Yarn Impulsivity

I'm posting purely to stick to my resolution of blogging everyday. I did of course miss yesterday, due to lack of sleep and surfeit of drama. Today was far calmer, but I am still in a fog and daze of sleep deprivation.

Exhibit A of fog and daze: I willy nilly started working on a new knitting project right in the middle of my socks. I couldn't wait another minute to wind the yarn and cast on for a pair of mittens for M.M. My logic was that the mittens would be a quick project and would hardly interrupt the socks. And that the yarn is just so darned pretty I couldn't help myself. And that it was kind of cold today for the first time this winter (!) and poor little M.M. needs some mittens.

I'm using some lovely blue, purple and kind of seafoamy green Miss Priss worsted yarn. It was pricey ($24 for one skein) but it's absolutely gorgeous and it was quite a big skein, so I'm hoping to get mittens, a hat, and possibly a scarf for M.M. out of it, and maybe even a hat for myself. By then I suppose I'll be sick of the colorway but for now it's lovely.

The problem with my impetuous start was that I don't have the right size needles. I need US 4 dpns, and of course I have 1s, 2s, 3s (several sets of 3s – I have no idea why so many), 5s, 7s… but no 4s. So I am brazenly swatching with 3s, on the bright hope (and with full awareness of the certainty of failure) that I'll get the right gauge. It's killing my fingers to use such small needles with this weight yarn, but I couldn't keep myself from knitting it. I will of course have to break down and find some 4s when I go out next, but I was hoping not to have to leave the house tomorrow, so it may wait until Friday.

The great thing about having a small child is that swatches can be used for doll blankets, so it feels like you're doing a project even when you're really just swatching.