I found the perfect yarn!

I mentioned in my 2008 "to do" list that I am planning to knit two lace pieces for others this year. One of them is destined to go to my best friend and ex-roommate Biz, who happens to be a beekeeper. I've been planning to use Anne's Bee Stole pattern, but didn't want the tupelo yarn. I wasn't sure how Biz would feel about a lace shawl in the first place, much less a yellow one. So, I ruined the surprise and asked her about it at Christmas (we only get to see each other once a year). She loved the lace, but not the color so much. As she put it, she'd decorate a room in yellow, but she's not likely to wear it, which very neatly sums up my doubts before speaking to her. It's a beautiful color, but I don't quite see her wearing yellow, though she loves to decorate with it.

So, I have been shopping for the perfect color since Christmas. I've made a couple of trips to LYS, since I am definitely one of those people that wants to feel a yarn before buying. There were some nice yarns, but none were perfect. I've absolutely loved working with the Blue Moon laci, and am head over heels in love with their Raven Clan colorway. But these are my colors, not Biz's. We are very similar in most things, but in terms of wardrobe color we're about as different as you can get. I like dark, she likes pastel. I like blue, grey, purple, green, brown, she loves pink, pink, pink, and pink. I think this is really the biggest challenge in knitting for other people; keeping your own fiber tastes from getting in the way of making something that will be perfect for them.

I have looked and looked, and there have been many, many yarns that I have wanted to buy. I absolutely love the colors in the Woolen Rabbit's yarn, and desperately want a skein of each. For me, though, not for Biz. Kris just put up a whole website of horribly tempting yarn, and it's taking all my willpower not to buy enough sock yarn to last me for a millenium at the rate I knit socks. But most of it is sock yarn, and most of it is not Biz.

This morning, Cattywampus solved my problem. I was catching up on my blog reading, and came across her list of things to finish or frog. And there, knitted up in the Bee Stole (of all things) was the perfect yarn. I didn't see it previously mentioned in her blog (though I'm sure it was there, had I really dug through the archives), so I commented and asked what it was. She got back to me in no time flat, and I am now excitedly waiting for my first yarn from Fearless Fibers. I didn't get exactly the same one (they don't appear to have it anymore), but I got one that was very similar, and perhaps even better. Yay for shopping via blog!

I am generally very heistant to buy yarn online, as my fiber-finding method is generally to walk around the yarn store and feel everything. (Remember the Mischief test?). This has kept me out of more trouble online than I can say, and it's a habit I am reluctant to break. I am not a stasher, and have absolutely no desire to have rooms full of yarn. I like to buy what I need, when I need it, and only buy when I have a specific project in mind. This whole method just gets harder and harder as I look at online hand-dyed yarns, because they are so gorgeous, and they're one of a kind, and I really want some of all of them. Still, I have no need for them, no projects waiting, and no space to store things that don't have a purpose. I generally manage to avoid temptation through this chain of logic, believe it or not. It's very hard to keep up, but my need to feel yarn first is a great help. Unfortunately, I feel myself sliding down a very steep and slippery slope as I consent to buy a second skein of laceweight unfelt (the first being the Blue Moon for Irtfa'a). So, I am jubilant that I have now found the perfect yarn, but also a little worried about the Pandora's box that I may be about to open. Guess I'd better go clear some stash space, huh?