I bought more knitting needles today. I decided that in order to do the bottom of the scarf properly, I needed to use a circular needle, rather than a set of dpns. I had the epiphany this afternoon as I was trying to decide what to do about the unfortunate ladders that kept appearing on the beginning end of the scarf that I’d started at least three times already.
As might or might not be apparent, Skacel (makers of the infamous Addi Turbo) makes a 12″ circular in a variety of sizes. Like I mentioned in my previous post, I ended up calling Hilltop Yarn and asking if they had any in size 4, which they did.
So this afternoon Josh and I went over there and bought a pair of Addi Turbo size 4 12″ circs.
The only problem with that is, well, Addi Turbos are expensive, and I have the receipt to prove it. $18 for a set of needles, and in the smallest length of circular anyone makes! Way more than the $8 for a set of Clover dpns… but I sure did have an easier time making the bottom edge of the woven scarf with those Addis.
I’m already about 12″ into the 90″ that I’ll need to knit for the first rope, which is good, but I’ve taken a few minutes off to write this entry because my left thumb is starting to bother me from all the repetitive motion, and I need to let it rest. For the most part it doesn’t do anything when I type anyway, and even if it did I figured that the different motion might help it.
I’ll post a pic of the progress tomorrow.
In other knitting news I started reading the Andean Folk Knits book that I borrowed from the library. It’s a good thing I borrowed it too, since it was one I kind of had on my wishlist to buy if I happened to become rich. After reading it and admiring all the bits of historical information, I’ve decided that I do not like the patterns enough to really want a copy for myself. If I like anything it’s just some of the motifs that are used, because the meaning behind them is explained.
It’s a good thing that I already have a set of size 6 dpns for the other part of the project (you use size 4s for the ends, and size 6s for the woven strands), otherwise I would have had to spend even more money on some needles. I was nervous at first to be spending that much money on a set of size 4 12″ circs, because, well, what other use will I have for them? But as it turns out, this isn’t the only scarf that I’ll be making in the near future.
I proposed to my mom that she buy some yarn that’s on sale at LittleKnits… enough for me to make a scarf for her. This is the actual called for yarn in the pattern, called Classic Elite Lush, but you need 6 skeins at $10 a pop, versus the yarn I bought for myself with which I’ll only need 4 skeins, and they were $9.75 each. The called for yarn is also 50% wool and 50% angora, which should be very soft. I hear it’s really nice yarn besides.
Anyway, LittleKnits is selling it at 40% off, and there are 4 colors available, 3 of which are available in bags, with 10 skeins in a bag. So you can get $100 worth of yarn for $60. It’s a great deal! So I proposed that she buy a bag, have it sent to our apartment and I’ll use my own scarf as the dummy scarf (in case I screw up). Then I’ll knit hers out of her yarn and take the leftover skeins as payment for all of my effort (this scarf is labor-intensive… it takes awhile to knit). I’m always nervous about running out of yarn, so if the pattern is made with a specific yarn and says you need 6 skeins but doesn’t tell you how much you’ll have left over, I’m liable to want to buy a 7th just in case. Because of that, 10 skeins isn’t that much more than 7, right?
Anyway, I should have some yarn in the mail soon if my mom got around to ordering it tonight. It’s all very exciting for me, I promise.
As if this entry wasn’t long enough, I have something else to mention. The stitch pattern book that I just got has a pattern for a sheep that is the cutest thing ever. And, as it turns out, if my mom gets the green yarn for her scarf I’ll have in my stash and what it leftover from the scarf all I’ll need to fashion some really cute arm warmers out of the green Classic Elite Lush with an adorable, fuzzy, sheep on the back of the hand.
It should be extremely cute, and sounds perfect for Josh’s mom. And with Mother’s Day just around the corner it could work out very nicely. Oh, and a former failed scarf design attempt left me with $50 worth of various yarns that I purchased on a whim in a range of earthy tones and colors… one of which (in texture and color) looks exactly like grass. You can see where this is going, right? I’m going to make a little line of fuzzy grass under the feet of the sheep in the arm warmers. So cute!
Enough knitting talk for now. I should get back to actual knitting I expect.
