I missed posting yesterday because I went to The Lake. (That's Lake Michigan to you Muggles.)
That didn't stop me from knitting, of course. The pattern and yarn both came from my first Sleeping Bear Yarn Club shipment, which arrived last Thursday! The club is being sold by Wool & Honey, a great little yarn shop in Cedar, Michigan, on the Leelanau Peninsula. I have only been to Wool & Honey a couple of times. Most visitors to the Leelanau would never drive through Cedar because they tend to stick to the coastal cities, and Cedar is pretty much in the middle of the peninsula.
Each shipment consists of a skein of sock yarn that is dyed specially for the club and is inspired by Northern Michigan, one pattern (sock, shawl, or baby sweater) and one stitch marker made by a local jewelry maker.
Each shipment consists of a skein of sock yarn that is dyed specially for the club and is inspired by Northern Michigan, one pattern (sock, shawl, or baby sweater) and one stitch marker made by a local jewelry maker.
My first package also included a Wool & Honey tote bag, a Sleeping Bear Yarn Club stitch marker, a nice handwritten note from the shop owners, and a preview of the August colorway, pattern choices and stitch markers.
The July colorway is called Good Harbor Beach and is inspired by... um... Good Harbor Beach! (The colors in this photo are so washed out—amateur photographer mistake of taking the photos in the early morning light. The colors in the first photo are much more accurate.) I love the colorway because it has all the colors of Lake Michigan—water, sky, and sand. This time I chose the Capitola sock pattern because you just can't go wrong with Irish Girlie Knits, and this is one of her patterns that I didn't already own. You can see the stitch marker that was included this month—I forget the name of the stone.
At first I wasn't sure about the sock yarn base. It's Sunshine Yarns Classic Sock, which I've never used before. It's a 100% merino base, but I couldn't help thinking as I started the sock that it felt like I was knitting with a fingering weight cotton. Weird, because merino shouldn't feel that way. I was using my Knitter's Pride Karbonz and the yarn was not gliding over the needles the way I like, so I switched to metal, and that was better for this particular yarn. Once I got past the lace cuff section to the leg that has the stockinette columns, the yarn also felt much softer.
At first I wasn't sure about the sock yarn base. It's Sunshine Yarns Classic Sock, which I've never used before. It's a 100% merino base, but I couldn't help thinking as I started the sock that it felt like I was knitting with a fingering weight cotton. Weird, because merino shouldn't feel that way. I was using my Knitter's Pride Karbonz and the yarn was not gliding over the needles the way I like, so I switched to metal, and that was better for this particular yarn. Once I got past the lace cuff section to the leg that has the stockinette columns, the yarn also felt much softer.
It was a great beach day, and a great knitting day!