Long-A** Post

I've been seeing a lot of folks flash their stash, or some part of it lately and it's been fun. I'll get to that another day. Today I'm flashing my readable stash of knitting books, magazines etc. This first shot is of my books. As you can see I've got a few of them. I think that it's a reasonably well-rounded collection but certainly it is not without room for improvement. Not shown is Knitting Without Tears because it was in my shoulderbag at the time. There is some Alice Starmore, Nicky Epstein, Nancy Bush and others. The binders are full of stuff that I've pulled from the internet. There is a wealth of stuff out there provided by magazines, fiber companies etc and I have copies of a lot of it. I've got it all organized by type of project right now - socks, sweaters, bags, etc. - but the librarian in me really wants to index it by designer and yarn type and cross reference it with "see also's". I'm working on a plan for that. Really I am.
This is my basket of magazines and stuff that I'm pondering. I'll admit that there are a few People Magazines thrown in there too but mostly - it's knitting. There are issues of many knitting magazines in there - Knitter's, Interweave Knits, Vogue Knitting, Knit 'N Style, Family Circle Easy Knitting, and Knit It! I've tried them all at one time or another but these days I'm most into IK and Knitter's. The basket sits next to my knitting seat on the couch so they're always at the ready. As you can see I have some Katia magazine/leaflets too. I find that they have a lot of nice, unfussy stuff for older kids. I'm thinking of doing another one from the one in the picture soon. I just need to get the right yarn.

Just in case that doesn't provide enough inspiration there's also this stash which is stored inside my knitting cabinet. The pile hiding among the yarn is more Knitter's Magazines. In the plastic bin is the real treasure though. That's where I keep all of the really old leaflets that I got from my grandmother. Some of them go back to the 1950's. I have her notes for sweaters made when we were young and stuff she cut out of magazines.

While I hope it's been entertaining (and not too scary) this tour has a point. I have ample sources for projects. I could stay busy using just these books and magazines for many, many years. There are plenty of things in there that appeal to me and I've actually bought yarn to do a few of them. Why then did I need to get this yesterday? Didja peek? It's the Seraphim Shawl. You'd think I would have learned my lesson with the Diamond Fantasy Shawl. Perhaps I enjoy the torment. Actually, I'm hoping that without OYLMPIC PRESSURE weighing down on me this will be a more pleasant experience. Here's the thing - I'm gonna wait to get the yarn for it at Maryland Sheep & Wool. In the next 2 months it's possible that I'll come to my senses and realize what a bad it is for me to attempt this shawl.

While I ponder the Seraphim Shawl I need a project so while exploring the stash I came up with 2 UFO's and I need to decide which one to attack. On the left is One of the Teen tops found here. It was actually making nice progress before I pushed it aside. I like the colors (I forget the yarn - probably Elann something) and I could finish it well before the Summer - perfect timing! On the right is another, much older summer project. That one is/was for me. The yarn is Euroflax Linen in Sandalwood (?) and it is going to be Lily a lovely camisole knitted in the round. I probably started it about 2 years ago and, as you can see, I didn't get far. What do you think? Which shoud I pick up again? I think that it will be the stripey top for Lindsey because I can't even figure out where I was in the other pattern. than again - you never know!

Last but not least I present - the Cable Guy! Some anonymous commenter suggested the name and it works so there you have it - my second Bay Window Bear. I think I'll lay off the bears for a while and see if I want to go back and do a third.

Sorry for the long-ass post. Happy Hump Day!