Attempt at a swatch (colour II)

The swatch which resulted from the terrible wool-buying technique I described in the day before yesterday's post was, predictably, a disappointment.  An important part of the disappointment was the colour palette.  I like the colours I got.  I like the way they look together.  I like the way they work.  I like each one individually.  However, it's too restricted a palette.  Much too restricted.  There are only 3 colours.  

Three colours probably isn't in and of itself a terrible number.  However, two of the colours are virtually indistinguishable.  I didn't know it at the time I bought them.  On the spools, they look different, but like they're different shades of the same colour.  That's why I bought them.  I love that smooth-flow-from-one-to-next thing that gets done in fair isle so effectively.  

I learned that effect is actually a bit pointless when there aren't enough colours.  

And, I learned that different colours on the spool doesn't necessarily equal different colour in small scale.  Observe the following photographs.  There are my lovely spools of yarn.  Aren't they pretty and cool?  Now, in that first picture, the darker blue single strand is in focus and you can see it's different from the lighter blue spool which is out of focus behind it. In the second picture, we get to my trouble.  Now the lighter blue spool is in focus and that single strand of darker blue gets completely consumed by the colours in the lighter blue spool.  It just doesn't show.  

So, next time I know to get more MORE MORE.  I am completely and non-negotiably enamoured of the smooth colour flow thing.  I just need to be prepared to fork over lots of money to get lots and lots and lots and LOTS of colours.  I can learn to live with that, but only now that I've learned my lesson.