Home, Muggy, Home

We're back from our trip to San Diego and I'm happy to report that everything went very well and everyone said, "I do". It was a whirlwind of a trip between trying to get last minute wedding stuff done and also spending time with Bryan's family and attempting to see friends that we haven't seen since September. We all had a great time and I feel so blessed that I was able to have that time with everyone.

I brought 2 projects along with me on this trip. I needed a sock for plane knitting and thought it only appropriate that it was a Trekking sock that came with me. The blues in the yarn remind me of the ocean and so I have dubbed this yarn my "California Blues Socks". The sock pattern isn't anything fancy, just a 2" 3x1 rib at the cuff and stockinette for everything else. I have the basic sock pattern memorized now and I find that so freeing!

In what can only be described as a sheer act of madness, I also decided that I would try to make a wrap in time for Heather's wedding. I started on a drop stitch wrap on Friday night (May 26) and worked frantically on it. The yarn was some dk weight handspun, hand-dyed from a local farm and when I saw it at Simply Fibers, I fell in love. I worked it on a Denise circ, size 9US and it was airy and light, perfect for a summer wedding. By the grace of God and by the skin of my teeth, I finished the wrap at 2:00am (Pacific Time) on Friday morning (June 2) and blocked it that afternoon. You'd think that for all the work I put into it that I'd have a picture of me wearing it at the wedding reception. Well, I don't. However, I do plan on wearing it to the WWKIP get together tomorrow and perhaps I can convince one of the other kind knitters to help me get a good picture of it.

On Monday, after all the wedding festivities had ended, Mom and I were able to steal away and venture into our home turf of northern San Diego County and visit a yarn store called The Black Sheep. It was Mom's birthday (I won't divulge numbers!) and wow, what a way to celebrate. This store was amazing. They had more yarn than you could shake a stick at. I stood in front of the wall of Collinette and just stared for a while.

Mom bought some ribbon yarn to make a summer wrap and more Manos for felted bags. She literally had to buy a separate suitcase for all the yarn she was bringing home from this trip and I think she was in absolute heaven. I found a lot of beautiful yarn, but only ended up coming home with a small Lantern Moon bag to keep my current sock in. (I love my Trekking and it's too nice to carry around in a ziplock bag!)

The Black Sheep is located in one of the more wealthy areas of San Diego County and so we weren't too surprised to see yarn selling for $48 per skein. What did throw us a bit off was a woman buying yarn to make her friend a wrap that almost matched her own. We admired the yarn and her wrap and mentioned how thoughtful it was to be making something for a friend. This woman and Mom were at the registers at the same time and Mom did a great job of keeping her composure when the other woman's yarn rang up at a total of $950.

P.S. I finished the pillowcases for Heather and Spencer and she loved them! She also appreciated the alien head dishcloth that I made for Spencer. I'd love to find a chart for Darth Vader or Yoda because my new brother-in-law is a Star Wars fanatic.