I’ve been worried, on a subtle level, about working down my stash of yarn lately. Partly this is the result of aging and thinking, will I have enough time to use all this in my lifetime? The only way to reassure myself that it hasn’t gotten WAY out of control, is to choose projects that will use up the bits and pieces, single skeins, and project leftovers that I can never bring myself to throw out. Not even the smallest ball of yarn. I keep it all, because you never know when it’ll come in handy. Words to live by. I know I get that tendency from my Mom, who was a keeper. She kept as much as her little apartment could hold (without it being instantly recognizable as a hoarder’s den), including little bits of paper on which she had jotted down interesting names or subjects she wanted to look up later; paper clips; greeting cards, old letters, books, magazines. She was addicted to the written word, so most of what she kept had something to do with reading or writing. But I digress.
In the back of my mind I’ve had plans for a crochet flower blanket, but I have to learn to crochet properly, so there’s that. I could also knit a blanket with scraps, but a huge blanket would be awkward to work on. So, across my radar came the idea to knit a scrappy sweater/jacket, designed by the King of scrappy knitting, Stephen West. He also adores improvising as he knits, so the jacket I’ve started is all about going with the flow, choosing a new colour whenever the fancy strikes you. This is all great, and so far I’m enjoying the process, but deep down I’m afraid it’ll be a hideous coat-of-many-colours that I’ll never wear and will probably donate to charity. Be that as it may, I will do my best to choose colours that make me happy. I recently watched an episode of a knitting podcast where a designer said, “you know when it’s the right choice because it makes your heart sing”. I was really taken by that advice and I am determined to choose on that basis alone.
This week we’re staying at my BIL’s cottage in Ontario, and I was in a hurry when I packed my knitting stuff, so I ended up not bringing enough choices to get very far with my Joseph coat (as I’m nicknaming it as of this moment). If I chose the next colour now I would have to settle for something, which I’m determined not to do. I’m a little frustrated not to be able to work on it, but it’s for the best. Meanwhile, i’m working on a little sweater/jacket for my grandson, Iggy, in plain grey. Couldn’t be more opposite to what I’m doing for myself, but if I end up liking the Joseph coat, I may make one for him, as I’ll have more than enough yarn.
I can’t help feeling guilty about all the yarn I’ve bought over the years, not so much because of the money (which is a lot), but because so much is still sitting there. Yes, I’ve used up a lot too, but in past years I was naive enough to think that I would get around to knitting umpteen pairs of socks with the single skeins of yarn I thought were so beautiful I couldn’t leave them in the store. It turns out I don’t really like knitting socks that much anymore, so now what? That is the quandary. I bought a knitting machine thinking I could speed up the process so that there would be a hope in hell of using it all up before I die, but it turns out I’m not a huge fan of machine knitting, either. It doesn’t give me the same pleasure as hand knitting and it certainly isn’t as relaxing. I’m giving that particular hobby until the end of 2022 to change my mind about it, and if it doesn’t happen, out it goes.
After that, maybe I’ll buy a sewing machine! I need another hobby to buy things for…
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