Old habits die hard

I'm beginning to think that it is impossible for me to knit justone  pair of socks at a time. I really don't think I can do it. The gorgeous and yummy sock yarn calls out to me like the sirens of ancient times. That is not enough to get me to cast on yet another pair of socks. What gets me every time is the pitiful cry of poor naked DPN's shivering from the cold. Can't have that! Clearly they've figured out how effective the guilt angle works as they get me every time. I think they've been talking to my kids.


If this was a dinosaur, I'd have to call it a riposaurus. I've ripped back twice now and am hoping third time is a charm.

What can I say,  but sometimes a gal just needs bright and sunny.













These ones are for someone I call Mr. Amazing.

These socks will be my will be a sight to behold when finished. They are for my DD #2, who is now a teen and a giant fan of Dr. Who. She is looking forward to her Tardis socks.













Last and certainly not least, I present a second sock. The first sock of the pair seems to be missing and I am royally freaking out mildly concerned. I knew where is was but not where it is. I really don't want to think about the possibility of the first sock not turning up. One can only handle so much tragedy in a life time.












So there you have it....my to do list.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Self Knitting Socks

Socks that knit themselves you say.....yes I say....believe it or not.

In fact, these socks knit up so fast that they didn't even get a chance to aquire any mojo.

WHAT? NO MOJO you say in horror. Yes, I'm afraid that I did wrong by these socks. What makes matters worse is that they were traveling socks, destined to be a gift. Let me explain and maybe you'll understand.

It all started, as all socks do, with sock yarn that I fell in love with.

Please Stand By Yarns came up with this very yummy skein of yarn. I saw this skein at the vendor's night one guild meeting. It was love at first sight. Apparently it was a good choice as it caught the eye of someone else when I flaunted my yarn booty of that night graciously let someone pick the yarn for their next pair of socks, from my purchases. 

If this person wasn't so amazing I would have chosen another yarn. Who is to say that this person would have remembered choosing this yarn even if it does have a really cool name.

Yes that is what she named the yarn. I'm beginning to think that I want this woman to be my new best friend.

In March I went on vacation...are you jealous yet? If not you soon will be. I left during a snow storm and arrived to sunshine and 25 degrees. I told you that you'd be jealous.

So through the air I flew and I knit along the way. I arrived at my destination and I knit, watched tv and I knit, took the train and I knit. There were road trips, a Stichnn'Bitch, alpaca petting, camping, wine tasting, fishing, movie watching and I knit through it all. The holiday was 2 1/2 weeks long but for some reason I found myself with a finished pair of socks well before the holiday was over. 

Seriously what is up with this? Somewhere in my archives you'll read a post about how slow I knit. I even wrote a song about how slow I knit!

UMMMMMM.......

I have a confession......even though these were supposed to be my traveling socks....

I couldn't resist starting them well before my trip started and the momemt I stepped on the plane, I was working on the heel of the first sock. The colours mesmorized me and I couldn't stop myself. I was a machine, a wild and crazy sock knitting machine. I don't know how it happened, it was like a scene from Harry Potter. The yarn just flew around my needles and didn't stop until.....

Good thing I brought a second pair of socks to knit.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Built into the leg

In case you were wondering, updating my blog is what I do while I put off writing an essay.

Usually I just knit, but today I thought that's I'd try this instead. What is it about knitting socks? I love the yarn, the colours, the texture, the feel...the everything. They are the perfect traveling project and go with me every where. Among knitters, the traveling sock seems to be an icon, or a statement of "I was there."

In March 2010 I found myself on the journey of a lifetime. If you recall my unfinished blog entries, I travelled to New Zealand and Australia and of course I brought a socks to work on. For some strange reason I put them away and forgot about them until I started going through my stash of the more yummy yarns. Lo and behold....tadah!!!! My lovely Lorna's Laces socks.

It took me a few tries along with some ripping out to come up with a pattern to use with this yarn but on a trip to Sandbanks Provincial Park, it came to me. Here I am almost at the end of the second sock about an inch from starting the toe. A very exciting moment indeed. I should also mention that this sock yarn is as nice to work with as it is gorgeous.





But wait what is this???? A hidden treasure???? Nah...I just discovered that when using sock yarn that comes in 50g amounts, the leg of the sock makes a wonderful ball holder even when there is not much left. The ball is generally tucked up into the leg but is at the cuff for the picture.



Could anyone blame me for putting off essay writing when I have this temptation sitting next to me???? I can only resist so much for so long.....ohhhhhh is that Malabrigo Sock Yarn....no!!! MUST WRITE ESSAY.........just dont look at the Koigu.....oh no....I looked.....

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

To Join or not to Join

I'm fighting an urge. I'm fighting an urge to buy sock yarn. This is very hard for me and to tell you the truth I really don't know why I'm even doing it. But I am fighting the urge.......quick some get me some oxygen, I need to lie down until the urge goes away.....someone please catch me, I'm feeling woozy and I'm afraid that I may faint.

Yesterday I was reading The Harlot's blog post about the Rockin' Sock Club and of course I headed over to the site. I read, I drooled, I signed up for an account and then I calculated. I am now fighting the urge and I'm wondering why.

Do I like hand painted/dyed yarn? YES

Do I like the fact that I'll get the colours before the general public? YES

Do I like the fact that I'll get sock patterns before the general public? YES

Do I mind not having to spend 2 hours staring at a display trying to decide which colour of sock yarn or pattern to buy because someone else has made those decisions? NO

Do I like the extra goodies they are including in the membership? YES

Can I afford the cost? YES

Would I like to get a yarny present, in the mail, every other month? YES

Is it possible to have too much sock yarn? NO

So why haven't I whipped out my credit card and signed up? I really don't know. I could say that it's because I'm saving for my trip and that I'll be buying enough fibre during my holiday to choke a horse. I could say that I have already gone past the point of SABLE with my sock yarn stash and am now working on my kids' inheritance. I could say that certain plans I have for later this year may make money and time tight for me.

I could also say that I've got this in my stash.....and would like to actually knit with the yarn, once, before buying even more.

But in case that's not it, if anyone sees the snatchers please tell them I'd like my body back.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

Red Faced, once again!

Last week DH and I went to the movies. This, to all who read this blog, even on a semi-regular basis, should not come as a surprise. Nor should the fact that I was knitting at the movies.

So there we were, minding our own business when the unthinkable happened. It was so horrific. I wouldn't wish this on my worst enemy.

During a quiet part of the movie, I had just finished knitting part of a round when my now free DPN escaped my left hand and fell to the floor. I have no memory of how this happened. Was it an intense moment in the movie? Did I suddenly feel the need to make a hand gesture? I have no idea!!!!! It's possible that because the event was so tragic I have blocked it out.

Picture this, if you will. You are in a dark room full of people and without warning you find yourself with only three DPNs. All you can do is sit quietly and go through the three steps of grief.

1. Embarrassment-When a needle falls to the ground you'd be surprised at how loud the sound is during a quiet part of a movie. At least I realize, that at this point if anyone starts talking I've got no right to play "no talking during movies" police. I just don't have a leg to stand on.


2. Upset- I have no idea how much longer the movie is, so I don't know how long I'll be without my knitting. At this point, DH holds my hand to help calm me.


3. Panic - If I can't find my fourth needle then there will be no knitting during the entire drive home. This will be a whole hour of lost knitting time. Tragic, tragic, tragic. Can you feel my pain?

The movie ends and the lights turn on. People quickly leave the theater. Not DH and I. We are on our hands and knees looking for my DPN. This was NOT our finest hour and the experience was more than just a little humbling.

This story does have a happy ending, we found my needle and I was able to knit all the way home.

Personally I think the socks will be worth the humiliation.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

I've been replaced!

The fact that I love making socks has never been a secret. I've been very open about my obsession of sock yarn. If you recall, I've even laid out my collection of sock yarn for the world to see.

The thing about sock knitters is as much as we love wearing our own creations, eventually we have to share the knitted love with those around us. I've found that when the recipient of knitted socks happens to be extremely fond of knitted socks, the world is your oyster.

"Look dear I bought 5 skeins of gorgeous sock yarn and this one is for you."

He is not thinking about the extra 4 skeins you bought but the pair of custom sized hand knit socks that he will eventually get.

DH loves the socks I knit for him. He refers to the department store socks as the "disposable ones". He even wears his hand knit socks for three days straight before giving them up to the laundry. Last night he was commenting on the pair that I knit for him, last month, for his birthday. They fit just right and are very soft. They have even felted slightly in the heel making that area even more soft.

I swear the whole time he was gushing about the socks, he was fondling them. What's a wife to do?????

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

A Stitch in Time

Just to give you a bit of background, DH and I love garlic. We've even converted the kids...that is if you count putting garlic in everything so the kids just get used to the taste as conversion. So when a co-worker of DH recommended going to the Perth Garlic Festival this past summer, we packed up the kids and made a day of it.

Before arriving at the fairgrounds, I noticed signs for a quilt show. Yeah....two events for the price of one trip. The quilt show was a bonus as I had no idea that it was going on at the same time. After getting four kinds of garlic to plant this fall and seeing all there was to see at the garlic fest we headed to the Lanark County Quilt Guild show, being held at the local high school.

I can't begin to tell you how gorgeous the quilts were. They were true pieces of art. Even DH, who is an artist in his own right, was impressed. He used to think that my quilting was a useful and creative hobby but after seeing the first few quilts, at the show, he now has a different opinion.

Here is a picture of my favorite quilt.

I liked the next quilt and thought that it was the most original.

How about a closer look.....

It was made with the salvage edges from fabric. It is a work of true genius.....using what would normally be thrown away and creating a piece of usable art from it. I could easily gush over this quilt because I thought it was so amazing visually and the idea behind it is just plain brilliant.

I knew that I was going to be impressed with the show overall because of what was parked at the entrance of the school. I just had to show the sock.

The sock was feeling overwhelmed and very self conscious. I will admit I had to stretch the truth a bit when I told the sock that it was just as good and impressive as a quilted car cozy. What else could I do? I didn't want the rest of the day ruined by a sock sobbing because of feelings of inadequacy. Let's face it, no one wants to wear a depressed sock.

I probably didn't help the situation by rushing to my sewing machine the minute I got home instead of continuing to knit.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

Does anyone know CPR?

I'm not an anal person. I can live with imperfections. My standards are not exceedingly high. The proof...just look at my housekeeping abilities. I'm just doing my kids a favour by helping them to boost their immune systems with small doses of germs throughout their childhood.

But how does soap scum in the shower and dog hair on the carpet relate to my knitting? While I can let most things slide......I do have high standards with my socks. My hard and fast rule, when it comes to socks, is that they must be perfectly identical.

So when it came time to finally do something with this sock yarn, I quickly realized that I would have to deal with any sock anxiety and go with the flow. This sock yarn was not going to align magically for me no matter how much I wanted it to.

Big deep breath..... I plunged in head first making sure that both socks were separate throughout the entire knitting time. I didn't need any reminders of what I was doing. Finally they were completed (almost as I still have to weave in the ends).

Much to my surprise, I'm still here. Despite the need for oxygen and the constant heart palpitations, the whole non matching socks experience didn't kill me. I am however, not ready to repeat it again, anytime soon as I wouldn't want to take any chances.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

Flashing my needles at the public

Me: This Saturday I'm going downtown to a Knit in Public event.
Teen: Why? You knit in public every day.

She does have a point but off I went to Majors Hill Park with chair and sock yarn blanket in tow. I met up with a group of ladies and had a great number of laughs. This is a picture of my view from my knitting spot under the shade of a tree.


We have a number of Gothic style buildings in Ottawa which equals lots of opportunity for sock mojo. This is the back of the Connaught Building.

While I am content to knit in the seclusion, of my corner of the world, it did make me realize that I miss a regular knitting group.

However, driving for an hour, to get together with a knitting group seems like an awful waste of valuable knitting time. What a conundrum! I need to find something local.....

But this does bring to mind the fact about how much I knit at work. I told you all that I babysit a building but I didn't mention that there are people in this building who walk by me and see me knitting. Lately some of them are calling out numbers....."7 1/2, 9, 9 1/2, 11" they sound suspiciously like shoe sizes. I think these people want socks. HAH!!!! I'll put it on my TO DO list just before the large man's sweater and the car cozy I've been asked for by these people.

A co-worker once gave me the "I can buy socks for next to nothing at Wal-Mart" spiel. (The nerve!!!!)
My reply? "That's because no one likes you enough to give you hand knit socks"

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

I Have a Problem

I like to knit socks.....that's not my problem!
I like to travel.....that's not my problem!
I like to buy sock yarn when I travel as a type of souvenir.....that's not my problem!

Here is the sock yarn that I've purchase during the last three trips.



Not a lot but so far I've only knit 2 pairs of socks from my small collection of souvenir sock stash.

Maybe it has something to do with this:





Or maybe it has something to do with this:




Yeah I think that it has something to do with my entire collection of regular stash sock yarn (there's enough for 43 pairs of socks in this picture). I tried to give full disclosure but found that 6 balls of sock yarn did not make it into the picture nor did the 7 skeins of bare sock yarn from Knit Picks.


I'm a weak woman with a problem. I enter a yarn store/wool shop and head straight for the sock yarn section. I stand amazed at all the beautiful colours. I touch, fondle and caress, then I am hooked and I can't leave the store without at least one ball or skein. Even with all the sock yarn at my finger tips I can't wait until my next fix. Eventually the urge will be so strong and I won't be able to control myself. I'll have to find a way to satisfy this urge growing deep inside and the only way to do that is to add to the stash......


I'm a Fibreholic and sock yarn is my drug of choice. I make no apologises but I think that I'll have to divide the stash again and hide it all before DH gets home tonight......just in case!!!!

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

I should have known

Sigh....there is a lot of effort going into this. Probably much more then she'll ever realize, but it was inevitable. Once the blanket started to take shape she saw the possibility and potential of this thing. She became enamored and declared the blanket hers. I don't blame her though, if I were my teen, I'd probably do the same.

On the recommendation of Taph, I've decided not to publicly beg for leftovers of sock yarn. However being the ....ahem....the collector.....of sock yarn that I am, I'll never lack materials for this blanket. When you have your own stash that you are trying to control there is no need to add to the chaos with the help of other. I am doing a good job of it all on my own.

As with many mother/daughter relationships we have discovered that we are at an impasse in our opinion of the construction of this blanket. I see a great sock yarn and think about the wonderful socks. She sees the same yarn and wants it to go immediately into the blanket. She not quite there yet on the concept of leftovers yet...that....and patience. Since I am the one knitting this project, she has realized that she must resign herself to waiting for the finished product for however long it takes. It's a life lesson that she's not too thrilled about.

So without further ado, here is an update of my mitered square, leftover sock yarn blanket.

Until next time

Yours in Yarn,

The Fibreholic

On the Road to Rhinebeck

I've made a decision.

Many of you will not be surprised, in the least, by this decision.

It is in no way life altering or the answer to world peace.

I've decided, that each year, I should take some kind of yarn/knitting/stash enhancement trip.

This year's S.E.X.(y) trip is none other than a visit to New York's famous wool and sheep festival in Rhinebeck.Ever since I've moved to the area, I've been wanting to go, so the trip has been on my TO DO list for some time. When Mad Mad wrote about her trip to Rhinebeck last year, I knew that it was time to go.

Now for me, planning a trip is actually part of the fun of actually going on the trip. So the earlier I get to plan and the more I get to plan, the more fun I'll have with my pre-trip. Please don't get me wrong, when I eventually go to a place I've been known to throw out the planning/schedule out the window and follow my nose to the great unknown. I've seen some neat things and encountered some amazing people this way.

For the Dutchess County Sheep and Wool Festival, there is little to plan out. Show up and take in all there is to offer: book signings, fleece auction, livestock show etc.....and lots of shopping!!!! But there were a few things that I had to consider: how to get there and where to stay. Rhinebeck is several hours away and I didn't want to waste all that valuable knitting time by driving myself there. Also since people didn't start to discuss sharing rides to Rhinebeck, on Ravelry, until the beginning of September, I didn't want to wait until then to firm up any plans.

In February, I attended the local Spin-In and wouldn't you know it, my answer was there. A member of a spinning guild from NY was there trying to get additional people to sign up for their bus trip to Rhinebeck. I jumped on the offer faster than you can say "cashmere is my friend". The group has also booked a block of rooms in a nearby motel so I was able to get a reduced rate as well.

Since that trip is nicely wrapped up with a ribbon and a tag that says TO: The Fibreholic, I tried to sneak in a second S.E.X.(y) trip. DH wants to go away for a weekend, for our 20th anniversary. Yes, Virginia, I have been married for almost 20 years. Well, it just so happens that the Sock Summit is happening around that time....heh heh heh.

Sigh....DH caught on and has put his foot down and has declared that we are not going anywhere near Oregon during that time. There was something about how the trip was supposed to be about us and spending time together. ARRRGGGGHHH how that man can be unreasonable!!!!!! I'll just have to make sure that the route we take, to where ever we go has yarny/wooly type shops along the way.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Head over Heels

I'm in love and that is all there is to it. At first I wasn't but then....little by little my resolve was broken down and now I am head over heels in love. But before I go any further let me remind you of this journey I've taken to get to this point off utter romantic bliss.

At first there was the brilliant colour change.
I was smitten but then I realized I was in way over my head and I backed off.


I decided to try again....something was pulling me back....I had an irresistible urge to try again.

But not even the thought of a sock held my heart for very long. Soon my attentions were elsewhere and I decided that it really wasn't love after all....merely something similar to adolescent infatuation.

I put the project on the shelf and promptly forgot about it. I'm only human and there is so much out there to catch my eye and seize my knitting senses. This yarn, however, was not ready to go down without a fight and be so easily put aside like some bad date. Eventually this poor lonely yarn cried out to me in such agony begging for another chance that I couldn't say no. This merino/silk blend tugged on my heart strings and I couldn't help myself.

I was hooked from the moment I started the stitch pattern. Such passion I now had for this sock yarn that I couldn't help myself. I worked exclusively on these socks and soon this yarn was what it was always meant to be....



My heart is yours....forever and ever......sigh.....so this is what true love feel like. Ahhhhh such peaceful contentment.

But wait a minute....what are these that have just fallen off my needles??? My..... aren't they lovely??? What do they call you???? Monkey Socks????? What a lovely name. If I may....could I just please slip my feet into you, even if only for a moment?



I should probably feel bad or guilty for this sock infidelity.....but I don't.....life is too short for such things and you should see the socks I have on the go right now.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Punishment for a Bad Blogger

Yup....I'm a bad blogger.

I wish that I could say that I've been keeping up with every one's blog and just not commenting. Sigh....but I can't even say that.

I wish that I could blame it on one single thing like having dial up or working long hours during the holiday rush. But that wouldn't be entirely correct.......

I wish that I could blame it on being such a good mother that I've been spending all my time with the kids and baking cookies. That didn't happen.....

I wish that I could blame it on going here and there and to every fab place and attending wildly exciting holiday parties. HAH....don't make me laugh.

If the blame lies anywhere, it's probably in the socks that I decided to knit for Christmas. So while I'm pre-occupied with all the holiday happenings, I was able to squeeze in 4 pairs of socks. Yeah for me! Three of them were made from my stash! Double yeah for me!

So what do I do to punish myself? What could I possibly do to make up for ignoring friends both near and far? What could I do to that would make sure that I would never again put my blogging aside for other less worthy diversions?

Hmmmm I could promise to make the teen's boyfriend, of three months, a pair of socks.

He's got size 13 feet.

That would be punishment enough for any knitter!!!

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Here there be knitting

Last Fall I had the ever so brilliant idea to knit socks as Christmas gifts this year. I started with my sister but unfortunately I kept going of the feet until they fit me.

I'm sure that there must be something Freudian in there somewhere.

A couple of weeks ago (maybe three...possibly four) I decided to try again. This time I stopped the foot in time.

Going from left to right:
1) For my sister
2) For my sister-in law
3) For my brother (in progress but I'm on the foot of both socks for him)
Brownie Points for me....Two of these socks came from stash sock yarn.The third needed to be purchased as I'm not in the habit of stashing anything gray.



I just might be able to pull this off!!!

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

I'm going slightly Mad

I can't blame Ravelry!
I can't blame the Yarn Harlot!
I can't even blame it on Shelley Kang!
I place the blame, in its entirety, on Emily.

There I was, minding my own business, when Emily began to knit a mitered square, using leftover sock yarn. She informed me that once a million of these were done, she would then sew them together for an afghan.

Now speaking as someone who claims to have invented the crazy sock, I have to ask myself....Why didn't I think of this first? Could it be that I'm a little too obsessed with socks? But really...is that such a bad thing? I've been told that occasionally I'm a perfectly normal individual, but I think that the jury is still out on that one.

Here is proof of my decent into Madness!


I realize that I've only just begun this project, but I've already come to the conclusion that I have to:

A) buy more sock yarn

or

B) hold some type of contest thing. I would ask everyone for donations of their leftover sock yarn. Everyone who sent/gave me some would then have their name go into a draw for a full skein of some very yummy sock yarn.

I'll let you know what happens.

And if you're wondering.....and even if you're not........the mitered square, currently on the needles, I have a pair of socks made with that sock yarn. It is another random dye job. The teen called the colour "vomit" and wanted nothing to do with it.

That is until I knit up a pair of socks with the yarn.....NOW she wants them.

But who can blame her......they're gorgeous. Now before any of you choke on that last statement, I do put these socks in the "only a mother could love" category. So I don't want any comments about how my ugly socks have somehow offended the stylish sense of colour among the fibre arts community. Considering some of the stupid things that the Canadian government has paid big bucks for because someone called it art, my socks are the least of your worries.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

Has any one seen my free time?

Hi everyone

Yes it's me, the Fibreholic. I know it's been awhile and I know that my postings have been very sporadic as of late. But I do have a very good excuse.

There I was at the end of July, minding my own business, playing video games doing something very important when the teen tells me that there is a message on the phone. Since she wants to log back on I need to listen to the message to get the dial tone back. (Yes the Fibreholic is still living in the dark ages and has to put up with dial up)

Long story short, because you all know that I don't like to go on and on and drag out a story to its bitter end, I've been working full time for almost three months. I won't go into the gory details of this job, but it will do until I get a full time position traveling the world as a writer for the Lonely Planet publications.

So in the meantime, I now have the money to buy the fibre I want BUT I now lack the free time, I used to have, to enjoy it. So if anyone reading this, has any spare free time they don't know what to do with...just send it my way....PLEASE!

THE SOCK PATTERN

It seems that there was an interest in the pattern I used for my free sock yarn. So here it is:

The stitch pattern requires a multiple of 4 stitches.

Round 1, 3 and 5 - Knit
Round 2 and 4 - *K1, slip 3 with yarn in front (holding yarn loosely) repeat from *
Round 6 - *K2, insert needle under the long loose strands of 2 previous rounds and knit the next stitch, K3; repeat from * end K1 instead of K3.

NOW YOU WILL HAVE TO FUDGE A BIT AND SLIDE THE STITCHES AT THE BEGINNING OF THE ROUND OVER A BIT. Before Starting round 8 slide the first 2 stitches of the round over to the right hand needle and start the round.

Round 7, 9 AND 11- Knit
Round 8 and 10 - *K1, slip 3 with yarn in front (holding yarn loosely) repeat from *

Round 12 - *K2, insert needle under the long loose strands of 2 previous rounds and knit the next stitch, K3; repeat from * end K1 instead of K3.

REMEMBER THOSE 2 STITCHES YOU PUT ON THE RIGHT HAND NEEDLE? SLIDE THEM BACK TO THE LEFT HAND NEEDLE AND START ROUND 1.

This stitch pattern was developed for flat knitting. This is why I have you moving over the beginning of the round in the stitch pattern.

So is this clear as mud???? Feel free to e-mail me if you have any questions.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

The Trial of TOFUtsies

The Trial
Enter the defendant, TOFUtsies by SWTC.



I bought this yarn in January '07 and about the April time frame, of that year, I knit a pair of plain toe up socks. The first time I washed them, disaster struck. The dye washed out and my vibrant socks were merely a shadow of their former selves. I was devastated, ladies and gentleman, simply devastated. Here I had put all this work into my socks and with one wash they went from Beautiful to Blah.

I wrote to SWTC (attorney for the defendant) told them what happened, gave them the info on the ball band but received no reply. The socks were left to defend themselves on their own without representation from the company.

THE VERDICT



I vowed to never buy another ball of TOFUtsies and told the requisite 12 people of my bad experience but while I was at STITCHES MIDWEST this past August I met Audrey, public defender for this yarn.

THE APPEAL

After dropping off a load of yarn into the car, Kathy and I returned to the vendors' area to continue shopping. Kathy likes TOFUtsies and stopped at a booth to purchase a ball. This is where I met Audrey, owner of Needles & Knobs. I complained about this yarn and told her the story of my ill fated socks and why I have a hate-on for this yarn and the company.

Audrey was determined to get me to change my mind, to rethink my position and to exonerate this sock yarn. She believes in this yarn so much that she gave me a ball to try out.



I was leery and doubtful but who am I to turn down a free ball of sock yarn. I knit and knit and knit. I even designed a sock pattern for this momentous occasion. Mind you all the while thinking that if history repeated itself I would be severely ticked at myself for putting in all this effort.

THE VERDICT



The socks have been washed and they look great. My faith has been restored in TOFUtsies but SWTC still on my black list for their lack of customer service.

So if you are ever in St. Petersburg, Florida go see Audrey at Needles & Knobs. You'll be glad you did!

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

The seven rules of yarn acquisition

1. Make your yarn purchases while on vacation. You'll be able to justify them as souvenirs.
2. Even better, while on vacation, without your DH. If he must come along, distract him with a computer store or food.
   
3. Use cash whenever possible, it eliminates the paper trail.
   
4. When packing for the holiday, pack only the essentials to leave as much room in your suitcase, as you can, for the trip home.
5. When packing for the trip home, layer your suitcase. Yarn goes on the bottom, then clothes with the gifts for the kiddies on top.
6. Distract family with gifts and bring suitcase to your room.
7. Unpack the next day, when no one is around.

50/50 Alpaca/Merino bought from WEBS


one ball of 3ply fingering that I won, three skeins of Noro Transitions that were so cheap, you'd think they were stolen


A full bag of Ella rae bought from a place that was selling their yarn in full bags. In their booth they had a fenced off area and had it piled high with the full bags. According to one staff member, a lady actually jumped into the pile and wallowed amongst the fibres. They weren't pleased as she destroyed many labels. some people have no respect.


Of course there was sock yarn purchases. According to Tink, this doesn't count at all for stash. I did get another ball of sock yarn, but there is a story behind that which deserves its own blog post.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic

You did.....WHAT???

ME: I've been invited to go to Chicago for STITCHES MIDWEST and stay at a complete stranger's house.

General response: WHAT??? Are you crazy? You don't know anything about this person. This person could be a serial killer. Your children need their mother.

Complete Stranger: I've met someone on the Internet and invited her to come to STITCHES and stay at our house .

General response: WHAT??? You did what??? You don't know anything about this person. She could be a crazy homicidal maniac.

You get the picture. From both camps we had people looking for ways to lock us up for our own protection for clearly we had lost it and gone loopy with this hair brained plan.

Funny thing is, the only person who didn't say anything about this plan was my DH. He may have thought it, but did not say word regarding the state of my sanity.

Thursday the 21st, the sock and I headed off to Chicago for our latest adventure. Kathy met me at the airport and we headed off to her place for lunch. On our way we told each other of the secret plots to have us committed because of the plan.

Kathy( after lunch): Look, all kinds of knives lying around and no one got stabbed.

A STITCHES event.

It's hard to describe. Maybe this is the place that good knitters go when they die. Aisle after aisle of yarn, needles, books and knitting gadgets, it was enough to make even the hardest hearted knitter cry. There was even an underlying scent of vinegar from all the hand dyed skeins. More than once Kathy caught me smelling skeins of wool.

I did my best to purchase only the yarns that are not locally available. However when you find Noro Transitions at 1/3 of the price you can get it locally, you just have to go for it.

I did take classes, one on the Estonian Patent stitch with Merike Saarniit and math for knitters with Edie Eckman. Both very informative and both very useful. I can't wait to impress everyone in the near future.

The sock was overwhelmed by the whole thing and was very emotional when I told it where we were going and who we would see. I was able to calm the sock down by starting to knit the heel. The sock did okay and managed not to embarrass me despite being severely star struck.



Merike Saarniit, queen of the Estonian Patent Stitch.



Edie Eckman, simplifying math for knitter's everywhere.

Stay tuned for more from my Chicago adventure.

Until next time
Yours in Yarn,
The Fibreholic