An Adventure Yarn

When I am in a knitting slump, one of the things I do is sort through the stash.   Sometimes, I am

looking for that spark to get me going again; sometimes I look to see if any of the yarn has lost its luster enough to go to a new home.

Earlier this month, the stash spit out yarn with history.   In the early 90's, my friend Bernie went on a backpacking trip through Alaska.   As she walked, she picked quiviut fluff off bushes.   When she got back home, she took the fluff to a spinner and had yarn spun from the quiviut.   The spinner threw in another fiber to make the quiviut less warm.

Bernie sent the yarn to me so that I could make a vest...a one of a kind vest...for her husband.  The vest was made and loved.   The vest left with the husband.   Every once in awhile, the leftover yarn would surface...and I would think about what I could do with it so that Bernie could have something from her Alaska trek.

A few weeks ago, the yarn surfaced again.   I looked at it carefully, made a mental note of the likely yardage, and began a scarf adapted from a shawl pattern on Knitpicks.  The ends have a funky curly

to them that makes the scarf a little more interesting than endless garter stitch.   My decision about the length was based on having enough left over to finish the second end.   I knit.  I knit.  And I knit.

Last week, I finished the scarf and gave it a nice bath in Soak Wash for Handknits.   After an overnight rest on the sweater dryer, the scarf was ready to go.

Bernie got it yesterday as a surprise.   She said she had had a tough day and was really happy to receive it.   Now, Bernie has a memento from the Alaska trip, and I am a bit closer to the center of the stash.

The Hat that Would Not be Knit

A year or so I spotted The Runner's Hat in the Knitpicks catalog.    This is a slip stitch pattern and makes a very interesting looking hat.    I bought it, put it away, and forgot about it.

Three or four weeks ago, I went into the stash and found the yarn and the pattern.  It was, I decided, time.

I cast on and got going.    The pattern is a fairly easy knit and the slip stitch pattern is interesting.   Why....why.....why.....did I have to rip it out three times.   On the third frog, the hat became one of those things that had lost it's appeal and a burden to work.   Should I throw it back in the stash for a better time?  No.

The Textile Center in Minneapolis is having a garage sale this spring.   Instead of keeping a project which has lost its luster for me, I will send it out into the world to find someone who will give the project the love it deserves.  

Having thought about the size of the stash, the number of knitting bags, and various knitting tools around the apartment....other times will join the trek out the door to new and happier homes.

While it can be hard for me to let go of things......it is time.   I think about the times I have been able to pick up something I wanted and needed at a good price, I smile and cheerfully send things down the road.

The best part of the Textile Center's garage sale is knowing that the proceeds go to a good cause.

Someone else will knit that hat and love it.

Will I try that pattern again?  Possibly...possibly not.  I still have an electronic copy of the pattern...and a little (cough, cough) more yarn.

2018 is winding up......

This year, I have done a lot of knitting.   Most of the projects have been gifts for others. 

What do I give?   Mostly socks as the people I give them to like them very much and use them.  This year I also did a lot of toys.

One of the fun things I have done is to use leftover sock yarn to make small Christmas ornaments.
The mitten is one of two that I did - the other was a small sock - and put away to give away later.

The small things can be really fun to knit....and teach one a lot about patience.   There were things about this project that were surprisingly difficult.  I dropped more stitches on this one mitten than I have in some sweaters I have made.

Like the people who design toys, the people who design these ornaments are genius at shaping.    This year I hope to make more of these.  Either I will use them when I wrap a gift or give them to someone who is just starting to collect ornaments for their own tree as I don't put up a tree anymore.

Mallorie loved her horse hat this year and really liked the new version of the hat she received a couple years ago.    I did not like the new version as I was not happy with the crown shaping.   I am not a shaping genius and have decided to take the time to learn more so that the 2019 version for Mallorie makes me happy too.

While I have gifts for others in queue, I am going to take some time to do some selfish knitting.  Things just for me!

From Little Red Window....

Every Friday, I get the post from Cassie at Little Red Window.   Cassie shows a lot of crafty patterns, but I pay attention to the knit patterns more than anything else.

Last Friday, she put out the Skull Hat Pattern.  This, I thought, was perfect for Owen.  It did not take

long to do and was a fun knit.   I liked it so much, I am sizing it up for my brother-in-law.  He and Owen can have matching hats.

The best part?   All of the yarn came from the edges of the stash...I did not even have to go beyond the first layer.

This was not a project I had planned to do but I really perked up with the unscheduled fun project.

With a little bit of work, the second hat can be completed today and both can leave in the mail tomorrow!

OH NO! My home yarn store is closing....

September 17 as I was knitting in the recliner at home, I got an email.  Depth of Field, my favorite yarn store is closing December 1.

This has been a year of many changes.  This is not one I expected.   It took me a few minutes to get back to my calm center.

Depth, as I call it, has been a happy place for me for over 20 years.   I started going there when I could really afford "nice" yarn.  I did have a stash from working for yarn and not money in a store in the early 80's.   That place never had the same feeling as Depth.

Like many yarn stores, Depth of Field has a great community of knitters.   Many of us mourn the loss of a wonderful place to knit communally.

The going out of business sale has been visited by me...a lot.   Fortunately, I know what I need for projects that are coming up and could plan accordingly.  I bought only three matching skeins because they were too pretty to leave behind.

Between now and December 1, I am going to spend as many lunch hours as I can knitting there...and soaking up the goodness while I still can.

What does a single girl in the big city do on a Friday night?

She finishes the unicorn!

Now that the unicorn is finished, I will take a break from stuffed animals.   It is time for socks, washcloths, and hats for the holiday season!

A Month of Stuffed Animals

Helen, my sister, told me about a very new baby who needed a stuffed buddy.  The new baby has a slightly older brother who has not gotten a stuffed offering.   To Ravelry and Etsy and my own pattern stockpile I went!

Looking through the stuffed animals was a lot of fun.  There are so many good choices.   I looked until I had that A-HA moment.  Rebecca Danger is a really fun designer.   She is known for her monster patterns.  Her work is imaginative, colorful, and downright cheerful.

For new baby Henry, I chose Tofu the Gentle Dachshund.  The yarn, Willow Burrow Worsted, came out of stash.  This is one of my go-to yarns for knitting for children.  Tofu is a small toy and great for little hands.  This is a quick knit.  I really liked the way Tofu is constructed.

Each time I make a toy, I am struck by the work that goes into these designs.  Each designer whose patterns I have knit has a slightly different way to shape and assemble the toy.  Each time I knit one of these patterns, I learn a lot.

Henry's brother, Ethan, received a pair of knit combat boots when he was born.  The boots were useful, but certainly not cuddly.  Ethan is entering the age at which dinosaurs are a source of great fascination.

For Ethan, I chose another Rebecca Danger pattern - Terence the Tap Dancing T-Rex.   Got to love a smiling dinosaur!  This toy, when seated ended up being taller

than my cat who sat next to it but moved so quickly I could not get a picture.  This pattern had an really interesting construction.  I admit that I had to start it about 10 times before it worked out.  It was not because the pattern was not clear, it was because I was tired and this needed me to be alert and attentive.   The dino get stuffed as you knit it.   Stuffing the dino when it is done would be....unpleasant if not nigh on impossible.  The pattern was not so challenging that I was not willing to do another right away.

Ruby's T-Rex was done in pink to match a blanket her great-grandma made for her. The second time around I still had to start the dino multiple times.  No...I did not learn from the first round.  T-Rex II went more quickly and I did things a little differently which made the second round much easier.

Love the tail shaping on this dino...it does stick up....and helps the dino balance nicely when sitting.

Ana's blanket featured unicorns.  A while back I had found a unicorn pattern that I wanted to do for Ana.   This seemed like the perfect occasion...and the yarn for this was also all in stash.  Cutiepatootees' Snow White the Unicorn is coming along nicely.  My favorite part of this project is the hoof shaping which gives a flat-bottomed hoof.   With a little push, I will finish Snow White this evening.

 As I was not using the yarn specified, I have had to make some adjustments.  The head, I knit according to the pattern.  When I had finished the body according to directions, I held up the head to the body and the proportion was WAY off.   It would be a ...mutant.  I picked out some stitching and

added length.  That worked.   As I was doing the legs, I checked proportions carefully on the first leg.  The legs would have been too long.  With a slight adjustment, the legs are just right.   I am looking forward to attempting the mane and the tail.

After some discussion, the mane and the tail will be purple and pink...which I have the stash as I knit for a coterie of little girls.  Picture of completed Snow White coming soon!