Before I got fired from the yarn shop, I racked up a pretty good hunk of store credit by making two shop samples.  With my earnings, I purchased 11 balls of a beautiful worsted-weight plum yarn that I thought was 100% wool.  Soft, squishy, great color, I knew it would make a great sweater for me, a good transitional piece for after Sprog came along, before the real good weather hit.  I went searching Ravelry (are you there yet?) for a good pattern and discovered that I need to learn how to read labels & not assume anything about yarn, even yarn I’d been in front of 3-5 times a week for two months.  This yarn is 25% alpaca, 25% mohair, and 50% wool.  In other words, I can’t wear it.  So I’m working it up into a sweater for my mom, because as far as we know she doesn’t have such sensitivities (and if it winds up she does, I’m sending the sweater to a knitting friend for her to frog or wear as she sees fit).  I knew I couldn’t wear the yarn, but just working with it is sending me into fits.  I have to wear long sleeves so it doesn’t rub against my forearms, my head is throbbing, my sinuses ache, my eyes itch, and I can’t stop sniffling.  If Mom knit, I’d just give her the yarn & have her finish it, but she doesn’t.  So I soldier on.  Simple bottom-up raglan in the round with bust shaping (Mom is a shapely lady) and a v-neck.  It should only take me another week or so to finish it, but it’s going to be a miserable week.  I really hope my mother realizes how much I love her.