Friday, January 21, 2011

{Yarn! and Knitting!}

How is it you folks do it?  How do you work for 8 or 9 hours a day and still have energy for anything else?  This internship has me worried about my ability to function in the real world.  When I go to school you see there are days where I work from home and I have a chance to cook and tidy the house and even get some knitting in.  It's not like I'm taking easy classes or anything... I'm a Math major, but still.  Now this accounting internship (which I am really enjoying! Surprise to me!) is from 8:30 to 4:30 Monday through Friday, but since I'm an hour away I'm out of the house from about 7:30 until 6.  When I get home I'm not in the mood for anything  except vegging out with a bowl of cereal in front of some blogs or a tv show.  Once the weekend hits, I don't even bother to get dressed unless I have to go out for groceries or something. lol  So I say again... how do you do it!? I know some of you peeps have kids and responsibilities and stuff.  LOL

Needless to say, my knitting has consisted of my stockinette Pipit (details to come) , and a VERY easy lace pattern (K2Tog, Yo) kind of stuff for this pretty cowl/ scarf: The Mustard  Scarf.


I'm knitting mine is some GORGEOUS aran weight Debbie Bliss Alpaca/Silk that my friend at Susie F Handmade gave me as part of her destash!  She gave me two 50g balls of cream and one of black.   I'm using size 15 needles for this! They're so cartoonishly large they are cracking me up laughing! It's like knitting with Tent Pegs! hehehe  That project is not quite done.  I think I'm going to use my large Antler Buttons mom gave me for Christmas LAST year on this one. I'm so excited to wear it!

I'm also excited about buying YARN!  I got a $50 rebate for my recent cell phone purchase and have been given the go ahead to use it JUST for buying yarn! YAY!  But now that I have the opportunity to buy yarn,  I'm so lost in all the choices!  Do I buy two skeins of fantastic sock yarn? (one for a shawl, one for socks of course).  Do I buy more of something less expensive?  I'm always looking to get a great bang for my buck and I want to spend my money somewhere worth while if I'm paying regular retail, ya know?

So here's a few of my options I'm liking:

Lingonberry Jam - SW Merino/nylon sock yarn . $23 + $2.50 shipping from Springtree Road .

 Zen Yarn Garden's Squooshy - $23,50 + unknown shipping.  I've already had a great experience with socks here. They're washing in the machine great! 

I've heard good things about Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock.   The nice thing about these is they're about half the price at about $12!  I might give this a try.  It'd just make my money go so much farther!

 I've knit one pair of socks already with Araucania Rancho, but not the sock version with a bit of Nylon.  Also a good price for the yardage at $15.

These look really pretty from ToPlyFiberArts:

Sea Glass is 80/20 Superwash and Nylon again, a great price at $15.  I like that it's hand dyed by an Etsy artist.  She charges $2.50 for shipping, but then only 75 cents for each additional item... hmmmm.... 

What's your favorite Sock Yarn? Do you dye your own on Etsy? I'd love to see it!  What's your favorite online sock store?  Let's hear it!

Hey, this is kinda Find A Deal Friday, isn't it? Neato!

 

14 comments:

  1. All that yarn is gorgeous. I would never be able to decide.

    As for time. I think once a person gets into a routine, the energy to do other things comes back.

    I started a new job back in August and I was just as drained as you seem to be. I barely knit a stitch from August to October. Then slowly I figured out my new routine and I get more done during the week and week-ends.

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  3. Work life is definatly hard; I think you are right, the worst part is being out of the house for 10 hours a day, and then having to squeeze everything into the evenings when all you want to do is veg out. It does get easier... Or maybe you just get used to getting by with less sleep(?) don't worry!

    Agree with your choice of seaglass, its beautiful. Not sure how well it would work for lace shawl though with its nylon content it may not block out well...? Lorna's laces is really really lovely, and I like the butterscotch colourway. Get it while its cheap hun!

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  4. Hey hun!

    I LOVE Lorna's laces sock yarn, although a skein is NOT enough for a pair of socks! So you're not saving as much as you think. I was actually looking for a cheap seller of this yarn yestrday, but so far I've decided that I probably won't buy any of it when I come visit, as it isn't much more expensive over here.

    Oh, I've made a wish list on KnitPicks. So far I'm up to 328 dollars... I don't think I'll be able to fit all of that in a suitcase!

    Skype this weekend?

    Hugs / Jenny

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  5. I just bought some Lorna's Laces Shepard Sock in Butterscotch! I fell in love with the Shepard Worsted, so wanted to try the sock. I love that first one!

    One of my online sellers is having a buy two get third free...I'll find it and post again...

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  6. http://www.etsy.com/shop/allforloveofyarn

    I just recently joined her tea and yarn club and haven't used the yarn yet....

    And yeah, when I go back to teaching in Aug/Sept, I always have to readjust my schedule

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  7. Life with work is tough (and I have two kids, pregnant with the third) - definitely a balancing act. I stayed home for a bit and then went back to work full time. I love my job, but it did take some time to adjust. We ate a lot of takeout the first month. Just give yourself some time and you'll wonder what you did with all your free time before!

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  8. I guess I'm fortunate in that vegging out is rarely ever relaxing for me at all. Glad to see you're keeping with the knitting even with the work. Get my facebook message?

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  9. I feel the same way when school starts up after break. Luckily this semester I can work full time and take night classes and online classes. Last semester I had to take one day off each week for classes. It totally sucked.
    As far as yarn shopping goes, I always check ebay for the brands that I love. Often times they have great deals and you can get some really good prices.

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  10. You might want to check out the web store for Impulse of Delight. Her yarn is beautiful beyond description!

    I don't know how I worked full time and raised two kids as a single mother. Now that I'm an empty-nester, I love to come home, put on my jammies and knit!

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  11. I love the mustardy color of your scarf and that lingonberry jam yarn. My favorite sock yarn for softness and colors is Malabrigo, but it's probably not the best choice for being able to throw in the washing machine. My socks that I've knit from Lorna's laces have held up well even with machine washing and years of wear, but as someone else mentioned, you need two skeins for an average pair of socks. Have fun spending your rebate!

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  12. Ooh, it's nice to hear what you're making with the eDebbie Bliss. Hope it goes well.

    As for stashing up, those yarns are lovely, especially the lingonberry

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  13. Hi Sarah,

    Funny you should post a picture of that lady with her cowl scarf - Jane Richmond - as I know her! She lives here in Victoria like I do, and has been to our local knitting group a few time. Very sweet gal :-)

    Oh, yes, and while I don't sell my goods through Etsy anymore, I do dye my own yarn, and love knitting with sock yarn!

    best,
    Ursa

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  14. HA! Yeah there's some transition from school to the "real world" I remember that every time I started a coop quarter (quarter of working in an architecture firm full time) I would have a couple of weeks where I needed to nap after work. It certainly is an adjustment!

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