Last week Sarah from Sea Change Fibers delivered a new base to the shop, Swale Sport, a beautiful combination of American Merino/Rambouillet and cashmere. It is so soft and bouncy. I searched through Ravelry for the perfect pattern. On Saturday, I found it, Koryn selected the colors, I photographed the options, Jenn wrote a description, and we had it all set up to appear in the newsletter.
I was thrilled! On Tuesday, I took the yarn and pattern home with me and cast it on. I knit the first section, and it was okay; I knit the second section, and, nope, it was not right. The yarn-to-pattern combination was not bringing out the best in one another. It wasn't an enjoyable knit, and it just looked, for lack of a better word, clunky. I slept on it. Maybe it would magically morph overnight into the beautiful thing I had created in my mind.
Wednesday morning, I got up, made my latte, opened my knitting bag, and, again, nope! My first text was to Jenn, "You might kill me. I have started our featured kit, but I just do not like it. I am thinking I might change the project." Luckily, Jenn was too far away to do me any actual harm, so I started scrolling Ravelry.
One thing kept coming up for me, one of the most popular kits we have ever featured in the shop. Melanie Berg's Solaris. I love this pattern, but would people want to see it again? Granted, the last time we featured it was 2019. It is a comfort knit for me; like re-reading a favorite book or returning to a familiar vacation spot, it makes me happy.
Back to the shop... Koryn and I ripped the kits apart and started from square one, selected the colors for Solairs, took photographs, loaded the data into the point-of-sale system and the website, and let Jenn do her magic. I felt so much better!
Guess what I did last night? Cast on Solaris. My comfort knitting project and I are going to enjoy this July.
Project Note: To make the edge with the increases nice and stretchy, I add a yarn over after the kfbf. On the next row, I simply drop that yarn over. You will thank me when you go to block the project!