Dragon's Orchid Garden

I ordered yarn from Pisgah Yarn and Dying Company on Saturday. A big box of Peaches & Creme in a bunch of wonderful colors arrived on Thursday. I am now rich with cotton yarns with which to make all kinds of nifty gifts for the holidays. I have run out of room in the armoire. Time to start stashing yarn in drawers, and bowls and linen closets. Pisgah has great prices and the shipping is terrific. Since Monday was a holiday, I didn't expect them to ship until Tuesday, but I had an email Sunday morning telling me to expect shipment on Thursday. And lo...

I took Liz's shawl with me to the yarn shop to show Rosalind how well I've graduated from simple scarves and dishrags. Her advice on the type of yarn to use was so spot on that I asked about yarn for the Exonumist's Shawl . I've ordered the pattern and can't wait to get started. I picked up 4 skeins of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Fine in Prune Mix for it. I also bought two balls of really soft Mini Mochi washable wool in purples/blues/greens for socks. I am determined to learn how to knit them first with dpns, maybe just to spite my dear cousin Eric , who counsels me to try the magic loop method. I LIKE lots of little pointy needles sticking every which way. If there's more than one way to do a thing, I like to learn the hard way first (I seem to have done that all my life), then every other way is just cake. Now I say goodbye to my companion of 3 months as the Tuscany Shawl is wrapped in it's box waiting for the USPS to take it to Coeur d'Alene to hug my li...

Instead, I'm making this blog. I have two loooong rows left on the shawl I began in early June. The plan was to finish it in time for my sister's 50th birthday. That day came and went July 15th. The shawl is a pattern called Tuscany from No Sheep For You by Amy R. Singer. I'm using Gatsby Lux rayon yard from Katia, purchased at Fiber Art, Inc . in Odessa. It's been a lot of fun knitting. When it's finished, I'll post a picture. In the meantime, here's a picture of a ball of the beautiful yarn.