door with this?

Oh how I long to caress the silken fiber and weave it into a soft, colorful wrap of bright blues, greens and purples. I yearn to wrap my body in its cozy warmth and banish my ennui with its cheerful hues. Oh how I desire its...

Ah, now I see how it works. The temptation, the forbidden passion, the lust for something, anything, new and different. But, he didn't stop there. As I said, the postman always rings twice. As if the Noro Silk Garden wasn't enough to lure me down the garden path to eat the forbidden fruit, he also brought this small slice of heaven.

It's Austermann Barkarole from elann.com, composed of 70% Merino Wool, 20% Silk and 10% Cashmere. It's enough to make the Somewhat Cowl designed by knit and tonic. This yarn is so incredibly soft without any hint of itchiness. I could wear it right up next to my neck and not feel any urge to scratch. The color is so rich and deep and beautiful. It makes the dull, black, flatness of my Cork yarn that I'm using for Chill seem unbearably drab by comparison, all the more reason to set it aside and cast on for...

No! Enough! After all the Picovoli knitalong for the Sexy Knitters Club starts today, so that will be yet another project to add to my growing list. Here is the yarn I intend to use for that. I'm very glad I found a use for this yarn because I bought it at the Grove's 50% off sale that took place last summer, the day the Yarn Harlot came for her book signing (if any of you were there for that). They only had 7 balls left, which is barely enough for anything, but I knew something would come along eventually, and here it is! I'm a little concerned about this project because fit is so important and cotton is so stretchy and my gauge swatches basically lie like a snake in the grass and provide virtually no guidance about my actual gauge. But I did knit a swatch so we'll see how it goes. I think I'm going to do the size 3 inches smaller than my bust and then add bust shaping per the instructions in this month's Interweave Knits (if I can find the damn thing). Hopefully that will accomodate the stretch in the yarn. Anyway, this yarn is Cotton Patine by Elsbeth Lavold, composed of 100% Combed Cotton. It's very soft and silky and should make a lovely top.

Finally, my Ombre Alpaca Blanket. I have been working on it feverishly. I'm having a yarn problem though. I had a hunch I woud run out of the Streaky Brown before I finished the second stripe, so I shorted the first stripe by a 1/2 inch, and I'm going to run out of yarn anyway. I only need enough to get me through one more inch. Allison, do you have any left over from yours that I can use? I'd hate to buy another skein just for that. However, I'm wondering if this is a trend that I'm consistently using more yarn than the pattern calls for. If so, this blanket is going to be the knitting Money Pit. I do love working on it, though. Even though the stitch pattern is mind-numbingly simple, it provides that meditative repetitiveness that quiets the mind, and the frequent color changes spur you on to keep working on it. I love watching the pattern develop. I did a knitted cast-on, and it seems to have created a VERY sloppy lower edge, but c'est la vie. I didn't want to waste yarn using the long-tail method.

Finally, Allison, regarding the Under the Hoodie. I'm finished with the back and I was wondering if you would be able to have the front done enough by Thursday's Knit Salon so that we can work on the pocket. You had mentioned that it looked tricky, so I thought it might be a good idea to work on it at the same time. I know you said you injured your hand and that you're still working on your Ombre Blanket, but I thought I'd throw it out there anyway. Let me know.

Happy New Year!