No, it's not Tiffany's, silly! It's Pins and Needles, my new favorite store (that I happened to just wander into for the first time this afternoon)!
Long story short, I have wanted to knit SockPixie's February beret (which can be found here) for a looong but didn't have the time during the school year to pore over the pattern, and didn't own the correct size needles OR have the necessary yarn lying around. So after realizing that I've been home for 6 weeks already and have accomplished absolutely NOTHING, I've decided to knit it, whee!
Of course, there was still the problem of not having any of the necessary supplies. I was about to order some good-looking stuff online when my mom reminded me of this cute little shop in town that specializes in knitting and needlepoint supplies, so I dropped in this afternoon. It was such a pleasant experience! The woman in the shop was incredibly helpful, especially for a baby knitter like me, and helped me pick the right yarn for the gauge called for in the pattern.
Isn't it delicious?
I settled on a Dream in Color yarn in a turquoise-ish color called Superwash. It's hand painted so it has this nice, subtle shading to it, and it's super soft!
The woman in the store then taught me how to wind the yarn into its own little self-contained spool, and even let me open a pack of needles to test my gauge! It was actually awesome she did that because I needed to go a needle size down from the one called for in the pattern. AND she said they are always available to help if I get stuck, which will definitely come in handy as I am tackling an I Cord and grafting live stitches (eek!) for the first time. Needless (needles?) to say, I am very happy with this new find.
Look! My own tamed yarn-ball!
Also I lied a bit, I guess. My friend has lent me three seasons of 30Rock, and after a brief watching hiatus I am back at it in full force. In the past two days I've watched two-thirds of the third season and finished a scarf I've been working on. Now, I know what you might be thinking. Berets? Scarves? Aren't these winter clothing items?
Well actually yeah, I guess they are, technically. But to be fair the scarf is lace, so it would be perfect for cooler days like today! Where it is only in the low 70s! I'm actually wearing a light scarf right now. Anyway, check it out:
The pattern is from knitzofrenic-- I found it and decided I had to knit it, even though I didn't have a recipient in mind, but after a couple of weeks of my mom walking past and cooing every time she sees it I am sure it will have a happy home while I'm at school.
This scarf is super easy to knit. Seriously. This was only my second lacework project but it's essentially four rows repeated over and over and was painless to memorize. I didn't look at the pattern past the first five or so minutes I started working on it-- it's that simple! There's no gauge either (because it's a scarf), so I was able to use some of the random yarn I have lying around the house/have inherited from my great-grandmother. The scarf is still super curly in the picture because I still have to block it, but it's going to turn out beautifully.
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