Color Craving

This morning I finished re-knitting the first front panel of the linen jacket. I'm not including a photo because I don't consider it blogworthy right now. The linen in the "natural" colorway is beginning to get to me. I'm starting to crave color. This is a bad sign so early in a project. (Of course, if I'd gotten the front panel right the FIRST time I'd be ready to cast on the first sleeve, but going there is NOT helpful at this point.)


Last week, in a moment of weakness, I ordered more Callista. The more I wear the Moroccan Blue Callista tank the more I love it. It's so airy and comfortable, and I like the fit and the drape. However, the new Callista is in the Copper and Cafe Creme colorways. Neither of which are likely relieve my sense of sensory deprivation.




My next project needs to be summery or at least lightweight. I'm sorely tempted to buy some yarn, but there are lots of colorful options in my stash.

A while back Nancy sent me some yellow and orange Berocco Pronto. There's not enough for a tank, but it could make a cute summer bag.



Below is some Elann.com Baby Silk. There's enough of the peridot to make a small shawl. There's enough of the blue to knit up a shawl with doubled strands, a la Brooklyn Tweed.

I was on a Malabrigo kick for a while. Back when you could buy a skein of 950 yds of lace weight merino directly from handpaintedyarn.com for less than $8.00, I sort of loaded up. (Not all at once, though.) Clockwise from the top left, there's a hank of Azul Bolita, Azul Profundo (a teal, really), Jacinto (I have a certain fondness for periwinkle), and Oceanos.

There is more lace weight merino Malabrigo in my stash in reds, pinks, and even orange, including this hank of Amaroso. Somehow I see this Amaroso as a Diamond Fantasy Shawl someday, but that could change.

One of the jewels in my stash is this leftover cake of Sundara semi-solid lace weight silk in Periwinkle over something. (Did I mention I like Periwinkle?)

I used part of the Sundara silk to make the Scarf with No. 20 Edging from Victorian Lace Today.

The scarf/shawl is gorgeous. Unfortunately, I didn't make it quite long enough. (I stretched and stretched it during the blocking process, and I think it's 56 inches long now.) The pattern has you knit up one side, then pick up stitches along one edge to knit the middle from end to end, then knit down the other side. (I'm not sure this description will make sense to you, if you don't have the book. Sorry about that.) I measured the first side before I stopped adding pattern repeats to lengthen it. However, it's hard to tell with lace how big it will be after blocking. Unblocked and on the needles the shawl easily stretched to 70 inches. But I did not remember that once it was pinned out width-wise it might not stretch so far length-wise. A rookie mistake.

When the shawl turned out to be too short, I would have had to rip back one whole side plus the middle to make it longer. Instead I decided to live with it the way it was. So there's enough leftover silk to make a small triangle-shaped shawl.

It's a good thing Sundara's on vacation until July 9th. Before I made the Scarf with No. 20 Edging, I knit a Swallowtail Shawl with Sundara semi-solid silky-merino sport weight yarn, and it turned out to be one of my most favorite hand-knitted garments ever. (My poor photography skills could never do the rich colorways of Sundara yarn justice.) I'm completely smitten with the Sundara yarn. I've been wanting to buy more ever since.

But I really should knit from the stash and stay on my yarn diet, right?