One track knitting

So the really good thing about being in a rut is that I seem to be accomplishing a lot within that rut. Last week I finished a pair of "Rick" socks (from Sock Innovation) in Campari Orange Wollmeise (80/20). They're pretty awesome. Very nice and loud. I am into loud socks right now.

The 80/20 is a little thicker than the 100% WM I've used before but it wasn't that noticeable until I tried to stuff the finished socks into my clogs and they bunched a little. -1 for finishing these just in time for the weather to warm up at last as well. Full length wool socks... even lacey ones, kinda much for summer.

I am 85% done with a pair of ankle high "Kai-Mei" socks (also from Sock innovation) in Panda Silk and they're looking to be a bit more weather appropriate. Panda Silk is yummy. It is all I can do not to go out and grab up more of it, because working with the stuff always make me want more of it. But really... I have at least six or seven balls of the stuff at home already that I should probably use first... We'll see how long my resolve lasts on that. Especially seeing as there are some new colors out....

When those are done my sock count for the year will be up to 5 pairs... 6 if you count as one the two singles that I gave up on getting pairs out of in January.

Did finally swipe a pic of puddle's Art School socks that I finished in February (I think it was February), which is only a month late and honestly pretty timely for something I was knitting for a gift (lousy gift knitter me).

A variation of the Bellatrix sock pattern in Cascade Heritage Paints which is a loverly yarn also. I have a couple of skeins in red and blue that I need to use soon. It was very pleasant to knit with, nicely squooshy and I'm told it wears pretty well (other people will need to be the judge on that one until I get a pair finished for myself to abuse).

The wheel has been kind of idle still. I'm able to spin again after the knee injury but not for really long periods of time. I did finally finish the soysilk I started sometime last year and its nice and soft and drapey.

Bled like all hell when I went to finish it, but I think that's somewhat the nature of the beast with soy. I do have some undyed roving I picked up at the Woolery to try my hand at next so maybe I can work out some way to limit the rivers of excess dye from seeping out of the finished yarn. The final yardage is a bit over 400 and its closer to a light fingering than a true laceweight. I'm guessing a lot of the added fluff is due to spinning it from the fold.

Not yet sure what it will be - if I got up over 500yds I was going to make an Aeolian Shawl, but its not quite enough for me to feel comfortable with that. I may weave with it instead.

There's some other things on the table right now - some yellow bling-y sock yarn being worked up on the wheel and another attempt and a first sweater, but I'll save those for when I have pictures and progress to show.

Woolery

Sometime around the start of the year it came to my attention that The Woolery was moving to Frankfort (Frankfort being the little known capitol of Kentucky where there is pretty much a grand total of nothing). This meant that there would be a major source of wheels/looms/fibers within a 30 minute drive of me - no more having to special order bobbins or spare wheel parts (which reminds me that I need to pick up a spare drive band and some wheel oil come to think of it).

Anyway, for a few months the opening day has been "sometime this spring" so I was pretty surprised when a ravelry post this week highlighted an ad in the Frankfort paper proclaiming they were now open. Since I had a free afternoon Monday I drove out to check it out.

The shop is located in downtown off of main street - you basically take 64 or Leestown (to 60/Versailles) all the way out and then get on Main until it turns into a one way street. The shop is the second one from the corner at the intersection of St Claire & Main. I got a little turned around finding it - the shop sign is pretty small but its fairly obvious when you've gone too far and it wasn't a big deal to loop around.

Inside is a big display of drop spindles and wheels along with some specialty goodies - I noticed they had some lux fiber samplers and some more unusual spindles - Navajo and kick plus some bowls for smaller support style spindles.

Most of the sample wheels were set up in the window - but there were also a couple of Lendrums on a table in the back. There was a pretty substantial supply of needlefelting stuff over there as well.

I didn't take any pictures of the knitting yarn they had - the selection there was pretty basic - I saw some heritage sock and the usual Cascade 220 but it in terms of knitting supplies it was just the basics - CP needles and general notions but nothing especially expansive or unusual. They did still have some empty shelves up around that part of the shop, however, so its possible they plan to expand on that.

Most of the best stuff was spinning or weaving though - the back half of the shop is shelves and shelves of weaving yarns with books lining the walls - there are bobbins and flyers in the area behind that and shuttles, hand cards and smaller tools (swifts, rigid heddle looms, ball & bobbin winders) between the back half and the front.

Separating the shop from the offices are a wall of mesh shelves stuffed to overflowing with spinning fiber. Spinner's paradise there - bags of just about anything you might want - there is some colored cotton in this pic, along with yak, cashmere, soysilk...

Anyway - grand sum being that its awesome. I managed to escape with only a spinner's control card (YES! Finally!) and some soysilk, but it was a close thing. I can see it being very easy to get carried away there.

I'm a little unsure as to how much longer I will be in Lexington - now that I'm done with school I'm worrying about working and there just isn't much here (not to mention I really want a job I can be at for 4+ years and I'm just not sure I want to stay this far north that long). But its a nice resource to have for however long I have it.

And I'm trying to keep all my options open for as long as possible - on way or another.

Otherwise - I finished my Misti Alpaca socks:

They're quite soft and comphy but I think I'll stay away from this yarn for socks in the future - ignoring my annoyance with all the breaks in my skein its handwash only and I'm probably too lazy for that most days. Gotta love how neatly they striped though :)