Knitting on Impulse

Nearly Holly

Otherise known as Oregon Grape (which doesn't sound at all Christmasy), the leaves are very holly-like, and give me the same festive feeling, which is fortuitous, since true holly doesn't grow in our mountain climate. I did a version of this last year, but I've updated my technique, and I think I like this effect better (plus it is considerably easier to repeat.) I love the way red and green blend in places to create shades of warm glowing brown that soften the high contrast of the original hues.  The effect is very reminiscent of a tartan, which given my Stewart ancestry, may explain the particular personal appeal.  It makes me think of snowy days tramping the hills with a hound at my heels, returning to a roaring fire and a mug of mulled wine.

 
Mere Sock:

Summit Sock:

Blissful Sock:

Merely Worsted (the new merino/cashmere worsted wt):

 

Port

One of the things I let slide over the last few weeks of introspective hermitude was blogging the new colourways and inspirations.  And there were a few along the way that I'm rather fond of, so I thought perhaps I'd catch up.

Port has a special place in my heart.  Not only is it delicious, but having been privileged to attend a number of Air Force mess dinners with hubby, it is associated in my mind with tradition, ceremony, honour, the toast to the Queen, history, and continuity.

Plus it's really pretty.

The yarn I created has a similar intensity to the Cherry, but whereas the Cherry devolves to low notes of purple and black, Port is kissed with tawny gold.

Merino Whisper:

Summit Sock:

Blissful Sock:

Mere Sock:

 
Essential Merino Lace:

Just the thing for sipping by firelight on a snowy December evening, no? 

So I had this idea...

and I ran with it, because I didn't want it to get away.  Fingering weight sampler packs with 60 yards each of summit sock, mere sock, blissful sock, merino silk, bluefaced bliss, and merino fingering, for a total of 360 yards.  And then I sat right down and started doodling up a mini-shawl pattern, which will for sure not be ready to print by the time the samplers ship, but will be sent out by PDF once it's ready:

 

(There's also some of the regular sampler snack packs available in this week's update.)

As for other stuff, the brain fog is starting to clear (and along with it, the horrid tension headache that has been my constant companion for weeks). The essentials of daily life are firmly in hand and newly buffered against disruptors, and I'm starting to have energy to recapture the myriad of other things I've let slide, like - oh - blogging. Answering comments. I gave myself permission to be a hermit for the last six weeks - both in "real" life and online (though I think my online life may well be the more real of the two) and I have truly appreciated your forbearance. Personal re-invention takes a lot of focus and energy and this time I really didn't want to brush off the frustration and disappointment until "next time" and slip back into the comfortable rut of self-delusion - I needed to take on the task of creating my own peace of mind, my own safety net and making it real, making it stick.  It is an ongoing process, but I am feeling so much better.

Teaser

A wee something to whet your appetite while I format the update.  The regular yarn will go up in a few minutes; I haven't managed to photograph the samplers yet, and the kids are due home in half an hour, so that bit might have to wait for tomorrow.  FYI, if you want to grab something from today before it gets away, but still have an eye on the samplers, it is a very simple process to reverse the shipping charges on one of the orders and combine them (though a wee note in the order comments to jog my memory wouldn't hurt) - they won't go out until Monday, in any case, as the kids are off school tomorrow.

October Leaves

I definitely don't need a weather report to identify the freezing level these days:

 
It's a couple degrees above zero and raining hard down here in the valley, which means it is impossible to dress the kids appropriately. Snow gear comes home soaked to the skin, whereas the combo of thick woolly sweater and raingear isn't quite warm enough. Any day now, it will be properly, magnificently winter.

October's leaves all blew off this week, but the colourway keeps a bit of the fire alive:

In Summit Sock:

 

Blissful Sock:

and Mere Sock:

Stay warm!

Sampler Follow-up

Thanks so much for all the feedback on the sampler idea!  What I'm hearing here (and on the Rav group) is that:

1. Lots of people like the idea - both for the project and for the opportunity to try different yarns before committing.
2. Some folk don't need it and are perfectly happy to buy without feeling up the yarn first - and thank goodness, or an online yarn business would not be possible!
3. There is interest in more colour choice - it would certainly be possible to do say... warm colours, cool colours, neutrals, as well as a mix like the prototype. I would list each pack with a photo of the actual mini-skeins, so you'd know exactly what you were getting.
4. There also seems to be significant interest in sample packs of different colours of the same yarn, chosen for their compatibility in a project - also an idea I had toyed with, and totally do-able.
5. Feasibility? Admittedly, my creative ambitions have soared past the bounds of reality at times, so the caveat will be that the packs go up as they go up. No reservations or self-imposed deadlines (because those things are a direct signal to the Universe for somebody to break something, or fall ill, or schedule a surprise committment. Seriously - it's downright spooky.) I am learning (at times painfully) that a simple, linear system of "dye it, upload it, put it in the mail when it sells" is the way to go. 

So... the concept is a go... but since Rob does 99% of the skeining around here (he had to laugh at the comments that asked if *I* would find it too much work) and is at the sliding track 14 hours a day for the next couple of weeks, the first packs likely won't go up until after that. (On a related note, this week's update will be going up Friday instead of Thursday, which is almost over now, in any case.)

Sampler

I've been tossing around variations of this idea for ages, but I got a sudden impulse to just work up a sample (so to speak) over the weekend. I thought it would be nice for customers to be able to play around with the different yarns I dye before committing to larger projects, but at the same time, I couldn't resist the possiblity of doing a little more with it.

Here we have 10 yards of each of my wools and wool blends (I left off the super-luxury silk yarns for the time being) - merino in lace, fingering, sport, worsted, and aran; BFL in fingering, sport, and worsted, the three sock yarns (merino, BFL, cashmere-merino), merino-silk, Merino Whisper, and Cruiser:

I think I'd probably do 15 yds of each for the actual sample pack - a little more manageable, and would work out to a little over 100 gms of yarn in total.  Enough to swatch, fondle, play with, or.....

Make something.

 
What do you think?  Is there interest in something like this?  I think I'd price it around $25.  I could do mini skeins or mini balls (all labelled of course), though I think the mini balls are actually easier to handle on the receiving end. Although the concept of a feather and fan cowl is hardly original, the stitch does a fabulous job of mixing up varying colours and gauges, and I could include a wee pattern for this cowl version. Comments and/or further ideas would be gratefully received!

After Sunset

After the sun falls behind the mountain, as the light fades away, but before the heavens are quite black enough to reveal the stars:

 
the dark expanse is rich and magical, retaining hints of brilliant blue of a sunny day gone by, the warm glow of completed sunset, the smokey purple mist that invariably haunts the slopes.

Still available in:

Merino Whisper:

 
Bluefaced Bliss (fingering):

 
and Merino-Silk:

 
Summit Sock, Mere Sock, Camel Silk, Pure Silk Lace, and Silky Cashmere Lace will be coming in next week's update.

Echinacea

I did a very subtle semi-solid version of the coneflower last year, but deep down, I've been longing to do this - to celebrate the vibrant contrast of the candy pink petals and the flaming gold/orange/red/brown of the central cone. I think it's a perfect Samhain / Hallowe'en sort of colourway.

Mostly in socks, because it IS an awfully vibrant colourway....

Blissful Sock:

Mere Sock:

 
and Summit Sock:

 
Merino Whisper is a new yarn I've been playing with for a while - a lofty single ply merino that knits around Aran weight but has amazing yardage.  It is deliciously soft and would be the perfect yarn for cowls, scarves, mittens, hats, etc. Despite the soft hand, it is amazingly pill resistant - I ripped and reknit the bulk of one test skein three or four times while coming up with a simple cowl design (I was feeling indecisive) and it looks none the worse for wear!

 
 I did indeed do the sunset colourway, but I'll save that for another post so as not to overdo the images.

Purple Broccoli

At a glance, it reads strictly purple...

Yet, if you really look, there's also a lovely range of pinks dancing with dusky royal blues:

Here's what I came up with:

Essential Merino Lace

Summit Sock

Camel Silk

SuperNatural Silk