First order of business: My Transformers sweater (which, by the way, was not enough to win us the "biggest fan" video contest we entered) is the most comfortable thing I've ever worn. Even though the fabric is thick and heavy, the garment itself is not warm. I wore it to work and was no hotter than usual. The real test will be wearing it now that the summer heat has really set in; next time the forecast is 100+ I am going to wear it to work again and see what happens. Living in a hot city like Dallas and planning to move back to an even hotter city like Houston, I am always on the lookout for cool yarns. This is my favorite sweater ever.

...However, disaster struck when I put it in the washer. The tag on Plymouth Oh My says "machine washable" with no further disclaimers, so I put it on gentle cycle thinking I was playing it safe. When I pulled it out of the washer, I almost fainted. There were a ton of little strands of yarn tangled and wrapped around the sweater and a giant hole on top where the green background meets the white logo. I managed to pull myself together enough to start cutting strands away and it turns out that all the tangles were just my cut ends coming unraveled, but they were all still attached where they should have been with the exception of the one hole. The yarn is constructed rather like a little i-cord, so when the end is cut it comes undone. (My advice for those working with this yarn is to scrap the usual "never tie knots" rule and tie a small, single knot at the very end of every strand after you weave in. Also, weave in a longer tail than usual so that in the event of unraveling, you still have enough there to remain secure.) I painstakingly repaired the hole on the front with very little lasting damage. The top of his head is a bit crooked, but I am very proud of the surgery I did on him.



Secondly, I finished my mock-cable cardigan and it is everything I hoped it would be. I spent a full 16 hours weaving and seaming, 8 of which were devoted entirely to getting the zipper in exactly right. I knew I had succeeded when the girls at work couldn't tell it was a cardigan rather than a pull-over until I unzipped it. It took 18 balls of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Chunky (not Superchunky, as they are commonly confused with one another) and is worked on size 9 & 10.5 needles. This one is the exact opposite of the Oh My sweater and it's warm to the point of stifling. I've only been able to try it on long enough to catch a quick glimpse in the mirror and then rip it back off again lest I suffer a heat stroke. I guess this one will be shelved until next winter.

At first I was kicking myself for not having designed the sweater in a way that was able to be resized easily. The pattern repeats are done over such a large amount of stitches that removing one would downsize the garment by about 4-5 sizes at a time. But it appears fortune was smiling down on me, for when the sweater was done I realized just how stretchy it is. Laid flat, the sweater is about 34" at the bust, but the cables & ribbing easily stretch to fit me at about 44". I suspect it might even embiggen itself further if needed for someone larger. So I will be able to market this pattern for sale after all, under the guise of a "one size fits most" disclaimer.

Speaking of hot weather and cool yarns, there is one made by Needful that claims to not only protect you from UV rays, but also keep you feeling 9 degrees cooler. It's called Ceramic, because (obviously) it is made with 5% ceramic. How is this even possible? Who knew ceramic was spinnable? The Woolie Ewe has this stuff for sale and I would love to hear testimonials from anyone who has used it.