I swear it was due to the sugar high. That’s right. I’ll blame it on the cupcakes. I wouldn’t have made such a stash down slip up if it weren’t for the delicious sugary nom nomz I consumed only a half hour earlier. But alas, it can’t be undone.
The Endless Knitted Cardi Shawl was casually hanging on the back of the door at My Sister’s Knits on Walden Parkway where the second half of this plot took place. I liked the shape and color but couldn’t find a pattern tag on it. Oh well, I thought, I’ll just search on Ravelry to add it to my favorites. I don’t need another project and I don’t need to buy any more yarn. I have enough to work with.
As my friends and I walked through the store, we didn’t see much and were gathering near the door. At that point, A headed back into the depths of the store to look at something. For some reason, I followed and asked the store owner what the mysterious cardigan’s name was. Here’s where it all went down hill. The pattern is thrust in my hand where it has time to linger. M suggests I try it on so we can see how it works. Everyone else compliments how nice the sweater looks on me, and oh isn’t it convenient that I’m trying on the right size for me.
I continue to have my doubts, since the ingenious nature of the Endless Knitted Cardi Shawl is the multiple ways it can be worn: right side up, upside down, backwards, shawl, cardigan with a cowl, cardigan with a floppy collar and more. I’m thinking to myself, “There’s no way this thing is going to look good every which way.” Well, I was wrong. Dead wrong. And I couldn’t walk away.
It didn’t help that the colorway of the yarn the cardi was knit up in was also in stock at the store. The stage was set for a purchase.
These little incidents where I tempt fate with my stashing restraint have gone well up until now. This year I have only bought yarn four other times: some yarn for a group project, some yarn bought while in Indianapolis to remember the trip that I used right away to make Ishbel, another bulk purchase for a bunch of gift projects I have planned (plus some sock yarn for me to reach the $50 free shipping cart total) and some yarn for existing projects that needed a little more yardage. That’s not bad considering how many times I have tempted myself during Cupcakes & Yarn outings—where we’ve created the tradition of sampling delicious cupcakes and perusing a new yarn store.
Luckily I can’t feel too guilty about my purchase; I’ve already cast it on and knit up about three inches on it. That’s pretty impressive since each row has about 391 stitches and the piece is knit as a long rectangle that becomes 90 inches long. I’m also loving the baby alpaca, enjoying the knit and looking forward to finishing the project. Let’s hope this enthusiasm remains.
I'll let you know about the next outing! 🙂
Cupcake and Yarn outings sound incredible.