a long time coming

Well it has been awhile since I have posted to my blog.  Life has been interesting lately.  I've finished my Basics, Basics, Basics course from the www.tkga.com but still need to mail it out.  I've enjoyed the process of learning and knitting the swatches needed.  During the course we have to write a pattern for a cable and knit a sample that anyone who follows our pattern will get the same sample as I have.  That was interesting and fun.  I had to do some research on cables and I found three books very helpful:

The Vogue Knitting Stitchionary Volume Two: Cables: The Ultimate Stitch Dictionary from the Editors of Vogue Knitting Magazine,
Charted Knitting Designs: A Third Treasury of Knitting Patterns
and  Power Cables: The Ultimate Guide to Knitting Inventive Cables by Lily Chin

I have signed up for the Masters program through www.tkga.com.  This is a three part program.  I've received my instructions and I'm testing out different yarns until I find the one that I wish to use for the first part of the program. We are only allowed to use worsted weight yarn that is smooth and  light-colored. The big No-Nos are heathered, tweed, speckled, variegated, fluffy, nubby, fuzzy or novelty yarns. This restricts the usage of many yarns that are out now.  A good number of fall yarns are in darker colors.  The lightest shade I found was a medium green in Cascade 220.

So far I like the Karabella Aurora 8 yarn but none of my local yarn stores seem to have it in stock.  I had a left over ball in my stash but it isn't enough to even do the first 5 swatches let alone 16.