Swatching. No, really.

I'm not a good little knitter. I don't regularly swatch for new projects. I'll sometimes check gauge on a big project, a few rows into knitting to make sure I'm about where I need to be. I've also only made one full garment (if a shrug even counts), so I'm certainly not an expert by any means. Taking this information, and my sadness over a couple of recent projects (neither of which I've actually finish, for fear of failure), I decided to start a new and swatch like crazy for an upcoming project, Cherry. I picked out four yarns, based on a ravelry review of other people's finished objects, and what I had in my stash. I'm now making a swatch with each of the yarns to determine which I would like to use. I must admit, I was inspired to swatch by Stitchywitch. I read her blog regularly, and thoroughly enjoy it. She recently displayed some of her new swatches, and it really made me think abut the success I want to achieve with my knitting. I expect a project to just come off the needles like magic, but I don't do as much planning on the front-end as I should to get the results I'm expecting. Without further ado, here are the swatches and my thoughts:

Swatch #1: Berroco Touche

This was one of the first yarns I purchased. I originally bought a few skeins at Hill Country Weavers in Austin, and then purchased additional skeins in the same dyelot from Webs, after realizing I couldn't do much with the amount I had. I've used this once before, as the sleeves and neckline of my Two-Toned Shrug. It has excellent stitch definition, but my gauge is a bit off with the suggested needle size.

Swatch #2: Elsebeth Lavold Hempathy

I just acquired this yarn from Supercrafty, and hadn't decided on a pattern when I purchased it. I wouldn't have considered this pattern in hemp, but after seeing Blumunchie's FO, I decided it was a possibility. After starting a swatch (I didn't finish), I've ruled it out. In comparison to swatch #1, I just don't like Hempathy for this pattern. The stitch definition is not as nice as the other swatches. I'll use it for something on smaller needles.

Swatch #3: RYC Cashsoft DK

I happened to have a swatch of this (in plain stockinette) that I worked a few weeks ago for another project on the same size needles. The gauge is dead-on.

Swatch #4: Knit Picks Shine Sport

I like this one as well. The gauge is similar to the Touche.

I decided to go with the Cashsoft DK. The gauge doesn't need tweaking, which is nice, and I should just a little more yarn than I need, which is good for my yarn stash!
I'm glad I did this exercise. I learned a bit more about gauge, and I recorded my gauge for each yarn on Ravelry, so next time I'm swatching, I'll have a bit more information!

Sparkly Picovoli

Since my CPH has had me stressed, I started a tank top, in a glittery yarn from Louisa Harding. I picked up the yarn from Yarntopia, intending to make a shell or tank, and now I'm actually doing that!It's an amazing concept-following through on a plan for purchased yarn.

I'm already into the second ball of yarn (out of 8), and I've just gotten past the armholes. It's nice to see some progress, especially considering I spent the majority of the weekend playing Super Monkey Ball on Wii (amazingly fun-especially Monkey Target).

I'm a little concerned the collar may be a little loose for my taste, but I've heard you can use elastic thread to help with that, so I may look into that when I'm finished.

Lots of grilling

There's no expiration date for grilling. Houston weather may be gross and humid, but it does allow for essentially year-round grilled treats. For the last few weekends, Dean and I have been taking advantage of that fact.

A variety of fruits and veggies

It's hard to pick a favorite off the grill; everything tastes delicious.
Yesterday, we grilled four types of meats (burgers, sausage, chicken breasts, salmon), as well as tons of veggies.

How can you say no to that?

I've been bringing leftovers to work throughout the week as well, so the grilling love can continue. Mmmm. I can't wait for lunch today!