knitting

Last weekend had a tough start so I took pleasure in hibernating. Deep, quiet, surrounded by the things which make me feel better.

The first thing I tackled was my WIPs. Good googly moogly, let’s just say I had a lot! I decided to store the projects that weren’t working up right in a separate container so I could reclaim the yarn. Then I went on to packaging the ones I’m going to keep working on and frogging the ones I’ve lost interest in. The exercise was quite an eye-opener. I found projects all over the place. Stuffed in all kinds of containers. Started but not finished. Not the way I want to continue crafting (but that right there is another story for another time).

I made sure I got everything out … look ma, I’m not lying:

I had such success with the projects, I continued on and sorted my tools, then my stitch markers. I ended up finding two missing tape measures in the process. Took me the entire day but it was worth it. But I was in good company — a “Murder She Wrote” marathon was what I needed to keep me going. 😀

Sunday brought more hibernation and I started my day with a few of my favourite things:

I’m not sure why the world is on such a noisy fast track; quiet, solitude and hibernation always makes me more productive in the aftermath. Noise has its place, but if we follow seasonal patterns, we’ll acknowledge that there are times when we just need to be still and retreat.

How’s your winter going? Have you been clearing clutter, enjoying solitude and appreciating the things which bring you joy? I’d love to know what you’re up to. Until we talk again,

With love from Brooklyn,

Everyone who knows me knows that I’ve always made space in my stash for the dreaded acrylic yarn. Making space for acrylic is a sometimes hot button topic in the crafty world primarily because of the unnatural nature of acrylic and how it’s produced. But one of the, if not the greatest selling points of using acrylic, is wash-ability aka the “many non crafters don’t care to hand wash so let’s use acrylic” reason. Then there’s the price point. Need I say more? Added to those, it’s come a long way and is now softer than your grammy’s old Red Heart, and there’s more variety than ever before. So what’s the problem?

In my earlier, not so discriminating days as a knitter, the only thing I thought of was colour. There was absolutely no concept of fiber, how to match particular weights with projects, none ah dat! All I lived for in the early days was … “ooooooo pretty!!” Needless to say, I have a cruise ship worth of acrylic, and no tan lines or hot pool boy to show for it! 😀

Recently, I was commissioned to make some boot cuffs. I picked a lovely pattern, then I got started. By the time I got to the the second cable repeat, I smelled gasoline. So much so, while I talking to my mom on the phone, she suggested that I called the super of my building to have him investigate. Yes, that’s how much it smelled. It’s a good thing I didn’t. I kept smelling that gasoline smell, then my hands started to itch. Then my face, then inside my mouth. I got up to wash my hands then realised that it was the yarn that smelled like gasoline. I’d actually thought it was the heating radiator in my apt. My mom thought I should toss that suckah asap, but nooooooooooooooo, I had to finish the project because I didn’t have yarn in the requested colour other than for this single skein. So I plugged on, finished the project then ditched the rest of the yarn. The boot cuffs turned out beautifully but I had to ask myself — when is enough, enough? I don’t consider myself a yarn snob and I do believe that acrylic has it’s place, but honestly, after all that drama, I really just feel like sticking to natural fibers only or at the very least, acrylic blended with natural fiber. If I do that, what do I do with the acrylic I have? What do I do with the acrylic I have and like?

What’s your take? Do you use acrylic yarn? Do you think that the rest of the cruise ship load is worth keeping?

While you answer me, here’s a picture of the boot cuffs. They turned out really nice despite me almost ripping my skin off from the itching. 😀