Sourcing Fiber
First of all, I have an excellent local yarn store (Twist Knitting & Spinning in Lahaska, PA). I also have the opportunity to source fiber at very good sheep & wool festivals.
Why Else Do I Need To Be Sourcing Fiber?
That would be when I need a very specific yarn or fiber for a specific project.
When I first decided to start making fingerless mitts, I found an incredibly soft and durable yarn in my Stash.
This is Running Wild Yarn’s Cormo/Alpaca blend yarn in natural colorway. It is soft, squishy and holds up to some man-handling during the knitting process. Turns out I purchased this yarn at Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival in 2004.
I tried to contact Running Wild Yarn to get more and didn’t hear back. Not sure if they’re still in business.
But I did find two other vendors who sell a similar yarn…same fiber blend and weight of yarn (sport weight).
I placed an order with Abundant Earth and will soon do the same with Alpacatrax.
The Abundant Earth yarn is even more squishy and soft than the original yarn.
It’s slightly lighter in color, and I may even consider dyeing the resulting mitts. We’ll see.
I’m even more hopeful about the Alpacatrax yarns. They are closer, and I’m not sure if they go to Adirondack Fiber Arts Festival in September, but I’d love to meet them in person some day.
Suffice it to say, I now have a couple of resources for what has become my favorite yarn blend.
Current Knitting
I was able to finish the last of the six pairs of Rose’s Fingerless Mitts.
I plan on building up a large inventory of these mitts for next year’s craft show.
I just started working up a new pair in this variegated yarn and I am quite loving it.
I’m not sure what weight of yarn this is, nor do I know the fiber content. But I have enough of it do make a few pairs of these mitt.
Speaking of which, thank you to all who purchased the pattern. The support of blog readers is very gratifying.