Status Report
This week, I've mostly been working on Clapotis. (Sorry for the rotten photography, but if I wait for a good day, there may be no pictures until spring.)
The picture does not show the full size, but rather is folded so you can see the dropped stitches. I am using Noro Silk Garden in color #226. As others have noted, this yarn seems to have improved in quality lately. In the past, I have found whole gardens full of vegetable matter in the yarn, as well as many knots. I've used almost three skeins so far and encountered few twigs and only two knots. Oddly, one of these knots was at the very end of a skein; the tied-on yarn measured approximately two and a half inches.
Licorice Whip is currently languishing on Sleeve Island. The body is done, but I am finding it difficult to summon the motivation to finish the thing up. I'll get to it eventually, though, because it's cold here.
In an effort to create some good karma, which I could use, I have decided to put aside knitting for myself for now (other than to finish Clapotis and Licorice Whip). Several people in my family are way overdue for a handknitted item. These projects may or may not be holiday gifts. I will probably hand them over as they are finished. First on the list is my mom, who has requested--nay, demanded--a pair of socks. I started Karen's Sugar-Free Socks for her in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran. Who knows what's really in this yarn, but it feels like buttah. Yum.
Inspired perhaps by recent episodes of Knitty D and the City, I also cleaned out my stash yesterday. Most of the Yarn of Shame has been sent along to the thrift shop, along with some other things that I was certain I would never, ever knit. Click here to see a horrifying before picture, and here to see the newly reorganized stash closet. Because I am a big Yarn Dork, I also created a detailed inventory of what I have, typed it up as a table in a Word document, printed it out, stuck it in plastic page protectors, and have it in a binder with patterns I would like to knit in the nearish future. Of course, if I had true dork cred, I'd have done it as a spreadsheet, but I don't know how to use Microsoft Works. Pathetic, I know. Seeing it all written down is oddly comforting, and makes the stash seem somewhat smaller. I suppose some people might find yarn to make 30 pairs of socks a little excessive, but I am not one of those people. If you are reading this, I would hazard a guess that neither are you.
The picture does not show the full size, but rather is folded so you can see the dropped stitches. I am using Noro Silk Garden in color #226. As others have noted, this yarn seems to have improved in quality lately. In the past, I have found whole gardens full of vegetable matter in the yarn, as well as many knots. I've used almost three skeins so far and encountered few twigs and only two knots. Oddly, one of these knots was at the very end of a skein; the tied-on yarn measured approximately two and a half inches. Licorice Whip is currently languishing on Sleeve Island. The body is done, but I am finding it difficult to summon the motivation to finish the thing up. I'll get to it eventually, though, because it's cold here.
In an effort to create some good karma, which I could use, I have decided to put aside knitting for myself for now (other than to finish Clapotis and Licorice Whip). Several people in my family are way overdue for a handknitted item. These projects may or may not be holiday gifts. I will probably hand them over as they are finished. First on the list is my mom, who has requested--nay, demanded--a pair of socks. I started Karen's Sugar-Free Socks for her in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran. Who knows what's really in this yarn, but it feels like buttah. Yum.
Inspired perhaps by recent episodes of Knitty D and the City, I also cleaned out my stash yesterday. Most of the Yarn of Shame has been sent along to the thrift shop, along with some other things that I was certain I would never, ever knit. Click here to see a horrifying before picture, and here to see the newly reorganized stash closet. Because I am a big Yarn Dork, I also created a detailed inventory of what I have, typed it up as a table in a Word document, printed it out, stuck it in plastic page protectors, and have it in a binder with patterns I would like to knit in the nearish future. Of course, if I had true dork cred, I'd have done it as a spreadsheet, but I don't know how to use Microsoft Works. Pathetic, I know. Seeing it all written down is oddly comforting, and makes the stash seem somewhat smaller. I suppose some people might find yarn to make 30 pairs of socks a little excessive, but I am not one of those people. If you are reading this, I would hazard a guess that neither are you.
posted by Laura at 2:16 PM
26 Comments:
Hey I'm the first comment!
your clapotis is lovely... and I'm with you on the no good pictures until spring thing... I keep waiting to photograph things thinking the sun will come out - silly me.
I have to knit socks for my mom, too! I feel guilty, because she tried on my Broadripples and liked them, so I should have just given her that pair, but they weren't clean and she should really have her own pair, you know?
I've been knitting hats with Cashmerino Aran's cousin, Rowan Cashsoft, and that too is like buttah. I worry that it might get fuzzy, but it is sooo soft! And the colors are gorgeous.
Impressive organizational skillz, lady! Did you send all the Wool-Ease away? :-)
Congrats on that de-stashing and organizing! One of these days I'm going to do that, too.
I once started a database to keep trying of yarn, needles, FOs, etc. It was even a relational many-to-many database! But then I lost a whole huge set of entries when my laptop got stolen, and I along with it lost the motivation to keep up the database. I'd rather be knitting. Either that, or my stash grew too fast to keep up with it...? Okay, I did go to Russia right around that same period, and there might have been a couple of suitcases that came home full of yarn...and some boxes shipped....
I'm so glad someone else made a yarn inventory!
I did do mine on a spreadsheet and it didn't make my stash look any smaller. In fact I realized that I really really need to stay off Ebay and stop buying so much yarn! Or knit a lot faster. :)
Hello, fellow geek here. I am especially geeky with Microsoft Excel (everything works better with a spreadsheet!) Some day I will figure out how to use Microsoft Access, and then things will get very geeky indeed!
There's no such thing as too much sock yarn...I only wish I had more feet!
I'm impressed with your organizational skills! I'm afraid to catalogue my stash. I think that blessed ignorance is probably best in my case.
I'm so glad you have more sock yarn in your stash than I. It gives me a new goal to achieve. Then when I pass you in sock yarn count, then you have a new goal. And so on and so forth...
Ooh, lovely Clapotis. My silk Garden Clapotis keeps me warm at the movies. I love your colorway!
Dude, I'm a dork. I have the spreadsheet. I rarely keep it updated though - it's a bit depressing to watch all the yarn come in and very little go out.
And really, 30 pairs? That's it? C'mon girl - you can do better!
My momma is also getting handknit socks for Christmas. If I ever work on them.
Excessive! I would say that's pretty restrained!
I have a spreadsheet too - but its very out of date and I really need to sit down and update it...I think having enough for 30 pairs of socks is normal, no? Clapotis looks beautiful!
30 pairs of socks, that's not at all excessive. Certainly you'd have to get into the triple digits before you should get concerned :-)
I found an excel spreadsheet template for stash organization...if you want it, just say the word... ;o)
I love your Clapotis!
Ugh, my stash is a mess, and it's even WORSE since I started spinning. I have a lot of crap yarn to get rid of, too, and I keep it separate from the rest of my stash. It needs to go before we move.
Love the binder idea!
Yarn for 30 pairs of socks; I see no problem with that.
Oh, I looooove seeing Clapotis in Silk Garden. So pretty!
Nice organizing, lady. :)
I have an Word table for my stash and I sync it with my palm pilot. That way I can take it shopping with me and remember how many skeins of x in y color I already have. Works for me.
I certainly hope you felted joined those two and a half inches to the rest of your Noro. Waste not want not, young lady.
Just kidding. That's just too weird (about the knot so near the end).
By the way, I often have said that the measure of one's preparedness for the apocalypse is how many socks one could knit without having to leave the bunker. You're doing pretty well.
I've seen a couple of Clapotis in Noro silk garden and they are invariably gorgeous. Now.must.fight.urge.to.buy.Noro.
Maybe that 2.5 inches of yarn is some sort of mysterious knotted talisman?
Looking at someone's stash feels voyeuristic, naughty and satisfying! You need to have 30 pairs worth of sock yarn.
Beautiful clapotis-in-progress! That yarn is a winner for that pattern. Glad to hear about the improved qualities!
Because I am an uber-dork, I actually have a spreadsheet for my yarn. And a spreadsheet for projects I want to knit. So, you know, I can match them up. I have links to the blanks templates for these two in my sidebar, if you feel like trying Excel. :)
You have a whole cute little closet to devote to yarn!? I'm impressed with the reorganization. I should totally sit down and sort mine. I've got dreams of going stashless, or nearly so, and that means I need to start using up what I've got.
congrats on your reorganization!
I'm a big ol' yarn dork too. What is it about fall that makes us want to organize stuff? It's all I've done lately. The clapotis is very pretty.
I'm so happy to think that Noro might actually be listening and improving their yarns. Glad you found that too!
And yep, I'll cop to being a geek too. I have a big 'ol Excel spreadsheet with most of the stash on it.
I probably have yarn for 80 prs of socks, so, um, no, I don't think it's excessive at all.
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