Artesano Yarns - Yummy

In September my daughter, Kaitlynn, found this bag in the Debbie Bliss magazine and asked me to knit it for her.  The reindeer reminded her of Canada; where she was born.  It was so fun to knit!  Time to be honest - it was supposed to be lined and a drawstring put through the top which, somehow, I never quite got around to doing....

Recently I was flipping through the Winter 2010 Knitters Magazine and found a fabulous design by Valerie Martinuson called Reindeer Games.  It is a great hooded bolero with fair isle reindeer and snowflakes on it.  So cute!

As it happens I was visiting Karen at One Planet Yarn and Fiber a few days later to check out the new yarns and the Artesano Aran caught my eye.  The original pattern was knitted out of a alpaca and wool blend, and the Artesano Aran was the right weight and fiber composition.  I took the navy blue and natural colors home and, of course, cast on immediately and began knitting.

I love this yarn.  It is incredibly soft and the alpaca gives it a wonderful halo with long fibers making it look soft and cushy.  Kaitlynn lives in Texas attending Angelo State University and the weather there actually gets cold.  I have had a number of calls in the morning from Kaitlynn walking to class apparently "freezing to death".  It has been so much fun knitting hats, mittens, scarves and sweaters that someone in the family will actually use!  This new sweater will have to wait to be worn until next year but I'm sure it will be warm and cozy.

Check out this yarn at OPYF!  In the meantime she found another pattern for me to knit - an intricate lace cover up in the latest Vogue magazine!  Oh, and she wants to wear it this year! Yeah, right!

Regards,
Mary Glendinning
OPYF