Splurge Review: Denise In A Della Q Double

Its time for a Splurge Review!!! So there are times when I go out and spend a large amount of money on an object like an e-reader, shoes, underwear, pajamas, knitting needles, yarn, etc. What better way to feel content with blowing my money than to share that wonderfulness with you!

I have been wanting to buy an interchangeable knitting needle set for a couple of years now. But, I have very bad decision making skills (they are practically nonexistent) and I couldn’t get over the price for them. So I never got any. A few weeks ago I was working on a knitting project for a friend, and as I was looking for the appropriate knitting needle I was sitting on my bed with a pile of tangled needles trying to get the one I needed to come free. DISASTER. It finally happened, but needless to say I didn’t want to try that again. Thus I started my search for a set once again. With all of the money spent on bamboo knitting needles one at a time and still not having or being able to find the size I need, the money for a complete set would be well worth it.

Here is what I found…. There are A LOT of interchangeable knitting needle sets out there! and even more reviews. Every set has people that love it and people that think it is utter rubbish. I had to think about what I knit a lot of…. shawls, and hats….mostly hats. I work on other things too, but those are my go-to boredom projects. Not many sets offered cords in smaller lengths… most of the cord lengths I found started at 24 inches. But I found the Denise Interchangeable set and they had smaller cord lengths. AND (this was the selling point for me) you could purchase the set in a Della Q organizer. SOLD. So as I was clicking the add to cart I found that for about $25 more I can get an entire set of interchangeable crochet needles added to the set in a Della Q Double, and I had the choice of 4 colors… each case color corresponds with the cord colors.

I chose to go with the purple case and it came with lavender cords. Its gorgeous. The shipping time (if you put in the correct zip code… I tend to have a problem with this) is about 3 days.  Upon opening the package I was very excited. Rolled up and tied it is not overly large. It can easily fit into a bag or purse, making travel knitting a bit easier. Also speaking of travel knitting, these knitting needles are not wood or metal, they are made from plastic and are deemed airline safe. SCORE! Knitting on a plane is back my friends! So here is a list of what came in my roll:

14 pairs of knitting needles (US5/3.75mm – US19/15mm including a second pair of US5/3.75mm needles and 7mm needles), plus 12 crochet hooks (from F5/3.75mm to 19/15mm), and9 cords (2 each of 3″ & 5″, 1 each of 9″, 12″, 14″, 16″ and 19″) (8, 13, 23, 30, 36, 41 and 48 cm), along with 4 end buttons, and 2 extenders. All in a specially adapted della Q case of poly/silk, with needle pockets labeled in US and metric sizes.

Pretty Stylish huh!? Another wonderful thing about this set…. all of the parts are guaranteed for life! So if anything goes wrong it will be replaced. That’s pretty fantastic in my book.

Ok so knitting with these bad boys… I was very nervous about this. I have been knitting on bamboo needles since I started knitting. I am used to them and thought that I would HATE knitting on plastic. So not the case. These needles are amazing. They are smooth and knitting just seems to glide. The connections where the cords meet the needles are  a little locking contraption and thus far after 1 and a half projects I have had no issue with them coming undone or my yarn getting caught. Also, I should note that I am a notoriously tight knitter, but these needles made it not a problem. They easily slipped into y tight stitches and glided off. No issues. No struggling. No frustrations (I always got frustrated with my wooden needles, especially trying to knit my cast-on row).

Thus far I am very happy with my purchase and would recommend these needles to others. Don’t be turned off by the fact that they are not the fancy colored or stained wood needles that you get in some sets, these needles can absolutely hold their own again them and are sleek looking in their own right.  I just started to work on a cardigan (my first garment knitting project ever!) and I will let you know how these needles hold up with a bigger project.

Back to Business

Ok… So I feel like I have wallowed in self-pitty for long enough. I have been home now for two weeks, and I have cried probably every day for those two weeks… Sometimes tears of depression about being away from Indonesia and my friends. Other times tears of frustration and pain because it hurts to move even a little. There were even tears for the unknown because I have no idea where I will end up after my surgery. I landed myself in the emergency room this past weekend because the pain became so unbearable and I had no pain meds to help me out. Ibuprofen just isn’t doing a damn thing and I couldn’t get an appointment to meet with the surgeon until June 1st. So its just time to manage the pain until I can get to that appointment.

Emergency Room

So even though I should be resting, I need to keep myself busy! Keep my mind occupied so that I don’t play the “What-If” game.

For mothers day, I decided to make this awesome Samoa Bundt Cake recipe I found through my Pintrest addiction (if you are not on pintrest, check it out and start pinning away. I seem to pin recipes like nobody’s business). So Samoa Girl Scout cookies are my absolute favorite! So I knew when I saw this cake that is was a must try! It looks just like a GIANT Samoa cookie!!!! I am not the best at decorating cakes, but even if it wasn’t the prettiest cake, the taste was out of this world! I am talking… so good, it makes you wanna slap somebody. It was a hit with everyone, and there were willing volunteers to take the remaining cake with them when they left the gathering.

Samoa Cake

I have also started knitting again. Since I am laying down 99% of the time, it is good to keep my hands busy. My grandparents have been kind enough to set up a pretty awesome TV in my room, and my mother has supplied me with a BlueRay DVD player, so I can’t complain at all. I have spent days watching TV and knitting. I am currently working on “Man Knits”.. I don’t have a man in my life… but I do have friends. So I will be gifting. I discovered Stephen West the other day, and instantly fell in love with all of his work. If you are a knitter or know someone who knits check him out. So I ordered his book (it came in today… It kind of felt like Christmas), “West Knits- Book Three” and started this slouchy hat (Dustland Hat Pattern). Its a pretty awesome pattern, and is knitting up quite quickly. I am making it for my devastatingly handsome friend, Travis. I hope he likes it… or at least to take a few pictures of himself wearing it. So Finished project pictures are soon to come.

Dustland Hat

So I had a little bout with dehydration. I was only drinking one bottle of water a day, because I went from being in the heat 24/7 to being in the air conditioning and resting all the time.. So the need to drink didn’t really register. So a few problems came from that. Now I am drinking plenty of fluids. I had a few spill issues from drinking in a lying position (as you can well imagine) so my lovely mother took me to the Disney store so that I could pick up a much needed lidded cup. It is a known fact (well if its not, it should be) that Disney makes everyone feel better. Even if you are 28 years old. Anyhow… they are coming out with a new Disney movie, and a new Disney princess! She is from Scotland! How awesome is that. Her red hair and freckles instantly won me over. The movie is ‘Brave’ and I can’t wait to go to the movies and see it. SO anyhow, I found a ‘Brave’ lidded cup and left the Disney store with a huge smile on my face. And I am not ashamed to say that is has been well used since I have gotten it, and it does make me feel better every time that I look at it. (Don’t judge).

‘Brave’ Cup

I also got a new camera… by got I mean stole from my mother. haha. It is a Nikon D3000 DSLR. Its pretty nice. I am learning how to use it. I just purchased a cute book called “Beyond Snapshots” to give me a little bit of help on taking pictures that will rock your socks off. So I will be playing with that and posting my progress pictures (hopefully).

So though I have been a little down in the dumps about everything that is going on, I know that things are going to be ok. How do I know this. Because my mother took me out to P.F. Changs for some amazing Chinese food and my fortune cookie told me so! It might be grasping at straws, buy hey, it works for me.

My Fortune

So the Indonesian pictures and updates are on hold, but with luck I will be back there soon and filling you in on all of the wonders there. Until then, stick with me. I will try to keep my posts interesting!