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May 08, 2007

Knitting retail therapy

I had a final on Thursday, and afterwards I was brain dead.  It was First Thursday so HCW was having a sale - 20% off all yarn with a 5 in the price.  It was the perfect activity for my post-final retail therapy.  Top that off with the phone call I just got from my oldest friend who lives on the east coast (we will have been friends for 20 years this fall - that says something for someone who is only 26).  She is pregnant!  Well, I am going to be seeing her when I go to visit my grandmother as soon as finals are over.  So I'm super excited to get to see her so soon after finding out this exciting news, but of course I really want to have a gift for her so I needed to come up with something fast. 
I spent a LONG time at HCW just browsing and deciding what I wanted to do for the baby project.  It was really relaxing and exactly what I needed after the back to back finals last week.  I spent time flipping through Mason Dixon Knitting and was definitely considering the baby kimono and some burp cloths.  But they only had a hard copy of the book and it was gonna be like $30 with tax which I didn't really want to pay just for the pattern.  I was in the back of the store looking at the baby yarn and I started flipping through some of the Dale of Norway baby books.  I knew I couldn't do an intricate fair isle sweater in 2 weeks, but then I found a book with this pattern in it.
 

It only has a little bit of fair isle and is almost all stockinette.  I fell in love and decided since the baby is due at the end of November, it will need the 0-3 month size its first winter so decided I could crank out the smallest size in 1.5 weeks.  HCW was very low on its Baby Ull selection, but I managed to find enough in colors that can work for either a boy or a girl.  I am almost done the body, so although it will be close, I think I can get it done by Monday.  I LOVE the way this sweater is working up.  At a gauge of 32 stitches to 4 inches, it is tiny and like working a sock, but the wool is so soft.  I love the knitted hem and the fair isle.  I am going to be very proud of this sweater assuming I can do the sleeves ok (I haven't done sleeves like this before). 

I also planned on purchasing yarn for Knitty's Isabella.  I thought HCW carried Rowan 4 ply cotton, but they don't.  I was then going to order it from a different store, but as I was browsing I came across the new Rowan Soft Bamboo yarn in this awesome shale gray color with purplish undertones (Color 111).  It was gorgeous and so soft!  I ended up spending way more than I was planning to for yarn for this top, but the color and softness and coolness of bamboo made it worth it.  I can't wait to get started once the baby sweater is done.

To top it all off, when I got home I immediately went to cast on for the baby sweater and realized I did not have the right size needle.  So, I cast on on my size 0 dpns cause I only needed size 0 for the hem and didn't want to buy Addi's just for that.  That evening Daniel and I went back to HCW and I got the 1's I needed.  But, while we were there, we spent some more time looking at yarn because we've been wanting some throw pillows for our living room to get some color in here and haven't found much we like.  So we decided I should knit some pillows - inspired at least in part by this pattern by Vickie Howell.  So my husband picked out some Berroco Softwist yarn in jewel tones and spent $50 on yarn (it was on sale) so that I could make him some decorative throw pillows.  Gotta love it!  I think we ended up between the two of us making 3 different credit card purchases for knitting supplies in one day.  A day of retail therapy and knitting combined - totally awesome!

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