(Nearly) Scottish Yarns

It all started a few weeks ago on Facebook. Dr R (you remember her as my beloved English professor and Buffy mentor) was in England with some students for a summer program and had found herself with a very unusual occurance -- a day free from any previously-scheduled activity.  So as any person with intellectual and well-traveled friends might do she posted a request for suggestions as to where she might go or what she might do.  I, the armchair traveler that I am immediately recommended that she go to a yarn shop.  Sounds weird to suggest to a non-knitter (though the conversion process can begin at any age), but I have known yarn shops to be a unique community and reflection on the culture and thought she might enjoy it.  Actually, I just made that up to sound smart.  Really I was largely joking and suggesting what I would do if I ever make it to the UK.

Fast forward to last night.  I, deep into the second month of my no-yarn-buying-must-pay-rent depression plan, am making dinner for Chris and myself.  Because I have no desire whatsoever to leave the apartment I send him out to check my mail for me, from which he returns with a package.  It's from Dr. R.  I immediately rip it open to find a card and these little lovelies inside.

It turns out that while in Edinburgh, Scotland, Dr R thought of me and decided to stop in at a yarn shop.  With the help of one of her knitterly students she picked these out.  Even though they're not Scottish, they did come from Scotland and are some of the nicest yarns I've ever had the privileged of owning.  When I finally stopped buzzing around the apartment like a frantic bumble I actually took the time to look at the yarns, photograph them, note them in my stash, and then immediately wind them.

Manos del Uruguay is a yarn that I'm sure you've at least heard of.  It's one of those in the yarn shop that I always make my mom pet with me.  It's manufactured in Uruguay by local artesians.  Every skein has the location of its creation hand written into the tag.  Essentially, it's one of the most humanitarian yarns you can buy (the Savvy Girls Podcast did an excellent interview with them).  This is Wool Classica in some very generic colorway number that in actuality is not generic at all.

The other skein is Scrumptious Chunky by Fyberspates.  I couldn't figure out why I had not seen this yarn before so I looked it up.  Lo and behold it's an actual UK yarn made in Wales.  Wales is insane!  This gorgeous yarn is 45% silk and 55% merino, making a delicious soft yarn.  The colorway is called Water and it could not be more darling.

Now I must get back to my yarn.  I may or may not have immediately started knitting with one of the skeins last night.