Looped Yarn Works

FINALLY! FINALLY! Washington DC has a yarn shop worthy of its knitters and crocheters. Looped Yarn Works is everything I’d hoped for and more. The shop is about a block and half north of the Dupont Circle Metro (North exit—big escalator). Come out of the escalator and start walking away from the circle until you reach 1732 Connecticut Avenue. Two short flights of stairs up and you are at Looped. It’s bright, airy and organized. Silks, DK, Sport, Fingering and other luxury yarns are in the back room. Worsted and heavy weights are in the front room.

The selection in both rooms is delicious. Yarns that I wouldn’t order online because of shipping costs and fear of being saddled with a quantity of yarn that I might end up hating are here: Berrocco, Cascade, CEY, Debbie Bliss, Rowan… The prices are reasonable and for the two skeins I bought, they were the same price as on the manufacturer’s website. I looked at a skein of merino lace weight 1573 yards for $21.00. Not outrageous at all.

I’m still on yarn buying hiatus but I couldn’t resist a skein of Berroco Ultra Alpaca Light and a skein of Cascade 220. There is a good selection of needles. Addi’s, of course, and Chia Goo crochet hooks and circular knitting needles (in Bamboo and metal) in the standard 16, 24, 32, 40 inch as well as in sock needle sizes…yes!!!

And you are welcome to show up and just knit!

What I was most excited for was the steady stream of customers coming through the door. I encourage readers to check them out. You won’t be disappointed.

Knitting
I’m beavering away using up three skeins of Knit Picks Shadow in the Stained Glass colourway that I bought two years ago. It’s a half circle shawl: Garter stitch, no design (EZ would be proud). A perfectly mindless bus knit. I loved the colourway but everything I tried with it before just didn’t work out and I’ve ended up disliking the yarn until I started this project.

Movies
I Can’t Think Straight
Oh my, was this funny. Two Muslim girls, one a Jordanian and the other a South Asian discover by meeting each other that they are Lesbians. The scene-stealer in the movie is the South Asian house servant of the rich Jordanians. She does something early in the movie that makes you watch her every time she’s on screen. Good acting all round. Great soundtrack.

Books
For my birthday, I treated myself to a Tea Canister and some tea from Teavana and bought a used copy of Barbara G. Walker’s A Treasury of Knitting Patterns Vol 1. That’s going to be my bedtime reading for awhile.

Blocking with Feline or Whose Shawl is it Anyway

Spider Stitch Shawl

The Spider Stitch Shawl

Blocking

finished

No, Toupie doesn't crave photo ops. He just has to take charge of anything new or anything for that matter.

The Spider Stitch shawl is blocking. This is the largest knitting project I've done to date. It has a few mistakes, but I'm happy with the result. I still need to improve my blocking skills and need to get more blocking pins. I didn't use the wires because I was hoping to minimize Toupie's interest in the shawl. Forlorn hope, I'm afraid; he's currently lounging on it.

Tomorrow is the 100th anniversary of the birth of Elizabeth Zimmerman. In my pantheon of craft goddesses she ranks, after my mother and my aunts, up there with Erica Wilson in opening my eyes and directing my skills to the possible. Mwaa on Ravelry has designed three incredible Pi Shawls as a tribute. If you're on Ravelry, please check them out. If you're a knitter and haven't read Elizabeth Zimmerman, I highly recommend her Knitter's Almanac. It's dead cheap (under $5.00 when Knit Picks is having a book sale) it proves that the best teachers, give you a foundation, then guide and then let you go. This little book will teach you to create everything from baby blankets to woolen stockings with a writing style that draws you in like a Dicken's novel. If you're just starting to knit, Knitting Without Tears, will help you build your skills. Knitting Workshop and Knitting Around provide hours of enjoyable reading and inspiring projects.

I've been watching a lot of films lately. Finally saw all the episodes of Collision. Disk 2 of Taggart Death Call. The original Taggart series is still the best crime series ever put to film. The new series isn't too shabby either; it's just not as intricate and riveting once you've seen the original.

Tibet: Cry of the Snow Lion has a bit too much propoganda for my liking, but was interesting.

La Vie En Rose I found a bit hard to keep up with in parts.

The Pillars of the Earth was flawed and left me wanting to read the book for depth.

Pete's Meteor was a wonderful slice of life film; not for the squeamish and not for anyone looking for light uplifting entertainment.

The Intended amazing but not light.

To Play the King Ian Richardson is so deliciously twisted and it was fun to watch because I'd forgotten how this ended.

Ken Burns' The Civil War probably the best historical documentary ever.

I've got various things on the needles but Mwaa's new pi shawl pattern and my stock of lace weight yarn is calling. I am saving and waiting to find a yarn to knit this for winter:

My plans also include legwarmers, armwarmers, a few more tams and scarves from my stash of Palette. I also have the yarn I got last year to make the gansey skirt by Kat Coyle