limedragon :)

Gusto!

Today’s post title comes from a comment left by Guinifer last week. It’s a great word; I don’t think I have ever used it in an actual conversation. But it certainly applies here.

My yarn-buying binge did not stop at the 3 Kittens sale. Did you notice (perhaps with surprise) that I didn’t buy any sock yarn there? That’s right, I didn’t. There weren’t many left in the sale section, and nothing inside the store tickled my fancy. You see, last month, I suddenly had a craving for green sock yarn. It had to be a certain green. The dark green Fury I have in my stash from Shelridge Farms didn’t satisfy my craving because it’s so dark it appears black. I wanted something really green. What to do?

Go sock yarn hunting, of course! I browsed at Simply Sock Yarn Company, The Loopy Ewe, Blue Moon Fiber Arts, WEBS, and finally Astrid’s. There were a few things that came close, but weren’t exactly what I wanted. Along the way, I did cave and make a purchase at Astrid’s, and it recently arrived.

I tried to select yarns that were a little bit different from what I have, in striping and/or color. The top is Regia 6-ply Country Color in Quartz. It’s similar to the Highland Socke, but is thicker. Next is a red-brown Meilenweit Multiringel. It looks a bit washed out in this photo, unfortunately. But I couldn’t resist, since I recently had to retire my only pair of red socks. And then there’s a skein of Fortissima/Socka Colori Mexiko Tequila (love that name!) in Apple-Banana. It’s a fun color even if not the green I’m looking for. And the striped skein at the bottom is Opal Feeling. It’s exactly what I need for some fair-isle or mosaic socks. (Any suggestions on a contrast color?)

Finally, after a few more days, I lucked out.

I pounced on some Vesper Sock Yarn in Crew and Astro. Crew is the bottom skein—there it is, the greenness I wanted! Time for a happy sock yarn dance.

And just yesterday, the last 2006 shipment for the BMFA Rockin’ Sock Club arrived, with a very pretty Winter’s Eve pattern designed by Sivia Harding. That gorgeous red skein on the right is Mustang Sally and the left skein is a Rare Gem with mostly pea-green and gray.