Wednesday, August 29, 2007

Grrr.

And not the washcloth kind.

I was going to blog next about the money I just spent on this project (short version: worth it, but frightening for one so very out of work), or on the wonderful experience I had at Unraveled.

But three (Three! Full-sized! With cable! I always skimp on swatching!)swatches later, and I am no closer to starting my there's-no-way-I'm-going-to-finish-this-sweater-in-three-weeks three-week Tangled Yoke Cardigan.

I tried Rowan Felted Tweed, the yarn called for in this project. It worked up lovely, right on gauge, but the tweediness wasn't working for me with this project. I wanted the cable to shine a bit more. (But I love tweed otherwise, I swear!)


So at Unraveled I pondered and compared and measured and thought and even asked for help (it's difficult for me. I almost neurotically like to appear like I know what I'm doing). The Unraveled person (I didn't get her name) was wonderful, helpful, gave me lots of options and then backed off to let me ponder and compare some more. I ended up with Jo Sharp Alpaca Kid Lustre in a deep purple color.

I knew it was going to be a problem when I chose the dark color. I knew it was going to be an issue that the yarn felt a little weightier than the Felted Tweed. But I took it home, and knocked out another cabled swatch. It's just too dark and fuzzy, and it eats up the cable, and the gauge is off.


What's making me the most crazy is the obvious difference in thickness of the two DK yarns. I'm not concerned about conformity of all yarns to one thickness here, but more: how do I pick a yarn? All of the Unraveled recommended yarns, all DK, are even thicker than the Jo Sharp.

So it's back to the yarn store today -- at the very least, for a new color of the Jo Sharp. Possibly a return to Felted Tweed, possibly a new yarn.

Ah well. I guess I shouldn't be complaining about spending another few hours in a yarn store.

Most recent podcast: Sticks and String.
Currently listening to: A friend on the phone.
What I should be doing: Going to the yarn store!

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