A Dangerous Project

Every knitter who sees even a picture of the Mermaid Fingerless Gloves feels they must knit them. It turns out that the Mermaid Gloves can also trigger a loss of control when it comes to stash building. My sister requested a pair following brief exposure to those bewitching pictures, and the excuse to shop has inundated my Knit Nest in sock wool. Worst of all, I still don't have a yarn that is just right for my sister's pair.

Of course the logic along the way seemed perfectly solid… Buying three skeins to make up for the one, out-of-stock favorite. Buying additional skeins rather than making any really hard decisions. Placing another multi-skein order when the favorite is suddenly re-stocked. And of course we all know what happens once you get close to free shipping! The Loopy Ewe website is truly a scary and wonderful place.

Anyways, here's my take on the yarns that have recently added themselves to my Knit Nest environment:

Fiesta Boomerang. Wendy Knits wasn't kidding about this stuff being soft. It's amazing. Plus the artist who selects the colors has a happy talent for creating striking combinations that really do invoke memories of stunning landscapes. The strands have a really interesting twist too, something like a thin and thick ply twisted together, giving it a really unusual look, almost un-fiber-like. It's slightly heavy for a sock but I can't wait to try it. (Colors: Australia, Madrid, and Poppies. Australia's at the back right of the photo. Poppies and Madrid are in the middle on the left.)

Lorna's Laces also have champion color combinations and a wide variety to choose from at the Loopy Ewe. The yarn itself is the least soft of this recent batch and the twist is not as tight and springy as the others. Anyways, I know it has knit up nicely for other people, so I'm hoping it will play nice with me. (Color: Purple Club, Lakeview. Middle four skeins on the right.)

Cherry Tree Hill looks like it will give me a nice stitch definition with its tight, hard twist and its no-nonsense lack of fluff, plus it has the softness you'd expect of Merino. Unfortunately the color we selected was very different from the picture on the website. I like it anyways, but my sister didn't so there's serious danger that my stash expansion is not over. (Color: Moody Blues. Front right.)

Claudia Hand Painted Yarns wins the prize for eye-popping intensity. The photo above doesn't do it justice. The rich, deep, cool magenta is absolutely paralyzing. Stranding is also springy and fluff free. I'll have to pick a truly lovely stitch for this wool because once your eye hits it, it's really hard to look away. On top of all that, only the Fiesta beats it for softness. (Color: Crushed Velvet. Front left.)

The Knittery skein was unusual in that it carries a confident fluff, exuding inviting softness. I might not pick a fancy stitch with it but my feet are already wishing to take refuge in this yarn. The soothing garden colors match well with the wool's foot-friendly appearance. (Color Holiday. Back left.)

Overall, the award for the yarn calling to me most loudly goes to the Fiesta trio. Can't keep my hands off them!

So my stash is pushing me off the sofa. It's not my fault. All the blame goes to the Mermaid Gloves. Definitely a dangerous project in ways that I'm only beginning to understand!

Speaking of the gloves, I really will post instructions for how I did my pair. Here's a sneak preview of the right glove while I work on making sense of my notes. Check out my "organic" thumb gusset!