The inaugural

It's a rainy morning in England, becoming a more common sight (for me) as the weather cools down ever so slowly. Since right now in Manitoba it's snowy, windy, and somewhere around -25 Celsius with the windchill, I think some rain is alright.
This blog is the result of a few things: first and foremost, I'm finally able to devote more time to yarncraft, which means I'm actually going to be stocking my poor lonely Etsy shop, Single Double Treble knit and crochet. It's been waiting a long time for this! Second, I've been told my family sometimes likes to know what I'm up to - as they're in Canada and I'm not, I'll save some postage.
Because this is my first post, I'll give myself a little Q&A session.

Q: Why yarncraft?
A: To be cheeky, why not yarncraft? But mostly because I've always enjoyed artistic creation - I've been drawing ever since I could hold a pencil, and trying to sew ever since my mom would trust me with a needle. My sewing has never taken off, but creating with yarn appealed to me despite my initial problems with finding the right gauge. Anyone who's ever crocheted knows that if your hook squeaks while going through the stitch, it's TOO TIGHT! My grandma tried for hours to correct my technique but I still kept producing trapezoids instead of rectangles and squares. I shelved the hobby for a few years but came back to it in high school when I received my grandma's yarn stash after she passed away. A labour-intensive, partially finished afghan of the provincial flowers is still patiently waiting for me while I knit sweaters, toques, and other winter things.
Q: Got a favourite yarn?
A: Usually I'm an equal opportunity yarncrafter, but I will say that anything with a colour gradient is my favourite. I love James C. Brett's Marble Chunky - it's a super quick knit and the striping is tons of fun. It's also pretty cuddly. The Fibre Company's Acadia is one of my favourites for feel, it's so soft and the coloured flecks make a nice contrast. One of my favourite standbys is Bernat Satin - there's a ton of colours, the yarn really is pretty satiny, and it's affordable, which is currently one of my top criteria for choosing yarn. Coming from North America where Bernat is more prevalent than here in the UK, I'd say it has been one of my go-to yarns in the past. Maybe not as high-end as some of the fun fibers, but it's pretty hardy.
Q: OK, so what about hooks and needles?
A: I'm at a bit of a crossroads with this one. I prefer wood (for both) because it's comfortable to hold and the yarn moves easily across it. However, I do have some decent metal needles, and in a few cases my wooden ones have been too smooth and my yarn has fallen right off - this was a problem when I was doing some cables on my lovely Marion cardigan (a pattern by Andi Satterlund). On the other hand, while plastic needles are almost always the cheapest in the store, the circulars I have aren't very good quality (the join between cable and needle has a gap and keeps pulling and catching the yarn), and I've broken crochet hooks before (yes, more than once).
Q: Favourite project?
A: So far, that's likely been my first worksock cardigan, currently residing in Canada. It's too big on me but it's comfy, durable (Bernat Super Saver), and it was born out of inspiration by another cardigan I saw on my way to work one day. I've tried to make another one using top-down construction (the first pattern was all separate pieces) and haven't had the same kind of success, but I'll give it another go when I get some more grey marl. You can never have enough comfy cardigans.
I'll give an honourable mention to my Bernat Temperature KAL scarf from 2013 - with the excessively cold winter last year, once that scarf was finished, it was probably about six feet long - long enough for me to wrap it around my head, across my face, and around my neck. It is hands down the most efficient piece of knitwear I own, and it kept me warm for the half-hour walks to and from work in -30 windchill...or colder.

Maybe you're not riveted by yarncraft discussions (I know my husband isn't), but I promise I'll diverge from time to time. Don't forget, some of these yarncraft discussions will be about new items in my shop! And it's always good to have an inside track on big comfy scarves.