Do you know what I love about merino wool? That moment when you've got a project off the needles, and you're proud of it and all, but it's just not quite right yet...
And then you dunk it in water, let the liquid seep into every fiber of your hard work, knowing that something disastrous might come out in place of your dreams-- what if it felts? What if it grows four sizes? What if I made some huge mistake and I'll have to unravel all this yarn after it's already set?
And then you pull it out of the water, and it smells heavenly-- like sheep and happiness and love and wonder-- and you can feel that it's ten times softer now, which you hadn't thought possible, and not only that, but it drapes like a dream...
And you lay it out on a towel, and squish it and set it and pin it out until it fits the math you've already worked out so carefully, and you bounce to yourself a bit because now you have to wait before you can use it the way it's meant to be used, even though you know already that it's perfect.
That's what I love about-- well, really, yarn in general. Especially really nice, high-quality, deliciously woolly yarn, like the project I've just set to blocking. (Yes, that was what inspired this post.) It's a design, and it's sort of cold-weathery, and I haven't gotten the pattern part written up yet, so it might be a while in coming, but, gosh, do I love it.
It's moments like these that make me so glad to be a knitter.
Featuring Cutthroat Worsted, the story behind which is coming next post!
