Tag Archives: yarn

Pack-Rat

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I (like a bunch of you, I’d guess) have a tendency toward pack-ratishness.  I think it’s pretty common, especially among crafty-types.  You know the impulse, I’m sure.  “Maybe I can use these berry containers for something in the future?”  “I can’t throw away these matchboxes.  They’d be great for a craft project some day.”  “Sure, there’s only about 5 yards left of this yarn, but it wouldn’t be right to get rid of it.”

Don’t deny it.  You know you do it, too.

But I just realized that I was keeping one thing that I’m even less likely to use than my other “treasures.”

Ball bands.

Dozens and dozens of ball bands.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAYou know, the paper labels that come wrapped around balls of yarn?  For some reason, I always hesitate to throw them away, and then they end up cluttering up my knitting studio.  I always try to rationalize it to myself; they have lots of important information about the yarn (washing directions, colorways, etc) which makes me think I might need them in the future.  But, I don’t think I’ve ever actually referenced a ball band once I finished a project.

Is there any real reason I should throw these out?  Or am I just being a crazy pack-rat?  Help me!  Save me from myself!

Second Guesses, Sales, and Waiting- The Grandma’s Sweater Saga

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You guys are totally right.  I needed to get a different shade of gray for my Grandma’s Sweater.  I’ve decided to go with Knit Picks’ Dove Gray Heather:

25615[1](Ooh! Aah!)

It’s a really pretty soft gray in a similar tone as Dogwood Heather (pink).  I think it’ll turn out really prettily.

So, having made my decision, I went to the Knit Picks website yesterday, filled up my cart and hit submit.  (I even managed to constrain myself to the single skein I needed, instead of buying fifty dollars’ worth of extra yarn to get the free shipping.  Don’t judge me.  You know you’ve done it.)

To make sure the order went through (because I’m paranoid like that), I clicked over to my email to see the confirmation email.

Sure enough, there was a message from Knit Picks.  In fact, there were two emails.  The first was my order confirmation.  The second was this ad:

Sale*Insert sad trumpet sound here*

Sure it would have been less than a dollar saved, but it’s the principle of the thing!  (And now, I kind of want to go order some more yarn to take advantage of the sale.  So much for self-control.)

Now, I have to sit here and play the waiting game.  I can’t really start knitting until I have the gray yarn in my knitting basket, so I’ll just sit by the window and harass the mailman until it arrives.

What’s that smell?

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I was trying to buy a ball of white Sugar ‘n Cream the other day.  The only one I could find at JoAnn’s was this:

WP_20140620_001Can you read the label?  It says “Sugar ‘n Cream Scents.”  It’s scented yarn.  What terrible fever dream birthed this idea?  It smells like a mix between that stinky aisle in Wal-Mart where they keep the candles and a nursing home.  (Or, as the folks at Lily claim, “Powder,”  whatever the heck that means.)

It’s pretty much the worst thing I’ve seen in knitting in a long time, and I hope it goes away really quickly.  Would you ever knit with scented yarn?

I’m Still a Baller: Winding Yarn Part 3

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I want to show you one more way to wind a ball of yarn.  This one’s easier, but it takes a bit of hardware, so it may or may not be right for you.

This is a ball winder.  They cost about 45-50 bucks, depending on the brand, which is a little pricey.  If you wind a lot of yarn, it might be a worthwhile investment.  If you only go through a couple skeins of yarn a year, maybe not.  If you don’t want to invest in one for yourself, see if your local yarn store has one available for customers, sometimes they do.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAMine screws to the edge of a bookshelf or table.  I’ve seen ones with handles that you can hold, but that seems like it would be awkward to use, since I don’t have three hands.

When you have your ball winder situated, thread your yarn through the little metal eyelet, and attach the end to the slots at the top of the winder.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThen start twirling the handle and watch the yarn start to wind itself into a ball.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERATurning the handle spins the  top part of the winder, which, in turn, winds the yarn into a perfect cake.  Keep going, and watch the yarn build up.  Ooh! Aah!

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOnce you have wound all the yarn, wrap the end around the outside of the cake a couple times and tie off the end.  Pull the cake from the winder, and you’ve got yourself a perfect center-pull ball of yarn.

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I’m a Baller: Part 2

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Two weeks ago, I talked about how to roll a ball of yarn the traditional way.  A regular old ball of yarn is plenty useful, but sometimes they can be a pain.  You could be working somewhere with a less-than-sanitary floor (at a bus stop), or somewhere where going after a runaway ball of yarn would be difficult (on an airplane), or perhaps an ill fate would befall your yarn if it left your vicinity (maybe you have a vicious house cat or sticky toddler?)

A traditionally wound ball of yarn can get itself rolling (and unraveling).  But, a center-pull ball doesn’t have that problem, and it’s almost as easy to wind as a regular ball of yarn.

It starts exactly the same way.  Wind a good amount of yarn into a figure-8 around your thumb and forefinger.OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERARemove the figure-8 from your fingers and wind your yarn around one end of the figure-8 until it gets nice and puffy. OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAKeep winding and turning around that initial puff of yarn, just like you did the regular ball of yarn.  Change directions every so often, and keep a finger or two caught in the loops to keep the yarn from getting too tight.   Just remember that the end of the figure-8 is poking out the top of the ball, like a strange little tuft of hair.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThen, when you’ve finished winding all the yarn, tuck in the end  so that it won’t unravel itself when you throw your ball in your knitting bag.  When you’re ready to start knitting, pull out the whole tuft from the top of the ball, and get to work!

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I’m a Baller, And You Can Be, Too!

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You’ve got your skein untied and ready to go.  What’s the next step?  Rolling your yarn into a ball.

Start by wrapping the yarn in a figure 8 around your thumb and forefinger.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAFold the figure 8 in half.  (Does that make it a figure 4?  Probably not.)

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThen, start wrapping around the little yarn nubbin you made from your figure 8.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWrap it snugly, not so tight that you have to put muscle into it, and not so loosely that it’ll just fall apart.  Keep going until your proto-ball gets nice and chubby.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThen, turn it 90 degrees, and hold it between your thumb and forefinger.  Wrap the yarn around the ball in the new direction, catching your fingertips as you go.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAKeep going, turning the ball  every 20 or so wraps.  Turning the ball and wrapping in different directions will give you a nice round, even ball.  Making sure that your fingers get caught every time you start wrapping in a different direction will ensure that you end up with a squishy ball of yarn.  This will stop you from wrapping the yarn too tightly, which can end up removing all the springiness from your yarn (imagine keeping a spring stored in the stretched-out position, it would eventually stick that way).

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAWhen you finish, your ball of yarn should be firm enough to hold its shape, but loose enough  that you can squeeze it like one of those foam stress balls.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERATuck the end of your yarn around the last group of wraps, and your yarn is ready to go into storage.  Or, cast on and start knitting!

Leftovers

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I am convinced that every knitter is a bit of a pack-rat.  Or at least has some pack-rat-ish tenancies.  I catch myself doing it all the time, and have to consciously make myself stop it when I go to far.

I’m not talking about buying more yarn than you could ever knit (which would be a problem, but I’m not convinced that it is possible.  At least, I haven’t reached a critical mass of unknit skeins yet).  I’m talking about those little bits of leftover yarn that you end up with at the end of every project that you are sure you can use for something else.  You can’t just throw away 50 feet of merino hand-spun.  That would be heresy!

So, when those little bits of yarn get ready to overflow your craft bin/closet/room, what to do?

I organize my scraps by weight (worsted together, sock yarn together, etc), then i pick a project.

I am a big fan of scrappy afghans to use up my little leftover bits.  My Call the Midwife-inspired blanket sits on my couch, and used up approximately a metric ton of sock yarn scraps.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAI’m in the midst of making a great big Yo Yo Lapghan with all my worsted weight scraps.  I can make a handful of yo-yos during a rerun of Law and Order.  And, once I have about 2000 (no joke… they’re pretty small), I’ll crochet them together.  I like this pattern especially because, even though I’m making thousands of little circles, if you do it right, you have no ends to weave in.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAAnother afghan that people are going head over heels for is the Beekeeper’s quilt.  I’ve never made one; I think knitting that much at such a tiny gauge without ending up with a pair of socks (or ten) would give me an aneurism, but if that’s your jam, I say: Go for it!  It looks like a super cozy blanket when it’s done.DSC_0518_medium2[1]Don’t want to make a blanket?  Think about stripes.  Match up your scraps of a similar weight, and make a cool abstract striped sweater, or a pair of fraternal twin socks.

Whatever you do, just don’t let the yarn just languish on your shelf.  Yarn is for knitting (and crocheting) and keeping you cozy and warm, so let it do what it wants to do!

All Twisted Up: Dealing With Skeins

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Let’s talk about skeins. This is a skein:

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERASometimes yarn is sold in skeins (instead of pre-wound balls).  Skeins are looser than balls, which allows you to see the texture and color of the yarn more accurately.  It’s also less work for the dyers and spinners, so often if you find fancy-pants yarn from some small fiber company, it’ll be sold in a skein.

But, skeins are a pain in the butt for knitters.  You get home from the yarn store with your brand-new purchase, and instead of starting to knit right away, you have to spend a half hour rolling the yarn into a ball first.  Infuriating!

But, have no fear.  Skeins are easily dealt with, as long as you exercise a little patience.

First, unloop the ends of the skein from one another.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThen carefully tease apart the skein until it lays nicely in a big ring, being sure to keep the strands from tangling.  I like to do this step on the floor to give myself plenty of space to work.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERADepending on the brand of yarn, the skein will be held together by one or more (usually between 2 and 4) bits of scrap yarn.  You can cut or untie the scrap yarn, whichever is less scary to you.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAThen, I to loop the whole skein over the back of a chair, my knees, or around my husband’s hands (if he’s in a helpful mood).  This will keep the big loop of yarn from tangling as I roll it into a ball.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA Go slowly and be patient, and if something weird happens (like loops of yarn start flying around) stop immediately and put the loops back around the chair.  If you start getting a tangle, if you keep going it will only get worse.

Next week we’ll talk about how to roll yarn into the perfect ball.

**And a note on Swifts:  If you are a moneybags, there is a tool called a yarn swift that is specifically designed to hold your skein of yarn (instead of a chair back) while you wind it into a ball.  Some people swear by them, but I have never had an extra $65 to spend on a swift (not when I could buy yarn instead!)

Yarn Spotlight: Rome

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I don’t usually wax poetic about a specific brand of yarn.  It makes me feel like a (unpaid) corporate shill.  But in this case, this yarn is so exceptional, so weird, and so awesome that I can’t help myself.

Mom bought me a handful of  skeins of HPKY’s Rome yarn for my birthday.  And when I opened the box, I immediately put down the project I was working on to start knitting with the Rome Yarn.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIt’s incredibly fluffy and soft. Like kittens and clouds, and… I don’t know… ducklings.  It’s mostly baby alpaca and Merino, with a little bit of nylon.

At first glance, Rome looks like unspun pencil roving, but when you start working with it, you realize it’s incredibly strong and totally not split-y.  When you look closer, you see that it’s actually really cool space-aged yarn.  What they’ve done is take a super-fine nylon fiber and knit it into an I-cord.  Then, they filled the little knit tube with the alpaca and merino.  See? (It’s crazy hard to photograph, but this was the best I could do.  If you squint really hard, you can kind of see the I-cord stitching).

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERABecause the alpaca and merino fibers haven’t actually been spun together, your finished project ends up extra fluffy and cuddly.  I made the HPKY Bias Shawl with my Rome yarn, and it’s the warmest, most wonderful thing I’ve made in a long time.  The squishy-ness of garter stitch combined with the fluffiness of the yarn makes it unbelievably lovely.

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIf you see a skein (or two) of HPKY’s Rome, grab it up.  Even if you don’t knit with it, you can keep it around to pet like a kitten.  I wouldn’t judge.

An Apology

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Dear Acrylic Yarn,

I would like to offer you a heartfelt apology.  I know I have been less than charitable about you in the past, and would like to clear the air between us.

Please understand that I meant no personal insult by my comments.  I was blinded by my own prejudice.  I have scoffed at yarn lacking natural fibers.  I have laughed at Red Heart Super Saver and rolled my eyes at Caron Simply Soft.  I have never given you, Acrylic Yarn, the time of day.

This last week and a half that we’ve spent together has been wonderful.  I picked you up out of desperation- the Ice Storm was coming, and I didn’t have enough sock yarn to keep me entertained while I was stuck inside.  You were the only yarn I could find within walking distance, and I was desperate.  It was with trepidation that I purchased you, after all, could yarn that cost only $5.99 per pound really be worth it?  Could I really make a worthwhile sweater out of acrylic?

I should never have questioned you.  You are softer than wool, and are knitting up into a lovely dense fabric.  Because you come in such large quantities, I haven’t had to worry about joining in new skeins of yarn.  And, my sweater is going to be wonderfully cozy and warm, and totally washable.

Thank you, Acrylic Yarn, for giving me a second chance.  Thank you for showing me my mistakes, and please forgive my ignorance.  I now know better than to be so judgmental against you.

My sincerest apologies,

Allison

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERA(The yarn I’m using is Loops & Threads Impeccable, from Michael’s, in Clear Blue and Chocolate.)