Blue Sky Alpacas Extra/Destination Collection Blog Tour and Giveaway!

Hello and welcome to the Blue Sky Alpacas blog tour for their gorgeous new yarn Extra! From the Blue Sky Alpacas website, here's a bit about the yarn and the pattern collection that was designed specifically for it:

Extra: 55% baby alpaca / 45% fine merino

A luxe mix of baby alpaca and fine Merino wool, Extra comes in generously sized hanks and a rich color palette, making it ideal for one and two skein projects. Light and lofty with a springy twist, it’s a versatile Aran weight that lends itself beautifully to a variety of knitting tensions and needle sizes.

218 Yards, 150 grams

Available in 14 gorgeous colors

The Destination Pattern Collection: Take the first step toward timeless style with our newest yarn and patterns. Inspired by hometowns, far-away places and everywhere in between, the artful accessories in the Destination Collection were created by our designers from around the globe. Choose your favorite and see where the creative road takes you. A pattern collection custom crafted to complement Extra.

I am making the North Hollow Cowl by Robin Melanson. Here's what Robin says about her inspiration for the cowl:
Practically speaking, a cowl or scarf is a Canadian necessity. It's cold and windy where I come from, but I love it and would not want to be anywhere else. There's so much to embrace- a vast wilderness that's easily accessed from just about any one of our diverse multicultural cities, a variety of seasons, and so much more. I love the landscape and how it changes form province to province . All I need is a good scarf like this one to keep our the cold. 

This color I'm using is called Cherry Blossom, and it's the loveliest shade of pinky coral. The construction of the cowl is pretty cool- you make two mirrored pieces, then join them with the 3-needle bind-off, which I love for it's tidiness and sturdiness. The cowl takes just one skein, something that we can all appreciate!

As you can see, I haven't made much progress. It's the busy season. And by that, I mean that I apparently can't read a chart and was knitting the purls in the lace panel, so I had to start over. I actually hand-wound this yarn just for the pure pleasure of it. It's so soft, and in 218 yards there was not a single imperfection. AND SO SOFT. I want to knit my life out of this yarn.

Can we talk about the actual physical pattern? The presentation is so fantastic. I grinned like a maniac while I was opening the package Blue Sky sent. I love how the pattern is folded into the perfect little envelope. Best of all- this is genius- there is a ruler printed along the bottom of the pattern. Uh, duh, why did I never think of that before? If you're like me, your tape measure is always stuck in the couch cushions, so this is so smart.

This could be yours! Think of all the things you can put in that project bag.

Want to win something in my first-ever blog giveaway? (Well, yarn giveaway. I give away patterns sometimes, but you probably knew that, being a reader and all.) Blue Sky Alpacas sent me another skein of Extra in Cherry Blossom along with a copy of the North Hollow Cowl pattern, both together in an adorable bird-printed project bag, to give away to a reader! How to win:

• Leave a comment below by midnight on Wednesday, September 24th, giveaway is over, thanks for entering! and I'll randomly choose a winner and announce it on Thursday the 25th! Please don't forget to include some way for me to contact you if you win- email address or Ravelry ID. 
• For an extra chance at winning, do one of the following: add my blog to your blog reader, and/or follow me on Twitter or Instagram. Come back here and tell me that you did one or more of those, and I'll put your name in the hat another time.  

Be sure to check out the whole tour, and all of the lovely Destination patterns!

Blog tour schedule:

Week One (9/15 to 9/19): Cosmos and Cashmere

Week Two 9/22 to 9/26): Woolen Diversions

Week Three (9/29 to 10/03): Lattes and Llamas

Week Four 10/06 to 10/10): Rock + Purl

Week Five (10/13 to 10/17): HeyJenRenee

Week Six (10/20 to 10/24): Miso Crafty Knits