Dye-o-Meme-o-Rama and other fascinating topics
My dye-o-rama pal has asked for this, so bear with me. And howdy, Stingdragon! Hi, Erica! Many thanks again to Jena for a homeschooling link I hadn't seen before. And hellos and hugs to Ruth and everybody I still haven't seen in a couple of weeks now. Boo hoo. I'm stewing about whether to go to my aunt's tomorrow. My cousin doesn't read this, so (shhhh!) there's to be a surprise gathering to say whoopee! we're all so glad you're getting married! Except I really want to go to NH Sheep & Wool, and going to the Surprise will pretty much kill the whole damn day. I'm in the snowy wilds NW of Boston, see, and Beloved Aunt is right by Logan Airport. *sigh* *pout* How do I get myself into these things... Anyway, the Dye-O-Meme:
Your favorite colors? Greens, but most bright ones.
Preferred yarn weight (Fingering, Sport, DK, maybe even Worsted)? The swap is for sockwieght, which I suppose can be defined rather loosely - no favorite yarn weight. I love all in their own individual ways.
Do you prefer solid or multicolored yarn? Yes. :)
If your buddy is able to do so, would you like a variegated, self-striping, or self-patterning yarn? Oh, yes!
Would you be interested in a wool blend sock yarn (nylon, tencel, silk, acrylic, alpaca, etc.)? Sure.
Imagine the perfect colorway. What would you name it? Oh, geez; um, Mountain Spring? The STR color names are way better than anything I'm coming up with - I like Fire on the Mountain especially.
What was the biggest appeal to you for joining this dye-along? An excuse to do some dyeing, which I enjoy and don't do enough of.
General yarn/fiber questions:
Have you dyed yarn/fiber before? Yes.
If so, what’s your favorite dye and method? Kool-aid, but interesting plants from the yard comes a close second. Method is always cooking on the stove and letting it cool overnight, so far.
Do you spin? Not really. I'm learning, though.
Have you knit socks before? OH YES.
Do you use sock yarn for just socks or in other patterns too? Hm...other things, too.
What are some of your favorite yarns? Malabrigo. (thud) Regia, almost any Rowan, almost any Dale, many Classic Elite ones, too.
What yarn do you totally covet? More Malabrigo. (thud)
Favorite patterns? Waving Lace by Evelyn Clark. I design, so will take the fifth here.
Any pattern you would love to make if money and time were no object? Other than the lurking WIPS/UFOs, you mean? Probably a really spiffy cashmere cardigan. Or Starmore's Henry VIII from Tudor Roses, in her new yarn. Which is fabulous stuff, btw.
Favorite kind of needles (brand, materials, straights or circs, etc)? Addi Turbo circs.
If you were a specific kind of yarn, which brand and kind of yarn would you be? I'd be Virtual Yarns' 3 ply - obscure, surprising soft, versatile, and not annoying to work with.
Nothing to do with knitting/yarn/fiber in any way but seemed kinda fun:
Do you have a favorite candy or mail-able snack? Ooo... Harbor Sweets' Sweet Sloops. Yum! But I love just about everything except black licorice.
What’s your favorite animal? Cheetahs.
Do you have pets? What are their species/names/ages? Yes. Cats: Amy (age 11), Angus (5), Pika (4), Ketchup (2); dog: Daisy (2) - a brittany spaniel. We're told by others that she's a wonderful dog.
If you were a color what color would you be? Variegated green.
Describe your favorite shirt (yours or someone else’s). My Liberty blouse, in a classic art deco print.
What is your most inspiring image, flower, or object in nature? Too many to pick. The view of the mountains right now is pretty amazing.
Tell me the best quote you’ve ever heard or read. Changes too often; one is the Margaret Mead one about never doubt that one person can not change the world, for that is all who ever have.
Do you have a wishlist? No. What I wish for is time!
Anything else you’d like to share with the group today? The rest of this post!

I have been knitting, in between last minute tinkering with the coop schedule and chasing down a Latin tutor and freaking out over the (still) ongoing decorating project. The Malabrigo pullover has a collar now, and I've cast on for a sleeve. Here she is:
I've pulled this on over my head to make sure it will...go over my head, really. It does. Yay. I needed to start the sleeves, but the needle was in use. So I finished up this little piece of the Spring Forward: The yarn is Rowan All Seasons Cotton, and I'm really enjoying how it's working out. Especially since receiving the extra skeins I realized I'd need.

Now, I'm also determined to finish DH's Dale. And I was at a point where I had to change needle sizes. The Wed. night Javaroom crew (hi, everybody!) watched me search through the preposterous looseleaf binder in which I attempt to bring order to the chaos that is my supply of circs. I *knew* I had two 4 mm addis. Somewhere. Somewhere. I only found one. When I got home, I noticed that the other one was in use, on my Almanac-along shawl. Ah. So I got busy on that. I've been inserting rows of yo, k2tog to make eyelet rows every now and then. At first the intent was to have them every 8 rows. But then I miscounted. So the current plan is to go 8, 7, 6, 5, - you get the picture. I was so pleased! It was going along in just the mindless way I needed for this week. Brava, weasel. What I failed to realize, in my mother's appreciation of the shawl's inner beauty, was that it looks like a giant barfed up sea urchin right now. Or perhaps an octopus with hives and no legs. DH watched me for a while the other night, and finally asked, with trepidation, "What IS that Thing?" Behold, the wonder! Behold, the horror!





Not helping matters is that the yarn is coned for machine knitting and presently has the texture of garden twine. It washes up really nicely, I swear! And gray is such a versatile color!

Yeah, yeah.
Barf.
I know.