Category Archives: Stash

Happy Mail Day

Posted on by
9

My unabashed self caring buying continues. This week I had a couple of packages show up on the same day from two indie small businesses. It made for a happy mail day indeed! Today is also my 13th wedding anniversary so I’m going to count these as presents from the hubby, hehehehehe.

First up is an adorable bunny stitch marker from Hannah of The Corner of Craft in the UK. I think this will go right on to my Radiate as a progress marker!

Next up is some fiber and yarn from BlueBerry Chick yarn in South Carolina. I got her some Corriedale in her limited edition Tequila Sunrise color. And then I picked up some gradiate sock yarn minis in her Pansy fade.

I’m thinking the fiber is going to skip stash and go right on to my drop spindle. It is soooo summery that I just think it’s destiny.

Happy Knitting!!

I Found A Malabrigo Sale

Posted on by
7

I’m so close to finishing my Weekender that I’m making out of Malabrigo Rios. It was my first garment in Rios and my second time ever using Malabrigo. I might be in love…

I am also finding that my knitting mojo is really geared towards garments right now. My cup runneth over with scarves, gloves and hats but I don’t have many nice finished garments that show my current level of skill as knitter. And my stash is largely single or double skeins of yarn. I don’t really have any sweater lots. Which is why I fell hard when Twisted in Portland ran an online sale for Malabrigo Rios.

I managed to grab eight skeins of Jupiter which is a reddish brown variegation. Twisted was amazing and reached out before my order shipped to let me know that they weren’t all the same dye lot. They have five skeins in one lot and three in another and that they were markedly different. They even sent photos!

I decided to risk it. I’ll start my garment with the darker five skeins on the bottom and save the lighter skeins for hems, cuffs and/or collars. Maybe sleeves if I really have to. Part of my brain thought…I could find a five skein pattern for me and then use the last three skeins for a sweater for PB….

I am considering making either the Mountain High by Heidi Kirrmeier or the City Limits by Tanis Lavallee.

But first I probably should finish my Weekender! Happy Knitting!!

Oh Snap…..Gingersnap

Posted on by
3

Happy Mother’s Day to me!! I sent my hubby a wish list this year and he came through big time! He picked some goodies from Gingersnap of Canadian fame.

He picked the PERFECT bag and a unique sock set. They aren’t colors I would have picked but they are kind of stunning. The hubby swears like a sailor and I will think of him everytime I use the bag, lol.

The yarn is their Zest Fingering in the Penguin Plunge color with the bright yellow contrast color. I’m thinking socks with contrast toes, heels and cuffs? Maybe a cowl….I think this needs to marinate for a bit.

What will not marinate is this project bag. It features nice long handles and a wire framed opening. I really need cast on a new project to christen this project bag. So many ideas!!

Happy Knitting!!

Yarn Mystery Box

Posted on by
9

I have been listening to the Nomad Yarns podcast for a couple of years now. It is a married couple who ran a yarn shop turned into yarn truck as well as dye independent label yarn. They have small children and pretty much speak my life. In this time of cancelled events and social distancing they advertised mystery boxes. You pick your price level and give them some suggestions of colors, weights of yarn, etc and they put together a surprise.

You guys….this was so worth it! It was a happy mail day indeed. My box was bursting at the seams and full of goodies!

I received two skeins of West Yorkshire Spinners Aire Valley DK in a nice blue, a skein of Nomad Yarn Twisted Branch sock yarn, a custom needle gauge, two mini skeins of Nomad Yarns Pallete, a set of Carbonyz Size 2 double pointed needles, a set of Knitters Pride stitch markers, and some waste yarn.

I loved everything in my box and it was neat to not know what I was getting. I have zero idea what to do with any of this and my stash is already at SABLE but this was a good investment. I supported a small business and I got to have the joy of new to me goodies.

Would you every order a mystery box?

More Floof

Posted on by
3

I have been steadily cranking on my Fluffy Sockhead Hat made my Apothefaery Fibers and I very quickly realized I was going to run out of suri alpaca. I had some funds laying around that I had earmarked for the (cancelled) Knitting in the Heartland Event. So I decided to get more suri alpaca and support an indie dyer at the same time.

I hit up Apothefaery Luxury fibers and added four skeins to my cart.

I purchased two skeins of Snowdrift (white) and two skeins of Sterling Silver (grey) thinking that this will be nice solid colors to have in my stash to work up with the perfect future project, no matter the other yarn color. In the meantime I am going to skein up one of the snowdrift skeins and add to my aforementioned Fluffy Sockhead hat. It will be lighter than the original suri alpaca skein but will end up adding a third color block section to the hat.

I’m just going to consider it an unintentional design feature! Happy Knitting!!

Canadian Stash Enhancement

Posted on by
12

This week’s self care is brought to you by Canada! I opened the Gauge Dyeworks newsletter at the exact right time for a shop update and the wrong time where I was feeling down about the state of the world.

This is the classic merino twist sock yarn in a self striping set of greens. The official name is Colour Study: Green. It’s 443 yards and 115 grams of the plumpest most glorious sock yarn ever. I have been letting this yarn sit out on my work at home desk so I can admire and pet before I add it to my stash.

Has the current state of affairs led you to pad your stash or use your stash? I’m somewhere in between the two….

Happy Knitting

Winding Anxiety

Posted on by
3

I have am really leaning into knitting as a balm for my anxiety and stress levels. My brain has been really drawn to my recent Apothefaery Yarns acquisitions. I really want to work the Suri Alpaca yarn and jump on the bandwagon. I have chosen a pattern yet but I did wind it up this past weekend. I have never wound laceweight before and I was nervous….

It was loose on my swift and I literally held my breath the whole time I was winding. Even with the floof….it wound perfectly the first time with no tangles! I was worried because it looked a little matted in the hank. I had more trouble with the fingering weight skein I picked to hold with the Suri! I had to wind that one THREE TIMES.

And while I had tools out I wound more yarn for some more socks. I pulled my BFL sock yarn from Amy of Stranded Dyeworks and some self striping Must Stash yarn. They both wound just fine. Although I didn’t pay attention and wound the Must Stash perfectly matched skeins backwards. One I will need to knit from the inside and the other from the outside.

I think this is all proof that I have a case of Cast-on-itis in the works!

Stashing Down Scraps

Posted on by
7

I am still riding the wave of accomplishment from finishing my scrappy DK Hibernation Throw last week. I was cleaning up the project bag it had been living in to put the needles and notions away and noticed how small the pile of scraps were at the bottom of the bag. When I started I had two gallon sized ziplock bags full of scraps and a CONE of undyed sock yarn. Now I’m left with two quart sized bags and one sandwich sized bag of scraps that don’t have a plan.

Now, full disclosures these are not all my scraps or mini skeins. I still have my mitred square memory blanket going. I “tossed the stash” so to speak and aired out that bag to make sure all my yarn was in good order. It’s safe to say I I have plenty to work with, lol.

I’m just the kind of knitter that gets a thrill from using up as much of every skein of yarn I possibly can. I like the idea of scrappy projects where I can remember all the cool things I made with the full skein. Its akin to checking completed items off a list for me.

I’m curious, are most knitters this way? Do you keep your scraps?

A Purple Present

Posted on by
10

I have been mum about this but I recently received a promotion at my job. It’s been in the works for a couple of months and I didn’t want to count my chickens until they hatched but its official now. I went from a staff level accounting to a manager of accounting operations. I have four direct reports and new boss who is….challenging…to say the least. It’s been a ton of work and I have a lot to learn. But I’m excited to have gotten this opportunity. I’m 35 years old and this is my first promotion ever.

My husband decided to get me a little congratulatory gift. He asked for yarn suggestions and I said anything from KnitCircus. So he and Jellybean made an order. And shocker, since Jellybean helped its ALL PURPLES. That is Jellybean’s go to color. I don’t mind because they made beautiful choices.

The top skein is a Trampoline base in the Dream a Little Dream colorway. It’s 440 yards of a light fingering weight and the same kind of yarn I made my Sherwood Forest Wrap with. The bottom two skeins are the Greatest of Ease base in two matching 25 gram gradient sock skeins in the Knit Sky colorway.

My favorite part of these yarns? They are already wound up and ready to use! I like when that less than fun part is done for me. KnitCircus may be in my top five favorite dyers. Do you have a favorite dyer?

Boxing Day

Posted on by
6

I fell down a bit on Boxing Day. Now I live in the United States and it’s really not a thing here. But you know where it is a thing? The UK where the wonder dyer from the The Corner of Craft podcast Chromatic Yarns lives. And she had an unprecedented 20% off sale. And I was flush with Christmas money burning a hole in my pocket..

All of her yarns are Dungeons and Dragons themed. I have never played and know next to nothing about it. But what I do know is that I LOVE this purple speckle madness. I picked up three skeins of her Sturdy DK in the Eldritch Blast color.

And Hannah tucked in a small package of tea from Bird and Blend Tea Co. It was Dozy Girl, a chamomile bedtime blend and it was AMAZING.

As for the yarn it is going into my stash. I’m feeling like I want to track down a solid contrast color in DK and make striped sweater or shawl/blanket thing. For now I’m content to admire and pet the pretty skeins while feeling glad I supported an independent dyer who busts her butt to make a quality product.

Just curious, did anyone else score any kind of Boxing Day deals?