The Yarn is Packed

One of the frustrating periods when moving house is that time when everything is about to be packed or just packed or in transit so that you can't get your hands on anything. I thought it was clever to fill up the tops of book boxes with fiber and yarn – good use of space without making the box too heavy. But then along came a stunning sock pattern that I would have loved to cast on at once. Ack! No yarn. It's all packed.

Of course I could always purchase more yarn. My new place is a short WALK from a huge and utterly delightful yarn shop. I strolled over there the day after receiving the keys to the apartment (priorities, you know) and walked right into a Habu Textiles trunk show. Although I had my camera along, I was too overwhelmed to use it. Lots of oooh's and aaaah's, but no pictures.

Moving is a pain, and leaving the island will be a bit painful too, but it's time to return to civilization. I will be just as close to the ocean as before (those tall white things in the pic above are the masts of sailboats in the marina), but facing west instead of east. And in the interim I will probably not be a terribly good citizen of blogland. My new, but thankfully temporary, hobby involves packing boxes, transporting boxes to the barge, arranging transport of boxes across the water on the barge, picking up boxes from the barge, and unpacking boxes. With just an occasional foray into the purchase of new items for the new residence. Normal life should resume in a few weeks.

Little Red Beret

Hat Number Two – the Red Beret – was actually completed last week, but I was off on an extended trip to the mainland and thus unable to document its arrival into the world. The pattern is Beret Easy, and it is indeed an incredibly easy pattern. You begin with six stitches, increase six times on every round up to a certain point, then decrease at the same points where you increased until the hat fits snugly around the head. A small hem, a little sewing down of the live stitches, and you are done.

I used a cast-on called "Thom Christoph's Circular Beginning" from "A Gathering of Lace." Amazing how this cast-on snugs up the start. There is no hole at all. Granted, this was a DK weight yarn, less susceptible to the leaving behind of little holes than a laceweight. Which yarn is it? Heh.

Does this look familiar? Yep, I had an entire 100gm skein of Schoolhouse Press Quebecoise left over from this vest. Little Red Beret used most of it, just a wee squib left over. Although I'm very pleased with the result – love the shape and especially the color – I'd like to knit this pattern again with a different, softer yarn. The Quebecoise is a rather stiff yarn, perfect for the twisted stitches of the Clock Vest, and it gives a lot of definition to the shape of Little Red Beret as well. I wonder if a softer yarn would produce a more slouchy beret for a different look.

And just to prove I am no coward, here is a full frontal, taken the day of my return when I was seriously sleep deprived. I discovered, howsoever, that appearance-wise there is an upside to being puffy-faced from fatigue. No wrinkles. A striking resemblance to a chipmunk, but no wrinkles. Well, not quite so many as usual anyway.