Stitches West '08, a.k.a. How I Went Broke, Officially

So I went to Stitches on Friday and didn't fare too badly. I met up with BalletMommy from the Lime&Violet message board and we managed to keep each other marginally in check. Sort of.

Then I went back today. Despite warnings not to, I went a) alone and b) with my credit card. And it's going to show. Tomorrow may mark the beginning of my #54 goal: work exclusively from the stash for one year, not including things for finishing projects (like needles or buttons). Maybe it'll be March 1, with one exception a la Wendy. I dunno yet; I'll ruminate on it over night and let you know what I come up with.

But enough of impending frugality! Show me the goods, you say! Well, I'll begin by tempting you with a (blurry) picture of the bag I picked up at the Fibersphere booth. There's no link to Fibersphere because their site won't be live until Tuesday (muahahhaha!), but rest assured, their product is cool. I didn't get one for myself, however, there will be two squee-ing ladies somewhere near Omaha as soon as I can get a box to the post office. Heh heh heh. Anyway, for me I got this bag, which is apparently not a bag but a basket because it was woven of grass, not cloth:

Crimson Basket from Baskets from Cambodia, a la Fibersphere

It's perfect for sweater-size projects and the bottom is shaped like a kidney bean so it molds to my leg or butt or wherever it's resting at the moment and doesn't flop around. I have the strange feeling I've typed this before, so I'll move on.

I got a thingy that will apparently help me control my spinning:

Spinner's Control Card from Carolina Homespun
I figure I'll take whatever control I can get.

And the proto-yarn with which to have said control:

8 oz of 100% wool from Interlacements

4 oz of 70/30 Merino Tussah from Carolina Homespun

8 oz Sheep-to-Shoe kit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts in Valkyrie

Why, yes, that IS over a pound worth of spinning fiber. And how much fiber have I spun up in, oh, ever? Roughly half a pound. That #54 is looking preeeeetty certain right about now.

I bought patterns!

Swirl Shawl pattern from Jojoland
3 new Cookie A patterns: Django, Trystero, and Stricken
Despite the current kibash on knitting socks, I could not in all conscience avoid these patterns.

But wait! Didn't you buy any yarn, Tika? Why yes, gentle reader, I did indeed buy yarn. Yards and yards of yarn. I bought, in no particular order:

Socks that Rock lightweight from BMFA, Bleeding Hearts colorway
This is my first STR. I don't know if there will be more, but I'm open to suggestion.

5 skeins of Melody by Jojoland
This is my first Jojoland. It will become the above-mentioned Swirl Shawl.
Cashlana yarn from Fleece Artist, 10/90 Cashmere/Wool
This is my first cashmere. I may pet it into oblivion.
3 skeins of Sea Silk from Hand Maiden, 70/30 silk/Seacell(C)
This is not my first Sea Silk, but I couldn't resist it anyway. I mean, really?

Whew. That's the whole of it. I also hooked up with Auntiesocial and CuteKnitter from Ravelry after today's buying binge and we chatted with a bunch of other Purlescence knitters for awhile. I like making new friends, especially ones with big stashes - er, hearts - and lots of entertaining anecdotes to share. I hope we all become good friends.

Oh, and one last thing I bought today. I gave Crazy Sarah - warning, tangent: isn't it weird how sometimes nicknames just stick? Despite the fact that Sarah is no longer crazy (neither am I, for that matter), I still think of her as "my friend Crazy Sarah" (to differentiate her from the OTHER Sarah's I know) and remember the good old days, complete with our attitudes and punk rockers and a golden tequila haze. Anyway, I gave Crazy Sarah back her Canon Rebel on Friday 'cause she needed it, so in my haze of purchasing I stopped at Wolf Camera on the way home and bought a little Nikon L2 and the sundry supplies that go with it. There's a 30-day return policy on it, so I'm going to play with it for a week or 2 then make a decision. So far, it's done okay. Considering I asked it to take color-accurate pictures with no flash under not-so-great lighting conditions at twilight in my room, I'd say it did pretty well. Some stuff is a bit blurry up close, but it's perfectly serviceable for blog work and should last me until I can save up for a Big Camera.

Now if you'll excuse me, I'm off to try to shove all of this into my closet. Wish me luck.