2012 Bellingham LYS Crawl part 2

Hello!

Today I am going to try to post twice because I want to get out my 2012 Bellingham LYS Crawl, part 2, as well as my regular report on the Eastside Stitchers meet up at Crossroads.

So, onto the Yarn Crawl.

Stop 2

Apple Yarns
1780 Iowa St.
Bellingham, WA 98229

The second stop on our fabulous mini-LYS crawl was to Apple Yarns.  I have to admit that I fell in love with this shop on the big Puget Sound LYS Tour back in May.  It was a small, but bright and cheerful shop with a lot of lovely yarns.  Well, Apple Yarns got even better!  They moved since we trekked out there last May.  The new shop has just the same feel as the old one, clean lines, bright cheerful colors, but way more space.

 
One of the cool additions is a lovely room for classes, or just knitting and relaxing with some coffee or tea.  In my notes about this shop, on the new classroom space I wrote, "bright, inviting, open and warm."

The best part of the more space thing, is of course, more yarn.

Just as we all went crazy over The Periwinkle Sheep's yarn at NW Handspun, the exciting yarns here that had everyone buzzing were Huckleberry Knits, and SweetGeorgia Yarns.  But, I have to admit for the members of the group who had not had a chance to come with us last May, it was Huckleberry Knits, who is a local dyer who does some special Apple Themed yarns for this shop, who stole the show.

I bought her Willow Sock Yarn, in  Honey Crisp, last May for my famous Circle Socks.

I get so many compliments when I wear these socks.

There was almost a tug of war over the Apple Blossom colorway, as there was only 1 skein available.

I did not need yarn for socks.  Well, my list had 1 skein of purple sock yarn for SolidSocks for NEXT year.

I did want some fingering weight yarn, though.  I am becoming obsessed with shawl/shawlette patterns, and hope to knit a High Plains Drifter by Kirsten Hipsky.  I wanted 3 different colors, possibly one of them variegated.  I chose 2 SweetGeorgia tough love sock colors, and one from Huckleberry Knits.

 The Huckleberry Knits skein is called, "October Sky."  Don't you just love that name?

I also managed to find a skein of purple sock yarn that I loved among the SweetGeorgia offerings.  It's called, Boysenberry.

One of the best things about the shop is the MORE SPACE/MORE YARN thing.  When they have a yarn, they have a really good selection of that yarn.  Like there would be an entire column of shelves full of a single brand in many many colors, and not just in Cascade (which I love), but in various other brands, too.

This makes Apple Yarns a good stop for color work, or if you need to match or coordinate a particular color.

After Apple Yarns, we stopped for lunch at Fiamma Burger. 

I had a Jr. Burger (really, it was big enough), and some of the sweet potato fries.  Yum.
Then it was back into the cars and off to our next stop.

I hope to post about stop #3 tomorrow. 

Stay safe and well.
Yours,
f1bercat
Shaping the planet with some Huckleberry Knits Yarn!

Why Can't I Count?

Everyone told me the circle socks are not very stretchy.  I kind of have cankles, too (that's fat ankles, where my ankles and calves are one big piece so:  calf/ankle = cankle).  I am making these socks for the Sock Knitters Anonymous June challenge (this group gives you 2 months to complete the challenge).  I'm using the gorgeous Honey Crisp sock yarn by Huckleberry Knits that I bought at Apple Yarns during the 2012 Puget Sound LYS Tour in May. 

Anyway, the pattern has an 8 stitch repeat (super easy by the way), and it calls for 64 stitches cast on.  So, I am thinking brilliantly that I will cast on 72 stitches, to help with the lack of stretch, and the cankle situation.  I can put 4 sets of 8 on one side of the magic loop needle, and 5 on the other. 9 x 8 = 72.  That should fit me.  But then I decide that I like this yarn knit tightly, so I drop down to a size 0 US needle.  With 72 stitches, that should still be ok.

I did 4 and 1/2 repeats of the leg pattern.  I split one skein of  yarn, and because I had to add stitches, I am a bit worried that I will run out.  These are more than 3 inches required to count for SKA, but won't be super long socks.

The heel is an Eye of Partridge pattern.

 I added a small side garter stitch to frame them.

I am knitting these socks 2-at-a-time, of course.  I finished the first heel, and was getting ready to start the second, when I realized that the first sock actually had 80 stitches, and the second sock only 72.  I am not kidding.  Somehow I never noticed that one sock had 7 stitch markers, and the other one 8.  I couldn't believe it.  How could I be so unobservant?  How could I knit the legs and not notice this? And, what to do now?

I tried on both socks, and the 80 stitch fit much better.  I actually could not really pull the 72 stitch sock over my heel.  Not stretchy, indeed.

So I frogged the 72 stitch sock, and cast it on a 2nd pair of needles, and spend the last 3 days reknitting it.  When I got to the heel, I put it back onto the same needle as the first sock, finished the heel turn, and went on with picking up both gussets.

I am back to working 2-at-a-time.

I love the look of the yarn.  I love the circles.

I REALLY love how the yarn looks on the heels.

I have finished the gusset and am now knitting the feet.  The pattern has the circles stopping at the heels, and a plain stockinette foot, but I have continued the circles down the foot to the end of the gusset at least.  I hope to finish these socks this week.  I plan on wearing them.

They better fit.

At least they are now the same size.

Stay safe and well, and if you live in the USA, hope you had a wonderful Independence Day.  We sure did.

Yours,
f1bercat

almost shaping the planet with completely mismatched socks because I can't count to 10

Sock Progress

This is the spoiler picture for the Solid Socks Group in Ravelry.  We use this picture on our project page so that people won't accidentally see progress photos of the mystery socks and spoil the surprise.  Warning, I am going to post my progress photos, so if you don't want to see the cuffs (clue 1) and one repeat of the leg (clue 2), then please don't scroll down.

Where in the World is f1bercat?

I had a dentist appointment today, just a routine cleaning, but it messed up my usual schedule.  I still went to the Y and both rode the bike while knitting and walked while riding.  Who says  I can't multi-task?

So I knitted for 5.8 miles.  I felt pretty good, and was able to keep up a good pace.  I need to take a photo of the spa washcloth I am knitting while riding.  I am making good progress.  After riding, I got on the tread mill and walked for .55 miles.  I am trying to work up to 1 mile walked each day.  I was able to speed up the treadmill a little bit.  I read a bit over 1 chapter of The Game of Thrones.  I have already noticed that my back and legs are feeling better and stronger each day.  I am not sure about how much my cardio has improved, as I am super out of shape. But I am starting to see and feel some real progress.

Where does my 6.35 miles for today put me?


View Larger Map

a bit north of Oregon City.

WIP's

I have finished the first clue for the Solid Socks Group's June/July Mystery Sock, Rombikiri, by YarnYenta.

It has a tulip cuff, very cool.  I am using the Huckleberry Knits yarn that I bought during the Puget Sound LYS Crawl at Apple Yarns.

The color is Granny Smith.  The color challenge for June is green, and it just doesn't get much greener.

I also started my socks for Sock Knitters Anonymous Group's June Challenge, one of which is to knit socks designed by Anne Campbell  (KnitterlyAnne).  They are the Circle Socks.  I have just started, so you really can't see much yet.  The yarn is by Huckleberry Knits, also, in a different apple color, Honey Crisp.

I really hope these will fit because I think they will be beautiful.

Goodnight everyone.

Stay safe and well.
Yours,
f1bercat
shaping the planet 2 pairs of apple socks at a time.

Puget Sound LYS Tour Day 3

Elyo

Huckleberry Knits Sock Yarn at Apple Yarns

I woke up early so I am getting in yesterday's Yarn Crawl recap before we head out for the last day of the madness.

We met at my house yesterday morning and got on the road at 7:30 am. Our group included Ellyol, Allifer, GwenS, and me, f1bercat.  We planned to visit the 8 northern shops on the tour starting with Beach Basket Yarns & Gifts  which is almost on the US/Canadian Border.

The shops open at 10 and close at 6 pm on Saturday and Sunday, so we wanted to be AT Beach Basket Yarns ready to run inside as it opened.  I can't say enough about what a glorious morning it was.  Again, I was a bit sad I was driving, as I might have been taking photos out the window of the car the whole day.

Stop 1  Beach Basket Yarns & Gifts  Birch Bay, WA

This shop has a very nice space and a view of the ocean.

The shop was a nice size, with lots of gifts and yarn.  The featured pattern was a coffee mug cozy which is very fitting for Washington State.


Because we had a full day planned, we did not stay at any one shop very long.  Once again, because I was driving, I was not able to take notes after each shop, so I don't have many particulars about each shop, but I can say that at almost every shop today, we said it would be worth coming back again planning to hit 3 shops or so with a picnic lunch, etc.  Most of these shops are pretty small, but they are packed with yarn and use their space well.  Quite a few had special yarns that are hard to find, and worth seeing in real life to get the full effect of the colors.  I took some photos, but really, you just can't capture the colors of these yarns.  This was true of the next shop, Apple Yarns.

Stop 2 Apple Yarns    Bellingham, WA


We all loved this shop.  Open and airy.  Cute decor. Super friendly staff.Gwen reminded me that they had some unique yarns including Huckleberry knits and Sweet Georgia.  She was impressed as well by their selections of Cascade and Noro.

When I got home on Friday night, I decided that I had better really organize my sock yarn stash.  See, for the crawl, I wanted to mostly buy solid color sock yarns to be prepared for the Solid Socks Group next year.  I made a list of the ROY G BV (skipping indigo) plus white/cream, and gray or black, then planned to buy solid color sock yarns.  OMG.  Because I like to buy 2 skeins and knit my socks 2-at-a-Time, I actually have a ton of sock yarn left from this year in just about every color.

On Friday, I bought purple (amethyst)

blue (lapis)








a pale pale pink







and the brown alpaca.

However, When I gathered all of my partial balls, and the whole skeins I already had together, I discovered that I DID NOT NEED ANY YARN AT ALL.  Ok, I could possibly use some yellow, and cream /white/ or off white if I every want to knit socks in that color.  Why am I talking about this?  When we got in the car Saturday morning, I specifically told my group that I was not to buy sock yarn.  They were to stop me.  What actually happened?  At Apple Yarns, the 2nd stop on the trip, I bought 2 skeins of sock yarn.  Huckleberry Knits had dyed some in "apple" colors especially for Apple yarns, and well, I just had to buy some.  I bought the Granny Smith, my go to apple for pies, and then was torn between the MacIntosh and the Honeycrisp.  Actually, the Red Delicious was, well delicious.  But, I have enough Red Yarn for next year.  And I don't knit that many multicolor socks.  But I bought some of the honeycrisp anyway!  And I might say that my group actually encouraged me to buy these yarns.  They are all enablers.  But, ooooo, the yarn is gorgeous.

Stop 3  NW Handspun  Bellingham, WA

Another shop we visited in Bellingham, was NW Handspun.  I bought a table swift there.  They also had a very nice selection of the Huckleberry Knits, but as I had just bought 2 skeins of sock yarn that I did not need, I refused to buy yarn there.  They had quite a nice selection of Hazel Knits Yarn as well. Their prices were particularly good.  In fact, the Spud and Chloe was more than $1 cheaper per skein than we had seen anywhere else.    They had a good variety of local and mainstream stuff, as well.  I will definitely go back (when I need sock yarn.)

You can probably guess by the name that they have a very nice selection of roving, too.  This is a shop I would definitely like to visit again.







Stop 4 Knot Just Yarn  Burlington, WA

Another shop with a wonderful selection of yarns.  I especially liked their featured pattern, a crocheted scarf and knit hat (with 4 different brim choices) which both could be made from 2 skeins.  Allifer and I chose the same color yarn, and will make a set... who will get to wear them both?  Not sure. I think all four of our group bought their featured yarn, it was really nice and had a  very reasonable price.





I was impressed at not only the yarns, but all of the extras (not just yarn!) they carried including the dyes. 









Stop 5 Wild Fibers  Mount Vernon, WA

This shop has some super cute children's knits and darling toys.  They were open and inviting.  And the staff was friendly and warm.  The neighborhood was really cute, also.  I could have parked and wandered the block, window shopping, if we had had more time.





Stop 6 Ana-Cross Stitch   Anacortes, WA

This shop had a wonderful featured pattern.  It was so popular that they had run out of the yarn that went with it.  I am not sure if the economy has improved, the pattern was popular, or the tour adding the super cute stitch marker rewards for hitting 7, 14 and 21 shops that made the difference for this shop, but although it was sad for us (I plan to make the pattern in some yarn from my ever expanding stash), I was very happy for this delightful shop.  As the name might suggest, they also had a fabulous selection of embroidery/cross stitch thread.




I loved their yarn bombed sign out front.















Stop 8 Coupeville Yarns  Coupeville, WA

After leaving Anacortes, we drove across the Deception Pass Bridge to Whidbey Island which is the largest island in the mainland USA.  The last 2 shops of our day are both on Whidbey.  This is a wonderful vacation destination spot.  The island is just beautiful, with evergreen forests, beaches, and lots of rolling farms.  Again, I wished I was able to take photos as I was driving, but in the interest of staying alive, I did not.

Coupeville Yarns is a tiny shop in a picturesque little house.

They had a very nice selection of Cascade and Noro.  They had a HUGE variety of Noro colors, more than I have seen anywhere else.







I liked their featured pattern, a very cute purse, and got the materials.  I hope to knit it up as a gift for my niece.  It was a reasonable price, and looks like it will be fast.

Stop 9 Knitty Purls Langley, WA

I just loved the location of this little shop.  There is something about being on an island, and Knitty Purls managed to capture the feeling.  The shop is small, but they used the space very well.  I loved their sock yarn .  Their featured pattern was a sock and they had absolutely delicious colors of yarn choices.  I did not buy it.  It was a horribly tough call, though.  The pattern was named Rhododendron, which is the state flower of Washington, and both the yarn and the pattern captured the flower beautifully.  I hope to knit up their pattern with YARN FROM MY STASH.  Though, the featured yarn was super tempting.  Super tempting.  Did I mention that my sock yarn stash has gotten embarrassingly large and I have vowed to not buy any more (except for yellow....) for the rest of the year?



Knitty Purls also carried some very interesting high end yarns like buffalo and quiviut, as well as sets of Hiya-Hiya interchangeable needles, which are hard to find except online.





When we finished with Knitty Purls, we caught the ferry back to Mukilteo, and made the drive home.  I bought less yarn, and most was designated for specific projects (except the yummy apple socks yarns).  I immediately put the yarn and patterns in bags, ready to cast on.

Another thing I am trying to do, to justify my yarn purchases on this crawl, is Tag all of the yarn with 2012PugetSoundLYSTour on my stash page.  I vow to revisit the purchases before next year's crawl to see just how much I actually knit up.  If I have a good record of usage, I will feel better about going crazy again next year.

I need to eat some breakfast.  Tara, Allifer, GwenS, and Ellyol will be here in about 1 hour.  Today we will visit the last 2 shops on the tour, one in the U district (near the University of Washington) and the other on Bainbridge Island, as well as our local shop, Serial Knitters, again since Tara and Ellyol have not been there during the tour yet.  We might also swing back up to The Tea Cozy Yarns because GwenS won one of the daily drawings!

The day looks gray, but with luck, it won't rain.

Stay safe and well.

Yours,
f1bercat
shaping the planet with way too much sock yarn.