and a post in which another thing goes from bad to good

You may also remember that not so long ago I got a gift token for Barka yarn from my friends. After much deliberation, I chose 5 órai tea (5-o'clock tea) in Lapacho. I had been on the lookout for an obtainable and affordable tweed yarn in worsted or aran weight for Bramblewood vest and this was a perfect opportunity.



The yarn is lovely, soft and squishy, 95% merino, 5% rayon. It knits very fast and does not split at all. Of 8 skeins I ordered, there were two knots in only one skein.

What I didn't like, though, was the colour. When it arrived I realized it was more brown than I'd expected. I'd imagined it to be more like pumpkin in colour. But, truth be told, when I put the actual skein of yarn next to the image on my monitor, there was hardly any difference. So it must have been me seeing the colour I wanted to see and not the colour that was actually there. Or it might have been that effect that you sometimes have when you decorate the house: it's one thing to see a small lime-green colour chip in the shop and a very different thing to see four huge walls of a room in that same colour. So it was perhaps seeing a big pile of brown that put me off a bit.

I knew I didn't want a vest in that colour so I repurposed it and turned these 8 lovely skeins into, why, a SHAWL, of course! I chose Mara, by Madelinetosh, and the yarn was perfect for it. Heavy, spongy and squishy in the garter section, rich and full of drape in the ruffle section. I'm very happy with it. I even remembered that I have a perfect pair of shoes to wear it with, once it gets cold again. A very warm, autumn accessory, it almost makes me wish it wasn't spring :)



I also got a shawl pin as a gift from Barkavuna, as if they knew I'd be making a shawl. Thank you, Karolina and Csilla, both for the gift and excellent customer service! Looking forward to some more yarn shopping!