Purchases and Plans

This weekend was the annual Great Lakes Fiber Show in Wooster and, like always, I HAD to go there to surrender to the wool fumes.

Caitlin and Mikayla joined me on my quest for wooly wonders, and did we ever have fun.

And by fun, I meant that we were all practically melting from the heat.

I broke Mikayla's rule of no buying until we see everything, but I HAD to snag a skein of Destination Yarn's show exclusive colorway, County Fair.

Yes, a single skein. Not my usual two-for-big-shawls.

I had a limited budget this year, and I knew a big chunk of that was going to go towards the yarn for my ceremony shawl, so I mostly bought single skeins.

But rather than let them just languish as "stash yarn," I did something rather clever. I went ahead and paired it up with some other stash yarn and picked out a pattern. In this case, I grabbed my new Leon Alexander yarn and a skein from Bare Naked Wools that I purchased like 3 or 4 years ago.

The 3 skeins are all put together in a canvas drawstring bag and the pattern has been recorded in my bullet journal. Makes for easy project planning!

The next thing I bought were a couple of minis from Redbird Studios.

And these were paired up with the skein of speckled pink Three Irish Girls and some Shepherd's Wool fingering that I had laying around. In fact, the Shepherd's was one of my first purchases from Harps and Thistles FOREVER ago.

Speaking of Redbird Studios, remember the blue skein I bought last year?

Okay, you probably don't, but that's okay!

Anyway, I decided what I was going to pair with that, too!

The pattern I have in mind for this combo I'm so ridiculously excited about. I'm going to get to try mosaic knitting for the first time!

It's another colorwork technique, but you only use one color at a time. It uses slipped stitches to create the designs.

Like I said, really excited to try that.

My last purchase before we get to ceremony shawl yarn (yes, I actually did find some) is the only thing I haven't paired up with anything yet. Mostly because I think I want to just buy a second skein and make something spectacular out of it.

You can't really tell from the above picture, but the yarn is *sparkly*.

You can kinda see it a little bit here. But in person, it's just *shinyshinyshiny*.

I mean, I guess one stash yarn out of everything I bought really isn't that bad.

But let's move on to the purchase we've all been waiting for.

I give you...

The Ceremony Shawl Yarn!

*fanfare and trumpets and glitter and confetti*

I ended up buying these three skeins from Bewitched Pigments in their Magic fingering weight base. The color is called Into The Woods.

It was love at first sight, really. I tried looking at other yarns, but this color just completely captivated me.

Now I guess I need to sit down and actually design the thing.

Yeah, yeah, I know.

I changed my mind again.

But now that I have the yarn, I have a solid plan in front of me and just need to dive in and get working.

Oh, I also picked up my first dyer pin!

Now I just have to find one of them fancy canvas bags that everyone has and start placing my badges of honor on there.

Well, that's all I got. Catch you later and all that!

"WAIT!" you yell. "Did or did you not get Teroldego done in time to wear to the show?"

Listen...

I did.

It was really easy to finish, surprisingly.

But...

I...

Didn't wear it...

I KNOW!

But I didn't have any good outfit choices to compliment it.

So I ended up wearing Celestarium.

And I was stopped every other booth by someone wanting to see it, which is great and fun and totally ego-inflating.

But lest you think this was a unique thing, Mikayla wore that gorgeous purple Boo Knits shawl of hers and was stopped just as often as I was.

Caitlin was the only smart one and didn't wear wool in nearly 90 degree heat.

We stupidly waited until we were about dead from heat to take a picture together, so I'll spare you from that sight.

Instead, I'll leave you with some new flower pictures from around our yard.

If you'll excuse me, I have some yarn to play with.

---------------------------------------------------------
Like my writing? Why don't you buy me a coffee!

You can do so through my ko-fi link HERE: ko-fi.com/blackgoatknitting

Or donate directly through my paypal HERE: https://www.paypal.me/blackgoatknitting

Typical...

It's going to be nearly 90 degrees tomorrow.

Do I really want to wear a 12 foot wide shawl thrown around me in that heat?

So, I may *allegedly* perhaps be trying desperately to finish Teroldego before tomorrow.

It may be a case of "weaving in ends as we drive there" but I think I can do it.

Let's just hope the hands hold up.

---------------------------------------------------------
Like my writing? Why don't you buy me a coffee!

You can do so through my ko-fi link HERE: ko-fi.com/blackgoatknitting

Or donate directly through my paypal HERE: https://www.paypal.me/blackgoatknitting

Fates, Mistakes, and Great Lakes

It was a long weekend, my friends. Full of ups and downs, and barely a moment of rest. Most of it was enjoyable, but some of it...

Anyway, to get the bad out of the way first, a family member is dealing with a health crisis and things are not looking good. There are complicated feelings involving said family member, so it's just a big tangle of emotions and shit right now that's casting a looming cloud over everything. Add in some other family drama... yeah, John and I are about due for a goddamned break from it all.

*sigh*

But let's forget that for now and just focus on the fun stuff.

After dealing with the nightmare of Mojito, I decided that I needed a break from anything complicated and beaded. I settled on FINALLY doing a Find Your Fade.

And it's been everything I needed. Simple garter stitch, fun colorwork, no complex stitches...

We won't talk about how much I've managed to mess it up already and that this is the FOURTH(!) attempt at it.

I think I finally got into the groove and will enjoy the rest of it.

For those of you who don't know, this shawl is written to use 7 different colors.

After much deliberation, this was my final selection.

I'm proud to say that it's ALL stash yarn.

Yep, that's right. I didn't buy ANY new yarn for this project.

Which is good, since I bought a crapton of new stuff at Great Lakes and have to find room for it somewhere in my stash, but we'll get to that.

Friday, John took half a day of vacation because we were supposed to attend a pizza party as part of the class reunion celebration. We ended up skipping that and went searching for a new outfit for him instead. Which ended up being a lot of fun.

John, much in the same way I have, is finally coming into his own. He's figuring out his style, who he is, and what he wants from life, which has been amazing to see.

He's completely come out of his shell. Hell, he's even joined me on Team Emerald Hair.

Saturday was the day of the actual class reunion. My anxiety was riding high, especially because my hair would NOT cooperate with me. Plus, it was a billion degrees out with a humidity somewhere around 1000%. But my makeup came out absolutely killer, so at least I had that going for me.

My date looked pretty damn good, too.

Yes, we were taking a bunch of pics in the parking lot to avoid going in. That's how we roll.

The actual reunion itself was much more fun than I anticipated. Most of the people there I actually genuinely enjoyed seeing again. A few others... well, I'm glad that I only have to once a decade or so.

John and I got the award(? achievement? acknowledgment?) for the couple who has been together the longest. Which really isn't that surprising, seeing as I was only a sophomore when we started dating.

I also got voted "Most Changed" which was probably helped along by the fact that I had completely forgotten my Polite Filter at home. I was unabashedly myself, openly talking about my political views and the fact that I'm poly with an amazing girlfriend.

I don't think that some of them really knew what to make of me. Which is fine. I wasn't there to pretend that we were all the best of friends in school or now.

I was there because I was curious. I wanted to see how people had changed. And I wanted to show off how much better off I am than I was when dealing with the bullshit that was high school.

This may sound weird, but I feel like I had a giant weight lifted off of me. I have changed, for the better. I'm not the same person I was a decade ago. I am making progress in my life. It's not the same progress as others, but it's moving forward all the same.

Before we get into Sunday, I did want to give a quick shout out to my makeup for not only looking superb (as mentioned above) but for actually having staying power. This pic is from after I got home, nearly 7 hours after application, and through about a thousand gallons of sweat (it was so damn hot in the restaurant, ffs).

Sunday was, of course, the Great Lakes Fiber Show.

Okay, really it was Saturday as well, but as you saw, I was a little busy.

I had a minor meltdown, of course, because I had devoted so much of my time and energy into how I was going to look for the reunion that I didn't even THINK about what I was going to wear to the show!

I ended up with the same dress I wore last year, but topped it with Mermaid Lair.

I sadly went it alone this year (except for John, who, while lovely and wonderful, isn't exactly fun to nerd out about yarn with...) and I have to say, it's so much better when you have yarn friends to go with.

Next year, I'm dragging my yarn wives there, whether they like it or not.

Anyway, I was good and did what Mikayla always suggests. So, we made a lap of the whole place before I purchased anything. That took longer than expected because I swear I was stopped every five feet by people complimenting my shawl.

My first purchase was a couple of skeins from the wonderful Jeanne of Destination Yarn.

We had a lovely chat and I picked up two hanks of her First Class Single (a silk/merino mix that is to die for) in Witching Hour. This is actually the same color that Mikayla bought at the open house a few weekends ago, but in a different base.

I've already cast on Spellbound by Boo Knits (which is a complicated, beaded shawl... exactly what I said I didn't want to do...).

This yarn... my god, I want everything made of it. It's so lovely to work with.

Next up was a bulky wool/cotton blend that had an incredible 200 yards per hank for a measly $10.

I have an absurd goal in mind for this, but I think it's going to have to wait for cooler weather.

I also purchased a single skein from a lovely new-to-me dyer, Redbird Yarn Studio.

I'm not normally a single-skein purchaser when it comes to fingering weight hanks, but this color was really calling to me. The colorway is named Ink. How could I not get it?

I ended up purchasing these two mini hanks from the booth next to Redbird.

I realized later that I never even asked either of their names, so yeah... I'm real good at this whole people thing.

My last purchase of the day (besides some delicious fair food after handling the yarn) was another hank of the Fairytales and Fables collection from Morning Meadows Sundries.

They're the same people that I bought the Sea Witch yarn from last year that went on to become Mermaid Lair, which I happily showed off to them.

John actually picked this yarn out for me. And the fact that he looked up from his phone* long enough to actually acknowledge it, let alone make a comment on how much he loved the color, was enough to convince me to get it.

He also picked out the pattern for it. A shawl, of course, and the same designer of Mermaid Lair. Apparently, this is just going to be my new thing. Which is fine with me. I love having an excuse to make more lace.

*Don't read this as him being bored out of his mind and rude. It's his family that's causing all the stress in our life right now and I wasn't about to demand attention when he needed a break from his own head.

So, that's GLFS for the year out of the way. Is it wrong that I'm already excited about next year?

Monday was another "we have to be up early as fuck and this sucks" day since our house is the Prime Parade Watching place.

It's a bit of a tradition we started when we moved in. My grandparents and middle sister, as well as whatever friends are around (Vi, this year), come over to sit on our porch, chat, drink coffee and eat donuts with us as we watch the 5 minute Memorial Day parade that goes past the house.

We kept hanging on the porch after my grandparents left and talked about video games and D&D, like you do. I was working on my Fade and drinking coffee out of the new handmade mug that I splurged a little on.

Said mug inspired me to do something, but that, my friends, will just have to wait until another post.

This one is long enough, don't you think?

Besides, Vi's going to be here in a bit to work on D&D stuff. Which means that I should probably put on pants.

*sigh*

This things I do for my friends.

Show and Tell

I just looked at the calendar and realize that it's been two weeks since GLFS and I haven't bothered to make a post about it.

I could lie and say I've been busy, or that it's hard to write these without access to my laptop (damn macbook cords)...

But the truth of the matter is I've been in a rut again. I feel paralyzed by indecision about pretty much everything at the moment. No idea why, but I'm hoping to hell that it goes away soon.

In the meantime, let me remedy the blog situation with some pretty yarn porn.

Last year's theme seemed to be "giant fuggin skeins". This year...

Well, this year, I'm sure that everyone at Harps and Thistles is going to get a good laugh.

Everything I bought was either grey or green.

Yes, I know. I tried hard to stay away, but I saw one hank that I wept with deep emotions over and it all went downhill. But we'll get to that in a second.

This year, I once again got to meet up with my lovely Mikayla. And she brought her mom. Which, I admit, was a little nerve wracking to me. I don't think I ever make a good first impression, but Mikayla assured me that all was fine. I guess I'll trust her.

There were two things I was looking for in particular this year. I needed something to compliment the gradient I had for Mystic Star because I didn't think I'd have enough with what I already had. And I needed a second hank of the barber pole alpaca I bought last year because one hank wasn't enough for my wrap.

The complimentary color was quickly found and actually purchased from the same company I bought the gradient from.

I think it'll work up nicely. Assuming that I can focus on it and actually get it done...

Barber pole was also found quickly. And was a little too beautiful apparently, because both Mikayla and her mom purchased some as well.

I found this awesome hank of mohair and wool from Morning Star Fiber. They were super fun to talk to and have some great stuff. Highly recommend checking them out,

And mohair, for the uninitiated, is goat. So this is a goat/sheep blend. A black goat at that.

*finger guns*

Caitlin wasn't able to attend this year, so I *had* to get her a little something. Ended up with this gorgeous hank from Destination Yarn.

The color name is escaping me at the moment. Something like Paris Night or Night in Paris or something? I don't know. And I can't be arsed to walk upstairs right now to check.

Just go to her site and search around. You'll probably end up wanting to buy everything, just to warn you.

At one point, nature called and I had to run to the little llama's room. When I came back, my husband and Mikayla's mom were mysteriously gone. And Mikayla tried to BS me into thinking that they went to get a drink.

Really?!

Like... really?!

I knew *exactly* what was up.

Earlier, I had been drooling over the same colorway at Destination Yarn that I fell in love with last year. But I was trying to be good and stick to budget, so I walked away with a sigh.

Those two sneaky sneaks went back and bought me two hanks of it.

The colorway is Irish Bog. Isn't it just gorgeous?

I'm really awkward about saying thank you, so I'll just do so here. It's lovely and I can't wait to make something with it. Thank you both, truly.

But, as much as I love these little beauties, my heart belongs to another. This siren utterly bewitched me and enchanted me and I could not walk away.

IT MATCHES MY HAIR, PEOPLE!

AND it's got a whopping 770 yards! Enough for a good size shawl for yours truly.

And the color name?...

SEA WITCH!

THIS YARN WAS MADE FOR ME!

Mikayla had to practically drag me away from the stall because she *insisted* that we had to do a whole lap of the place before I was allowed to buy anything.

I love her. I truly do. But at that moment, I was ready to call for a divorce.

Lucky for me (and my yarn wife) there were quite a few hanks left, including the one I kept petting to start with. So into my basket it went.

And, oh baby, I've already got a pattern in mind.

Mermaid's Lair anyone?

The excitement, she grows, cap'in.

Once again, it was a good year. I got lemonade and pretty yarn and got to hang with some nice people.

Now, let's see if I can resist the siren's song long enough to get Ren Faire stuff done.

I highly doubt it...

Stash Flash

I realize that it's been a while since I've really showed off any of my yarn purchases. I mean, I used to post just about every week with new bits of wwooly goodness.

So where have I been hiding all these purchases?

Well, the truth is, I really haven't been purchasing that much yarn.

I Know, I know. You should probably sit down before you pass out.

But it's really hit me that I may have hit SABLE already. (Stash Accumulation Beyond Life Expectancy, for those not in the know.)

I'm not even thirty yet.

Yeah.

So, I've slowed down on my yarn purchases.

Slowed down, mind you. I didn't say I stopped entirely.

So, prepare yourself for some hot, wooly action.

First off, we have some of Latte and Llamas' limited edition DK weight yarn for March.

 

The colorway was called "Hyrule." How was I supposed to pass that up? My poor nerdy heart nearly exploded as is.

Next up, we have some lovely lace weight yak/silk blend that I bought in a buy-in on one of my facebook groups.

I seem to be on a silk buying spree right now. Raineshine was a silk blend, this is a silk blend. And then I kinda fell into a spell at Harps and Thistles clearance sale.

Yep, that's all 100% silk. Two different colors of Malabrigo on either side and some lucious Alchemy silk in the middle.

I also picked up this delightfully squishy hank of Blue Sky Alpaca's Extra.

 

This baby is destined for some sort of cowl that I will probably live in when it's done.

To finish out the post, I've saved what I consider the best for last. 

At the last pj party, the Three Irish Girls trunkshow had just started. I was going to honestly try to not buy anything, but you know how that goes. At least I talked myself out of the $100 gradient set that matched my hair perfectly .

Instead, I bought these two beauties.

The one on the left is Kraken. The other is an OOAK named Under the Sea. They're destined for some sort of shawl together. There's no way I could break them up.

I would say that this is all the yarn porn you're going to get for a while, but the Great Lakes Fiber Show is tomorrow. I have no faith in my willpower.

Wish my poor wallet luck, friends. It's gonna need it.

A Tale of Two Shawls - Art and Coffee

So far this year, I've managed to complete 3 shawls already. And I'm well on my way to finishing my fourth. Yes, you guessed it. I'm trying to do last year's resolution of 12 shawls in 12 months.

But the last shawl that I posted completed pictures of on here was Orchid Thief.

I could make excuses about weather or time, but let's be honest. Sometimes, I'm just a lazy trash panda.

But no more!

Yes, friends, today I finally dragged myself (and John) out of the house long enough to get the pictures I needed.

Which means that not only will you get a new post, dear reader, filled with shawly goodness. You, in fact, get two of them. Two days in a row!

*fanfare plays*

To start things off, I'll show off February's shawl, Art and Coffee.

After the nightmare that was Orchid Thief, I needed something simple and with a heavier weight of yarn. Latte e Miele fit the bill. Stripes, which I had never done before, simple lace, and customizable sizing. Everything I could ever hope for.

I even used stash yarn for it. I did break a Sacred Knitting Rule by using two different yarn weights, but I won't tell if you won't. Worsted and DK are close enough to each other, right?

The grey blue is Three Irish Girls Springvale Worsted in Ventas. And it actually has a really sweet story to it. When I took my grandpa up to see Harps and Thistles, he did a very grandpa thing and slipped me some spending money. I picked this little beauty out with no definite plan in mind. Just a squishy reminder of a lovely day spent with my grandpa.

The brighter, variegated yarn is a awesome colorway called Van Gogh from Scandinavian Weave and Knit. I picked it up at the Great Lakes Fiber Show the second year that I went.

This was intentionally made pretty small as I intended to wear it as a scarf. Well, pretty small to me. So, a normal sized shawl to practically everyone else.

There are quite a few modifications, so be sure to check out my ravelry page to see them all.

WHICH I COMPLETELY FORGOT TO MENTION, I NOW HAVE AN AWESOME LITTLE BUTTON OVER THERE THAT YOU CAN CLICK ON TO BE TAKEN RIGHT TO IT!!!
-------------->

Seriously, go check out my social media links for all sorts of fun. Warmer weather is coming, so more shenanigans will be posted on there soon.

See you back here tomorrow, though, for shawl number two.

We're going pure alpaca, baby.