We have returned!

We went to five yarn stores in one day. It was a grand adventure! The stores:

The Recycled Lamb. A medium-size store with lots of nice yarns, well-organized, plenty of knitted samples. Unfortunately it's a bit dark and it was freezing cold, and it's sort of hard to find as the sign only says "YARN." But we found it, and they had this nice green Jo Sharp Silkroad Aran Tweed for $6, so a couple of skeins had to come home with me.

Showers of Flowers. Huge. Vast. More yarn than you can shake a stick at. The organization leaves something to be desired, and there's an ungodly amount of fun fur and yarn with - I couldn't believe it - sequins, and the owner seems to have a big thing for making unspeakably tacky fake flowers out of yarn. However, it's so huge that they have just about every Rowan yarn, plenty of Cascade and Mission Falls wool (!) and fancy mohair and stuff I'd never heard of, and a huge stock of needles. So I found not one but two #1 bamboo circulars, one by Addi Natura (2.5mm) and one by Crystal Palace (2.25mm). Let the sock knitting commence!

The Shivering Sheep. A tiny store in a great location right by Cherry Creek, with some really nice yarn, but so disorganized (no prices on anything!) that it's hard to find more than one skein of anything because the rest of the yarn you just picked up could be in a basket across the room, under a pile of Lorna's Laces. Still, I managed to find this nice Katia mohair, which I'm thinking could be carried along with the Silkroad to make a really cushy pair of mittens that'll match my tartan scarf.

The Strawberry Tree. I don't think I was just burned out, I think it was really kind of alarming. Tons of Elsebeth Lavold and Rowan and Debbie Bliss yarn, but the yarns are all tangled and bins are overflowing and it's a giant mess and the store smelled like some nasty floral perfume. Oh, and no price tags to be seen anywhere.

And last but not least, on the way home we stopped back in at Shuttles, which is nicer than any of them and, happily, right here in our hometown.

At home I had to test out the new bamboo needles... so I finished the sock! I love it, it fits perfectly (after I decreased the sole by 4 stitches) and it's gorgeous. I'm going to cast on the second sock right about... now. Bye!

I almost forgot the best find of the day - Viva Burrito, this little fast-food place just past Showers of Flowers. Best veggie burrito I've had since we left Santa Barbara. I'm so happy.