Rockin' the Blue Sky Alpaca

I love the color green, I find it really hard to resist anything in a showy, bright green and one day I found myself fondling this very supple, chunky, blue sky alpaca in the most beautiful shade of green.  In a fit of green envy I bought 5 skeins of the yarn.  I knew I wanted to knit a beret with the yarn, but it took me forever to find just the right pattern (OK nine months), bulky beret from Vogue.  Once I had the pattern and the yarn I needed the time. 

Last week the trifecta of knitting goodness came together and I knitted out the beret of my dreams. Surprisingly I was left with two extra skeins of alpaca.  I thought, whatever shall I knit?  Inspiration came in the stitch pattern on the beret.  The bulky beret pattern had a twisted cable stitch, very easy and a whole lot of fun (if you get off on knitting).  I decided on a gaiter with a twisted cable pattern to match the beret.  I busted the gaiter out in record time and was left with a little more than half a skein left.

I thought if only I had a little more I could make wristwarmers.  I abstained from going to the yarn store and putting myself further into a yarn debt.  Instead I decided to try and knit little mitts.  Okay, bulky little mitts.  After a few false starts I came up with silly mitts to match the whole ensemble. 

I am so kitted out for cold weather, I am thinking I should move to Minnesota.  And in the end I was left with maybe a yard of the Blue Sky Alpaca.  In my attempt to use up all the yarn I almost (almost) made a tassel to go on the top of my beret.  Good sense prevailed and instead I put the dab of yarn in my pot of stray pieces.  I may one day decide something else needs a tassel.