I'm glad I went...

... to Pacafiesta. Despite the threat of tropical storm Kyle, Mammals, the Man and I hit the road in search of alpaca goodness. And I'm happy to report that we found some.

While the Man went off to talk alpacas with the exhibitors, Mammals and I made the rounds. After today, I have decided that I most definitely need me some alpacas and cashmere goats.

I spent a bit of time talking to the woman with the cashmere goats and got to pet them for a bit - very friendly little critters. I was trying to convince myself that I could take one home and pass it off as an exotic breed of dog, but decided against it. It was the horns. Dogs just don't have horns. Or cloven hooves.

The Man has discovered a love of alpacas and has declared, on the record, that they are in fact cool, and that he would like to have "some" in the future. To which I say, sweet! Think I can train them to sleep on the futon?

Alpacas and goats and bunnies. Oh my!

In addition to soft sheep and awesome alpacas, there were also a few angora bunnies. I'm fairly certain that the bunnies are actually very small under all that fuzz. I have a love of angora - so soft! So luxurious! So incredibly bad for my allergies! It seems so unfair to react so badly to something so soft (picture swollen, itchy eyes and itchy, runny nose. Beautiful). But who can resist those twitchy little noses?

Lest you be misled into the belief that it was all animal gazing, we ogled some yarns too. Oh the yarns! Rich, chocolate browns, creamy natural whites, silvery greys and that was just one booth! I steeled myself against temptation and was pretty successful. I could not resist the colourful sock yarns of the The Black Lamb Hand Weaving and Spinning Shoppe. They had so many lovely shades that I had a hard time picking just one ( and I am proud of myself for only purchasing one single skein - we all know how I feel about sock yarn). I chose one in a various shades of grey, pewter and blues - picture the ocean under a cloudy sky. It's pretty soft and I'm looking forward to knitting it up some time in the nearish future.

The fibre fondling didn't stop there - I also picked up 2 skeins of a 50% alpaca 50% merino blend from Legacy Lane Fiber Mill. Two squishy skeins of grey/blue softness. I haven't really decided what they'll eventually become, but as Mammals says, anything that soft belongs around your neck. I do need a new scarf - well, can you ever really have enough scarves? I say no. Mammals, not to be outdone, scooped up 2 skeins of chocolaty brown alpaca and some crazy -coloured sock yarn too. She's on a serious scarf kick right now and I'm looking forward to seeing what

she comes up with.

Mammals and I cuddle up to some yarny goodness.

I've pretty quiet lately - as in I'm sure some of you might have thought that I fell off the face of the earth - there has been lots of knitting, just not documented knitting. I finished the Drops sweater a few days ago - all finished except for the buttonholes which I forgot to add. Dumb, dumb, dumb. I didn't even notice. Instead of unseaming and ripping back, I've decided to fake it - snaps. After bar hooks failed to work out, I'm confident that snaps are the way to go. When all is washed and blocked, a fashion shoot and post will be in short order. I've also got some hats to show off and some other goodies in the works. So please stay tuned. Until then, happy knitting!