We take the New Jersey Transit train into the city – we both get to sit and knit and we can even nap on the way home and dream about the new stuff we just bought. The train broke down on the way in though so we had to deboard (in 20 degree weather) and wait outside for 20 or 30 minutes. It could have been worse though. We could have been the guys with bikes who were told they weren’t allowed on. Or we could have been back far enough in line that we couldn’t fit and needed to wait for the next train. Those people probably waited a good hour outside. Our feet were frozen by the time we got on. The saving grace – at least it wasn’t windy.

So we finally got on and got into the city – maybe an hour later than expected. No worries though. They didn’t run out of yarn.

A few highlights…

Gradient yarns at Apple Tree Knits.  I went to the booth twice but left without buying anything.  Next year I’ll look more at patterns that I could use with this yarn.  They have them in several lengths and I left overwhelmed.

Cashmere yarns at Pepperberry Knits.  Oh squishy goodness.

A beautiful poncho kit at Ewetopia Fiber Shop – you guys know I’m a sucker for a gradient – and now I want that damn poncho.

Gorgeous color at Dragonfly Fibers.  Absolutely gorgeous.

Our normal MO is to make one pass at the marketplace and then go back. And that’s what we did unless we found something we couldn’t live without.

Here’s what I came home with.

3 skeins of Dragonfly Fibers Pixie in Red Bud for a Polaris. Look at those colors! All shades of pink with some darker purple bits.

2 skeins of Damesl (also Dragonfly) in Aurora Borealis for a shawl yet to be determined. Love the dyeing and the weight.  The name seems off to me though – aren’t Auroras brighter?

A fun pack of cashmere yarn from Pepperberry Knits. I got the Urbanite colorway for a cute stripey cowl.  Turns out I was really lucky – they don’t sell the fun packs directly to the public on their site and my LYS is out of this colorway.  I went with some colors I gravitate toward (those pinks and burgundies) but I love the other colors too – teal and poison green.

A skein of Stripey Sock in Tie Dye from Black Bunny Fibers. I keep changing my mind on this one. Socks? Shawl? Maybe one of those shawl-cowls? Who knows – but I like that I got out of my color comfort zone a bit.

After shopping we sat in the lounge upstairs and knitted a bit before catching a cab to the restaurant for dinner. We timed this one much better than previous years and had a leisurely dessert before taking a cab back to Penn Station. And bonus – no train trouble in the way home!

If you went, what did you get?

oh and ps – I *finally* joined instagram (I know I know, just a tad late to the party).  I’m @knitnkitchen.  I’m still figuring things out but if you follow me I’ll follow you back!

I’ll catch you on the purl side…

The friendships, the food, the parade of beautiful FOs, and of course – the yarn.

Like always, we got up to Rhinebeck on Thursday night.  Gorgeous ride and no rain!

We puttered around on Friday, ate a casual lunch and hung out on the roof deck and knit.  Yes, it was one of those Rhinebecks – even warm enough to take off outerwear and have the sun warm us up.

The weather wasn’t as cooperative on Saturday – it cooled down a bit and was overcast for most of the day (even with bits of rain thrown in).  Of course, none of this stopped us from shopping and buying yarn.

So what did I get?

A skein of Element Number Five Bakavu Sock from Into the Whirled.  I picked it because it has my colors (purple and magenta) but also with some cyan and burnt orange thrown in.  These will make a fun pair of vanilla socks.

5 skeins of Pixie from Dragonfly Fibers for Umbra & Penumbra.  I fell hard for this pullover when I got the email last week.  I don’t like the mock turtleneck though so I’m going to change that – maybe to more of a boat neck?

2 skeins of Scarlet Letter Yowza – Whatta Skein by Miss Babs for the Cranberry Capelet by Thea Coleman.  You guys know I love a good capelet and red is almost a neutral in my wardrobe.

1 skein of Perfectly Wreckless Yowza – Whatta Skein by Miss Babs for a Lintilla.  Total impulse buy while picking out Scarlet Letter but I scored.  Look at all these gorgeous shawls in this colorway.  I loved knitting my last Lintilla but it just isn’t big enough.  I’ve maybe worn it twice.  More yarn, bigger yarn and colors I love – this one will be a winner.

And finally, a combo purchase.

I bought this skein of Peppermint Twist from Spinning Fates (it was a tease and arrived while I was at Rhinebeck!) with the plan to add some Christmas green to the toes, heels and cuffs.  I pretty happy with this skein of My Kelley Northumbria by Miss Babs.

So how do you think I did?  What do you think I should CO first?  Hint – I’ll be doing it right after I post this.

I’ll catch you on the purl side…

Sweaters

• Miranda by Josee Paquin – wearable cables and a hood
• Crazy Stripes Tee by atelier alfa – love the color possibilities
• Seacoast by Joji Locatelli – I think this one needs a rustic yarn.  I might opt for the original Brooklyn Tweed (which probably means I won’t get this at Rhinebeck)
• Lukrecia by Asja Yanaczek – pretty lace and versatile for both work and weekend
• Donna by Josee Paquin– another fun options for wearing multiple colors
• Such a Winter’s Day by Heidi Kirrmaier – I can see reaching for this every. weekend.
• Gale by Alicia Plummer – I can see wearing this a lot throughout the winter whenever it’s chilly and I don’t want to futz with a coat (which is often)
• Lawrence by Melissa LaBarre – love the cowl
• Pivot by Cookie A – gorgeous use of a laceweight

Shawls

• Segel by Lea Viktoria – I discovered this in an email Miss Babs sent out – it uses one of her gradient sets.  You guys know I’ve never met a gradient I didn’t like.
• Deep End by Heidi Kirrmaier – Fun use for several colors in a modern shawl
• Nangou by Melanie Berg – Another modern shawl with several colors
• Sea Dragon by ambah – I think I’d do this in coordinating colors for a more subtle look
• Lichen by Larissa Brown – I love that it’s light and airy – I’d wear this one like a scarf under my coat
• Derecho by Laura Aylor – bold stripes and several colors make this one a good choice for that wearable blanket (it’s huge!)
• Thorn by Bristol Ivy – it’s a large shawl in a single color and it looks interesting when worn
• Hansel (Half Version) by Gundrun Johnston – it’s mostly stockinette but that border gives you so many options

Cowls

• Jewelled Cowl by Sachiko Uemura – great use of a luxury yarn
• Global Nomad Cowl by Helen Stewart – two colors and lots of eyelets create tons of possibilities
• Jewelled Line Cowl by Sachiko Uemera – pretty texture shows off a great yarn (and beads!)
• Curtain Call Cowl by Thao Nguyen – soft gathers create interest
• Pen & Ink by Louise Zass-Bangham – slip stitches make this one a great choice for a multi-color handdyed
• Gathering Cowl by Xandy Peters – another one with gathers – this one more extreme
• Fatima Cowl by Aloisio santos – I love a good leaf motif

Capelets

• Cranberry Capelet by Thea Colman – cables and a cowl neck – and it looks *great* in red
• Careen Capelet by Louise Zass-Bangham – fun texture and that wide collar is so pretty
• Winter Capelet by Paulina Popiolek – in a simple yarn that bottom edging would be elegant (and so fun to knit)

Lots of possibilities – lots of fingering weight with a bit of sport/DK/worsted thrown in too.  I like to have a big list of options because you never know what surprises you might find.

Are you going to Rhinebeck?  What’s on your shopping list?  What did I miss on mine?

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

Year 11.

Wow – it’s been that long?  I had to verify by going back to my old blog posts – from 2004.  If you’re curious, read the post from that morning and the post after we got home.  It took me back.

This year isn’t very different from my plans for the last few festivals.  Sock yarn – preferably hand dyed and indie – and maybe some dk or worsted if I see anything special.

I took stock of the sock yarn I had to see if there were any holes.

All the color families are represented but there are pockets of colors that are missing – bold green and light blue come to mind.  I’d also like to see if there are any gradient yarns – either in a kit or in a continuous strand – that grab my eye.

As for patterns, I seem to be in a non-lace, garter or stockinette frame of mind.  Here are a few of the patterns I’ve liked lately.  While I won’t say I need to cast on for any of these, they’re good inspiration while shopping.

Top Row

Imagine When, Pendulum and Bolt

Middle Row

At Dawn, The Vampyre and Eagle Twist

Bottom Row

Piewhacket, Geneva and Apres la pluie

It runs the gamut from fingering to DK, includes solids and both 2- and 3-color stripes and textures by using garter, stockinette, changes in direction and changes in yarn colors.  They’re all simple enough to wear at work and not feel like a grandma but interesting enough to knit to keep my attention.

Lots to love.

What are your favorite new shawl patterns?

I’ll catch you on the purl side…

I wrote on Friday about some projects that have been inspiring me lately.  I love doing that because it puts everything in one place for me when I’m shopping.

I knew I wanted to look for yarn for 3 in 1 and I found the perfect colors at Neighborhood Fiber Company.

I ruminated on colors for quite a bit on Friday night – thinking about what I like to wear (pink, red and purple) and where I have holes in my wardrobe (orange, yellow and maybe some greens).  I knew I wanted to use some colors I don’t often use, but I also wanted to make a cohesive top when I was done.  I was afraid I’d make a top the looked like I just layered on three tops.  Oh and I’m not doing the stripes.  The tonal variations in the Neighborhood Fiber Company is enough for me.

Enter the Color Wheel

There are tons of great articles on using a color wheel to select colors and I thought this one was quite good.  It talks about different types of color combos – e.g. primary, analogous and complementary – and the real value for me – lots of pics of the color combos in action.

I of course started with one of my favorite colors to wear – a deep magenta pink – and added on a green and an orange-yellow.  For the color geeks this is called Split Complementary.

I got Neighborhood Fiber Company Studio Sock in

• Charles Village (magenta)
• Del Ray (orange-yellow)
• Anacostia (green)

And look at the cute bag Karida was giving out.  A girl can never have too many bags.

I’m trying to decide which order to use for the green and yellow.  I like both and keep changing my mind.   What do you think?  I’ll be wearing this with jeans so I don’t think that’ll have an effect.

Yellow in the middle

This feels like the less traditional way for me to place the colors – I like that!  Sometimes I like the swath of yellow in the middle and sometimes I think I’ll look like I’m walking around with a yellow boomerang on my midsection.

Green in the middle

I like the way the green and pink look next to each other.  The progression of colors looks like it’s going from light to dark.

I can’t CO until I figure this out because it’s knit bottom up.   Help a knitter out?

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

First, there was Rhinebeck.

It was mine and Christy’s eighth year and one of the best weather-wise.  As Christy said, it was cool enough to wear our sweaters but warm enough not to need to cover them up with a coat.  And it didn’t even rain on Friday.  It almost always rains the Friday before.

The question that I’m sure is on everyone’s minds is Did you finish Sugar Maple?  I sure did!  I only have one crappy photo so I’m going to hold off on an FO post until I do a photo shoot.  But I love everything about it – the yarn, the fit, the colors – everything.  And it’s gotten me jazzed about garment knitting again.

The other question had got to be What did you buy?  I was quite restrained this year and only bought 2 things

7 skeins of Shelridge Farm Soft Touch DK in Lipstick.  Yep, another perfectly pink shade for me.  This one is going to be a Wrapped Pullover but I’m doing it in DK instead of Aran weight.  A sweater as heavy as Aran just isn’t practical for me – and I’m sure it’s also not very flattering.  I think I’ll get a lot of wear out of it in DK and it’s a good thing too.  With the yarn weight change I need to knit a 50 to get a 36.

Yep – a lot of knitting

The other yarn I got is another skein of Sock82Me in a much more cable-appropriate color – Lord-Love-A-Duck!  It has my pinks in it with a healthy dose of orange – a shade I’d like to use more of in my knitting.  No idea which pattern I’ll do but I can only get this at Rhinebeck so I didn’t want to miss out.

Then, there was casting on.

I started my Wrapped Pullover – it’s just to the ribbing.

And then, I cast on for Elisbeth.  Again.  This time in an even smaller size.

And finally I admitted to myself that I need a pair of fingerless mitts to wear at work.  I’m cold All. The. Time. and there’s no freaking way I’d allow myself to buy a pair of squeaky acrylic mitts.

No f-ing way.

I wanted something that covered my wrists and went up a bit on my forearm.  And I wanted simple so I can wear it with just about anything and for a while I was considering just doing a pair of stockinette mitts.  But then I got an email about the Mirri Mitts by Ambah and I knew they were the ones.  They’re almost as simple as st st but have little dots of eyelets to keep it interesting to knit and a little something special to wear.

And there was some Etsy buying.

I got a skein of custom ordered stripes in Chicago Bears colors for Paul from Ladybug Fiber Company.

And a skein of 15 Colour Rainbow from Fab Funky Fibres.

I don’t want to interrupt the stripe sequence so I’m thinking afterthought heel.  I love the little bullseye that heel forms but it’s not my favorite for fit.  So we have the classic form versus function question.  I think form will win out on this one.

And finally, a little something for you.

There’s a big group of indie designers participating in the Indie Gift Along that are offering discounts.  I got the Mirri pattern for 25% off.  Take a look at the whole list.  There are TONS of designers offering discounts – some I recognized and some there were new to me.  The GAL is a win win – support indie designers and get a great pattern out of it.

It’s great to be back.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

Christy and I switched up our shopping approach and started with the main barn this year. Many of our favorite vendors are there so why wait?

My first purchase was at Frivolous Fibers where I got a skein of Freia laceweight ombres. I bought it thinking it could work for a  Now in a Minute shawl from knitty. Have you seen this shawl? It just came out this week.   But then I found another yarn that’s even better (scroll down).  I’m not sure what I’ll use this for but it was unique – hand dyed and hand spun – so I couldn’t leave it.

Then I came across some simple metal shawl pins.  In addition to shawls, I think this one will be perfect for holding together my Vertex cardi.  I’m not a big person so I needed to find a smaller pin.  This one is only 3.5″

We then walked down to Miss Babs where there were 2 long lines – one for browsing and one for paying. I could have bought a lot more but in the end I got 2 skeins of Tarte – 75% superwash merino, 15% nylon, 10% tencel – in pewter for Line Break.   The tencel will give it a nice drape and the color will make it super wearable.

At this point it was noon so we took a break and ate lunch sitting on the grass near the big barn.  Relaxing and I was able to eat something healthy – pit turkey on a kaiser roll with barbecue sauce!  I brought 2 protein bars and some nuts just in case, but really happy I was able to eat some of the food I was smelling.  Yum!

Fortified with some food, we walked over to the smaller barns.  We checked out several of our favorites and then came upon the Fiber Optics booth (was this their first time at Maryland?  I don’t recall seeing them there before).  I love the deep saturation of their colors and was tempted by several bases and hues.  In the end I went with their Paintbox Gradient kit – 15 mini skeins – in the Bitter Lime-Rose colorway.  Although the yardage is smaller (450 versus 600), this will be Now in a Minute.  The pattern looks like it will easily adjust to the yardage you have.

After that, we walked up to the open area at the top of the hill.  They added it a few years ago and it still feels awkward to me.  I was looking forward to seeing what Creatively Dyed had but they didn’t bring anything to hang their skeins on – everything, every single skein – was piled onto tables.  We didn’t even bother going in.

The final set of tents brought a real treat – All About Yarn – one of the Maryland LYSs.  I regretted not buying any Neighborhood Fiber Company while at Vogue Knitting Live in January, so I fixed it!  I bought 2 skeins of their Rustic Fingering in Rock Creek Park (teal) and Charles Village (magenta) to make a Varjo.  I’m really psyched about these colors – it has my dark pinks that will go with a lot in my wardrobe, and the contrast of the teal, a color that I have in several tops.  And then of course, I think it will look awesome on top of an all-black outfit.

Referring to last week’s post was so helpful to remind me of the projects I’m interested in knitting.  I had pics and links to Rav to check yardage, other people’s colors and their yarn usage notes.  I’ll definitely be doing that for future shows.

So I’m sure you’re curious what I’m going to cast on first. Right now I’m leaning toward Varjo but I may do a last minute substitution.  I have a couple errands to run before I can sit down to knit.

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

I recently discovered my love for the Citron I knit back in 2010.  Truth be told, I’ve rarely worn the shawl since finishing it.  I typically wear them under jackets, bandit-style – and Citron was just too big.

But last week I realized it’s the perfect chase-away-the-chill-in-the-office topper.  And now I want a dozen different large shawls to keep in rotation.

Looking at my sock yarn though, I typically buy just enough for a pair of socks or a shawlette.  That won’t do for a larger shawl.

So, I have a couple options

• buy larger quantities of sock yarn – feels like a very slippery slope
• or, find some shawl patterns that use more than one color of yarn

And while I’m at it, I’d like to bring in more non-pink/purple/red. You all know there’s no shortage of those colors around here. Just look at a tiny portion of my stash.

Here are some options I found that only take 1 skein of each color (except for Line Break, which I left in there because I think it will be versatile and worthy of buying 2 hanks of yarn).

We have a whole lotta Veera here:

• Different Lines
• Happy Street
• Line Break
• Faberge
• Varjo
• Katriel

I’m trying to go outside my color comfort zone, but still make something I’d enjoy wearing – and something that coordinates with my wardrobe.  A couple non-pink/purple/red colors come to mind:

• teal
• green
• black and white (and maybe gray)
• accents of chartreuse or orange

It’s been a while since I’ve planned out my purchases for a festival.  Now the trick is to see if I use this to help decide what to buy.

Or do I come home with 3 more hanks of pink yarn?

I’ll catch you on the purl side.

First, there was the weather. Once we got through the rain of Friday (which we usually spend knitting indoors anyway) we had the most awesome fall weather ever. Saturday even bordered on too-warm and required a quick walk back to the car to drop off my jacket.

Then, there was the food. We stayed in Kingston this year and had the best luck with new restaurants. We had home cooking, tapas, soup, steak (and to Christy’s dismay – brussels sprouts). And of course, a butter rum muffin from Hannaford’s. No trip to Rhinebeck would be complete without a stop at Hannaford’s.

And yes – of course there was the yarn, patterns, new books, lines out the door (with the occasional pushy person who doesn’t understand personal space), amazing projects, somewhat less-amazing projects (this seemed to be the year of the too-wide neckline/yoke), new exhibitors (hello Lisa Souza!) and cider donuts (glad I finally tried one, don’t need to do that again though).

What I brought home:

• A skein of Lisa Souza Cashmere/Silk fingering in my not-so-standard teals and greens. I’m thinking shawl. No I don’t have a pattern in mind yet.
• Color Affection kit from Miss Babs in her 2 ply sock yarn. I, of course, went with my standard pinks and purples.
• A skein of Sock82me also in my not-so-standard brown semi-solid. This yarn is supposed to have great twist for texture and cables.

I’m happy that I didn’t over buy and I can see myself knitting everything I bought before next year’s Rhinebeck. I already started Color Affection and that’s the bulk of my haul.

Having said that I still had a yearning for some yarn when I got home so something else is on its way to me as I type. That can be for another post though.

And I just realized I’ve been forgetting to post the link love at the end, so here goes:

• There’s a great conversation over on the Stash n Burn board about what makes a sweater successful and how to determine what works for you. I’ve sat with this thread for almost a week and am close to coming to terms with the fact that worsted weight is probably too big of a yarn for me.
• Look at this ingenious cowl that’s part mobius and part straight knitting.  And there’s a pullover too.
• Speaking of cowls, here’s a new cowl that Olga just came out with this week
• Isn’t this a great shawl pattern to use with a variety of yarns?  I can see it with leftovers, partial skeins and even done with just full skeins of long-color-repeat yarn like Noro.