With one more arm band to go on the Grey Vest, I have turned my attention to my next project (drum roll, please) … The Fluffy Sweater. Vintage Knits, of course. “Will she ever be through making things from this book?” you ask yourself. The Short-Sleeved Striped Cotton Sweater is the only other project from the book that I am Actively Planning at this point (and haven’t bought the yarn yet so “active” is really me just obsessing about it). But there are plenty of others that intrigue me. I will save those for another day but tell you this: half the sweaters in this book were designed for me. And I am going to make them all!

First things first, however.

I have never knitted anything with a fluffy mohair yarn. I am a little bit intimidated by it. The Kid Soft called for in the pattern (which is now discontinued and was discontinued when I was trying to get hold of it in the first place) has been in the chest for over a year because I can’t seem to work up the guts to use it. So to encourage myself to Swatch Without Fear I am doing a little research. Here are some of the things I have found:

How to Knit With Mohair Yarn – a List by Emily

• Fiber Fundamentals by Alison Trembley-Boucher – the part about freezing it before knitting with it is very timely since Great Gran has declared her intent to “put on her garden gloves and clean out the freezer” tomorrow. She has to make room for all of those Christmas casseroles.
• Knitting with Mohair – the emphasis here is on planning. And on no ripping. You see? You see why I am afraid to start this project?
• This little tip makes the previous item somewhat less daunting.

I’ve got a different yarn (Creme Brulee) to seam with. Kid Soft isn’t 100% mohair, or I wouldn’t bother to start. Great Gran is cleaning out the freezer tomorrow. So I should be all set. As ready as I will ever be. Getting ready to swatch.

Well.

It IS close to 11:00pm and I am pretty tired. So I think I’ll start on that swatch tomorrow. You know. When I am all fresh. That’s the ticket.