Well, I did it. The amazing thing is it took all evening to do! First:
Bitty bag
This is the Andean Treasure (heathered baby alpaca) that came in the yarn samples I wrote about in yesterday’s post. Although it seems to be just a tiny bit splitty, it’s as soft as a cloud to work with - just wonderful! As a rule, sport weight yarn makes me a little nervous because I can’t imagine how long it would take me to knit something with it! But this stuff feels so nice (and worked up nicely too) that I think I might take the chance someday :)
The bag was made by casting on 5 sts (size 4 US needles) and working back and forth until the base was roughly square. Then stitches were picked up on each side (5 sts per side) and the bag was worked in the round to the top where I used a picot bind off. I had about an inch and a half of yarn left, so I used the fuchsia cotton for the tie and tassel. The bag is about 1.5” tall and about 1” in diameter.
Good things come in small packages…
The pendant is an amethyst, probably my favorite stone. It’s not a particularly splendid example as the color is light and there is some zoning. Also the cut is very slightly off-center. On the other hand it wasn’t expensive either and despite its flaws, is a very pretty piece.
When I had finished that, I started on this:
Tiny envelope
For this, I used the Wool of the Andes on size 6 (US) needles. I cast on 10 stitches and knit in stockinette until the yarn ran out. Then I crocheted an edge all around with the fuchsia cotton, crochet-seamed the sides and did the flap and loop. It’s about 2” wide and about 1” tall. The “button” is simply four beads tied together on a single strand of the cotton and then sewn on the front.
The wool has a slightly rough feel, but when I held the swatch to my neck it didn’t feel scratchy or itchy. It worked up nicely, wasn’t hard on the hands and seems to be fairly sturdy stuff.
Topaz bracelet
I got this bracelet years ago for no more than a song. It had been marked down several times because of it’s size - it’s a little over 8” long which is much bigger than most women want. I (of the big bones), on the other hand, have a hard time finding nice bracelets that fit and this was perfect for me. The stones are what’s referred to as white or silver topaz because they have so little color. They do have a bit though as I noticed one winter day when I could see the bracelet against the snow. The stones are very faintly blue-green but unless you hold them up against a blindingly white background, you’d never notice.
So now I’ve got two samples left and I’m playing around with what to do with them :) Waste not, want not!
My mother would be so proud :)
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What a charming entry! I never imagined you would actually KNIT from that tiny amount of yarn! 
Thanks for the reviews of those two yarns. I received my catalog last night. No samples 
. I want to order some of the Shimmer and Cloud. Love those little bags you whipped up.
Ryan - Well, I figured if I was going to swatch them, I might as well see if there was something I could actually make. But I’ll tell you, manipulating something that small with paws as big as mine - well, it’s a challenge :)
Maureen - Sorry you didn’t get samples :( It can’t have been cheap for Knit Picks to do that - maybe they only made up a certain number of “sample” pages and only sent them to every 20th person on their list?
I can heartily recommend the baby alpaca and the wool. When I’ve worked the silk blend and the merino, I’ll post about those too :)
Hi Robbyn,
Very cool swatching/knitting-play. So far all I have done with the samples is pet them.
well, darned if you didn’t do it!! clever and useful too-
lovely jewelry- i would whine about mine and the fire etc, but i honestly think getting mr. hufflepuff out safely kinda put everything else in perspective- i do admire your pretty things though-
i’ve got lots of the knitpicks new yarns and so far everything has lived up to the advertisements- it all feels good, and the colors are pretty-
stay happy-
Rob - I find that I really kind of enjoy this sort of extemporaneous fooling around - especially if it produces something useful in the end - or that can at least masquerade as useful :)
Barb - believe me, none of it is anything special and none of it was expensive - but I do enjoy it. Stopping by the jewelry box before I go out and asking who wants to come out and play today!
I’d always felt kinda ripped off ‘cause topaz was my birthstone (and diamond wasn’t). I didn’t know it came in white like that. I learned what zoning was gemstone-wise. gosh what a learnin’ experience it is here :-D
Aarlene - Topaz can be a lovely stone though those saturated blues that you often see are generally heat treated to produce the color. The honey/pink or gold color makes Imperial topaz the only precious stone of the group.
More than you wanted to know, right? 
Wow that’s really using up all the yarn! I’ve posted a photo on my blog of the wristwarmers I made from your “someone stole the fingers from my gloves pattern”. I use it all the time. Thanks again.
Erin - My pleasure. I’m delighted that you liked the pattern and that it worked out for you so well :) 
You have such a creative imagination, to make such pretty things from tiny scraps of yarn. I love the way you have combined knitting and crochet for the little envelope. I would never have thought of doing that.
Pam - You know, it probably never would have occurred to me except that I’ve crocheted for a lot longer than I’ve knit and sometimes my mind just “defaults” to what it knows best.
Besides, it can be done so decoratively and a crocheted seam is quite sturdy - and a lot more fun than mattress stitch!
Well, well - good things come in tiny packages. :) Very well done. Thanks for the info on Topaz also - I have Mother’s blue topaz ring & my Bio-Mom has her gold Topaz ring. I didn’t realize that the gold Topaz was a precious stone. I’ve learned my “new thing” for the day. :::Grin::::
Have a great weekend!
Bron - Glad to be of service :) You wanna know about opals now? Heheh….
