A Little Yarn On The Side

Last week, I had run to the fabric store to get a few items that I did actually need, and got sidelined by Christmas fabric being 50-60% off.  Needless to say, some followed me home: I hesitate to say I need anything in the crafting world, but when I started on Christmas quilts a couple years ago, I did notice that my Christmas fabric stash was composed mostly of a large amount of small amounts.  So, I decided that it might be time to switch my approach and buy bigger amounts of one or two Christmas fabrics a year so I have better options.  This--plus a little extra--is done, and I will be diligently avoiding ANY crafting stores for the rest of the year.  Which brings me to my next idea:  a year without spending any of my personal allowance on THINGS.  As we all know--I have a HUGE stash of both yarn and fabric, and sometimes I think my cold-sheeping of yarn has driven me to buy non-yarn things I don't need.  Extra buttons, extra stabilizer (thou...

So many people have had so many great ideas to round out the list for all 26 letters that I've updated the list to include many of them:  “FILL YOUR HOLIDAYS WITH MUSIC” STASHDASH Find a cute holiday-ish basket that will inspire you to fill it with yarny-goodness Between November 1 and midnight of December 31, fill it with any combination of the following: A. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - knit something small (less than 6 inches or thereabout) B. Frosty the Snowman - knit a snowman of some sort or something with a snowman on it C. Toyland - make the toy of your choice D. My Favorite Things - make “warm woolen mittens” in your choice of yarn and size. Mini mittens do count E. Here Comes Santa Claus - knit a Santa or something with Santa on it F. A Marshmallow World - spin the fiber of your choice G. Silver Bells - make a bell or something with a bell motif H. Jingle Bells - make something (such as an ornament or stocking or whatever) that can have ...

Andy has been on a business trip this week, so my original plan was a sewing marathon.  But I'm back in physical therapy now, and this week hurts more than last week.  When I was in the emergency room last year, the doctor said that 90% of back pain clears up in 30 days no matter what one does, and the best thing to do when one has back pain is to keep moving.  So, that's what I was doing.  And, being my life, I'd be in that 10% category when that actually makes it worse.  Dang it! Last week's PT goal was to calm the muscles in my back down, so I was given 4 stretches to do.  This week we've been trying to add strength training to it, and this is where things are getting problematic.  During today's appointment, it still looks like there's no lasting damage, but right now the muscles are very sensitive and get irritated easily.  Sounds like a lot of people I know, to tell the truth.  So, there's been a fair bit of valium, which I thought ma...

Starting November 1, one of our area radio station kicks in with the Christmas music, so following their in-need-of-a-calendar lead, November 1 kicks off “FILL YOUR HOLIDAYS WITH MUSIC” STASHDASH Find a cute holiday-ish basket that will inspire you to fill it with yarny-goodness Between November 1 and midnight of December 31, fill it with any combination of the following: A. Have Yourself A Merry Little Christmas - knit something small (less than 6 inches or thereabout) B. Frosty the Snowman - knit a snowman of some sort or something with a snowman on it C. Toyland - make the toy of your choice D. My Favorite Things - make “warm woolen mittens” in your choice of yarn and size. Mini mittens do count E. Here Comes Santa Claus - knit a Santa or something with Santa on it F. A Marshmallow World - spin the fiber of your choice G. Silver Bells - make a bell or something with a bell motif H. Jingle Bells - make something (such as an ornament or stocking or whatever)...

*  On Ravelry yesterday, someone suggested making 2013 the Year of Starmore knitting.  This actually struck me as a good idea *  It occurred to me that it might be fun to write a knitting sequel to Kafka's Metamorphoses where Gregor wakes up to find he has been turned into a moth.  His family is initially okay with keeping him--until he starts eating their sweaters.  Then they squash the daylights out of him and get on with life. *  Theo is starting to look at me as if I sleep too much during the day *  The new Knitpicks catalog wasn't even remotely interesting *  The idea of casting on a sock using size 1 needles when I'm trying desperately to knit up yarn as fast as possible seems to have merit *  I am considering a 3-month spending ban on my personal account.  This going in to Christmas........... *  And, most importantly, it's after 2:00 in the afternoon and I haven't done a single thing that my physical therapis...

Dear Blog Sphere Gods: Please let me figure out those "type what you see here to prove you're not a robot" messages even half as fast as the computer spam bots do. Sincerely, Toni "I can't read those darn squiggles" Sutton

The brioche scarf is now done: and with it's 440 yards of yarn, I have now achieved my second-highest yardage in a year with two and a half months to go!  And--even more encouraging in many ways, this yarn is all used up from my stash!  In a fit of madness obsession with variegated yarns, I ordered 4 HANKS of this yarn in either 2006 or 2007.  Call it a "youthful indiscretion," or, if you'd like to include the other 18 hanks of variegated yarns I also acquired around that time, call it "complete idiocy."  I am happy to say that even I came to my senses and realized that variegated lace yarns have never work out for shawls as I hope they will, and it might have taken me about 10,000 yards of lace to learn this, but with my stash, it could have been worse.  Much, MUCH worse.  Rather than starting another scarf for portable knitting, I opted for: a new sweater!  I might be obsessed with yardage, but I haven't yet given up on finishing those 12 ...