There are three pairs of socks in this shawl!

Yes, there are six balls of Lang Jawoll superwash in the shawl so far! Look!! Sadly there is a 'bite' out of the shawl! The LYS I bought this yarn from has no more, but there are a few other sources to be checked out, so all is not lost! However, I might not be finished by the end of July - all depends on how long it will take for the yarn to get to me!

Here is a close up of the 'bite'. I cast on for the Elizabeth Zimmermann Pi Shawl and knitted plain with a few little yo, k 2 tog for interest. By the time I got to 288 stitches, I wanted a bit of variety, so I knit in the 'diamonds' which are an option in the pattern. At 566 stitches, I changed to the gull stitch, which is the pattern used in the February baby sweater in EZ's Knitter's Almanac. The diamond and gull stitch patterns were all suggested in the pattern, but the edging is the same edging of the Spanish Christening Shawl by Cheryl Oberle. It is a clever pattern and very quickly memorized. I can see myself using this edging pattern again.

However, thinking six balls of the sock yarn would be more than enough was a bit of a simple mistake. There was no way for me to know just how much the pattern would take, as there are so many variables. Not a big problem, because as long as I can get the same colour - which is entirely possible - the need for the same dyelot is not crucial - at least not to me!! The shawl is 42 inches across and that is with no blocking!!

I got a phone call from Jackie, who owns another LYS that I frequent, to tell me that she was having a little pre-sale shopping for valued customers!! Turns out less than eight gals were there, but it was great to shop without a store full of bargain hunters. I had gone in hopes of finding some yarn to knit two cardigans I have in my to-do list, but there was nothing in either the beige/tweed/oatmeal colour or the just-right red, so not wanting to come away empty handed, I did buy some goodies.

Being a valued customer may be stash enhancing, but it is so nice to know other knitters (there were four of us in the shop at one time who will be going to Fun Knits knitting retreat in October) are good at keeping the stash from having a 'low-level' light flashing!! It was nice to see all the other enthusiastic knitting and so nice that Jackie has been in Cumberland for a whole year. Well done, Jackie, and I hope you are there for many years to come!


These two balls are Santa Fe from Tahki Yarns. I got 7 balls of the orange/violet/green/beige colour and 8 balls of the charcoal/grey/beige/brown colourway. I think that will be enough for two Elizabeth Zimmermann Rib Warmer Vests!! It is 95% Extra Fine Merino Wool and 5% Nylon. The nylon wraps around the yarn and has a wee bit of a shine. There are some large slubs here and there, but I think they will make great vests!! This was on for 50% off, so what is a knitter to do.

This is saving the 'best for last'. Here is a skein of Hand Maiden Sea Silk. Isn't it just the colour of raspberries, my favourite fruit? I plan to knit Montego Bay Scarf by Amy R. Singer which is on page 47 in the Summer 2007 Interweave Knits! The display of Sea Silk had a bit of knitting in the basket and Jackie, the clever LYS owner had this particular scarf on the needles and it looked wonderful. How many of you get sold on a yarn when there is a sample of it knit into something that you know you would be able to wear or gift? I, for one, have bought many yarns because there was something knit up in the yarn that I liked.

Clever shop owners, I say, who show you what a yarn will look like knitted up. Both my LYSs say that this bit of marketing does sell yarn. I say good on them! I am so lucky to have two wonderful shops withing less than 30 minutes of driving and another one where I can take a 10 minute cruise across the Strait where folks sail past to get from the South to Alaska on cruise ships. Lucky knitter, me!
Thank you to all who dropped by to wish me a Happy Birthday. It was a wonderful day and I continued to celebrate for a few days after!