how do I love thee . . .

So yesterday was a very productive day.  Breakfast, shopping, a little more shopping, clearning out part of the upstairs hall and defragging Zachariah's computer. 

Breakfast was eh.  Perkins.  They forgot the corned beef in the corned beef hash, but that is okay, I didn't need it anyway.  They eggs were perfect as was the toast for dunking.  Sarah ate my potatoes.

Went to Penney's and dragged Zachariah through Zephora just to irritate him.  It was even more irritating when the young lady asked if she could help and I said "nope, we're just hear to embarrass this one."  She laughed.  He humphed.  Sarah did buy a dress for the wedding we are going to next month.  It is black and has one sleeve and the other side has a strap with sequins.  She is planning on wearing red pumps, really high red pumps and red dangling earrings.  There is a guy that is going to be there and she wants to knock his socks off.  It also helps that since got divorced, she has lost 40 lbs and is now in a size 8.  I also have to hack about six inches off of the dress.  This is way outside her comfort zone.  We haggled over the hem length. 

Did our usual zip through Target to pick up various items or various endeavors then headed on home to do some serious cleaning . . . . both the computer and the hallway. 

I should have taken a picture.  Really, it was totally incredible. 

I know exactly how to entice Zachariah . . . watching HGTV.  He is a sucker for home remodeling.  So while his computer defragged (it was taking hours), he and I sorted all the yarn in the hall.  I am destashing big time and was brutal.  My niece is getting gifted with a huge parcel of stuff that while I bought it, I don't want it or don't have any plans for it.  Some of it is good.  Some of it is lousy and made me scratch and wonder WHY I ever bought it in the first place.  It is a colorful collection and I am sure Amy will make great use of the stuff.

He also took all of my straight knitting needles and many crochet hooks and put them in a vase on the table.  They do look rather loverly.   He rewound balls and raised an eyebrow more than once, especially when I unearthed the sweater that I was making for him when he was four . . . or the one sock that I finished for him when he was six.  His feet have grown two sizes since January, so there isn't even a remote chance that it would fit.

But the funniest thing happened.  While I managed to fill a huge zippered container for Amy, I still ended up with LOTS of yarn.  But I only kept stuff that I loved or that Zachariah would put his hands into and say "ohhhh,  this is nice."   I bagged matching stuff in zip-locked bags.  Sorted by type.  Frogged some projects.  Saved lots of stitch markers and redeemed many needles.  Got rid of lots of random patterns and still have about three large bags of bagged yarn.  All nicely sorted.  I have an entire bag of cotton for dishclothes, etc.  I don't even like cotton but I do like to make dishclothes for wedding presents. 

Zachariah thinks that is all of the yarn, as does Dave.  Oh well, as they say, what they don't know won't hurt them. 

Shifting Gears in Chroma - Atlantis and Smoothie

Shifting Gears from O/C Knitiot Designs.  It is a wonderful shawl using two very contrasting yarns.  It is a Crescent Shape Shawl worked with 2 different long striping yarns to create a stunning use of color. Featuring a beautiful scalloped loop cast on, 2x2 Fair Isle knitting, short rows, and an I-Cord bind off.  I am currently in my third repeat of the Fair Isle knitting, which for me is very SLOW going. 

The yarn I am using is Chroma from Knitpicks.  I love this yarn.  I've made several things in it and have always found it to be interesting and fun.  It has very long repeats, which is perfect for this pattern.

The colors (Atlantis and Smoothier) are as follows:

 

The description of Atlantis is: Step back in time and into the lost city of Atlantis with this cool, mysterious colorway! The deep water blues of Atlantis blend with soft grey and teal shades that fade into a dark seafoam green and finally, into a barely there icy spring green.

 

The description for Smoothie is:  Inspired by the vivid colors of its namesake, Smoothie introduces splashes of orange, tangerine, and papaya with a handful of farm fresh strawberries for good measure. These cheerful colors combine together to make a rainbow that is just as yummy as the best fruit smoothie.

 

 

The cool thing is that with this pattern, these colors really work.  I can hardly wait to show you . . . but I haven't taken a pic yet.  Soon and very soon, I will.