I was going to call this The Neverending Cardigan. I was going to write about how at the end of December 2008 I started knitting the Buttony Sweater using Cashmere Luxury Chunky in a beautiful Magenta shade. I had 10 balls (700 yds) and I had done some quick calculations and figured I had just enough yarn. And then, as work progressed, it became ever more clear that I actually didn’t have enough yarn, I was going to run out somewhere in the middle of a sleeve.

The true color is much darker than in this photo!

But now this story has a happy ending (well, almost an ending), and it’s all because of Ravelry and some of the wonderful people there. When I realized that my yarn of choice was nearly impossible to buy anywhere, I decided to peek into the stashes of some of my fellow Ravelers. I found a couple who had some in the Magenta colorway — but they werren’t offering it for sale or trade.

I contacted them anyway, explaining my predicament and asking that they might take mercy on me and allow me to buy any extra scraps they might have available. At this point I wasn’t even worried about details like dye lot; I just wanted to finish my sweater, even if it ended up looking oddly striped.

Well, I found an angel who calls herself Nearlywrong! She had just finished knitting the Little Blue Sweater (Ravelry link) from the Fall 2008 Interweave Knits, and she promised to send me her leftover yarn. Four days after she put it in the mail, I had two full balls plus a few shorter pieces of the yarn — in the same exact dye lot I had been using! AND my benefactor refused my offer to buy the yarn or even to pay the postage!

This is more like it!

Now work is once again proceeding on my Button sweater. I’ve finished the sleeves, and since I still have plenty of yarn leftover I decided to lengthen the body a little bit.

I’ve definitely learned to check and double check my yardage requirements before starting a project. And as far as Nearlywrong’s act of generosity, I’m looking for ways to “pay it forward” and make someone else’s life a little bit brighter.