While I was away, I started and finished a hat out of one of the GORGEOUS hanks of Malabrigo (Emerald colorway) that I got (see last post) for my mom, and now I am about halfway through a cowl to go with it. I'm still going to have more left, so maybe its time to start on mittens? I haven't decided yet. BUT! She called me a couple of week ago to tell me that she had stopped somewhere on a road trip with my dad, and that someone had complimented her on the hat! Yay me!! : D As a side note, I did a lot of the hat while I was in PR... it is a strange strange sensation to be knitting in a tropical climate. At least with wool... hm.
In other knitting news, my friend Jo and I went to Vogue Knitting LIVE in NYC January 22nd and 23rd. SO MUCH FUN!! I blew a month's yarn budget in two days, but it was totally worth it!
We went to a lecture called "Turning Your Passion Into a Business", which was not at all what we expected, but still, very, very interesting. It was given by Nadine Curtis, the founder of Be Sweet, a yarn, knitwear, etc. company that works with Mohair vendors in South Africa. Its a really inspiring story, and its nice to know that it is possible to be successful with a truly socially responsible business model. You should check her out! Its probably not the kind of business that I will be starting anytime soon, but it was a really interesting experience to hear about. After the lecture, we decided to check out the yarn market... Oh my god! I have never seen anything like this in my life! It was wall to wall people, and hundreds of vendors selling yarns, needles, anything related to knitting. It was amazing! I got lots of yarn... Two of my purchases are meant to become my first couple of sweaters, which I am super excited for, and I bought my first yarn in a weight small than worsted... Lace weight, because...
My second and last class for the weekend was a class called "Understanding Lace" with the fabulous Sarah Hatton of Rowan design studios. Now, obviously, I have NEVER attempted lace knitting before... But I have always thought that it is just so, so pretty. So I knew I wanted to learn it, and what better way than from a professional knitter/designer. The class was a challenge, to be sure, but Sarah was SO much fun to be around! She is British, which in itself makes everything she says much more interesting to listen to... But also, she has this personality that it is impossible not to love. She was telling stories about her boyfriend, her travels in America so far, and the way that Americans interpret British culture in TV shows. She was, in a word, a hoot! The class was meant to really be a design class as much as an actual technique class, so she started out by showing us samples that she had knitted, and told us to pick out the patterns from a selection on the papers she had given us, which was harder than it sounds. She then started us designing our own lace pattern on graph paper. I think I still have some problems with mine, but I at least know enough now to find my mistakes. It was a great experience.
So now, I am back home, without any other major trips planned for a little bit, and I am getting down to some serious stash/project planning. I have the somewhat urgent need for some fingerless mittens for work, because they keep the area where my desk is at roughly the temperature of a cooler case at Starbucks. I'm thinking my Malabrigo in the Verdes colorway for that, and then, additionally, a scarf and hat set maybe? I also got some really fun yarn from my college roommate, Chryssy, for Christmas, which I really want to do something with soon. The yarn is green and sparkly, and I don't know if I have enough of it for what I really want to make out of it, but I am going to try. So new projects soon, and hopefully some pictures of my new yarns, but in the meantime, here is a fun one from Vogue:
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