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<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\nHere is a close up of the stranded pattern on the yoke. I am posting this on my ipad which doesn\u2019t seem to allow me to re-size the photos. Since my computer will not connect to the internet I am attempting to use an ipad. Mysterious electronic glitches always occur when I am out of the US. I know it\u2019s user error.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I may decide to rip back a good deal of this sweater, now that I\u2019ve finished in time for the deadline for test knitters. I\u2019m not entirely happy with the shaping, and I need to dive back into the instructions to see if I made an error in the increases or if it was in the pattern. It\u2019s a big job, ripping all the way to where the sleeves get put on holders, but since I love the design and my yarn choices, I must do it! <\/p>\n\n\n\n My new tote bag is a gem. I am on cloud 9 that I found it almost a year after I first saw it. And I am notorious for getting my photo taken in windy places so that my hair is winging out like it\u2019s going to sail away. Just look at the gorgeous tote bag and ignore the model. Please also notice the cute sweater on the hair-challenged model. The vest pattern is by Elenor Mortensen, and you can find her on Ravelry. This pattern is called \u201cEowyn Tee,\u201d and it is knitted in the round from the top down with a clever boat neck that morphs into lace on the shoulders. I enjoyed knitting it, and enjoyed using cotton yarn (Rosario) that I bought in the A\u00e7ores last summer. I certainly love knitting with yarn from places I visit. It\u2019s the highlight of traveling for me!<\/p>\n\n\n\n The next project on my needles also uses locally sourced yarn. I saw the pattern and the yarn on a US website for the yarn store Wooly Thistle. They are carrying a variety of Spanish yarns from a company called Wool Dreamers. The yarn for this sweater is \u201cSoana,\u201d a 50\/50 blend of Spanish merino and cotton grown in Spain. I couldn\u2019t order it in time to get it from the Wooly Thistle before we left, and then I realized I would be in the country where this yarn is produced. So I looked at Google Maps to see how I might buy this yarn in person. No luck there as most of the yarn shops were a lot further north. Even though we had a car for a few days, it would be a really long drive to Barcelona or to Madrid. So I ordered it online and had it shipped to a local shop in Almerimar that offers package deliveries. I\u2019ve never heard of this before. Boy, was I happy when I walked to the shop to pick up my package!<\/p>\n\n\n\n I am knitting the pattern that Wooly Thistle recommends for this yarn, and I\u2019ve chosen a muted celadon green because I am thinking \u201cspring.\u201d It\u2019s a design by Tete Beche (Orlane Sucche) called \u201cIlha.\u201d I\u2019m particularly enthralled with this design because it is supposed to evoke the baskets that are made on the islands off Portugal. What a wonderful idea, and the designer has done a very clever job of creating cabled and eyelet patterns that are quite like the wicker woven baskets from these islands. The name \u201cIlha\u201d is Portuguese for \u201cisland\u201d and is pronounced \u201cilyah,\u201d. Since I enjoyed my time in the A\u00e7ores so much last summer, this sweater will bring back sweet memories from that adventure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the moment my knitting looks like a blob. The cable and eyelet yoke will need a good wet blocking to bring out the pattern. Here is an image of the finished yoke that comes with the pattern.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<\/a>