Baa, Baa, Black Sheep, Have you any wool?

I have some.

I certainly have A Lot Less than I did Yesterday, and damn, it feels good. All my sock yarn fits in ONE BIN, except for the Smooshy!, which is a special case. Here's a picture of everything I took that I wanted to get rid of.

 

That there is a laundry basket full to bursting with sock wool. I sold most of it, and I have to admit something here: most of what didn't sell has already been absorbed back into the stash. It was skeins I was fond of, but couldn't justify keeping. I took them to the sale, no one wanted them, so I kept them for myself. They will have a long happy life in the stash, and someday, someday they will be USED! Because I can see past the distractions and handpaints and tencel and cashmere and goats and bunnies in my stash.  Now that most of those showy handpaints are gone, I've got some rockstar semi solids. Like this one:

This one, Black Rose, is from Dome Hill Yarns, based in Warrensburg, Mo. When a local dyer comes up with colors like this, who needs the fancy fibers produced by our friends to the north? I think the Midwest does just fine on its own.

I also got a super-fun late birthday surprise! Miss Carmen GirleyPurls brought my birthday surprise a bit late, but WOW, was it worth it! I am the proud owner of a large project bag that snaps up the front and has a clip that will allow me to strap it to things... and it's ORANGE. I love it.

It fits all the yarn, the patterns, and the sweater-in-progress with room to spare! It is sleek, it is stylish, and it will soon have a sock-sized bag to match!

Oh, and I almost forgot. Glee. Although I think I might rename her. I think Camilla suits her personality better. 

I'm using a US 5 Inox circ (my mom has my Addis, it's a sensitive subject, I'd rather not discuss it) knitting the pattern small (32-35 in.) The wool. Oh, the wool. Honestly, if you see me this week or next and I'm still slogging this thing around, pet it. It is glorious sportweight wool from Textiles A Mano in a bright cherry red. I love everything about it, its softness, its loft, its spin, the fact that Carmen has another 800-yard skein in case I need more to make longer sleeves.

Knitter Homies ROCK my HANDKNITTED SOCKS!