Cuffs, cuffs and more cuffs....

Oy vie, what a weekend. Well, not so much a whole weekend as Friday and Saturday. I think I'm losing it - that ability I once had to put two and two together.

Since I ran out of yarn on the Cape Cod sweater - here in all its amputated arm glory - I was actually "free" to knit something else for the first time in months. (I didn't pick up a needle between May and November and have been knitting on this damn sweater ever since.) Actually, I love the sweater...I really do. The detail is exquisite and, as usual, Starmore's pattern is a masterpiece. All those little stitches really do look like a scallop shell when you're done. Okay, maybe you do need to squint, just a tiny bit.

But, best of all, when I finish knitting, there will be all of 5-6 ends to weave in and that's it....no sewing together at all!! HOORAY!! In fact, because of that, I may use this pattern as a template for every pullover I make from now on.

So...since I was able to knit whatever I wanted, did I pick up some lowly UFO? Did I actually finish something from the baskets of projects already started?? No, of course not. I dove right in to something new and decided to make socks for a dear friend who has been patiently waiting since last spring. It seemed like a great idea on Friday afternoon...after all, I was out of yarn and couldn't work on the sweater, right?

Finding the pattern wasn't that hard and it only took an hour or two, before I had it narrowed down to three different ones...leaning heavily towards two of them. But the yarn....yikes!

Now this friend loves color so I started out with this Sockotta. It was colorful and seemed appropriate since it wouldn't create a heavy wool sock. However, it looked awful. Well, it's not that it looked so bad, but none of my carefully chosen patterns worked....they simply disappeared in the busyness of the colors. I am also not a fan of cotton sock yarns and, coupled with my other complaints, it was destined for the frog pond within a few inches. It's too bad because in a lot of ways it worked.

So, then I tried this Cherry Tree Hill yarn, which I love...the colors are gorgeous and I thought it might be perfect. Nope. I tried it first with my favorite pattern and it was a no-go. Ditto the second and third. What was going on? This inability to find the right yarn for the pattern was starting to feel reminiscent of last winter when I was working with the Spunky Electric and never did find a pattern I liked for the colors. Another cuff saved. By now, it was Saturday and my frustration at lost knitting time was beginning to show. Still I was determined to find the right fit and dove back into the yarn stash once again

This time I seized on some Lorna's Laces which jumped out at me. The colors were gorgeous and for a moment, I thought I had the ideal yarn. Happily, I unwind the skein, pull out the ball winder and an hour later, I am ready to begin. I worked up the scalloped cuff on pattern one and really thought I had it. However, a few rows into the main pattern and, as usual with LL, the pooling began. I hate this so much. Spiraling would be bad enough (but maybe doable), but not pooling.

Since I did love the colors though, I decided to try pattern two. Working my way through the ribbing, I was already skeptical and sure enough, by the time I reached the leg pattern the pooling was jumping out at me like a big zit on a teenager's forehead. Man, how I hate this! It makes me reluctant to continue to buy this yarn, despite how much I love the color combos they create. Frog pond revisited. Another cuff saved.

Finally I gave up searching for color and chose to let the pattern tell me what yarn to use. It quickly led me to this Araucania which I knew was right before I even cast on. It was now 2 pm on Saturday and I am finally ready to knit. Oh wait, first, I have to unwind the skein which happily goes really smoothly. Pull out the ball winder yet again, and by 3 pm I am ready to actually begin knitting! The colors are subtle but overall, the yarn works! I am so happy I could burst into song! I'm loving the way it looks, I love the pattern and I am thrilled to be on the way with this new project.

Of course, on row two, Chelsea walks in with the day's mail and in there is this...the Cashsoft I need to finish the sweater.


Sill all was not lost as I was too stubborn to stop and by this morning, I had this.......