I made a very wise tactical decision to go to Stephen & Penelope on Thursday after work, when they stay open later (until 8pm) instead of waiting until Saturday. This brought two benefits:
1) I was one of only a few customers in the shop, making it easier to take my time and browse for a while until settling on my purchases
2) I didn’t feel pressed for time, because my husband was still working and we didn’t have any other plans than “get dinner” for that evening.
Everything fit in my little back pack, so I’m counting this as “not too much”. I didn’t need the extra bag I brought with me or the tote I bought there to carry it back to the hotel.
If last winter I was attracted to lots of blues, I’ve swung to the other side of the color wheel this time.
I plan to use the yellow linen to make a summer tank top. I love tanks, but the ones that fit me best are the inexpensive cotton tank tops that, well, they aren’t dressy. Unless covered by a nice shawl. I made a silk turquoise top a couple years ago that I love, but silk doesn’t hold up well to abrasion. I’m excited by the idea of linen instead. Also, I find it hard to find yellow tops that look good with my skin – too pale a buttercup and I look jaudiced, too bright and I look vampirish.
The orange (Sam), pink (Backdraft), and blue (Leviathan) Undercover Otter Singularity (fingering singles) is going to turn into The Fireworks Festival Shawl, a brioche shawl. I’m resisting the urge to pull out my ball winder and cast on today. I have other projects to finish first. And yeah, this one is TOTALLY for me. Shawls like this are why I buy black pants/skirts and black tops – it’s all about the accessories.
The Navy Bean (fingering) “Not so Mellow Yellow” from LolaBean Yarn Co is going to turn into a Dionne shawl. I think the speckles will add interest, without muddying the bold lace pattern of the shawl like a more varigated or multi-colored yarn might. This one will be a gift.
Lastly, I picked up a couple skeins of sock yarn (merino/nylon blends): Merino Swirl from Fru Valborg and Sokke Merino from Garnsurr.
I love how many different countries my yarns come from: Sweden (Fru Valborg, Vaxbo Lin), Norway (Garnsurr), Amsterdam, Netherlands (Undercover Otter), and the US (Lolabean). I deliberately skipped larger German and US companies while in the shop, because they are easy for me to find either here, or back home.
I was also glad I went to the store with a bit of a plan (which I didn’t have last year) because a shoppig list of weight, quantities and color palettes kept me from being overwhelmed (ok, it lessened the feeling of being overwhelmed). Last year I walked away with yarns I liked and am still happy with, but also felt I hadn’t made the most of the visit. This year I still wanted to buy ALL THE COLORS in ALL THE YARNS but I came away with a couple projects I’m really excited about.
When I make a shopping list, it means I look out for those things first, and use that to help ensure I come away with a couple core goals met. It doesn’t mean I must find everything on it, or that I cannot get anything not on it. My list was:
– Fireworks Festival – fireworks colors (blue and orange)
– Dionne (look for colors recipient will like)
– alpaca DK for Old Forge by Stephen West
I came away with yarn for the two shawls, found yarn for a linen top (not on the list, but I know the fingering yardage I need) and (the irony of it), could not find yarn like I wanted for the Stephen West pattern in Stephen West’s store. Granted, I’m not using the weight or fiber content it calls for. We have some Alapaca DK yarn we want to use (I’m saying “we” becasue TheEnabler is part of the pattern planning if not execution) but need additional yardage and colors to meet the vision. I’m slowly coming to realize that alpaca is more common in the States than in Europe.
Luckily, there is still plenty of yarn.