Black Bear

This would be the colourway I put up Thursday evening...and meant to blog immediately after but went to bed instead. I'm making progress though, slowly pruning and streamlining and whittling down lists of Just This Once towards that happy day when work and life flow with some kind of predictable regularity.  Where, even if I feel like utter crap because of the latest germ that wandered home from school, I have a do-able task list that just carries me through the day, week after week.  When I answer all emails within a couple of hours and blog regularly, comment on blogs, and reply to my own comments (though Typepad still has me freaked out with the change in the "reply" feature. It is a big effort to remember to not click the email reply button, and the embarassment of that one day when I did and publicly published a bunch of personal replies has seriously inihibited the quick impulse to respond. I've now got a "Don't Screw Up" mantra inserted at the key point of what used to be a spontaneous flow of conversation.)

It's all just growing pains, I suppose, and I have not forgotten to be thankful that there's been enough growth around here to cause that degree of discomfort.

On to the colourway.  I have long been enamoured with the pretty, furry outsides of a bear (actually, well before I got excited about what came from within.)

The undercoat has a fair component of dark bitter chocolate (as glimpsed behind the ears, and of course, extending onto the muzzle), layered over with a rich black, so glossy that it flashes iridescent green and purple in the sunlight. Here's what I came up with:

Merino-silk - probably the truest final impression:

Some of the others showed a little more chocolate in the final result than I was aiming for - an occasional hazard of the interpretive process. Nevertheless, it is a lovely, rich effect. (Strictly speaking, there's a fair bit of variation from bear to bear, and I'm sure I could hunt down one that matches each skein more precisely, but that might be taking my perfectionism just a bit far.) 

Summit Sock:

Blissful Sock:

(Cash)Mere sock:

 

Bluefaced Bliss - very glossy, lots of black - I'm thinking about snagging one of these for a colourwork design:

Merino Sport:

BFL sport (awesome sweater yarn):

Merino Lace:

Merino Worsted:

BFL Worsted:

There was also some restocking of Cherry in Summit Sock and Blissful Sock, and a new sock colourway I call Alpine High:

 
(And a quick reminder that the free shawl pin offer ends this coming week, Sept. 30th.)
 

Comments

[PrairiePoppins]

That is an extraordinary range of neutrals! Fantastic!

[Claire Piper]

Ruth, Again and again you bring me almost to tears (of delight) with your photos and colorways. Such beautiful work, thank you so much

[Cookie]

So lovely. You have such a way with color.

(Regarding comments... I hit reply and change the email address in the box. Then move on to replying to the comment. Most people are in my address book, so auto-fill helps me with addresses. It's a bit of a pain, but I'm adjusting.

I am so sorry that you found out the hard way that without changing the email address, the comment rolls over onto the blog.

xo)