Yarntopia

Tomorrow I shall be at Rhinebeck touching a whole lot of yarny goodness despite the cold, wet weather. I'll be up at five o'something (actually, considering my insomnia, I will probably up at 4:51 a.m., the time at which my goddamn internal clock has reset itself) and ready to meet my homies at 6:30 a.m., well, after I stop at Starbucks because even though I am on the decaf, I still get a perk from the coffee goodness. I am assuming Starbucks is open that early. Huh. Maybe I should check that out. In any event, I am looking forward to Rhinebeck, even in my technically full-term preggers, waddling, sciatic state. In fact, even with me being me and the weather being the weather, the only downside I am seeing is that Lady Eleanor won't be making it. She is perfect for the weather, being that she is basically a horse blanket, but not-so-perfect for the occasion of wanting to be comfortable and unencumbered with shit. As you can see from the pictures, she is BIIIIGGGGG. I had kind of hoped to wear her, get pictures at Rhinebeck and use them for my nine month late FO post. Since it's not going to happen, I'll just do my FO post now.

The fringe is probably my favorite part. Makes me think of fishing ... stuff. Weird, huh? Nonetheless, that is what initially turned me on to this project. I loved the knotty goodness.



As I recall, the pattern requires one strand of yarn for each fringe, but I doubled or tripled it. I wanted substantial fringe, and being that the blanket shawl is so big and substantial, I think this was a good idea. The big substantialness is both good and bad. Yes, Ellie is cozy. But she is bulky. Heck, she totally hides my baby belly.



There is no using this as a scarf. When I tried, I looked like a woman in a dysfunctional birka. It doesn't go over my head, but damn if it doesn't try. She also is so heavy that if you move your, well, anything, the weight of the shawl shifts and down she falls. Being that I had no photographer, I was kinda stuck in weird, stiff poses in front of the mirror. When I sneezed, well, I had to start all over trying to get her up and on since she slithered to the ground. I suspect the the major reason for the bulk and heft was my yarn choice. I did make the shawl bigger, but I am bigger so my body should hold her up. At least that makes sense in my head. In any event, my yarn was stiff and bulky and I think that it gave Ellie a little too much body.



The good thing about this bulky yarn is that the wrong side is just as pretty as the right side, and at first blush, it is hard to tell the wrong from the right.



Overall I like Ellie. She used a lot of yarn. A. LOT. OF. YARN. Well, my version did anyway. But I like her and will futz around the house with her all winter long. And, should I come into some money to buy A. LOT. OF. YARN., I would make her again (and again).



Yarn: Noro Silk Garden Chunky, Color 8, Lot A, 28 skeins.
Needles: Addi Circs, size 6 mm (US 10)
Pattern: Lady Eleanor from Scarf Style
Time: Two months.
Care: Dry clean.