Yarn, yarn and more yarn

It seems like I've been inundated with boxes and boxes of yarn in the past week (more on that early next week)- thus, the spotty blogging!  Of course, this is good for those of us looking for tasty yarn, not so good for those of you who actually want to read the blog!  So I have a review for you from (blogless) Penny, who reviewed the same yarn that I'm knitting up right now.  Of course, Penny has already finished her pair of socks, and I'm only to the toe of my first one.  *sigh*   And she's a much more interesting and colorful writer, as you will see from this review:

My clues were "100% merino, hand painted, 175 yards, machine wash, dry flat."  It arrives as two skeins, one "as dyed" and one "reskeined."  I had no idea this yarn would take over my life for 48 hours.  The yarn jumped out of the box and slapped me.

"Test me" it demanded.  I examined it closer, the colors were sumptuous, rich and luscious.  Each of the three plies was totally saturated with glowing color.  Strawberry and watermelon reds, mango gold, pineapple yellow, a narrow ribbon of rich brown, and a single splash of bright jalapeno green- it could have passed as a fruit salsa.  The color changes were quick, even and clean.

I thought I could control things better if I trapped it into a ball.  As its generous 175 yards flowed through my fingers, I was impressed.  Not a single knot , not a weak or thin spot, not a kink.  It was obviously a much pampered yarn.  I envied it- it was rich, thin, colorful and strong.

I tried a simple knit stitch (yes, an actual swatch).  Eight luxurious stitches to the inch on metal dpns, US 1s (2.25mm).  I realized I was trying to test drive a Ferrari by driving it down a dirt road.  "Let's try lace," I thought.  The yarn purred.  It twisted into exceptional stitch definition.  There was no splitting, even with ssks.  There were no pools.  "Let's try slip stitches."  The yarn was unintimidated and gave me incredible patterns.

We drove through the gusset and into the foot.  "I must feed the cats," I thought.  "I must feed the husband," but the yarn wasn't done with me.  I was hypnotized.  Morning came, the hungry husband awoke and went to work, and the cats gave up on me and went out to hunt for themselves.

Then, a little sputter..... I was shoked back into awareness.  Only minor drama, I realized.  Within the constant rhythm on the foot, there was subtle pooling.  I adjusted by deleting a couple of purls, the pool drained, and the yarn completed the sock.

I wore the sock while reorganizing the clutter that had occurred around me during this minor episode of knitting frenzy.  I realized I could have saved stitches by casting on a more modest 60 stitches instead of my normal 64 for my dainty size 10 foot.  There is a normal amount of stretch for 100% merino, and there was no slouching after wearing.

Anything this nice deserves a "spa" washing.  But, since this was a test drive, I cruelly tossed it into the washing machine with a load of other socks and an ounce of Kirkland (yes, the cheap Costco stuff) detergent.  Cold water, wool setting, using Kirkland hair conditioner as a fabric softener.  It looked so good when I pulled it out of the machine I thought, "let's see if you can take it" and tossed it into the dryer with a hot load of white t-shirts.  There was no bleeding, no color loss, no shrinking or felting.  There was very minimal bloom.  It came out beautifully!

This is an exceptional yarn.

I look forward to the thrill of holding this yarn again, while it makes the second sock.  I would glady welcome another of its wild sisters or brothers into my stash.

Penny wrote the above review a few days ago, and has already finished the second sock and has this to say about the finished pair:

I omitted a couple of purl stitches on the second sock, and the pooling effect seen in the first sock was eliminated.  The picture at left is a closeup of both socks (click to see enlarged); the one on the left has been washed (and I mean WASHED) several times and the one on the right is a virgin.  I couldn't see any difference.  Colors in both skeins were identical, and I never found a knot or a stretch or a kink.  My opinion remains that this is a great yarn.

So what do you all think of this review?  I have to say that I'm impressed with the speed at which Penny can get a great pair of socks knit up... even with her kitties trying to eat that tasty yarn!  And I'm also quite impressed that she changed the pattern slightly for the second sock so that the slight pooling was eliminated- you can really see the difference between the two socks in the picture above, can't you?  And I would have to agree with what Penny says in her review, with the exception of one thing: the colorway I'm knitting up has areas that aren't completely saturated with color, which I like- those areas that have less dye create new colors- so instead of intense lime green and bright purple, I also see a muted celery green and periwinkle.  It's nice to see an oasis of muted tones in a colorway that is so bold.  I also noticed a bit of striping in my sock, but something that I could have elimiated if I would have deviated from the sock pattern that I chose, Cookie A.'s Monkey pattern.  Now I understand why Cookie chose this yarn for Monkey and several other patterns she designed for Knitty Magazine... that's right, it's Shelridge Farms handpainted, and you'll find it here soon!

Comments

[Sheila in Ohio]

I'm a curious knitting novitiate wondering what it is about "deleting a couple of purls" that stops the pooling?

The reviews are a great idea. Thanks!

[Allison]

Pooling and striping can sometimes be avoided b/c what causes it is how the color knits into the finished fabric. If yuo take away a few stitches, or add a few, you've changed how the colors will line up in the finished fabric. You can also try a different pattern or go up or down a needle size.

[Teyani]

what a fun creative review :-) Great job.. and a lovely looking yarn as well! It is always a heavenly experience to become enchanted with a yarn.
thanks Penny and Allison

[Donna]

Fantastic review - and the yarn looks so yummy - I esp like the color way you used - can't wait until I can buy some!!!

[Kathryn in Minnesota]

Love the reviews; this one rocks! Can't wait to get my hands on the yarn -- that's the only downside of the reviews. You're sort of teasing/tormenting us . . .

[Jane]

Yay!! Shelridge Farms handpainted!! Can't wait...