The Stash

Why or rather how is it that I seem to have collected a huge amount of yarn but not enough to actually knit a single garment from?

Today I have been trying to sort out my stash as I am planning to not buy any until I have used at least half of what I have already - unless it's for a particular garment that someone else wants me to knit. So far I have amassed over 100 types and most of it sock yarn or 4 ply but there are a few other things in there too.

In my main cupboard I have a bookcase that I sawed the end off so that it fitted and it works really well as the case is divided into blocks. Each of the blocks has a number and that has been added to my ravelry stash page so that I can find it if needs be. Once I have it all recorded then I'll put all the different weights together so that even if I don't have enough for a complete garment I can at least mix and match to get it gone but I can see that I'm going to be knitting loads of socks, shawls and scarves this year.

To help bust the stash I am also going to try and knit a christmas present a month for the next 12 months. I have the January project already sorted as it's going to be a felted handbag, possibly for my niece but possibly not.

New Year - hurrah!

Not quite sure why it's a hurrah but I am going to try and be more postive this year and not let little things get me down. Obviously I will still wallow in the disappointment of the big things but not the wee things.

So that's it my only resolution but I am going to try and knit and craft more.

I am going to try and not buy any yarn, well not until I have halved my stash. I really hadn't realised what I have been collecting over the past year and it's a bit scary. There will be lots of small projects, only because I rarely bought more than a couple of balls of wool but I shall try my best to get half of it gone. To help me I have started a campaign to knit 1 christmas present a month for the nest 12 months so it won't be a last minute job in December.

The room clearing has kind of stopped but once I have finished here I am going to start again. At least I can now get into the back room and the floor has been swept and vacuumed for the first time in over a year so that's a good thing.

I have many, many things to record and talk about but for the moment it's just clearing more space and taking stock.

Have a happy, hearty and healthy New Year and I wish you all the best

Things not going well

Managed to get a couple of boxes sorted and now have over 100 things sitting on Turbo Lister waiting to be released onto ebay but I have run out of steam. The task is too enormous, there is too much junk and I'm afraid to just throw it away incase I throw away something important or valuable.

I relised that there is a school of thought that says that if you haven't seen it in a few years then you can safely get rid of it but I do not subscribe to that. If you haven't seen it for a few years then it's probably been buried and is deparately trying to be noticed. To throw it away on the moment of it seeing the light again is just too cruel.

Well I shall see what I can get done in the next few days but it isn't going well.

Sorting out

Yesterday I went a bit mad and finally started to sort out the backroom - the room of doom, the terror room, the room crammed with so much stuff that I had a little path that went from the computer to the door and that was about it. Every bit of floor, spare bed, cupboards was just heaving with stuff. And it was not good.

I had so much that I couldn't actually see what I had and everytime I went in there I got depressed at the magnitude of starting to sort it that I would just end up ignoring it - Ravelry is such a wonderful distraction. But I have moved almost everything into my bedroom, which some might call displacement, but now it is not coming back into the spare room until it has been photographed, listed on turbo lister for ebay and then boxed up. I have bought 10 cardboard boxes which fit neatly into the cupboard and everything, well most of it, should fit in them.

So I managed to do 2 boxes yesterday and plan to do another couple tonight and I hope that by xmas I shall have them all done.

And then I can start on recording my stash properly as when I was tidying I found loads more that has never seen the light of Ravelry. But soon it will shine.

Secret Santa

Today I recieved the gift from my Secret Santa which has been organised by those marvels in the UK Random Act of Kindness group on Ravelry.



These two beautiful skeins of what looks like handspun have been sent to me and they are lovely. All soft and squiggy in grey and pinky reddy orangeish. I'm so chuffed that this has been sent off.

I think that they will become a pair of toasty house socks for my sister who seems to have permantly cold feet.

UK Swap Winter Warmers Questionnaire

Handmade Item Swap
What kind of items are you interested in receiving?
Oh I really don’t mind but I’m not a great fan of hats or scarves – I have long hiar so hats don’t really work and I always seem to lose scarves. If you fancy knocking up a pair of socks then I’m a 7.5. And if gloves and mitts are your thing then I’m a medium to large.
Do you knit, crochet, or both?
I’m a knitter only – although I have been trying to teach myself to crochet with little apparent success.
What is your favourite colour?
Green and rich blue - oh that’s 2 so I may as well go for the whole hog and say just about all of them
What is your least favourite colour?
Browns and beiges and pastels and neons.
What’s your style? (elegant, traditional, glamorous, girly, natural, sporty, outgoing, etc.)
I hope glamorous and elegant but proably more often it falls into being chaotic and scruffy
Do you have a favourite type of fibre or brand of yarn?
Not really. I have a range of stuff in my stash from beautiful alpaca and cashmere silk to some of the better acrylics.
Do you have a least favourite type of yarn?
Like many I’m not a fan of that plastic acrylic stuff – the type that squeaks when your working with it.
Do you do any other crafts?
I dabble in dress making and that type of sewing and that’s about it.
Are there any knitting accessories you are interested in receiving?
Anything will be gladly received but I and not after any particular things
What do you like to eat?
Everything – although I have been going off chocolate (I must be ill) and now prefer savoury to sweet things. But I’ll give anything a go.
Any allergies/preferences (fiber-wise or treat-wise)?
No allergies that I have found so far
Anything we missed that you’d like your partner to know?
Not that I can think of – I think that I’m easy to please and am really looking forward to the swap

Day of the Dead Round 2

I'm kind of excited as I will hopefully be able to start the 2nd round of the Day of the Dead socks today. I received the SIPs from knit-frog-knit over a week ago but because of Thanksgiving I wasn't given a new target. The organiser asked that socks were not worked on so I put them to one side but have been itching to start. Knit-frog-knit had some problems and didn't manage to get very far. She managed the cuffs and a few centimeters on each one so I have also a complete pair to knit. But the yarn is a lovely rainbow Lorna's Laces Shepherd Socks which feels like a dream - I just hope that it's lovely to work with.

I even brought to SIPs to work in case I get the email with my new target whilst at work.