Do You Think She Knows It's Yarn Bombing?

We went to visist my Husband's grandmother yesterday.  Though she's not able  to knit very much these days, she still produces the occasional item.  It's nice to see that at 80 something, she still has a sense of humour.

Reflections on a Stash

I had a crummy week. Work was hell in that way that makes you come home and collapse in a heap on the sofa. I was so mentally exhausted that I couldn't even contemplate going for a single run. I almost didn't even bother knitting, but ultimately decided that if I was going to take up permanent residency on the sofa, I might as well have something in my hands. (I did manage to get all the buttons sewn onto Presto Chango, and I located my three balls of Dream in Colour Classy that I had lost somewhere in my mess. It wasn't all bad.)

By Wednesday morning, I was a wreck.  I was bitchy and cranky and really just wanted to crawl into bed and wake up Friday night when the stupidity would be over. That morning I had to venture into the closet that holds my stash for something non-knitting related and realized, as I stood there, that my stash was a prefect reflection of my life as I was perceiving it at that moment. It was overwhelming, unbalanced, and out of control. It was a direct reflection of my guilt about everything I have yet to  accomplish in my life and anything that I have messed up along the way. My stash and my life were a both a gaint mess.  (Like I said, I was a cranky girl Wednesday morning.)

Now that my rational brain has returned, I think that it's an interesting question; What is a stash, really? And what does it say about the knitter? Is it a sneak peek into the deepest darkest parts of their personality or a direct reflection of their daily lives?

On the surface, my stash is the exact opposite of my daily life. Both my boss and my husband tell me that I have a “Type A” personality. I claim that I am organized, not “Type A.” (My husband has pointed out that my denial is very typical of “Type A's.) I like things organized, when they can be. I like having a plan and am willing to alter the plan if necessary, but I firmly believe life is easier with a plan. I don’t colour co-ordinate my underwear, but I do like to know what time I'm meeting my BFF for brunch more then 2 hours in advance. My stash, in it's current state has none of these qualities. It is not organized and it is lacking a clear plan. So I asked myself is how did this happen?

First is the gifted yarn. It's a gift and even if it's not something that I super love, it goes into the stash. I feel like I have to knit with it, even more so if a story accompanies the yarn. Someone I know took time out of their lives to give me something that they are really excited about. That means a lot and makes it all that more precious. So that's sentimental, (which is odd 'cause there are very few things I'm like that about.) Then there's the destashing yarn from my BFF. Even though I know that my BFF is a very environmentally conscious person, and that anything that others didn't want would be donated to the Yardage Sale to support our local textile museum, I felt the need to “rescue” some of it. If it's with me, then I know that it will go to good use. (Okay, that might be a little Type A coming through there.) Next is the stress release yarn. The yarn you buy when you are feeling emotional or vulnerable.There's more then a few of these in my stash.  This type of yarn is what has prompted my “cold sheep” pledge. It is way to dangerous for both my closet space and my credit card. There is of course project yarn that is bought with a specific goal in mind, but that very rarely becomes stash. And then there's the yarn you have to buy because it's so damn pretty and who doesn't love pretty things. So really, my personality is reflected in that mess. It's just buried in there with all the yarn.

Happily, now that my week is over, and I am a little more balanced, I have a new outlook on my current stash situation. Now, it's not so much a mess. It's a really big challenge. And that is defiantly part of my personality. There is nothing that gets me motivated more then a good challenge.

Back to the Grind

While I believe that missing a day of work because I am “this close” to producing my first FO's of 2011 is valid, I know that my boss wouldn't agree with that. (What can I say, she's not a knitter.) So it was back to work for me after two weeks off over the Christmas holidays. It's back to sneaking in a few rows here and there in with my morning coffee and knitting, sometimes with friends, over lunch breaks in our local coffee shop or park. (when the park's not buried in snow.) I knit in the evenings after a trip to the gym and dinner. I dream of one day finding a way to make this my paying job. (But then again, don't we all.) So far, I've managed to create a couple of regular “energy exchanges” where I devote a little of my time to knitting related work and come away with books and yarn for my efforts. I really can't complain. When I think about it, the week before Christmas was really busy too and there wasn't a whole lot of knitting time that week either.

F**K You around a cup of Mulled Wine.  

However, even though I was back to the real world, it did manage to cast on a lot of stuff and finish my first two FO's for 2011.

The first, are my pair of F**K You gloves. I have decided that these will be my “computer gloves.” Anyone who lives in a climate where they get a good heaping of winter every year will understand why it is sometimes necessary to have gloves on while typing on the computer.

The second is Presto Chango for my bff's baby girl. It's made with yarn that she gifted to me while trying to make space for the little bundle of crying, pooping, joy. (Actually, she's an adorable baby who I am completely smitten with.) I love the idea of giving my bff back some of her yarn in finished product form. I was going to save it for Little J's first birthday, but the kid is growing, both upwards and outwards, so freakin' fast that I am a little worried it may not fit. It may the only time in the 30 odd years of my life that someone gets an Easter present from me. Photo coming soon.

And, A very belated HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!!!

Time to Think Ahead

Christmas is over. The tree is still up, but the gifts are unwrapped. The left over dinner has been turned into soup, and the mess is mostly cleaned up. Now comes the next “big day” in the holiday season and the one that prompts people to make resolutions for next year, New Years Eve. It makes sense, there is a clear starting point and ending point and 365 days in between to work on that goal.

I don’t make resolutions. I know that my body feels better when I put healthy things in it, that my mood and appearance are better when I work out regularly, that I feel better about purchases when I make them with cash instead of credit, that too much booze at a party will give me a vicious hangover and not drinking enough water in a day makes me feel that same way. I know all these things and some weeks I do really well at all of them, and some weeks not as well. I don’t feel the need to makes a promise to do something “better” or “more or less frequently.” I just go about my business knowing what needs to be accomplished most days and attempting to do it. And then, I look at my stash and my knitting life in general and all that goes out the window.

Dec 2010

My stash is out of control. It is disaster waiting to happen. When I am brave, crazy enough to need something out of it, I need to have both a trained Sherpa to get me in and Search and Rescue team to help dig me out when the inevitable yarnalanche happens and I am buried. I have considered starting to take a few energy bars in with me so that if I am home alone and trapped until my husband returns, I won't starve. My stash has also started creeping into other areas of the apartment as I can no longer contain it all in one area. I recently (yesterday) went to acquire two specific balls of yarn from my stash and they weren't where I thought they would be, which means I have no idea where they are in the mess. I am pretty sure that we don't have yarn elves living in our building, (and if we do, why are they doing their job and the kitchen elves don't?) which means that the yarn is somewhere in the mess. It needs to be dealt with and I have decided that 2011 is when that is going to happen. So I am going Cold Sheep and not buying anything new until the DKC Knitters frolic in April. I will still accept gifted yarn, which is truly a big part of the problem. I will not try to blame my addiction on others, but I do have a lot of enablers in my life. Yarn, especially pretty yarn, means that I am an easy person to buy for. Even my brother in law, who knows nothing about yarn, walked into my favourite knitting store and came out with four balls of sock yarn and a gift card for me. I am both spoiled and blessed. (My WIPS are out of control too. But that one's pretty straight forward to understand.)

So here I am at the end of 2010 and I am making resolutions. I will knit solely from my stash until April 30^th. I will get the one day reprieve and then no new yarn until Canada day, July 1^st. I will stop ignoring the spinning wheel that I have on loan from my best friend. And I will be an active member of the 111 in 2011 group on Raverly. I am determined to use 111 balls this year. I will do all these things and at the end of 2011, I will have a far more functional stash and a calmer knitting life. I will control the addiction and stop letting it control me. I can do all these things, and I will keep telling myself that this is not a punishment. These are my resolutions. What are yours?

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to everyone!  I hope that there have been a few minutes of knitting time for you.  I finally was able to open the magic box.  I have to say, I am a very spoiled knitter.  This is what I found first.

Then, I opened the inside package and found more goodies.

The whole package looks like this.

My Husband is enjoying his Christmas knitting too.

I wish you all a fibre filled day and that whatever you are doing, you're having a great one. Cheers.

How to Vex a Knitter

My Husband was kind enough to order me yarn from my favourite indy dyer, IndigoDragonFly, for Christmas.  I have been forbidden from even touching the box until we open our gifts on Christmas Eve.  So this is what's under my tree.  The message is from Kim, and my husband thought it was more fun to taunt me with it then wrap it any further.  Sigh.

I am off the Wagon

I am off the wagon so hard that all I can see are the plumes of dust rising from the earth as I try to stand up and clean myself off. Back in September, I exclaimed loudly to my Husband that until I had all 

 the gifts made, I would not cast on anything new, unless it was a Holiday gift. I would permit myself to work on pre-existing projects, but nothing new. I already had a few gifts knit, as I try to get at least a few out of the way throughout the year, but I still had quite a few more to go. And, I'll be damned if the proclamation didn't actually work. I stuck it out and my gifts are finished. (I will admit, I did sneak this little dice bag in right at the very end.) So that revelation happened on Monday, and today is Wednesday, and I want to cast on EVRYTHING. I have yarn that I paired with projects months ago that are all waiting to be picked up and loved. I have projects on the needles that I want to get back too and try to finish. I want to grow extra arms and hands so I can do it all at once. I want to see just how many more finished items I can sneak in before the year 2010 is gone and 2011 begins. My head is spinning with possibilities. I'm not really sure where to go next, but I'm pretty sure it needs to involve having knitting needles in my hands. (I will try not to be too resentful of the fact that I am going out this afternoon to finish my Husband's Christmas shopping.) I wish you all a happy knitting day and if I don't surface again anytime soon send a search party. It means I’m lost in my stash.