Stashalong Swapsies
I received my swap package from Hectorshouse this afternoon, and I was delighted with the yarn that I'd swapped for my Wisteria Breeze DK. This is the yarn that received in return:



It's a lovely pinky terracotta colour, which I rather like at the moment, and I have ten 50g balls. That's enough to knit a short sleeved little jacket with a moss stitch yoke to wear over strappy camisole sun tops in the late Summer and Autumn months when it's still warm. Hectorshouse also very kindly and unexpectedly sent another little gift - a lovely mini make-up case by Clinique with a tube of skin care cream tucked inside. All my make-up bags are either too large or too tatty, and this is perfect for taking a lipstick, eye pencil and contact lens case out and about with me, especially on holiday. I'm not one for shopping for myself, and so these two little gifts were truly a luxury and such a generous gesture - thank you so much HH.

Debbie Bliss's Jacket with Ribbed Collar
On the Angel Yarns forum I recently mentioned that I would like to knit the Jacket with Ribbed Collar on page 9 of the Debbie Bliss book "Simple Living", and another member, Slow As a Snail, said that she had just bought the yarn to knit the exact same cardigan and suggested that we should have our very own knitalong.

I've never taken part in a knitalong before, let alone actually been party to starting one off, mainly because I haven't had enough spare knitting time to join in with one over recent years, or the pattern hasn't been one that I've particularly liked and wanted to knit. At the moment it's not a Knitalong as such, just two people knitting the same cardigan at roughly the same time, although a few other members of the AY forum have expressed an interest in joining in as well



The pattern for this cardigan is stocking stitch with ribbed sleeves and a ribbed band at the front, so it's perfect for me as although I would consider myself to be an experienced knitter, I don't particularly like fussy knits and prefer plain and simple, classic styles. And I want something that I can pick up and put down on holiday, and knit in the car when we're travelling.

Now I do already have some Patons Cotton DK in my yarn stash in a rather striking Rose colour which has long been discontinued (and I even have the correct amount of yarn which is a minor miracle!), and I could knit the cardigan in that; you can see the Cotton DK from my yarn stash in the photo along with the jacket pattern, and it's rather bright isn't it?? It reminds me of the ‘Cheeky' colour on the current shadecard....

But as today is the 15th of the month, it's my Day Off from Stashalong and I feel that I really should buy some yarn today as I won't have the chance for another thirty one days. I want to buy some Patons 100% Cotton DK to knit the cardigan in instead of the recommended DB Cotton Cashmere; I'm knitting Tide in this same cotton yarn but in the Indigo shade, and it is truly wonderful to knit with. The Brittany Birch needles and the cotton yarn are producing a marvellous even fabric that just glides off the needles. I'll have to buy another pair of 4mm Brittanies though..... *big grin* Now call me a cheapskate, but I'll only need 7 x 100g balls of the Patons Cotton, at £3.10 per ball from Yarnsmith, compared to 14 x 50g balls of DB Cotton Cashmere at £3.95 per ball..... I'll leave you to do the maths on that one.....

I don't know whether to choose one of the darker pinks or mid green from the shadecard though: Foxglove, Azalea or Orchard? I'm drawn towards Azalea, but Foxglove and Orchard both look rather tempting. I only want to buy one lot of yarn on my Day Off from Stashalong though, as this was my downfall in my last Stashalong attempt...... :)

As the time is 10.45pm, I only have just over an hour to decide on a colour and press the BUY button before the clock strikes twelve. BONG!!