I'm Back and I've Got Loot

The super-secret knitting is D-U-N, done!!  Yay!  I cannot show it here yet, but it did make it onto Ravelry today.  I'll get it posted here as soon as it's prudent.

Until then, I have moved on!  My first try at a Utopia Hat is finished.

I followed the pattern to the letter for this one and it turned out a little shorter and snugger than I might like.  Luckily, I have a very petite niece who will be getting it for Christmas.  My next Utopia will be knit on bigger needles and I may add a few rows as well.  The yarn is Bernat Alpaca Natural Blends.  It is very soft with a fuzzy halo and the actual color is a bit bluer than the photo.  I have another ball in  brown.  Is the pattern too fussy for a man's hat?

Now I'm working on a scarf.

The pattern is called Morning Surf Scarf and I got it from the Summer 08 Spin -off magazine.  It is meant to be knit with handspun, but I had three balls of this Cyprus Mohair sitting around and I thought I'd try it.  It will be very warm and soft but I'm not sure how long it will be.  I cast on only 26 stitches to make it narrow, but it is still eating up yarn quickly. Mostly plain knit or purl rows, with the dropped stitch rows interspersed to keep it interesting.

Let's get to the loot.  Last week, Kniterella told me about a fiber festival in Ann Arbor. I dragged youngest daughter along with the promise that there would be alpacas there.  (There were, as well as sheep, goats, and many fluffy bunnies.  The fact that no animals came home with us is a testament to my strength of will.) 

We got to see Kniterella and her very tall son briefly and see her new green sweater in person.  They were just leaving to take their own new bunny home!  She says they can be sheared every three months (she learned on youtube!) and she is filling up bags with bunny fluff that she will spin some day.  How cool is that?

We also ran in to Linda!  She was seriously considering acquiring a hand spindle, so I tried to share my meager knowledge of such things.  I don't know if she got one or not - maybe she'll have it at Tueday night knitting.  Got to keep expanding the cult.

The fiber fair was held at a fairgrounds in two big buildings.  A neighboring building was having a gun and knife show - made for a very odd crowd in the parking lot.  Most of the booths had spinning fiber and yarn for sale.  I was somewhat restrained and only bought fiber.  (Unless you count the soap and finger puppets which I got for DD) 

I found some Masham!

Seriously, how gorgeous is that!  This was hand-dyed by Coby Kopee whose card lists her official title as "Fiber Addict".  She was spinning up some of this color right when I wandered by and it was just too pretty to resist.

Next I needed a little Romney/mohair blend.  Daughter helped me pick out the color after pointing out that the balls of roving "are bigger than your head, Mom".  This is 8 oz. of soft loveliness.

This comes from Linden Lane Farm of Howell, MI.  The label lists www.fibersofmichigan.com as a source.  I have not gone there to look yet, I'm a little afraid.  Maybe I should get this spun up first.

I have more fiber to show you, but this post is getting long.  I'll share it next time.  Until then, say hello to my little friend.

Daughter's finger puppet of choice?  An alpaca, of course!

Comments

[Jeanne B.]

You've been productive! The hat isn't too fussy for a man. If it's in brown. I think it's a gorgeous hat, and enough of a neutral design that it's unisex depending on the color. In pink, though... definitely not! :-) I like that pattern (downloading it now). And the finger puppet. And the scarf. And the fibers...

[Kim]

Yay! I bought Masham too. Coby is fantastic - I love her colors and fibers. My friend, Lisa, was working in her booth.

Great to meet you and your daughter - sounds like you had fun : )

[Karen in Toledo]

OK, this will crack you up. CJ Kopec is friends with Cary who is in the Friends of P group on Rav. Cary came to Toledo when the Chicago group visited this summer! Cary had some of CJ's fiber shipped to Sarah's for all of us to try. Small world, eh?