April 4, 2005
The Beginnings of Liberty

I'm simply not to be trusted with an whole Internet full of yarn around. Some would argue that I should have took it as a sign that Colourway did not seem to have the lovely orange Mandarin Cashsoft DK color in stock for several weeks after they had the books -- I should have seen it as a sign that the knitting gods wanted me to work with the stash I had. Instead, I actually emailed and on what would have been a Saturday evening for the folks at Colourway, they posted the yarn to their site so that I could place an order. How could I resist at that point?
The yarn is for Liberty, a wrap top with both stripes and texture. The colors are a little out on a limb for me: orange, apple green and grey aren't what I'd normally put together. But with all this orange and shreky green going around, I thought this might be a chance to get my fix. It almost doesn't seem like there's enough yarn to make a sweater that could wrap all the way around me (5 balls of the grey, 4 of the mandarin and 3 of the green), but this is probably just an optical illusion because the yardage on these balls is pretty robust -- somewhere around 130 m/ball.
If you haven't yet had the chance to interact with the Cashsoft or Cashcotton DK yarns yet, by all means run out and find some to pet! Very soft and lovely. I'm hoping the microfiber content in both yarns will make up for the general lack of durability to both merino wool and cashmere.
One thing that wasn't clear to me when I ordered the yarn for the project was that while the Cashsoft colors are solids, the Cashcotton colors (at least the Apple) are a bit tweedy. Here's a closeup for proof:

Pretty lovely stuff if you ask me. I'm looking forward to finishing my pink Eponge pullover so that I can start on this project. I keep telling myself... only one major sweater project at a time.... only one major sweater project at a time -- especially when both projects I'm interested in are knit on slender needles.
If you want to see another project being worked in one of these yarns, be sure to peek in on Wendy's completed Deli sweater. It's also out of the Classics Cafe book and hers is absolutely gorgeous.
Awwww, thanks for the shout-out! I do love that Apple Green shade you've got . . .
I've been lusting after these new yarns, the color choices are really wonderful. Can't wait to see Liberty all knit up!
Why you wanton yarn-buyer, you.
Hi, I am also using the cashcotton in pool. it is so wonderful knitting w/it. so soft.love the green apple.
We got the Cashsoft in the shop where I work last week. It is just wonderful, wonderful stuff. So nice to knit and so soft.
I think the gods weren't reading you correctly - you did the right thing. Hope to hear more on how the yarn knits up.
Isn't there a law against posting pictures of beautiful cashmere blend yarns for us yarn addicts to see... *sigh* I held on to my new mantra ("I don't need any more yarn") for most of February and March, but now I'm buying like a madwoman again.
Great pattern with awesome colors. YUM!
Hello! I just stumbled across your site and was amazed by your knitting prowess! I am inspired to start the small felted bag with partition, but I'm having a hard time picturing it in my mind. If you don't mind, could you tell me what the finished (after felting) dimensions are? Thank you so much! And keep up the excellent work!
I'm knitting with Cashsoft at the moment...and how lush is it!! mmmmm