Yarnspinners Tales

The Great Yarn Sort Out

Some folks want to try and make me admit that I have too much yarn. It's not true! I just have too little time to knit up all the yarn I have :)

I have been suffering from yarn fever for the last three weeks. I am sure it was triggered by two things, completing a pair of socks, and the timely arrival of six yarn catalogues. And they didn't arrive all at once either, oh no, the fever has been spread out, as they arrived one by one over these weeks.

So when the chance came several days ago to visit my local yarn store, I had my list ready! I was going to save shipping!

Alas, the LYS carried very few of the items I had seen in the fancy yarn catalogues. The few that they had were the very flashy eyelash and ribbon yarns. These yarns are beautiful to be sure, but just did not fit the ideas I had in my head. Being a spinner, the first idea was to buy a skein of the type of yarn and see just what it would take to develope a similar yarn. Being thrifty, I would buy enough for a hat or scarf or socks, with the spun yarn for the bigger projects. I am sure no yarn manufacturer wants this to happen, but some 'spinning to type' is bound to happen among the fiber folks. I really do not want to copy the yarns directly, hand spun has a uniqueness to it that will always be part of the yarn. I think the scientist in me is in control, wanting to be able to spin something "DK" if needed.

I think I may have a chance to see some of the catalogue yarns at a difference store. It is not local, but within a reasonable drive to be a nice afternoon trip sometime. Once I talk someone from the spin group into a road trip, I will go.

Meanwhile, I also have been searching the websites listed in the knitting magazines. I have decided a weekly stop at six or seven of the major yarn sites, to check out the bargain page, may just land me some good deals. I also discovered that the catalogues have websites too, with sale bins...even better!

To help relieve some of this yarn fever, I made an effort to sort the current stash. I seemed to have ended up with four categories. One is hand spun yarn. In that I have yarn for a sweater from gray BL wool, yarn for a vest with various dyed yarns, yarn for a shawl in 100% angora and finally a 50/50 merino/angora yarn, project as of yet not determined.

The next category is 'fisherman' acrylic. It can be sweaters or afghans, I have done both. I have been wanting to make the aran afghan, and I think I will just grin and bear the acrylic and make it from that.

The next category is store bought, know I have a project for yarn. This is mostly sock yarn, and a few hats and scarves. Some are to be gifts.

And last the two shopping bags of lonely balls. All those bits and pieces that I have no clue what to do with. They are remnants of past projects, yarns that have been handed to me 'because they knew I knit" or the occasional whim purchase at some sale table. I need to just close my eyes and toss the lot into the Salvation Army bin.

Or maybe for my mindless world wide web wait time, I will just start with a ball, cast on something blanket size and just knit forever until the bags are gone. Any guesses what size the blankie will be?

CW