An Illusive Yarn

I just finished leading a week of garden camp for a group of children aged 5-8.  It involved harvesting from an herb and vegetable garden, using the harvest to make food and then eating it.  

My 16 year old thought it necessary to remind me not to become a five year old myself when dealing with one.  

For example, if a child who I knew was not allergic to anything said "I'm allergic," she felt I should not say "No you're not.  I know for a fact that you are not because I had your parents fill out a form before camp started specifically asking if you were allergic to anything.  And you're not allergic to ANYTHING."

I'm sure there's not one among you who would disagree with my daughter.  And to be clear.  I'm not saying that I behaved the way used in the above example.  It was simply an example of how she felt I should NOT behave.  

She wanted to make sure that I behaved like a grownup.  

Meanwhile back on the yarn front....

This past Saturday I started emailing and calling every yarn store on the Noro list of retailers and on-line stores carrying Silk Garden.  I was determined to find the illusive Silk Garden 269.

This colorway landed on the periphery of my consciousness when Kay Gardiner listed it in her Mitered Cross Pattern.  I didn't pay too much attention to it.  It was white, a neutral, and discontinued.  Oh well.  Move on.  

I liked the idea of learning mitered knitting and helping Japan at the same time so I pressed the BUY button.  I have always enjoyed the way Noro self stripes and liked the idea of making use of that quality in a way that didn't result in simple parallel lines. 

As I wrote about here, I happily used Manos silk blend in a green for the solid contrast to the transitioning Noro and received many compliments.  

The problem began after I had five squares completed.  Suddenly the green became heavy and confining.  

I began looking for a way to loosen things up.  Maybe I would crochet the blocks together asymetrically with some other color.  Maybe I would make a bag using the blocks on the diagonal.  

Maybe I would mix other Noro colors in.  

After a while I took my five completed squares and put them away.

One day Chris B. walked into the shop with a skein of Silk Garden 269 and one skein of Silk Garden 264 thinking that they might help lighten things up for me.  

She did not realize that the 269 was a much sought after item or that it was the color that was used in the original quilt. 

I knit up one mitered cross square using the 269.  

The picture below tells you what I did next.

I found the 269 after an hour of calling and emailing many yarn stores and online shops.  A quilt shop that had a yarn corner found some stuffed in a cubbie and an online store said they had it but I was skeptical.

I had already ordered from the online store when I heard back from the Quilt shop but I was so addicted to the idea of getting the yarn that I thought I might just buy all of it and then have it for some other Mitered Cross junkie.

Then I decided to order the yarn from the Quilt shop, cancel my other order and AFTER my yarn arrived I would let people know where they could find 269.

There was no way I was going to risk giving up my source of Noro Silk Garden color 269 before I had my 8 outstanding skeins in hand.

ABSOLUTELY NO WAY.

Nothing childish about that.

Nu Uh...

Liz