Yarn Yarn Yarn Yarn
Today has been another hard day on the kids front. Sophie just isn't sleeping the way a 6-month-old baby is supposed to sleep. She woke up at 6:30 this morning, napped for a total of maybe 1.5 hours during the day, and is still freakin' up right now after 11:30. Joe's up there trying to soothe her. This has been going on for weeks now. That amount of sleep adds up to only 8 or 9 hours a day, and it's not enough for a 6-month-old. Hell, it's not enough for the whole family. I'm getting no time to myself, and I'm getting very little time with Julie alone and we're all getting a little frazzled. Maybe a lot frazzled.
One of the things that is keeping me glued together (aside from the many bright points in having two beautiful kids, and there are plenty) is the yarn. So let's talk about the yarn for a few minutes before I go flop down in bed for the night.
This pile of yarn is sport weight sock yarn that is looking for a good home. I could hold on to it and would probably eventually use it to knit something modular or otherwise creative and patchwork, but I'm really hoping that there is someone lurking out there who really wants to knit a blankie, or maybe would do something creative with it for charity or for themselves or something. I don't care how you plan to use it - or rather, I would love to hear how you plan to use it, but I won't judge you on it - but if this yarn is calling to you, speak up in the comments or throw me an e-mail (shellyk at shellykang dot com) and it could be yours!
This pile of yarn came in the mail today from Katherine. Katherine has already sent me a couple of very generous packages, including that giant pile of Mountain Colors weavers wool that I just shipped back out to Melanie. She sent a bunch more nice stuff in this package, as she is cleaning out her basement and found some more goodies.
There was only one little problem. As I was fondling this new batch, I noticed a little something on the one dark skein at the lower right. Let's take a look...
Not a very good picture, but that's a bug of some sort. I don't think it's a moth. I think it's just a bug that got waylaid and passed away in proximity of the yarn. It could happen to anybody - you wouldn't believe how many critters I've found in and around my house - or maybe you would after that spider picture the other day. Anyway, Katherine's yarn went straight into the freezer, and I will think about how I can safely bring it out. It may involve a black trash bag in the back window of my car on the next hot sunny day we get. I just want to make sure that if it is some kind of wool-eating critter, it didn't have any friends hitching along in the yarn.
I also got this package in the mail today, only slightly wore for the wear after dealing with the local mail sorting facility. They were nice enough to bag it up and apologize for any inconvenience, and the yarn all seems just fine. Karen in South Haven, MN sent a nice little goodie bag. Thanks Karen and Katherine, you've brought the total up to 97 packages!
Finally, let's revisit my little dyeing experiment. Here's what that first skein looks like now that it's dried and rewound into a normal-sized skein. I have to say, I'm pretty satisfied with how it turned out. It is not at all what I was thinking when I started it, but it is pretty. I left it in the twist-skein because I am not going to knit with it right away (or any time soon probably) so I figure it's best to keep it in a nice relaxed state.
I stole some time to dye the second skein this evening while dinner was in the oven and Joe was playing with the girls. It turned out closer to my initial vision, but I was going for a less saturated color for the blues and therefore used much less dye - the colors are still very deep mostly, but now there is more splotchiness where I wish it were solid. At least I managed to keep the white parts white this time, and I think this one will be pretty too. It's drying in the basement now, and I don't think I'll try winding it again while Julie is awake since it's too stressful for her to watch me do it and notmangle the yarn get involved herself.
Joe's down now - he got Sophie to sleep. I'm off to bed!
One of the things that is keeping me glued together (aside from the many bright points in having two beautiful kids, and there are plenty) is the yarn. So let's talk about the yarn for a few minutes before I go flop down in bed for the night.
This pile of yarn is sport weight sock yarn that is looking for a good home. I could hold on to it and would probably eventually use it to knit something modular or otherwise creative and patchwork, but I'm really hoping that there is someone lurking out there who really wants to knit a blankie, or maybe would do something creative with it for charity or for themselves or something. I don't care how you plan to use it - or rather, I would love to hear how you plan to use it, but I won't judge you on it - but if this yarn is calling to you, speak up in the comments or throw me an e-mail (shellyk at shellykang dot com) and it could be yours!
This pile of yarn came in the mail today from Katherine. Katherine has already sent me a couple of very generous packages, including that giant pile of Mountain Colors weavers wool that I just shipped back out to Melanie. She sent a bunch more nice stuff in this package, as she is cleaning out her basement and found some more goodies.
There was only one little problem. As I was fondling this new batch, I noticed a little something on the one dark skein at the lower right. Let's take a look...
Not a very good picture, but that's a bug of some sort. I don't think it's a moth. I think it's just a bug that got waylaid and passed away in proximity of the yarn. It could happen to anybody - you wouldn't believe how many critters I've found in and around my house - or maybe you would after that spider picture the other day. Anyway, Katherine's yarn went straight into the freezer, and I will think about how I can safely bring it out. It may involve a black trash bag in the back window of my car on the next hot sunny day we get. I just want to make sure that if it is some kind of wool-eating critter, it didn't have any friends hitching along in the yarn.
I also got this package in the mail today, only slightly wore for the wear after dealing with the local mail sorting facility. They were nice enough to bag it up and apologize for any inconvenience, and the yarn all seems just fine. Karen in South Haven, MN sent a nice little goodie bag. Thanks Karen and Katherine, you've brought the total up to 97 packages!
Finally, let's revisit my little dyeing experiment. Here's what that first skein looks like now that it's dried and rewound into a normal-sized skein. I have to say, I'm pretty satisfied with how it turned out. It is not at all what I was thinking when I started it, but it is pretty. I left it in the twist-skein because I am not going to knit with it right away (or any time soon probably) so I figure it's best to keep it in a nice relaxed state.
I stole some time to dye the second skein this evening while dinner was in the oven and Joe was playing with the girls. It turned out closer to my initial vision, but I was going for a less saturated color for the blues and therefore used much less dye - the colors are still very deep mostly, but now there is more splotchiness where I wish it were solid. At least I managed to keep the white parts white this time, and I think this one will be pretty too. It's drying in the basement now, and I don't think I'll try winding it again while Julie is awake since it's too stressful for her to watch me do it and not
Joe's down now - he got Sophie to sleep. I'm off to bed!
posted by Shelly Kang at 11:21 PM
12 Comments:
My blankie is mostly sportweight, as most of my handspun is, too.
Sorry you're still having sleep issues. I'm sure you know it will pass (everything seems to) but it is a long hard road sometimes. Sending you good thoughts!
I'm going home today so I will be able to make some progress this week, yay! Didn't do as much knitting as I thought I would on vacation (mom had to work) but did finish one pair of socks and mended one other. Now onto the countless ends of striped socks!
Have a great day! And if I'm not the lucky recipient, it's okay!
Hi Shelly! Your dyed yarn looks fabulous! Keep up the good work...maybe you can start your own little cottage industry, you know, when you have some free time when Sophie goes to collage! All kidding aside, your yarn looks lovely. Can't wait to see your next attempt.
Grace
I too was an evil sleepless child. I stopped taking naps at one year. That's right! Stopped! At one year!
I still owe my mom for that.
I love how that first dye job came out, the colors look lovely together! Sometimes the mistakes we make turn out better then the initial plan ^_~.
I hope Sophie feels better soon, and that the rest of you won't catch whatever she's got.
Congrats on first and fourth place!
Hi, Shelly,
I am going to be making little baggies for Christmas. I like a pattern in a booklet put out by the Boston Handweavers' Guild many years ago for reproducing items used at Plimoth Plantation, based on actual period (1620's) items. I also like modern colorways! If you have any spare bits of handpainted stuff around, I would love to use them. Mountain Colors, Fleece Artist, Koigu and the like are almost always out of my reach, and with the one skein of Koigu I *have* bought, I had a huge conflict about the highest use for this pinnacle of yarns. The leftovers of the skein I had no conflicts with!
ellen gmail calm
And best wishes with your sleep issues. My sympathies.
My 21 year old girl still comes in bed with me once in a while. My maternal fears keep me awake other nights. Now she is going to central America. Will we ever sleep soundly again?
is it teeth? is she hungry? just a couple of suggestions.
also I don't think you were oversensitive with your neighbours insensitive comments about your family of choice. I'd be livid if it were me. People are always saying I'm oversensitive nad I think its a poor excuse for people being insensitive
nat
knittingnatty.typepad.com
I am a Girl Scout Leader and may of my girls would like to learn how to knit. So for our baby bundles program I thought I would take scraps of yarn and teach them how to make mitred squares and stitch them together. This yarn would be a great way to get started on their community service project.
The dyed yarn looks beautiful! At first I thought it was a whole skein someone sent to you. Looks very professional.
The dyed yarn looks beautiful! At first I thought it was a whole skein someone sent to you. Looks very professional.
That hand dyed yarn is beautiful! It's actually making me drool. I wonder what a shrink would say about my obvious subconscious linking of yarn and food.
The hand dyed yarn is fantastic. I can only hope that my first attempt (one day in the by and by) is as good.
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