LoopyKnits

Despite the fact I’m traveling without the usual helpful presence of my hubby, I made it to San Antonio intact for my business trip. That is, I arrived with my two suitcases and purse and *new* laptop. (Did I ever mention that I don’t pack light?) I’ll be the first to admit that he spoils me, handling luggage and tips and checkins and such, so when I’m on my own, it’s Ditz Time as I fumble around to figure out where to go and what to do.

But never fear. I’ve got yarn to entertain me too. I got to play with some new Debbie Bliss Cashmerino on the plane, and let me say that this woman was aptly named. Her yarns really ARE bliss! This is the softest stuff. I’m following a pattern for some relatively simple two-color stranding (my first foray into such) to make some cool socks for myself. Already, I’m entranced with the pettability of this yarn!

I’m also deeply in love with my newest toy, er — make that my newest NECESSITY, a TOOL, really — a new laptop for the first time in several years. It’s a 17-inch HP Pavilion zd8000 series. It’s hefty and more of a desktop replacement than an actual “portable” notebook, but it’s oh-so-me. Now if I were a rich woman, I’d also have one of those 2-pound ultraportables too, but I’m more than simply content with this baby. It’s so nice to have a laptop that no one has had before me … which belongs to me and not my company … and which has the latest operating system and no buggy problems. Heck, I didn’t really have much to say here today but I came a’blogging just to have an excuse to play. ;o)

So what’s San Antonio like, you might be asking? I’ll give you the quick answer. Not a clue, people. I came straight from the airport to a blessedly chilly hotel room which I’ve only left for a quick lunch. Now I’m resting for a while before we have our 5 p.m. general session and the 6 p.m. supper. Some fools, er, more energetic folks are already out shopping on the Riverwalk (a shop-lined canal next to our hotel). Not my idea of a good time, though!!! I dropped enough cash on the computer and some new duds for the trip, and it’s just too bloomin’ hot to go anyway right now anyway.

I think I must be going through some serious periomenopause, because I’m starting to experience some real sweating issues with even the lightest exertion. And if I get to a certain temperature, I have a hellacious long time cooling down. It’s dripping down my face, down the back of my neck, pouring down my cleavage, etc. My hair is wet everywhere but right on top of my head (an attractive look, don’t you think) — I look like I just came in from mowing the yard, I swear. I started sweating at home this morning when I was doing the last of my packing, and I don’t think I really stopped until I got in my hotel room (with the brief exception of some cool air on the jet). But all is well now. One thing you’ve gotta love about company-paid hotel stays: rooms that have their own thermostats.

Heh-heh, I’m going to see if it can actually make it to 55 degrees.

Technorati Tags: San Antonio, business trip, new computer, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino, travel knitting, periomenopause, sweating, knitblog, LoopyKnits.com, Carolyn Bahm

Friday night was, of course, devoted to blowing money on the new Harry Potter book when it FINALLY went on sale. I foolishly took my knitting along, confident that I could find a quiet corner to sit and knit while Caitlyn played in the kids’ section for an hour or so.

Uh, no. There had to be at least 500-600 people there. (Shh, don’t tell the fire marshall.) Unless I wanted to stab someone (a few tempted me), knitting was clearly out. Man, it was packed! The last time I was jammed in somewhere with that many people dressed in quirky costumes, it was Mardi Gras in New Orleans and I had a drink in each hand and a couple more already in my belly. ;o) Much like Mardi Gras in N’awlins, it was an experience worth having. Once. Next year I plan to quietly order my book for home delivery.

Saturday morning, I jumped up faster than I normally do on the weekend and headed to the Memphis Agricenter’s Intergalactic Bead Show at 10 a.m. with other members of Memphis Stitch ‘N Bitch. Although I didn’t find the Miyuki beads I wanted for my NeedleBeetle stole (*sniffle*), I did enjoy prowling around among the tables. I couldn’t resist buying some cute beaded gifts for my girls.

Caitlyn got a tiny beaded butterfly in blue but she’s also coveting Ginny’s present — a little froggy.

For myself, I indulged in a 24-inch leather cord ($4) and a 34.25-gram lime-green gaspeite stone. Just $12 and already drilled and mounted to hang on the cord. I wore the darlin’ thing home.

Since I’d already enriched the Memphis retail environment enough in the last couple of days (Note to husband: *gulp* Just kidding, honey!), I skipped the lunch out with stitching gal-pals and headed home. (Also had that new HP book to read, doncha know.) Plus, to be *totally* honest, I really suck at my navigation abilities and didn’t trust myself to find the restaurant they were talking about, even though they were giving me directions any bonehead (other than me) could easily follow. (Sorry, ladies — I *hate* to admit how directionally blind I am.) I’ll find out the destination in advance next time so I can do a little pre-lunch visit to MapQuest. And if I’m really ‘fessing up, I was feeling a bit lonely for the dear hubby. I’ve had so many little stretches of “me” time lately with my hobbies and work that I’ve kind of neglected him. It was nice to have a long lunch and run a few errands with him and catch up on all our shelved conversations. ;o)

In actual knitting news, the shawl I’m hoping to take on my San Antonio trip on the 26th is progressing rapidly. It’s just plain stockinette stitch, knit loosely on giant size-15 needles. The only reason I’m not flying through it is that I don’t want to spear the middle of the ladder yarn with each stitch. Also, I’ve found that I need to stop in the middle of a row instead of at the end. When the gauge is this loose, it’s easy to overlook whether the next row is supposed to be knit or purl! Here are some snapshots of progress so far, including a closeup of the knit fabric. Because of how slippery this yarn is, I strongly suspect that I’ll have to tie off the end with either a knot (nah) or a discreet stitch or two or three with black thread (that’s more like it). I’ll add some fringe on the ends, too.

Isn’t it funny how mixing two yarns changes the fabric’s color so much?
This combo is the brainchild of a LYS, Rainbow Yarn and Fibres.

Ain’t it purty. I love the color flecks and the drape.

You can tell a little more from this closeup.

Technorati Tags: Harry Potter, Intergalactic Bead Show, ladder yarn, shawl knitting, beading, knitblog, LoopyKnits.com, Carolyn Bahm

One of my favorite bloggers frequently talks about her own mishaps with a tongue-in-cheek reference to her breezy elegance. Boy, did I identify with her today at work.

A friend was chatting over the cubicle wall to me, wanting to know what this whole “blogging” thing is about. I eventually hopped up with the intention of going to the other side to help her get set up on Blogger.com. (Probably not the helpful team spirit my boss wants me to exhibit, but what the hey. It’s Friday.) My feet got tangled in my headphone cord, and — once again losing my work/life balance — I plunged to the floor. First to my knees (MAJOR thud), then kind of slumping onto my butt with a secondary thud, a groan and a couple of choice words.

As co-workers scrambled to my area to see who had dropped a load of bricks or fallen dead in the aisle, they saw me on my ass. And, I’m sure, they thought, “Oh. Just Carolyn again.”

And although I laughed it off while my stinging knees were crying for mama, I was left to wonder, “Why the hell doesn’t something like this ever happen when there ISN’T an audience?”

On the upside, I didn’t tear my jeans. On the downside, I left a couple of layers of skin on the inside of the jeans’ knees. Here’s a picture of the boo-boos. I’m just hoping all evidence of this breezy elegance is gone by the time of my business trip on the 26th. Or will there be green bruises by then … never can tell. Breezy elegance abounds. (Update: As it turns out, the knees were not the worst of it. I had a purple bruise the size of a salad plate on one side of my fanny. And, since I fell with all my weight on just one hip, it was a huge spinal adjustment. Put a kink in my spine that took weeks of chiropractic visits to unsnarl. Whee.)

But enough about my natural grace. A bright spot in the day was my very first purchase of railroad/ladder yarn — it’s so pretty! Normally I prefer to focus on the pattern and use plainer yarn, but I liked the springy, drapey feel of this in the sample wrap that my LYS had on display. Plus, it knits up on size 15s, so it’s uber-quick. You use two strands at once, one of the red/pink Mega and one of the glittery black Dazzle. It may sound gaudy but it works wonderfully together for a subdued glow. I’m going to start it tonight while we’re sitting around a local bookstore tonight at one of the local Harry Potter parties. (Yes. I’m a book nerd TOO.)

And tomorrow, I head to the Intergalactic Bead Festival here in Memphis with other members of Memphis Stitch ‘N Bitch to see what we can see. Maybe I’ll pick up the glass beads for my Seaweed Stole.  FYI: I say “My Seaweed Stole” loosely — I haven’t even bought the pattern yet. It’s just one of those that I know I’ll make someday. So lovely with the zig-zaggy fringe. Completely impractical, but things you love seldom are. Check it out at Needle Beetle and see if you don’t agree. Go on; I’ll wait. (tapping toes) You loved it, didn’t you — I knew you would.

 So many pretty things to make … but so many UFOs to tackle first.

Ciao, folks! - Carolyn

Technorati Tags: breezy elegance, fall at work, ladder yarn, seaweed stole, knitblog, LoopyKnits.com, Carolyn Bahm

She Who Must Knit: That is my new Indian name, apparently. Because I was faced with a yarn shortage on Friday, July 1, accompanied by the panicky feeling that arises when there is no new little knitting project readily at hand. So I rose to the occasion by beelining to the nearest stores and making the purchase of a cheerfully gaudy two skeins of Lion Brand Magic Stripes in Jelly Bean Stripe to make a pair of socks. It was the only wool-content yarn I could find locally, and it was just too bloomin’ hot to drive across town in bumper-to-bumper holiday weekend traffic to visit my favorite yarn stores. (Why won’t someone build a LYS here in Collierville? *whimper*).

As you’ll see from my notes below, I will *not* make this mistake again; I’m now a dedicated LYS-only yarn purchaser. I was so disappointed in the quality of this yarn! But am still making the socks anyway.

I decided to document my socksy travails with digital camera and this blog because I know it helps me to learn from others’ goofs. What I’ve learned from this has also helped me. Apparently, I’m suffering from undiagnosed ADD — how could I be inattentive so many times?

I’ve named this project the Gaudy Frog Socks for reasons that will soon become apparent as my “learning experiences” progress. Gaudy for the  yarn color. Frog for, eh, what I’ll be doing plenty of. (I have long ago accepted that my daily life is rather Lucy Ball-esque … I never know what the heck is going to happen next, and it’s usually something rather weird.)

It all started at the local Hobby Lobby and Hancock Fabrics stores, neither of which had any solid-color sportweight yarn with any wool contents. Of course. It’s hot enough outside that it feels as if the sun is kissing the surface of the Earth (92 degrees F. on Friday and 99 degrees on Monday, but who’s counting), so they have chosen to believe that their knitters only want acrylics and cottons. So I gave up on the two-color-stranding sock pattern I wanted to make in sportweight from my Betsy Lee McCarthy “Knit Socks!” book (dammit) and decided to just grab some ol’ faithful Magic Stripes.

So I get home and spread out all my gear and began with a set-up photo. And only then did I realize that the alternative pattern I’d chosen in this book called for WORSTED weight yarn. *smacking self in forehead* So I got online with a search for “perfect-fitting socks” because I remembered seeing a sock pattern calculator somewhere online previously. Heh-heh, I was ready for action again.

Only the bare essentials here, other than needles: Pattern onscreen, 1 of my 2 skeins of yarn, and (of course) chocolate.

First, I overcome my fear of the naked skein. I’m always tempted to just grab that oh-so-tempting thread on the outside of the skein; aren’t you? But since I don’t want the yarn to scamper all over the floor while I knit away, I dutifully felt around inside the skein for the “real” beginning of the center-pull skein.

Tickle, tickle.

I hate this part, because (1) I always feel a bit intrusive, like I’m going to run into some internal parts like a cervix in there (an overactive imagination has served me too well for many years), and (2) I inevitably pull out some critical internal part of the skein OTHER than the start of the yarn and create a big freakin’ tangle. Even when I’m relatively successful, I cringe when I pull out a big wad of what I’ve heard described as “yarn barf.”

Looks more like a little yarn umbilicus and a baby skein, doesn’t it?

This time wasn’t so bad, though. I’ve learned that it seems to work better if I twiddle both fingers around inside the holes at both ends of the skein for a bit until it just feels right, and then I yank. (It was sounding like another cervix hunt there for a second, at least on one of those two ends, until I got to that “yank” part, wasn’t it?)

So I really got started. I tend to knit loosely unless I’m tense, when I knit really tightly, so I’ve learned I really ought to swatch, and for more than just an inch or so. Plus, my only previous experience in sockdom was to laboriously create a lovely sock … that didn’t fit unless I was willing to have a heel-ectomy. So I swatched this time. It was immediately obvious that the size 4 DPNs recommended by the yarn’s belly-band label were too big for my loose knitting. Typical. See all that airiness? I don’t want that in a sock.

Bad swatch! Baaaaaaad swatch!

So I swatched again with size 3s. Still too airy.

Then I tried with size 2s. Or so I thought. It was only after I had completed a 24-stitch by 32-row swatch that I realized I had swatched with a size 2 needle in one hand and a size 3 in the other. At that point, I wanted to just stab the little bamboo sticks into my forehead and call it a day, but I’m nothing if not stubborn and foolish. So I frogged (again) and swatched (again).

The weird thing is that it yielded EXACTLY the same gauge. (Update: Uh, no, it didn’t. Funny how it’s easier to count the stitches in the photos than it was in person!)

Evil Swatch done on one Size 2 and one Size 3 DPNs

Evil Swatch on TWO Size 2 DPNs. Half a stitch difference (which I didn’t notice until I looked at the bloomin’ photos).

When I looked at the two swatches in person, I couldn’t see a difference and wondered if I had erred in thinking I used two different needle sizes the first time, or were the needle sizes so close that it didn’t affect the gauge? Or did I mysteriously compensate for it with my tension, with my telepathic knitter powers? Or do I just measure badly? Turns out after looking at the photos that I can confirm the diagnosis … I measure badly! And I didn’t include the photo here that reveals how I don’t lay the swatch out nice and square and flat. It was diamond-ish and not yet washed and blocked. Shh, don’t tell me; I can only stand so many learning experiences at a time.

But I’ve learned at least one thing from this experience. That I need to pay better attention because most of my mistakes seem to be from inattentiveness. And also that I need to invest in better quality materials if I’m going to spend this kind of time on a project, because I will inevitably be driven nuts by a glitch if I don’t pick it out and start over again.

So, back to the Gaudy Frog Socks. I commenced with the casting on late on Friday night … 96 stitches. Eh, what? That sounds more like an afghan panel. Sheesh. My calves aren’t ginormous, or not that I’ve noticed anyway, but that’s what this cuff-down pattern called for. (These are knee-length socks.) I got the first two inches done before I realized that … oops … the pattern said to knit ONE inch of 2X2 ribbing. Of course, I had read that as “TWO inches of 2X2 ribbing.” Must have been all those 2s elsewhere in the sentence.

The doomed first attempt.

Rather than tink 9 rows of 96 itty-bitty stitches per row, I just sighed and ripped it all out. It’s not a race, right? It’s the process, not the progress, right? Still, that ol’ stab to the forehead maneuver was starting to sound tempting again.

That’ll show you, yarn!

And I manfully began again. One completely mental aside for you here: Did you ever notice on the last stitch of casting on that it looks like a cross if you leave the second needle in there?

A knitter’s cross. Don’t know why I was so struck by this. Perhaps I’m thinking that this project needs more blessings than most!

So far, so good in my latest bout of knitting on this project; they are *very* colorful, which is what I wanted.

Not for the shy to wear.

I was disappointed in the feel of this yarn, though. My last purchase of the gray-blue-purple-white Magic Stripes was a good one; the yarn felt right. But this colorways feels kind of rough in the hand, and it looks like the dye didn’t penetrate very far into the yarn. And there are sloppy little spots of other colors spattered occasionally throughout (a bit of blue on the yellow, etc. — clearly mistakes). And the color is VERY uneven in the lime green and the pink parts of the yarn; it almost looks sprayed on rather than a dye that saturated the yarn. I’m reserving judgment but starting to really frown at this stuff. No more Lion Brand yarns … I should know this by now.

Then again, these socks are going to be so carnivaliciously colorful that I don’t think anyone will notice any minute color irregularities. ;o) I’ll keep reporting progress … if and when it occurs! My only goals for this weekend were to (1) finish painting my younger daughter’s room, (2) knit, (3) blog, (4) eat popsicles until the heat breaks or I run out of popsicles and have to dip into the fudgsicles, and (5) sleep really, really late each day. I might do some laundry over the next few days too, but only if I can’t successfully smother my conscience. I think I can hold that pillow down over its face, don’t you? (Update: I accomplished all goals except #1 and and #3 even made some progress toward #1. I also smothered the laundry urge, unfortunately!)

P.S. Here’s the reason I didn’t post this until Tuesday: I went to use my daughter’s computer on Saturday to download my digital photos, because my USB port is broken and I am trying to wait another three weeks until annual bonus time before I buy a new computer (the repair would require replacing the motherboard on this rickety old laptop). And while she’s gone to her dad’s house for two weeks, I see that she has shut down her computer. And password protected it.

Hmm. Her usual one didn’t work, so I clicked on the hint. It said, “god.” Well, what the hell? She told me just this week that she was beginning to believe she was not a Christian but “an atheist or that other one … whichever one means you believe in a higher power but think organized religion is kind a lot of baloney, and the Bible isn’t necessarily 100-percent true.”

Um, agnostic? She snapped her fingers, “Yeah, that!”

So I tried typing that — along with Jesus, God, ghod, Buddha, Jehovah, Yahweh, Lord, nobody, noone, and even damn (as in goddamn) and a few other word associations that sprang to mind, along with capitalization variations on all of these — but no dice.

So I grabbed my purse and headed out to buy a computer part. I headed to CompUSA, but for some reason found myself parked outside of OfficeMax a little while later. Temporary insanity, I guess. I was thinking of a science fiction story idea the whole time I was driving and just ended up in the wrong place. (I was not born to be a multi-tasker, but my brain keeps trying.) So THEN I go to CompUSA and buy a PCMCIA card with two USB ports. Ha-ha, foiled you, you wretched computer!

I got it home, and installation was a breeze. (Dance, dance, dance!) So … then I couldn’t find the cable that connects my camera to the computer. ARRRGH!!!!! I head to my office, where I assume I must have left it earlier this week, beside my computer. But it wasn’t there. On the way home, I remembered that I had changed purses earlier this week. And there the camera cable was, nestled among the purse grit at the bottom of my big summer straw purse. Grr. If I were not so used to myself, I would be really exasperated by this point.

By then, I was almost afraid to try hooking up the cable to the new USB ports to see if they work. (Insert a breathless pause here.) Okay. I tried. And it doesn’t.

So … now it’s Tuesday, I’m back at work where USB ports work and bosses don’t look over your shoulder even during a late lunchtime. And I’m uploading these photos, baby!

Update on the knitting: I got 10 rows into the increases before I decided I disliked the paired increases I’d used on the calf. So I tinked back to where the increases started and did ‘em again. Much prettier (invisible) the second time around, thanks to one of my reference books’ clear instructions. After 11 rows of straight stockinette, I commenced on the decreases toward the ankle. And now I don’t like them, either. These are “paired” decreases … and apparently you need to leave a stitch or two between them because it just looks gappy between them when you’ve got a left-leaning decrease butting up next to a right-leaning decrease. So I’m tinking out another 10 rows or so (*groan*) tonight. With all this quest for perfection, I’m investing in better yarn next time! ;o)

Technorati Tags: Lion Brand, Magic Stripes, sock knitting, sock pattern generator, Gaudy Frog Socks, yarn barf, yarn umbilicus, gauge, swatching, knit tension, knitter’s cross, knitblog, LoopyKnits.com, Carolyn Bahm

I’m doing fine in the wake of my sinus surgery; healing nicely according to my doc. It’s been a *mostly* painfree experience. If you want the blow-by-blow updates (which, being about schnozzes, rate rather high on the ick-o-meter), you can see my posting on the Septoplasty Forum. If for some reason the following link doesn’t take you to the right place, it’s posted in the post-surgery forum under my username of “cbahm.”

And in happier news — KNITTING news, even — I have finished with all but the seaming of a Beehive Hat (well, and also I still need to make the little bee. But still. Almost finished!). It’s a fairly simply Knitlist.com pattern, but I thought it looked snazzy. It’s going to be another charity hat, but I may enter it in the Mid-South Fair’s knitting competition first as part of the hats designated for MIFA donations. Although I’m also thinking about making something fancier, too. Not sure what, though. Maybe one or two or three of the gorgeous shawls available at NeedleBeetle.com. (Update: Didn’t submit anything to the fair — whatta wimp! Maybe another year.)

[Above, my unseamed, unblocked Beehive Hat]

The cool thing about making hats is that our Guild is thinking of helping fiber artist Lindsay Obermeyer with her fall community art exhibit of 500 knitted hats … all connected by a cord and worn by a *lot* of people all walking around. She calls her projects “Attachments” and has done one previously with about 60 caps. All caps are donated to a local charity afterwards, although we’re allowed to tag our charity preferences, if desired. Our Guild is trying to work things out with MIFA, the fair, and the exhibitor so that our hats can make it through this knitting trifecta. Should be a blast. (Update: We didn’t do much. But I did donate 3-4 kitchen-size trash bags full of acrylic yarn for Lindsay to use in her teaching visits to local schools. It was keeping me from buying yarn that I LIKED and also keeping me from knitting since I didn’t love the stuff. (Most of it was inherited from my mom’s long-shelved knitting and crocheting projects, or else it was yarn I bought and then didn’t like. But it’s perfect for someone who doesn’t want the trouble of washing wool items.)

Meanwhile, I’m making caps this summer! This first one I chose because (1) it’s cute, (2) it gave me a chance to practice my honeycomb cable stitch, and (3) it’s a tiny little seaming project, and I simply *must* learn this skill sometime if I want to progress beyond afghans and knitting in the round. Too many cute pieced sweater patterns out there.

So, as for this beehive hat, I made it to gauge — I swear I did — but it makes up REALLY, really small, as I guessed after my first few rows. It might fit an elementary-age child.

[Beehive Hat, opened up and unseamed. The pattern went to plain stockinette stitch across the top — the middle of this fabric — to make folding at this edge easier.]

I bought one of those No Dye Lot (yeah, right) RedHeart skeins of yarn in 0321 Gold and didn’t use up more than 1/4 of the 8-ounce skein (if that much) for the hat, so I have plenty for the larger version I’m making next.

Now if I can just get past my total loathing of all things related to “seaming.” The audiologist and desk clerk at my ENT’s office (both of whom have started knitting since I’ve been coming in there with all my yarns and needles) recommended that I stop by a local yarn store’s Monday-evening free knit-in sessions for some seaming advice. An excellent idea! I only wish today were Monday! (Patience is not one of my virtues. Nope. Not at all.)

[Here's my first, okay second — OKAY! FIFTH! — attempt at seaming it. We'll see how it progresses. I may need a "fifth" before I'm finished!]

Best wishes to you knitties out there!

Technorati Tags: sinus surgery, Beehive Hat, MIFA, hat knitting, cap knitting, charity knitting, Lindsay Obermeyer, Attachments knit project, knit art, knitblog, LoopyKnits.com, Carolyn Bahm

Between the Saturday soccer game for my younger daughter (the Fusions are 3-0 — woohoo!) and picking her up from a birthday party where we dropped her off immediately after the game, my family rode around to several neighborhood yard sales. I’ve been curious about what some other economy-minded knitters have mentioned and wanted to try it for myself. The new-to-me concept was “recycling” old sweaters from yard sales and thrift stores.

So …

I found four chenille sweaters, two angora mixes, and one soft lambswool top that I coveted, along with one ramie-cotton blend that I may just keep but still have in the “may unravel someday” pile. And I left a whole LOT of scratchy wools on their lonely hangers at the yard sales. (New motto: Life’s too short to knit with scratchy wool.) All had some signs of wear or staining, so I spent a grand total of five bucks and spent the evening happily snipping and ripping and rolling. (FYI, I did check — all of them were ones that were pieced together, not knit fabric that had been cut and sewn. So I got substantial yardage out of the sweaters’ yarns.) Haven’t unraveled the pink or the blue lambswool sweaters yet; when I tried on the pink, the fuzzy part of the yarn kept catching enough that it broke the fine thread. So that may not have been a good purchase; I guess it was a machine-knit sweater using really fine threads. But we’ll see. It’s a good lap project for some evening when I’m sitting in front of the TV.

I also scored two dresses, a blouse, one sweater, and a crocheted top for my older daughter and four books for my younger girl. Who says I can’t shop for bargains? *Triumphant grin*

[Update: I eventually decided I'm really NOT an unraveller at heart. The pink sweater's yarn was too hard to unravel (imagine trying to pick apart a much-washed sweater where the fibers have somewhat locked together), my older daughter claimed several of the smaller sweaters I'd planned to unravel, and even the chenille looked -- literally -- threadbare when I pulled the stitching apart. Oh well. Live and learn.]

Technorati Tags: yard sales, yarn scavenging, recycling yarn, recycling sweaters, knitblog, LoopyKnits.com, Carolyn Bahm