Swallowing

Could this possibly be?

It looks like...successful lace in progress. I don't want to jinx it or anything, but that is what it looks like, isn't it?

I'm on the first of three border charts. The good news is, I can count the number of rows left to go. The bad news is that every other row requires a truly appalling number of p5tog's. I never, ever want to p5tog again. I had to switch from my KnitPicks Harmony needle tips to my Options needle tips for fear I was going to break a wooden needle. It takes me as long to execute a successful p5tog as it does to knit half a row. Never again.

Here's a close up of the yarn:

I wish I could get a more accurate picture. This is dark teal, not blue. It's really pretty in real life. It's so pretty, in fact, that I want more.

So I've been spinning this:

(Again, apologies for the less-than-stellar photo.)

On the left is some more handpaintedyarn merino roving; on the right is some more hand dyed merino-tencel. Obviously, the merino-tencel is much lighter, but it's the same colors. I think the two will look good plied together, and will give me enough 2-ply to make another shawl or maybe a top of some sort.

Here's a sample of the merino singles:

And one of the merino-tencel singles:

I'm already done with the merino-tencel. It was such a treat to spin that I finished up the entire four ounces in one sitting. The merino is more difficult. I won't order this again; although I love the colors and the yarn from handpaintedyarn.com, their roving is really hard for me to spin. It seems to be semi-felted and is really tough to draft, even with serious pre-drafting. I originally ordered three four-ounce rovings. The first went into the yarn for Swallowtail, I'm spinning this one now, and I have one left. They're all a pain. Not to worry, though; I've already ordered more handpainted merino-tencel rovings from Etsy, so I won't be without lovely spinning fibers for the spring!