There are many fun things about being a designer of handknitting patterns, but probably topping the list is discovering new-to-me (and maybe out-of-my-comfort-zone) yarns and fibers.
We all have our go-to brands, the ones that never let us down, that always get us gauge, that always come in the exact color we envision for our FOs. Before I began designing, I was strictly a solid-color worsted girl--the occasional DK might work its way into the stash, but usually only because I was doing colorwork. And to buy something other than faithful old worsted felt like, well, cheating on old faithful.
But then came Ravelry and knitting podcasts and online yarn sales and indie dyers, and suddenly, I was tempted by the many fruits of many others. And then, last year, when a package of yarn arrived from one of my favorite knitting magazines and out spilled seven skeins of a cashmere/silk blend, I fell hard. I was reminded of the song we used to sing in Girl Scouts: "Make new friends, but keep the old. One is silver and the other gold."
With that thought, may I present this year's Rhinebeck stash enhancement? Just as I always used to buy worsteds in solid colors by rote, while browsing the 2013 barns, I was equally unaware of my blossoming obsession (and I am not a sock knitter!): Sport/sock weight multis, anyone?
If you're having a similar yarn obsession, check out the vendors at: Good Karma Farm, Oasis Farm Fiber Mill, Miss Babs, Still River Mill.
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