New Things: Lorna's Laces Solemate

Between TNNA happening a few weeks ago and Sock Summit looming on the horizon, things have been really busy at the shop. And we have been reaping the benefits.

New things are rolling in pretty much every single day, including Solemate, the newest yarn from Lorna's Laces. Solemate comes in a wide variety of colors (well, all colors LL dye in) and we are already almost sold out at the shop. And they just arrived two weeks ago! I got a sneak peak at most of the new fall colors (including Grant Park, which is an absolutely beautiful shade of green) Let me tell you, we are in for a treat. Kerfuffle and Tickled Pink are all that remain at the shop, so I snapped a few shots to try and show the texture. I usually consider Kerfuffle to be more of a blue, but here is is clearly much darker and more purple.

Kerfuffle

Ticked Pink & Kerfuffle

What makes Solemate stand apart from other sock yarns? It's composition is 55% superwash merino, 15% nylon and 30% Outlast, so it's machine washable, but that's not all. See that fuzzy halo in the first picture? That's the outlast. According to the Lorna's Laces folks, Outlast is a viscose fiber that interacts with your body’s microclimate to moderate temperature from being too hot or too cold.

Yes, that's right: temperature control.  Outlast has been used from everyone to the people at Ferrari (in their seats) to those working at NASA. And, as I touch it right now, at this VERY second, it does feel cooler.

Because of course I bought a skein. But not just any skein...A Harry Potter skein.

He Who Must Not Be Named

He Who Must Not Be Named, to be exact. This is Jimmy Beans Wool's signature color for the month of July. They are all nerds over there, which I love, and even put together a sorting hat kit, containing one skein of yarn for each of the four Harry Potter houses. The Bravery colorway is already Sold Out and it doesn't ship until July 15. Good thing I ordered mine last week :)

Seriously...how nerd cool is that? As for the Solemate, I am Sol(e)d.

Madelinetosh Magnolia Society & a FO

I have made some pretty irresponsible choices regarding yarn purchases before. Remember the day of 92 skeins? This time, I don't feel as bad, but I did end up forgoing a gym membership for the sake of enrolling in the Magnolia Society, Madelinetosh's yarn club. When membership opened in April I was a bit hesitant, but, thankfully, Christie twisted my arm and I signed up too. The club lets you choose from three different color types: neutrals, naturals and jewel tones. Can you guess which one I selected?

The first shipment arrived maybe two weeks ago, along with packages from Little Knits and Jimmy Beans...but I'll get to them later. I received three skeins of 80/10/10, a worsted blend of superwash merino wool/cashmere/nylon. It feels SO good. I have just shy of 600 yards, so I'm thinking a nice squishy shawl or cropped cardigan might be in the works. The colorway is "Treetops" from the jewel tones selection.

Tosh 80/10/10 in "Treetops"

 

Tosh 80/10/10 in "Treetops"

I also finished my Camilla Pullover. No actions shots (just yet) because, as I feared, it is terribly unflattering. I thought it might turn out to be a bit too short, so I added a bit before I started the armholes. While the length is good, it gives me a "faux baby bump" because of the shell pattern. I'm hoping it fits a bit better post-blocking. When in doubt, block it out! 

Yarn Pornz, Madelinetosh style

I haven't posted any Madelinetosh photos lately, but that doesn't mean I haven't been hoarding it away. So, here it is, a little quick (and dirty) Madelinetosh Yarn Pornz for your Friday afternoon.


All is Tosh Merino Light (unless noted)

Venetian

Mineral (Tosh Merino dk)

Bearded Iris

Nectar

Cosmos

Flashdance

Grasshopper

Malachite (I'm going to be a multnomah soon!)

Tern

Grove

Saffron

Violin (a bit more brown than Saffron)

Grove, Saffron, Tern

Grasshopper, Flashdance

Nebula, Violin, Venetian

Planning ahead

As I posted in my last post, The Day of 95 skeins (v.1), I have a yarn hoarding sickness. I still plan on posting some yarn pornz from that haul, but the weather has been yucky, the lighting in my house stinks and I would like to capture the beauty that is Araucania Aysen in all of it's glory.

Sneaky peak

It truly is stunning. And, if you're in that big of a rush to see what kind of shenanigans I've been up to, you can take a stroll on over to my stash. Prepare to be disgusted impressed.

The trouble with having such an addicting hobby is that even when you dedicate hours to said hobby/addiction, it still never feels like it's enough. As much as I knit, I never get sick of it. Sure, I may get burnt out on a project (Matt's Urban Aran Cardigan...), but then I can just move on to something else for a little while.

Shrug WIP

Take "The Shrug That Would Not Shrug," which I have been working on for most of the month of April. It is my April goal to knit this shrug, but I got a little burnt out. So this time, instead of pressing through it, and eventually hating it (like with the UAC), I set it aside and cast on for something else: The Karen Shawl by Amy Swenson.

Karen Shawl edging

I fought casting on for the Karen Shawl because, quite honestly, I need another WIP like I need a hole in my head. But, after starting it for 3 or 4 people at the shop and seeing Gretl's beautiful first and second attempts, I gave it. And bought myself some Madelinetosh Pashmina in "Port," which is a lovely color that I like to compare to my newly dyed hair (dark purpleish black with red tints). I've run into a few snafus since casting on, but I'm glad I did. Karen has saved me from hating "The Shrug That Would Not Shrug," which I really do love. And am excited to share (in May, probably).

I'm also excited to announce May's "knitting resolution" in this post: Ecuador (photos from Rav)

I've been a huge fan of Joji's (Rav username Jojilocat) for awhile now. Her designs are very cool and she uses some beautiful yarn. I mean, she's from Argentina! Land of Beautiful Yarns. Anyway, she posted her Ecuador design yesterday and inquired for some test knitters. I, of course, jumped at the opportunity. I've never knit a vest//swing cardigan before! My initial plan was to use some Noro Kureyon Sock, but I feel like that might be too busy and I would never wear it. So I've decided to use some Madelinetosh Tosh Merino Light in "Filigree." This knitting everything out of Tosh phase will end some day...won't it?

Joji used Malabrigo Sock in "Indiecita" for her prototype, so mine will be slightly lighterweight. I'm very excited to try this new garment style. I think it will be perfect for wearing over a short-sleeve shirt in the summer and versatile enough for the transition into fall. I'm hoping to finish it before our England trip this summer.

I'm gonna be a Pogona Shawl someday!

I also have the Multnomah KAL I started (and haven't cast on for) with my dear Cyborg friend, the Pogona I'm itching to knit using my new Socks that Rock AND the Golden Wheat Cardigan, another Cyborg KAL. AND I have a baby to start knitting for (not mine :p). It sucks jumping on the shawl/shawlette bandwagon so late in life.

The day of 95 skeins & a most excellent LYS

Remember when I accidentally ordered 83 skeins of yarn from Little Knits?

Yeah, me too.

Well, I didn't exactly order 83 skeins of yarn all at once. As I mentioned a few posts back, Little Knits holds orders (if you've placed, oh, I don't know, two or three in a week) and then ships them all together. Which is really good (they offer free shipping), but also really bad. Especially when your yarn weight amasses to a whopping 19 pounds. Which is what happened to me.

This is what 19 pounds of yarn looks like.

Using my chubby fluffy cat as reference

As Kate made a point to tell me, when I texted her said photo, "you're crazy." Well, yeah, but now I have some luscious, luscious new yarn. 

Now, dear readers, you may be viewing the post heading and scratching your head. "But Ashley," you may ask, "where did the other 12 skeins come from?" The answer, my dear Watson, is the magical place known as The Fold.

Located in Marengo, which doesn't really seem to offer much to passersby, The Fold is an amazing little yarn shop. They sell some incredible yarns (Blue Moon Fiber Arts! Malabrigo Sock! Frog Tree! Etc.!) and have the best selection of spinning wheels, roving and spindles that I have ever seen in a LYS. And you can really find some amazing deals. Or, in Christie's case, you can walk away with a free skein of Art Yarns Ultramerino ($22).

"It doesn't have a price sticker. It must be free!" - Toni, the owner

While I didn't get any freebies (oh wait, I did...), I did find some incredible steals. My entire haul cost around $60. Did I mention she offers a 10% Guild discount? Even on sale yarns?

2 skeins of Cascade Heritage Paints

This Cascade Heritage Paints cost me $1 (pre-discount). I snatched up the last two skeins. Same thing with this Beatrice I bought. I should have enough for a hat.

2 skeins of Beatrice by Classic Elite Yarn

I also bought two skeins of Artyarns Ultramerino 4 (fingering weight) for $2.25 each. They're two different colors, but Christie suggested I make some funky socks using both skeins. So much sock yarn!

Amazing, right? I also got a freebie mystery skein (I suspect it is Koigu) from the free basket. I'm pretty much in love with the colors.

Can anyone tell what this is?

I also bought some Classic Elite Miracle and Blue Moon Socks that Rock, but I shall save those for the next post. Because they are just that delicious. Plus this post, dedicated mostly to The Fold (and also my yarn hoarding tendencies), deserves its own digs. I will definitely be returning again, because each time we go it just gets better and better. And I'm sure we'll need more yarn in a few lifetimes weeks.

The problems(?) with variegated yarns.

Recently, Little Knits posted a ton of Araucania Aysen on clearance for 81% off. Eighty One! That is almost unheard of and, most certainly, an unavoidable temptation for a silly little yarn hussy such as myself. This 81% discount applied to full bag purchases and I managed to snag up the last full bag of Aysen in color 826 and a lone skein of color 814.

Araucania Aysen in color 826

Aysen in 814

Beautiful, right? I was sad to see that some of the more exotic colors were sold out, but you can bet your sweet yarn-loving behind that I snatched up what I could. The yarn is incredible; softer than Malabrigo, with an incredible fiber content of 70% merino, 20% alpaca and 10% silk, it's hand-dyed and offers a generous 190 yards per skein.

Of course when the fine people at Little Knits unearthed more of this true gem of a yarn I had much more to snatch up...in the form of 3 (or 4?) more bags. This yarn hasn't arrived yet (my only true qualm with LK is that shipping can take quite a bit longer than places like Webs and Jimmy Beans), but this has given me plenty of time to start planning things out.

What the heck do I do with all this yarn?!

By the end of next week (I'm hoping) I will have 40+ skeins of hand-dyed yarn. I have yet to see many garments knit out of multicolored yarns (such as Noro, some Malabrigos, etc.) that tickle my fancy all that much. So what am I going to do with this stuff?

I started a thread over at the Little Knits group on Ravelry posing just this question. The ladies on yonder forum posted some great ideas. And some of them managed to walk away with more Aysen than this crazy loon did (some bought 8+ bags! Ay Carumba!). All photos are taken from Ravelry.

Imogen Cardigan

Abalone Cardigan

Tea Leaves Cardigan

Golden Wheat Cardigan (by my lady crush Veera)

Pole

These are just a few of my favorite musings, but what are some of your favorite garments (or larger projects) knit using hand-dyed and variegated yarns?

Yarn Pornz

Since I have work in a few short hours and still have another blog post to write for Knit&Crochet Blog Week, this yarn pornz is going to be a little quick and dirty.

I received all of these yarnz last week, but haven't had much of a chance to share. I still have more to upload, but the weather is quite springish today (cold and rainy) and there is a chance of snow, so not exactly optimal lighting conditions.

Tosh Merino Light in Malachite

I'm planning on doing a Multnomah Shawl KAL with a friend (or two) in April and I think that Malachite is the perfect, perfect shade for it.

Tosh Merino Light in Bearded Iris

No idea what to make with this one, but it was so beautiful how could I pass this up?

Tosh Merino Light in Venetian

I think this would look perfect with a golden shade. Maybe Faded Chinos if the stripe study doesn't pan out?

TML in Georgia O' Keefe

Now, I already shared some photos of this colorway, but I ended up buying two more to make a Folded sweater. If that day will actually come I cannot tell, but at least I am prepared. Plus this is probably one of my favorite colorways in TML.

TML in Grove, Tern & Saffron

 These are the newest skeins I've received and, for now, I will only offer a little sneak peak. The colors are super rich and I can't wait to photograph them in better lighting. I bought Grove and Tern to use together, but all three look pretty perfect together. I'll have better pictures early next week (I hope).

Lorna's Laces Honor

This last shot is just a cute one I took at work during a slow evening. We have a ton of different colors of Lorna's Laces Honor, a soft and yummy blend of baby alpaca and silk. These two colors were begging to be made into a strawberry cake. Did I mention that we store our yarn on cake platters at the shop?

And, finally, I finished my Daybreak. I used TML in Calligraphy and Nectar. Better pictures next week, but I just wanted to share it now. I made my March Goal! And I'll be back in a bit with another post.