All planning, no project

ETA: Pepperknit has just released a beautiful new cowl pattern, here. So beautiful! A perfect combination of technique and form.

Not alot of knitting going on round these parts. It has been non-stop for days between work stuff, life stuff, and trip stuff. Lots of stuff. With breaks to eat, sleep and clean up a tad.

Thank you all the tips for my visit to the Big Town!!

In the last blog post I was kevetching about not being able to settle on a project for the trip. The next day or so, I find this, as I see many, many, many of you have as well, via blogs and Ravelry. Kevetch and the universe will listen, apparently.

I remember admiring this when I saw Suvi’s FO, but did not realize that she was developing a pattern. So it was an extra nice surprise. I love the funkiness. And I have the perfect yarn in the stash, some KFI Cashmereno, with which I have already swatched and gotten gauge. It’s smooth and soft, but made with many plies, so I hope it won’t pill terribly. This has been discontinued, and was involved in the cashmere incident of late 2006.

Don’t let the stickers fool ya – normally I would have taken them off, but I just didn’t have it in me. This was a Black Sheep Knittery sale of the century find from last summer, just waiting for the right pattern. I guess I don’t care if this may not have 12% cashmere, since I got it at a steal and it’s uber-soft anyway.

And I want to apologize now as I had the darndest time with exposure in almost all these pictures. It was that time of day in SoCal when the afternoon sun is too bright to shoot in but the area in shade is already going blue.

Anyway, it’s a perfect travel pattern, not too complex, not too boring, not too heavy, not to sticky, all in one piece, yada, yada. Except, I haven’t found time to actually cast on yet. I see from Ravelry that the start takes some concentration. Fooey. Since I won’t have a good start on it before leaving, likely, and getting it to a place where I can comfortably “knit-on-the-go”, I hatched an alternate plan. Well, a supplemental plan, really.

I figured out patterns and yarns (all but one from the stash – hooray!) for several holiday gifties. I will take these patterns that are easier to start up and work on while traveling and (hopefully) cast on Baby Cables and Big Ones Too while in NY. This little plan also has the advantage of providing all different types of projects and yarns, should I get finicky.

I will be working on a Tipsy Scarf (pdf link) in Rowan Tapestry, a Scarf Cowl (pdf) in Fleece Artist Kid Silk 2-ply “Forest”, a Bainbridge Scarf in Fibre Company Khroma “Aegean”, and a Dumpling Bag in Berroco Peruvia. Yes, I have succumbed to the call of the cowl.

It looks like Fleece Artist Kid Silk 2-ply is discontinued! Makes me happy I got it when I did. It was a splurge, to be sure, but it is amazing. And the colors – oh my!

I did a wee spot of stashing this week too. At Abuelita’s, who is having a summer sale of 25% off all merchandise (except Brown Sheep) through the 29th!, I nabbed the Peruvia above and some Silk Garden in colorway 269, which I have been coveting for some time.

Mnnnn. Neutral Noro. I am thinking a shawl/stole, but I have no idea what pattern. And from Little Knits, I nabbed a bag of Uruguay Chunky in a merlot shade of plum (#109) to work up the Little Blue Sweater from the Fall IK. I guess mine will be a Little Plum Sweater.

I had a deep suspicion that yarn choice was particularly important for this pattern. The look of the finished sweater belies the chunkiness of the yarn. There is a loftiness to it that I thought made the piece. Also, as a sleek fit, something very soft with good memory would be needed. I was going to get the recommended yarn. And then I was idly clicking around and found this. Also a merino blend, with nearly the same yardage and gauge, and most important also a very “spongy” spin of numerous strands lightly plied into a round yarn. I haven’t swatched yet, that will be the test of course. But I have learned that yarns of this fiber and construction allow for a range of gauges while creating a nice fabric, so I have my fingers crossed.

Whew. Lots of knit planning. Here’s to be able to actually knit some of it! Only 3 more days!