Correction: I had a plan, but it seems to have fallen apart. Last Friday, Mary wrote that she had ordered some royal blue alpaca/merino yarn to knit the Wavelength Wrap. She wrote, "1,200 yards of worsted weight yarn can weather a crisis. (right?!)" This got me thinking that maybe some new yarn could help me get through the cold winter months and any unfortunate events that might be happening on or around January 20th.
I settled on Berroco Vintage in a lovely dark green. It's machine washable, contains wool, and Webs was having a 40% off Black Friday sale. I ordered enough to knit my chosen pattern and patted myself on the back for finding a yarn I liked so I could knit an afghan for a reasonable price. I ordered a 60" size 8 circular needle from Amazon and was pleased that my plan had come together so nicely.
Until Monday, when I got an email from Webs that my order had been cancelled. No explanation, no reason, just cancelled. They still had the yarn in stock so I was puzzled. I looked around for a different yarn, but many of them were prohibitively expensive. I decided to think about it for a while, and then Amazon delivered my circular needle. They had sent a size 4 instead of an 8, so my plan had been scuttled by two different sources. I know I could easily fix the plan, but paying quite a bit more for the yarn and reordering a needle made me seriously question whether I really wanted to knit an afghan.
I got this lovely skein of 100% Tunis from Glenfiddich Farm the last time I visited my SiL. I intended to knit some warm fingerless mitts for myself with it, so now my plan has been modified. I'll wind this beautiful, squishy skein sometime before Jan. 20th, decide on a pattern, and be knitting by the 20th. This plan is completely doable, and mitts knit from wool from such adorable sheep (lambs are born with red fleece and their faces stay a reddish color) will surely help to make me happy.
Oh my goodness! That was truly a message from . . . someone/something. I think your revised plan is a really good one. (Although that afghan is just lovely, and I hope you won't give up on it.)
ReplyDeleteI love Tunis! I have spun it once and it was a delight! Those sheep with lambs are just gorgeous! May your mitt hunt be successful and a new pair of mitts soon underway!
ReplyDeleteBut, WTH Webs?!? I call foul on that! And Amazon... well, it just goes to show that "mechanical pickers" are never as good as a real live human!
Great minds think alike! I was thinking about knitting an afghan as well, but I started thinking about how very heavy it would get, so I put that thought on pause. Now I am thinking about something I can knit in the round so that it will be meditative and undemanding. Having something on the needles by January 20th is a goal that is doable for me, so thanks for the idea, Bonny. I had not heard of Tunis so I looked it up and found they were an endangered species. Maybe we knitters should all buy some Tunis wool to help them flourish. Keep me apprised of how you like it. See? You are always teaching me something, and I really enjoy it.
ReplyDeleteUgh - I do not like it when a plan goes sideways. Maybe something for later in the new year? We are still going to be looking for hope and happiness.
ReplyDeleteWhat beautiful sheep! I have never washed or spun a Tunis. I don't think I've ever seen one at the MDSW now that I think about.
ReplyDeleteSorry to hear about the yarn and needle woes. I love WEBs fast delivery and big selection but their ordering can make me crazy. They never have what I need.
Tunis are supposedly endangered or rare and are raised mainly for meat. I think The Universe was trying to tell me that I needed to rethink the plan; I'm not sure I have the persistence to finish an afghan. It's probably for the best and I'm excited to use the Tunis.
DeleteFWIW, the company that owned WEBS was just sold -- there have been a number of threads on Ravelry about it -- and many people have reported issues with them. It doesn't make it any less annoying that your order was canceled, but at least you know that it's not just you.
ReplyDeleteAck, hit publish too soon! I was going to say that I liked how quickly you pivoted. And goodness, those lambs are precious!
ReplyDeleteThat stinks about your WEBS order but I think your Plan B is great one!
ReplyDeleteI believe Knitpicks is now selling Berroco yarn!
ReplyDeleteI visited WEBS years ago and used to order from them but have not recently. I guess I just prefer KnitPicks. But as Kat said, WTH with WEBS!!! And Amazon!!! I like Plan B though and those sheep! I love them.
ReplyDeletewonder why they cancelled? I've never had that happen before....hm. love the sheep!!
ReplyDeleteThose mitts sure would come in handy this week. I think it WAS a sign you need to knit mitts.
ReplyDeleteI like the Plan B. The yarn looks so soft and warm. I haven't ordered from WEBS for quite some time but always had good customer service. I wonder what happened.
ReplyDeleteYour revised plan sounds lovely (and practical - yarn you have, and mitts you surely need). and those little pink sheep ... and happy memories of a visit with your SIL!
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