lizard ridge afghan progress

OK, I am obsessed with knitting this lizard rigde afghan. Forget Jawbreaker, forget Kaffe Fasset quilt. It's not that I can be terribly creative with this afghan. It's just good, simple knitting with very nice yarn. Sometimes that's all I want.

I can finish one square in one evening session of mindless knitting, and still have this great sense of accomplishment.

Ik ben geobsedeerd door de 'lizard rigde' deken. Jawbreaker en de Kaffe Fasset quilt zijn volledig in het vergeethoekje beland. Nochtans is dit deken breien geen toppunt van creativiteit. Het is gewoon, simpel breien met hele mooie wol. Soms is dat alles wat ik nodig heb om tevreden te zijn.

Ik kan één vierkantje breien tijdens een avondlijke breisessie, verstand op nul en heb dan dat grootse gevoel van iets gepresteerd te hebben.

And it is (mostly) knitting from stash. These are the first 4 - starting from the top left : Noro Kureyon 150-51-149 and 184.

En ik brei (haast uitsluitend) uit mijn voorraadkast. Hier zijn de eerste vierkantjes - Noro Kureyon 150-51-149 en 184.

And these are the squares with 2 newly bought skeins : left is Noro Silk Garden 234, right Noro Kureyon 92

Dit zijn 2 vierkantjes met mijn nieuwe aankopen : links Noro Silk Garden 234 , rechts Noro Kureyon 92.

I decided to be frugal, and knitted a square with leftovers.

This one is knitted with Noro Kureyon 51, 149 and 92. Especially n°92 is a colorway that has lots of different colors in it - it goes from red-blue-green to yellow and black (the last 3 were knitted in this square). I plan more of these 'frugal' squares.

Ik besloot zuinig te zijn, en breide een vierkantje met restjes. Deze is gebreid met Noro Kureyon 51, 149 en 92. Vooral 92 is een bolletje met heel veel verschillende kleuren. Het gaat van rood-blauw naar groen-geel-zwart. De laatste 3 kleuren werden gebruikt in dit vierkantje. Er komen nog van die 'zuinige' vierkantjes.

And I am expecting more yarn in a swap from Kerrie and Lies - thanks in advance !

En ik verwacht nog wat wol in een ruil met Kerrie, en van Lies die me 'zomaar' wat wol stuurt. Bedankt !

canopy forest shoulder shawl finished

As I have to work this weekend, I don't have much time to knit (there are still house chores to do). I was convinced I had a suitable yarn for the bind-off for this short shawl, and I finally found it. I used a brown sock yarn, doubled (scheepjeswol invicta). It is a slightly different shade of brown, but it works for me.
And I have been thinking about my lizard ridge afghan. Two people mailed me, and I can probably arrange a swap with them. That means another 3 to 4 balls of Kureyon. I passed my LYS and looked what they had, and walked out with these 2 : kureyon 92 (left) and silk garden in 234 (right).
I want this afghan to be cheerfull, without being too loud. So I am looking for muted/washed out colors in Kureyon.

dikke truien-dag

Today it's 'dikke truien-dag' at work (put on a sweater-day). It's about concern with global warning, and making people aware that it is OK to turn down the heating. Too bad that I have a day of, so I cannot show a sweater to the collegues today !

starting a new afghan ?

I am contemplating knitting the 'Lizard Ridge' afghan in the previous Knitty issue.

I have a bit of Kureyon leftover from other projects, namely 3 skeins of shade 51 (upper right ), 4 skeins of shade 149 (lower right), and 1 skein of shade 150 (upper left). And I received 2 skeins of shade 184 in the secret pal 9 swap (lower left).
The afghan is made up of 24 squares, all knitted in a different color of Kureyon; or in one shade of this multicolor yarn. When I first saw the afghan, I immediately fell in love with it, but at the same time made a note to myself that it would be way too expensive. But these last 2 balls in the swap really made me swoon all over again. I want to knit Lizard Ridge !
On the other hand, I made this firm resolution to knit from stash during the first 6 months of 2007. I have 9 balls of Noro, so I would really need to buy extra's.
My question : has anybody knit this afghan with several blocks in the same color ? I googled and googled, but it looks like everybody used a lot of different colors. I only found one that used the same color throughout the whole afghan. Do you think it is possible to use what I have, and still come out with an attractive afghan ? I could start it, and buy extra Kureyon in the second part of the year (my birthday is in August).
Or, another possibility, mabye some of you have oddballs of Kureyon lying around, and want to swap with me (for Kureyon in one of the shades that I have, or something else atractive from my stash) ?

I started a block yesterday. On the right shade 184, on the left shade 51.It looks like one block doesn't take a whole ball. The pattern uses 21 balls for 24 blocks - does this mean you use leftovers from every ball to knit the last squares ?
Thanks for any input.

The jawbreaker cardigan is on hold - I have to assemble the pieces before I can knit the collar. Assembly is reserved for the weekend (but this weekend I have to work).
And the Kaffe Fassett quilt is on hold also. I need help to get me going, but the hobbyclub was canceled due to the weather. My LYS-owner told me about an informal quilt group she is having once a month. I went, and it was very nice. I have finished designing, and need to start sewing. Not something I am looking forward too.

all the way from Canada...

... came this nice Secret Pal package. I really like the alpaca yarn - it's always interesting to see 'new to me' yarns. And of course, some Kureyon never hurts. Actually, I was considering to knit the 'Lizard ridge' afghan in the previous Knitty. I have 3 colors of Kureyon (leftovers from other projects) in my stash. This one is a nice addition. In the package was also a nice card, a painted box and a tin of mints. The secret pal is Deb, and she suggested using this tin for stitch markers !

jawbreaker cardigan - one sleeve

I knitted a 3/4 sleeve after all. Because I am knitting this from stash, and because the Phildar 'Arome' doesn't list yardage, I am afraid that I might run out of yarn. What I did now was sewing it together provisionally, to check how it looks on me. You probably notice that I used the right side of the stockinette on the sleeve, and the reverse stockinette on the body. I don't think I will keep that feature. Other then that, I rather like how it looks now; it's kind of quirky, but in a good way. The overlapping fronts don't really overlap totally. When I wear it, it falls open, probably because of the onebutton-closure. And maybe the fact that I have a lot to cover on the front has something to do with it also. I now need to knit the second sleeve, and then the collar. The pattern in the magazine uses an asymetrical collar. That will enhance the quirkiness of the garment for sure. The new spring fashion is showing in the shops now, and there are a lot of very short cardigans with big round collars and big buttons. Maybe I will be in fashion for once ?

jawbreaker cardigan - fronts finished

Maybe you have noticed on my blog that I don't knit that many sweaters. I love to knit smaller projects, and my main obsession is knitting with color (Kaffe Fassett really started me knitting).
When I knit a sweater, I make adjustments that I 'think' will work for me. That's why a simple project sometimes can take a long time, because I rework them. I am not tall, but very round (wel endowed ? ample ? ).
I am rather pleased with the jawbreaker cardigan adjustments I have made. Originally the cardigan has slanted (cutaway?) fronts, that close in the middle with one big button. I was worried that those fronts might accentuate the tummy. I made the fronts bigger, knitted one slanted and one straight, so that they overlap. Now the cardigan will close off-center. I still need to find the perfect button for it. I just placed a button there to show you how it will close. I have to make a decision about the sleeves now. In the pattern they are 3/4 sleeves. I think I want long bell sleeves. What do you think ? I am also worried this cardigan will be a tad short. I am not sure what I will wear with it. I like to wear long tunic-lenght t-shirts, sometimes with an A-line top over it. Maybe I'll have to buy new clothes to go with this sweater !

WEDSTRIJDJE
Ik heb besloten een prijsje te geven aan iedereen die reageerde. Er is al een pakketje onderweg naar Anne en Lies. Kan de persoon die anoniem reageerde me even contacteren ?

visually exhausted

I just returned from the Kaffe Fassett workshop today. I decided to use the tulips, and before lunch I was very pleased with the lay-out.



After lunch I wasn't so sure any more.


The workshops ends with KF commenting on everybody's work. He said he would not use the tulips, because they stand out too much. He suggested taking a textile dye pen, and reworking the background of the tulips a bit (polka dots, litlle flecks of color ...). On the other hand, several other ladies in the workshop did like the tulips... I am confused, visually and otherwise exhausted right now. Sorry the picture with Kaffe Fassett in front of the quilts is a bit shaky. Somehow picture taking was just a bit too much today.
I don't feel like finishing this piece at all at the moment. I am a bit discouraged. Probably just fatigue, and maybe a good night sleep will help. Most likely I am not a patchworker at heart. I love playing with the colors, but all the cutting and sewing scares me.
Before I forget : the exhibition in the Modemuseum in Hasselt is very nice. Check it out !

ugly hat and scarf

i

I confess, this is not knitted from stash. As if I would have such nasty colored acrylic in my stash ! My DD asked me to knit this for her. Here in Flanders, there is a tradition called 'Chrysostomos'. The lastyear students in highschool dress funny, make fun of teachers and other students, and celebrate that the end of their highschool years is approching. It's also called 'the 100 days'. The theme to dress this year was 'proud to be wrong'. I guess 'wrong' here ment 'wrong colors', and had nothing to do with morality. DD even baked pink and green waffles. Hey, we're Belgian after all.

knitted from Scheepjeswol 'Roma' - hat is knitted with 3 strands of yarn, scarf with 2 strands. It went fast, but still 3 nights of knitting. DD made the pompons. And the yarn was maybe ugly, but rather nice to work with (for an 100% acrylic). I didn't have any 8mm double pointed needles, so I used 'magic loop ' for the first time. I actually learned something from this project !

Dit is niet uit mijn voorraadkast gehaald, en ik heb mijn belofte dus niet gebroken. Alsof ik 100% acrylic in huis zou hebben ! Dit is gebreid om 'Chrysostomos' te vieren. Meer info op wikipedia vind je hier : http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chrysostomos. Bedoeling is om je te verkleden, gek te doen en te vieren dat je nog maar 100 dagen verwijderd bent van het einde van de middelbare school. Het verkleedthema dit jaar was 'proud to be wrong' - dus hoe gekker hoe beter. Mijn dochter heeft de wol gekocht, en de pomponnetjes gemaakt. Bovendien heeft ze roze en groene wafels gebakken om uit te delen. Die zagen er afgrijselijk uit, maar waren best lekker.

Gegevens : Scheepjeswol 'Roma' - muts gebreid met 3dubbele draad, sjaal met dubbele draad.

looking for artyarns supermerino 113

Wanting to knit a small shoulder shawl I found the 'canopy forest shoulder shawl'. Just the ticket to use up stash - 2 skeins of Artyarns supermerino in color 113 (shades of brown). Unfortunately I ran out of yarn on the bindoff row (sorry, no picture yet).
Does anybody has some leftover yards lying around ? It would help me out tremendously ! (of course I could rip back and make it a bit shorter, but I am afraid this won't work, because this is already a rather short shawl...
Or is there another solution ? Bind of with a different yarn ? I have been going through my stash (and it is a big stash), and I cannot find anything suitable.

a first try at a lay-out for the Kaffe Fassett quilt

Last saturday I posted about the upcoming Kaffe Fassett patchwork workshop. Nancy commented that the white in the sheet with the big tulips Iwanted to use would be a too big contrast. I have been cutting large blocks this week in the hobby club (every thursday afternoon), and arranged some to see how it looks. Nancy is right.
The tulips won't work for the large blocks. Re-arranging, I wanted to look if they would work for the medium block. This quilt is designed with 3 sizes of blocks, large-medium-small.

I think it might work, if I use fabric around it that has a little bit of white in it.
Or maybe I should reconsider, and not use the tulip sheet at all. Which would be a pity, because I really wanted to build a quilt around the tulips.

about Hanne Falkenberg ...

The first time I saw a Hanne Falkenberg sweater was in Copenhagen in 1998. It was in a shop called 'sommerfuglen' . The shop is still around, and it's worth checking their website (www.sommerfuglen.dk). At that time, I found the garments to be lovely, but a bit scratchy. I have grown up knittingwise since then, and although I would not consider the yarn to be supersoft, I now quite like it. It has that crisp, crunchy shetlandwool feeling.

I had been longing to try out a Hanne Falkenberg sweater since ever since, and I finally bought my first kit (Da Capo) when I was on holiday in Aarhus, Denmark in 2002. The great thing about buying there was that they had all the sweaters on display, and that you could actually try them on. I was in love with Pagode, but decided that it didn't look good on me. I am short and very round, and this is a long coat for tall people. Ballerina and Jazz looked good on me too, but I had to make a choice.

In 2003 I bought a second HF kit on Ebay (Delta). This was not a good decision - I hadn't tried it on, but thought that any HF sweater would be fabulous on me. I had good customer service from the vendor, but nor the colors nor the model worked for me. Of course, I only realised this when I finished knitting it. (it's also the only HF sweater that doesn't get me compliments when I wear it). It's not on her website any longer, but you can still buy it through Sommerfuglen. Mine is in curry, khaki and turquoise.

I kept searching on Ebay for other HF kits I liked and in colorways I liked. In 2004 I bought Ballerina and Jazz'on Ebay. When the Jazz kit arrived, I decided I didn't like the colorway. It was n° 3 Dusk/Cyclamen (dusk is a nice dark blue with purple/pink flecks, but cyclamen is a bit too bright hot pink). And then I heard that a collegue was travelling to Copenhagen, and I asked her to go to 'Sommerfuglen' and bring me another kit LaStrada. So I bought 3 HF kits in 2004 !

I started LaStrada right away, and finished it in 3 months. I knitted colorway 7 - black, rust, grey-mix, curry. That was it in 2004. Apparently I can only knit one HF a year. It's a lot of knitting, and sometimes requires more then average concentration.

In 2005 I decided that I could not let the other 2 HF kits gathering dust on my shelf, and I started Jazz. I resolved the color issue, by swapping the colors from the 2 kits. I bought 'Ballerina' in color 13 - blueberry and black, with accents of pea green and cyclamen. I used the black and blueberry to knit Jazz. Of course, I didn't know if I had enough to knit this kit. But I figured, with Ballerina being a long swing coat, and Jazz a short boxy jacket, I would have enough of the main color (blueberry). And I still had a bit of black leftovers from the previous kit, so maybe that would even out ? HF doesn't list the required amount of yarn in her patterns. The kits are made up to contain enough. Turned out that I didn't had enough black yarn. I decided to order some shetland yarn online (http://jamiesonsshetland.co.uk/). I carefully compared yardage, and ordered some 'spindrift' yarn. Turned out a perfect match - the same weight, the same feel, and even the same black. They also had a color named 'Dusk' so I ordered that too - seems a perfect match again (but I haven't used it yet). My suspicion is that HF uses Jamieson spindrift in her kits. Jazz took me more then a year to complete (sept 05 to jan 07), but then I have struggled with 'frozen shoulder'.


So that leaves Ballerina to be knit. Of course, now I don't have enough to knit it in the intended colors. I'll have to make up my own colorway. I am thinking of knitting this with 'Dusk' as a main color, but I don't know if I will have enough. And I could use blueberry, cyclamen and pea green as accent colors. I have also found some other colors in my stash of shetland yarn that will work. This will be fun !

One lesson learned though : try the garments on - and decide on the color 'in the flesh', so to speak. It looks like I will be travelling to Scandinavia this summer.
I am looking forward to visiting shops that carry HF designs and try on some of the newer models. I have my eye on Diva, Mermaid and Tivoli. I don't think I will actually buy a kit now, but I can save up for next year !

Not much knitting going on here ...

I have had a very busy last week and weekend, so I really had no time to knit anything that needed my concentration. Also a bit of train travel on the menu for this week, which prompted me to start another sock.
I know that I said 'no black socks' for DS, but this was in my stash, and I made this resolution to knit up stash ... It's charcoal actually, not really black. Lana Grossa Meilenweit Tweed, color 107 to be precisely. Bought in Berlin, february 2006. And I used a purl 3, knit 1 rib on the cuff and foot.

WEDSTRIJDJE !
Ik lees altijd de commentaren bij mijn blog, maar heb nu pas gemerkt dat bij mijn vorige 'sokpost' van 25 november '06 Gonny mij het patroon van een simpele sok vroeg. Nu gebruik ik al lang geen patroon meer, wegens 't zit gewoon in mijn hoofd. Dit uitschrijven zou een hele klus worden. En ik ben oorspronkelijk vertrokken van engelstalige patroontjes. Heeft iemand een link naar een goed NL-talig patroon ? Uit de inzendingen wordt een prijs geloot - iets uit mijn voorraadkast, de winnaar zal de keuze krijgen uit verschillende opties ! Links doorsturen kan nog tot einde januari.

kaffe fasset is coming to Belgium

... to the 'Modemuseum'in Hasselt. And he is teaching a patchwork and a knitting workshop. I signed up for both.
First up : the patchwork class. Now, patchwork is fairly new to me, I have only made one quilt before (also a Kaffe Fassett design).
It was the 'Rice bowls' quilt. More experienced quilters will have a lot to say about the finishing, but for me it's all about working with the colors.
This time we will work on the 'tapestry garden' quilt. Kaffe Fassett wants us to combine big bold flower prints. I have an old sheet with big tulips on it, and was looking in my stash what to combine with it.

I could go for pastels... but it is too sweet, not opulent enough;

... or for golden yellows. Maybe a bit to yellow ?


... but I have chosen this. I have bought some extra fabrics of course. I bought some in my local yarn and fabric store (the owner will be attending the workshop too). I bought the fabric with my store credit, build up in the last year, so I got it practically for free. I felt I needed a bit more orange, and to cut down on costs I bought 2 sheets with big flower prints, for a grand total of 20 euro. So I have a lot of fabric for not too much money. I am not sure about the smaller prints though. Probably not bold enough.

Voor yarnlot - ik vond je e-mail adres niet op je blog. Waar woon jij ergens ? Als je wil kan je me mailen - ik vond jouw japanees haakwerk heel erg geslaagd. En wat een werk om in de Noro wol te knippen tot je de juiste kleurcombinatie hebt gevonden. Well done !

swatchtitis

.... the irresistible urge to swatch new projects. This 'knit from your stash' really helps me to look for possibilities in my oddball stash. I bought some handspun very fine singles in Stockholm, summer 2005. The name of the store is 'Anntorps Vav', a very nice small shop in the old center (sorry, no picture !). She does custom dyeing too. The yarn has no label, so I really needed to swatch. I was hoping to get a short lace cardigan out of it, but with my size and what I have on hand, that's not going to happen. I will need to frog this, and think of something else. I got the pattern for the 'canopy forest shoulder shawl' as a present, so maybe that's an option.

first finished object of 2007

I did finish the Jaywalkers socks, and hope to wear them soon. They are drying as I speak. This colorway wasn't too colorfast, my hands and needles came out stained after knitting with it. That's why I decided to give them a good wash first.

I frogged the brown socks. I didn't like the tiny cable in that dark color. And I lost a bunch of stitches when a needle slid out of the wip (work in progress) in my purse. I'll need to find a pattern better suited to this yarn.
I have also been inspecting my stash.

This is the cupboard in my livingroom, filled with oddballs, or special yarns, just enough for small projects. It's next to my TV, so when there's nothing on, I can admire my stash.

To keep my resolution of knitting from stash, I swatched with a variegated cotton paired up with some Rowan kidsilk haze. I bought the cotton in Venice in 2005.

The name of the shop was Lellabella, very nice but expensive. The kidsilk haze is from my local yarnstore, 't Wolwinkeltje in Leuven. (I must write one day about the yarnstores in my home town). The idea was to knit 'Tamarah', but my swatch learns me that that won't work. So now I'll have to think a bit more about what to do with these yarns.

And the jawbreaker cardigan is 'on hold' now. I finished the back, but am having second thoughts about the front. They are cut away, and slant towards the neck opening. I am wondering if this look will work on somebody who is not as flat as the model in the magazine.

not so mindless socks

I love to knit socks when I am inbetween projects, when I am stuck on a project, and when I am travelling. I use socks as a mindless project, I don't have to think about it, I can just knit and relax. So, when travelling to Torino, naturally I started a pair of socks.
I bought some sock yarns from 'storm op zolder' on the Stitch and Bitch event in Rotterdam.


The blue one is for my Secret Pal 9; the orange one is for my friend Jane in Texas, and the black/olive/sand yarn was destined to become a pair of socks for my son. To my surprise he didn't like the colors (but it has black in it, and olive !).
So I decided to start a pair of socks for me - I settled for the 'jaywalker socks'.

Now usually I knit my socks on 60 stitches, but this pattern calls for 76 stitches to cast on. OK, I thought, maybe this pattern has not much give, so it makes sense to cast on a bit more stitches. But when I had knitted the cuff, it looked soooo big, that I decided to decrease to 68 stitches. Well, let me tell you, this pattern calls for 76 stitches for a reason. And I only realised this when I had knitted the first sock, and tried it on. I could not get the sock over my heel. So frogging the first attempt was in order.
As my need for simple, mindless knitting was not satisfied, I cast on for another sock.

This is 'fancy rib socks', from the 'subscriber only' part of the Interweave knits website, knitted in Knitpicks 'essential'.
My second attempt at the 'jaywalker socks' resulted in another failure, that only got noticed when the decreases for the toe didn't add up. The zigzag pattern is formed by increasing on both ends of the needle, and decreasing in the middle. Somewhere I managed to increase without the corresponding decrease. I knitted a complete foot before this came obvious. So frogging the foot back to the heel flap was in order.
I have knitted this sock for the 3d time now - so I really got lots of knitting time for my money. And for the good order : it is entirely due to me not paying attention. There is nothing wrong with the pattern.

Looking back on my 2006 knitting ...

I can state that this was a good year. One of my New Years resolutions at the start of 2006 was definitely to use up more yarn then to acquire new yarn.
I used up :
- 104 balls of yarn . Making 2 blankets really helped here. They were completely knitted/crocheted from stash.

I bought or received as a gift/swap :
- 66 balls of yarn.
I bought an additional 20 balls of yarn that went out as presents immediately (so technically I didn't add these to my stash).
All in all, the balance is positive. I knitted up 38 balls more then I added to the stash. In 2005 I only slightly knitted up more then I bought (If I remember correctly it was something like : 130 knitted/115 bought).

My resolution for 2007 will be to knit from stash even more. I don't know if I can keep to a strict yarn diet (like Wendy), but I really want to knit more from stash. I have yarn for at least another 20 pairs of socks, numerous bags, scarves, hats, shawls.... enough to keep knitting for a long time. I also have 4 sweater kits (2 Vivian Hoxbro, 1 Hanne Falkenberg, 1 Kureyon). Maybe I can refine my resolution to use the oldest yarns first...
The jawbreaker cardigan I am working on now is a good example. Some of this yarn was in my stash for ages ...

In 2006 I knitted a grand total of 28 items.
(When looking back on the items I have knitted, I see that I knitted 10 items with yarn that I have acquired in 2006. I guess new yarn always is more appealing...
I won't tell you how much I have spent on yarn. Let's just say that it equals buying 2 CD' a month.
I bought yarn in the 2 local yarn stores, but I bought even more yarn abroad (I tend to bring yarn as a souvenir). A resolution could also be to buy more yarn in my local stores (they need to survive too). For instance, I bought sock yarn in Berlin in February, but I can get the same yarn in my local shop. So what's the point ? The yarn I bought in Stockholm on the other hand, is so unique that I could not get it here locally.

My finished objects :
For Dear Son :
- 2 scarves (one in a cashmere/wool blend, one in a camel/wool blend, both not satisfactory to him - not the right color, lenght, width, weight... I guess he just doesn't like scarves)
- 3 pair of socks
For Dear Daughter :
- 1 pair of socks (she doesn't go trough her socks as fast as my son)
For the home :
- 1 crocheted afghan, 1 log-cabin knitted afghan.
For me :
- 2 hats
- 1 pair of socks
- 1 pair of mittens
- 2 lace shawls
- 1 lace stole
- 1 scarf
- 1 Hanne Falkenberg cardigan
For other recipients (gifts):
- 1 pair of armwarmers
- 1 pair of mittens
- 2 purses
- 1 baby hat
- 1 pair of baby pants (technically not an FO, I still need to sew in some elastic)
Dear Husband is missing from this list, he preferrs not to receive a knitted item from me.

Knitting workshops :

- knitting with color - Brandon Mably workshop at Rowan Mills, Holmfirth, UK


- Alice Starmore workshop - 1day workshop in Nieuwpoort (Holland)


- Debbie Stoller and Nancy Merchant lectures in Rotterdam (Holland)

Knitting books :
I bought one book in Swedish on twined knitting. I like books that discuss specific techniques. I don't need another pattern book really. That's where knitting magazines are for. I have a subscription to Interweave knits, and occassionaly I buy Vogue knitting (or others), in the international magazine store in my home town.

Conclusion :
2006 was a good knitting year. Let's hope for the same in 2007. I'll keep you posted on this blog. Thanks for reading and leaving a comment !

Torino yarn store adresses

for anyone interested :
Mary has a review of a Torino weekend trip on her blog :
http://silverbellsallinarow.blogspot.com/2006/06/sweltering-in-foreign-parts.html
The store mentioned is :
Filati Effegiesse
C. So G.Cesare 182
10154 Torino
Tel: 011 2462160

I found one in the suburbs :
Emporio della lana
45/bis Via Massaia Guglielmo Cardinale
10147 Torino
Tel: 011 251296

And another one more centrally located :
Filati Effegiesse
Via San Secondo 44
Torino
Tel : 011 5611363
This one had a nice window display of Xmassy yarns (red and green and sparkle yarns)

I hope this can be usefull for somebody, and I would love a report if you actually visit these yarn stores

Torino

Back from a short trip to Torino, to my surprise a very elegant baroque city (I always thought about it a being a big industrial city). It really is a city to stroll around, with all those beautifull arcades. Unfortunately, the weather was not so good : cold (sometimes very cold), and misty.
There is a lot to see indoor, so that wasn't really a problem. I liked the Egyptian museum, and the pinacoteca of the Agnelli family in the Lingotto centre.
Due to the foggy weather, I didn't take much photos.I can show you this picture of a candy shop. Torino is filled with these kinds of shops !
I discovered that Torino is considered the chocolate capital of Italy, as in 'warm liquid drinkable chocolate'. Lots of stylish cafés, where you can drink 'bicerin', a mixture of coffee, hot chocolate and cream.
Did I find yarn ? I did check the Italian yellow pages on line. The category to check is 'filati-vendita all dettaglio' (yarn - retailers). What sounded the most interesting is the 'emporio della lana'. Two nice ladies in the tourist office helped me find the location, showed me which bus to take ... I ended up in a suburb, at the window display of a tiny shop. Not really an 'emporium'. The shop was closed, but the yarn looked interesting. Italian shops close for a big chunck at noon (1pm to 5pm). I tend to forget that.
So, I came home without any extra yarn, but with good memories of a very nice city.