Saturday, February 18, 2012

Best Laid Plans

When I started this blog several years ago, the main idea was to motivate myself to knit up my stash by going public with my plans and feeling accountable. Excuse me a minute while I get a tissue - I'm laughing so hard I'm crying. Ok, I'm back.

Since then, I estimate that my stash has roughly quadrupled. My old top 10 yarn list?
Cascade 220 - any of the heathers or tweeds specifically - Still like
Cascade 128 - Still like
Araucania Nature Wool (Worsted or Chunky) - Still like
Artful Yarns Jazz (discontinued) - Destashed - too heavy for this climate
Jo Sharp Silkroad (tweed or not, any weight) - Do Not Like
Rowan Tweed (any) - meh
Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool and Silky Tweed - meh
Malabrigo - luscious but omg the pilling
Noro Kureyon - still love the colors and get sucked in by them occasionally but rarely knit with
New Tweed - meh

New top 10 list:
tosh merino light
tosh chunky
tosh sport
tosh Vintage
Pasmina
Yarn Chef Mulligatawny
Yarn Chef Creme Brulee
Yarn Chef Cider
Cascade 220 (still liking the heathers)
Knit Picks City Tweed

I've gravitated towards lighter weight yarns. I love the drape and they make more wearable garments for this climate. I also (obviously) LOVE the semi-solid hand-dyed yarns. Solid color commercially made yarns have to have some heathering or tweed in them.

But you know what? Now that I'm doing more designing, I've found out that I need a good-sized stash. For inspiration. For samples. Sometimes you don't have time to wait for an order to come in, and most of what I like to knit with can't be picked up locally. I try to be mindful when I buy, and lately I've been using money made from pattern sales, so at least I'm supporting my habit :)

And how gorgeous is this?