Rambling about knitting, and the knitting olympics

Well, I'm ~ 1 inch from being done with the bottom of the second sleeve. Then I'll have to figure out what I'm going to do for the upper parts. I'm considering two or three different things, all with cables, of course.

The knitting olympics is tempting me! I really want to do this, but I'd have to pick something really simple because I'd really only have a couple of days to work on it, since finals week is during that time and I'll be putting aside everything else to study... including knitting. I'd been wanting to knit a hat with the DNA cable on it, so I may enter that. I'll be winging it, and since I've never done my own pattern before, that should make it a bit more complex. Or I could do the little cropped sweater I want to make with the hyacinth WotA. I've been wanting to cast on, and it's all stockinette with a little ribbing, so it shouldn't be too hard... again, the biggest challenge would be finishing it in the alloted time. Or I could do the craftster circular shrug. I'm only looking at the couple of things I have yarn for already.

I am so mad that the only place I can find to order a 5th skein of Brilla in the colorway #400 is http://yarnlady.com/. I've never bought from there before, and for all I know, this may be a great store, with wonderful service, but $7.25 for one skein? Is the retail value even that high? Geez. Everywhere else I've seen Brilla, it's been for $6 or $6.50. With shipping, I'd be paying $12 for one skein! But I can't find it elsewhere, so if I need it, it will have to be from there. Their Trendsetters Kashmir is a bit expensive, too, not that I'm considering buying any. I'm in love with the stuff, but at $23 a skein (or $25.75 if you buy from yarnlady), it's out of my budget. It's the softest, most beautiful yarn I've ever touched; they have it at "my LYS" (in quotations because it's actually about 4 hrs from me, but it's the only actual yarn store I've been to). One skein is only 110 yds, so there wouldn't be much I could do with it, other than just enjoy touching it!

Ok, I really think I do want a subscription to IK. Like I need more patterns... more things to add to my To Do list. It will probably take me a year to finish all I have on there right now. But... I'll just say I'm subscribing for the articles!! Hehe. I doubt I'll be fooling anyone more than the guys who say they read Playboy for the articles! Before I subscribe, I want those back issues I mentioned in a previous post. I've been looking on ebay; it seems to be the only place I'll have a chance getting the one.

Another knitting mag I've discovered and now love is Phildar. I cannot understand one word of the site, but ohmygosh are the patterns beautiful! Their "English" version of the site is not very helpful, since when I click on it, nothing is in English. Oh well. Here are a couple that intrigue me the most:

Possibly from the Autumn-Winter 2005-2006 catalog (?? a guess), is this jacket:


and my absolute favorite of these patterns is this "riding jacket"

which is in the Spring 2006 catalog?? I really couldn't tell. I want this jacket so badly! :-)

... and there are seriously, so many other gorgeous patterns. There are also some lovely FREE patterns, but I'll be danged if I can find them just now. Just look around a bit... it's wonderful! Well, the site isn't wonderful, just the knitwear! I think even if I could read French, this website would still be annoying. Sites like this are almost always difficult to manuver, for lack of a better term.