there's good and then there's very good

And so I'd been a very good girl when it comes to participating in Knit From Your Stash 2007. With yarn, I'd been upstanding in sticking to the rules I laid out for myself. I bought in Paris, but only one scarf kit for 20 Euros at La Droguerie. America is such a land of fiber plenty -- what with the Internet and all -- that I didn't feel Paris had anything on us. There was no need to go nuts when I can do just as well, without a lousy exchange rate, here.

Other than the kit, I hadn't bought any yarn at all. I'd been a little dodgy with fabric, having bought some pre-cut squares for all the quilting I'll get around to in the year 2010 on eBay. I also bought some dollar-a-yard stuff at my LFS, Michael I've Died and Gone to Fabric Heaven Levine's. Well, and some lining to go with it because it's thin cotton. And a pattern or two to have something to make out of it. Oh yeah, and some notions, embroidery stuff, leather remnants, and jingle bells because a girl never knows when she's going to make baby booties and isn't tiny jingly baby footwear the cutest?

Probably I'm forgetting something I got from Michael Levine's (right, the backing fabric with the adorable stars for the baby blanket, and...) because that place makes me lose my natural mind the minute I hit the door. I do believe I hit the door three times last month.

I'd also bought a couple of sewing books and craft mags, so I'm close, but not dangerously so, to meeting my limit of 10 books for the year.

Not too too bad.

Then came Black Sheep Knittery :

It seems Black Sheep is having itself not a good sale, but a VERY good sale. Everything in the shop, including books and needles and notions -- books and needles and notions, people! -- is on sale for 50% off. Yes. I know what this means. I've used one of my three get out of jail free cards. I really did try to resist this. But I have friends. Women about whom I speak in reverent tones. Lovely as they are, they talk. They talk of pretty soft things, things color filled and dazzling, and of the beautiful tools necessary to work them into something spectacular. They especially talk when these things can be had for half their retail value.

The Black Sheep sale has been going on since (before?) I left for Paris. Two Saturdays ago there was talk that it would be the last weekend to catch it and since I was busy with the baby blanket, I figured I was safe. Then came word, from Natalie, who has a hawk's eye for such things, that it had been extended. It happened to be last Wednesday. I happened to be getting off work and free as a bird at 2pm. I met her there. The rest, as the old saw goes, is history.

Let's take a closer look at my loot, shall we?

Namaste glass needles. These things usually go for, what? Thirty bucks a pop? I got them for three bucks each. Did I mention Black Sheep also has bins of $1 - 5 yarns, needles, and other goodies? Dollar yarn right here --

and here, in blue, with a 3 dollar Frida tote:

These boxes of ribbon embellishments are marked $12.95. I caught them while they were sunbathing in the 3 dollar bin.

And a few of my most favorite things:





When I walked into Black Sheep the first day (much like a potato chip, it was impossible to indulge in this sale only once, though since it is the same sale, I'm only counting it as one outing, yar!) I had to sit down and catch my breath before I could shop. I mean, come on. A sweet little tin of mixed buttons? 1/2 price Manos? Golden embroidery scissors? Jimi and Che under glass?

They keep pulling more stuff out of some magical warehouse. I'll set a modest spending limit (I will! I mean it!) and drop in just one more time. One more. That's all. Because there's broke and then there's very broke.