admitting it is the first step.

so i've come to what is to me a horrifying conclusion. i'm becoming a yarn snob.

now, don't get me wrong. i have nothing against acrylic. 300+ yards of worsted weight for $2?! what a fantastic deal! and it's machine washable, too! and it's...just not very soft.

well, certain kinds aren't. simply soft...that's one of my top 3 yarn choices. love the stuff. i'm wearing a hat made of it right now and it's so comfy i keep forgetting i've got it on.

but right now i'm also knitting a stocking with red heart. not so very long ago i wouldn't have thought anything about this, but now...wow. i can barely knit a row without taking a break. there's superwash merino in my bag, calling to me! but it's for a self-designed gift, and the stocking is a paid commission. i. must. finish.

i'm giving myself a deadline. this stocking has to be finished in a week. which shouldn't be that hard, the thing's half-done already and it's just a normal stocking...oh sure, it's got some colorwork, but just a christmas tree...all of 2 colors and a simple shape. and i'm more than halfway through the tree anyway. but man, i have to talk myself into working on it. it's not that i don't enjoy the knitting. i do. i just don't enjoy the yarn. not at all. i never realized just how uncomfortable it is until now. of course, i haven't really worked with any red heart since, oh, i don't know...i discovered simply soft.

if only i could knit these stockings in simply soft...sadly, the colors are limited. plus these are reproductions of a 20-year-old stocking which was knit with, you guessed it, the same old scratchy yarn that gives acrylic a bad name.

i'm not a yarn snob. i'm not. this is not denial. i have nothing against the yarn i find at walmart. i have a huge stash of it, and i refuse to get rid of any of it in case i need it some time. (came in handy for this project, let me tell you...for 3 stockings, using two shades of green, red, white, peach, dark peach, black and 5 random ornament colors, i spent maybe $10 on yarn. the rest is from my stash.

anyway. sorry. just had to complain. plus i finished a row and had to take a break.

this really isn't great yarn. i know, it has its uses, but wow. scratchy. i've even begun to notice that the one red heart hat i have irritates my forehead. i never really thought about it before. maybe THAT was the real denial...

and for this stocking, it probably doesn't help that the tree green is double-stranded...i could only find a suitable color in sport weight.

for what it's worth, the stocking is looking rather nice, despite crappy yarn. i'd post a picture if i could, but, ya know, i'm on the work computer. i'm kind of amazed i even get to write this post. granted, it's not posted yet, so maybe this is all in vain.