A Yarn Mystery and Travels in Search of Yarn

Earlier this year, I visited Amazing Threads, a yarn shop in Kingston NY. I was very impressed by some skeins of yarn that they labeled "Amazing Threads Special," with the yarn content, amount, washing directions, gauge and needle size. All the skeins had this store label. The price was great, $3 a skein. In fact, I wrote about this yarn and store visit back on January 13, and the mitts I was making. Imagine my surprise when I was in a Jo-Ann store in Glens Falls yesterday and I found the exact same yarn--Moda Dea's Cartwheel! Or at least, so I thought. I had to buy a skein to check. Guess what? Same thick and thin texture, same distinctive colorway, same amount of yarn, same fiber composition. In fact, it seems to indeed be the same yarn! I wonder what the story is behind this? Perhaps the mill created more yarn than Moda Dea wanted? Or...?

On this same trip, I had a chance to visit a new yarn store, Yarn Angel on Glen Street. Very nice proprietor, a good selection of yarns (many Berroco), and I had a sneak peak at some of the new fall yarns. It seems many of the new pattern books are on back order, but I look forward to seeing them. Actually, previews of the patterns are on the Berroco site. I'm not much of a self-striping yarn fan, but several of the new patterns for Geode and Jasper are calling to me.

Last weekend, a friend and I headed south to visit some yarn shops on the east side of the Hudson. We started at the jam-packed Flying Fingers in Tarrytown, where we each found sample sweaters that called--strongly--to us. Strongly enough that we couldn't leave the store without buying the necessary yarn. Mine is Karabella's Travelling Cables Cardigan. The picture on the pattern doesn't look extraordinary, but the knit garment on does! I treated myself to Aurora 8 in a gold color--something very new for me. I've heard wonderful things about knitting with this yarn. Then we went on to Yarn Central in Hopewell Junction, which has a number of European pattern books and yarns, as well as books and yarns that are more commonly seen. I couldn't leave without scooping up some of the half-price Dale Falk skeins for colorwork. Our last stop was Country Wool outside of Hudson, where we bought several of Claudia's hat and scarf patterns, and a bit more yarn. What a lovely day's excursion!

Doorways to Enjoyment, Part II

Sorry to keep you waiting for the second two doorways. I wonder if you found the first two an interesting way to think about the books you gravitate to.

The third doorway leads to books that focus on setting. There are not as many books in this category, but if you are a fan of historical fiction, many of those books fall into this doorway, as they make a setting distant in time seem real. Fantasy novels also fall into this doorway for many readers. Books that situate the reader in a distant location in the present also qualify. Some works that fit here include the Tony Hillerman mysteries, Colleen McCullough's Master of Rome series, Donna Leon's Venetian-set mysteries, A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, and E. Annie Proulx's The Shipping News. When someone talks about a setting doorway book, they often talk about how real the place was for them.

Books in the language doorway comprise the smallest category. These are the books that often win the major awards, and are described as "well written." Many readers fell this type of book moves slowly. Authors whose books fall into this category include Edith Wharton, William Trevor, Wallace Stegner, Michael Cunningham and Joan Didion.

I would love to hear if these categories resonate with you. Personally, I tend to look for books that focus on setting (all those historical novels I read!) and story (I'm a big mystery fan). I do read my share of the language-doorway books, but character isn't a category I tend to search out. Right now I am reading The Little Book by Selden Edwards, which I'd place in "setting." It is set partially in 1897, partially in the second half of the 20th century. The early period action occurs in Vienna, which is vividly brought to life. The next book I plan to pick up is a historical fantasy by Mercedes Lackey--another setting book!