Girl's Weekend Part One

This weekend I went on a girl's weekend of knitting and yarn store visits. I spent 2 days getting organized. I had to decide what projects to bring and what yarn/projects I was going to shop for. I have to have a plan when I go to yarn stores. Otherwise it gets completely overwhelming and I end up with way too many "sparkly things".
We went to Webs in Northampton, MA on Friday afternoon. I saw my first "up close and personal" bit of yarn bombing. Very cool! It was outside Sylvester's Restaurant where we had lunch before shopping. No fun shopping if you're distracted by hunger!
The minute we walked in we all scattered to approach the yarn store in our own ways. I like to walk through yarn stores methodically to see everything. After that I'm ready to shop!

What's fun about visiting Webs with my friends is that we all run around trying on samples, looking at patterns, and planning new projects. We're full of creative energy.
My friends helped me figure out just the right color mix for Modern Mangas by Marnie Maclean. The pattern was published in Gifted: Lovely Little Things to Knit and Crochet. I love the jewel tones. The yarn is Valley Yarns Colrain, 50% Merino, 50% Tencel, 109 yards of worsted weight yarn.

I found these adorable mini stitch dots. They are marked with the different kinds of knitting actions you'll find in a pattern.
This was the only "sparkly" thing (aka unplanned purchase). I know it's not my normal colorways, I just couldn't resist it. The yarn company is Abstract Fiber from Portland, Oregon and the yarn is named Alto. It's 100% Blue Faced Leicester, 392 yarns. It's not marked whether it's worsted or dk, however it calls for a #6 needle.

I was very proud of my discipline!