More Netflix Knitting

I've only been knitting for about four years, but I've been a public defender for almost ten. So, still, when I hear questions like, what's in your stash? and where do you keep it? my first instinct isn't to guess Koigu, Noro, Manos. No, the first answers that pop into my head are - crack, heroin, wet . . . and not closet, cedar chest, knitting bag, but alley, flower pot, tailpipe. I don't think of stash in terms of fiber, but usually in terms of weight - is it a mandatory amount - is this going to get you 1-2, 3-6 or 5-10? So, maybe that's why I don't have a traditional stash -- no need to keep unnecessary weight around the house. I don't tend to buy yarn unless I know what it's going to be. So, my stash is really a queue - see, it's all coming around to Grace's Netflix of Knitting -

And, as promised, I spent time with my stash/queue yesterday. I bought a sweater bag, and organized each tier by project - some started, some in half finished states, in no particular order. As you can see, Lacy Cardigan is not in there, nor is Project Top Down - they're in the knitting bag - the projects up in the queue!

So, on to project Top Down. I went to see Grace last week (because I had to miss class on Saturday for my niece's 3rd birthday party - I'm still recovering - 20 toddlers in a barn, a different activity every 20 minutes - singing, hoola hoop, making Dora backpacks, pizza, cake, parachute, scooters, AAAAHHHHHH!!! And, back at the house, when the dust had settled, and I cracked a beer (another stash possibility), my niece started screaming - no don't drink that!!!!! She's going through a bratty screaming phase. Needless to say, I'm still recovering) to start the arms - she said, hmmmm . . . there's no reason not to put the collar on now -- so, I started swatching my vision of the ruffle.

So, I started with this, Debbie Bliss's cashmerino aran in a deep purple. And, then, the marathon swatch began:
I swatched this:










And, this . . .
And this . . .











I was very frustrated, almost ready to throw in the towel and just pick up a boring purple collar. But, then, after throwing several more skeins at the garmet (take that!), and a little suggestion from Melissa Leapman, we ended up picking a fuzzy mohair ruffle - and I say we, because I picked up the first attempt at the ruffle, and then Grace picked up the 2d, because as she also turned my first attempt at joining the top in the round into a moebius, she also instructed me to pick up the stitches from the wrong side, so that all had to come out - so Grace did the deed, and I started knitting, not really considering how many stitches were on the needle, only knowing that I was going to increase into each and every tiny itty bitty stitch every other row until I was satisfied.

Every wonder what 2,453 stitches looks like? Wonder no more:












And take a closer look:














And, here it is after I BOUND OFF 2,453 STITCHES!!!!!!

And, yes, that's also a sleeve growing down my arm. And, at the end of the sleeve - you guessed it - another ruffle.