De-stashing

As I grow older, I know there is no way I can knit all the yarn or spin all the fiber stash in my closet.  I also believe those items multiply overnight!  This week I’ve been de-stashing!  Some yarns have been stock piled for 30+ years ain’t no way I’m suddenly going to use it now.  If it wasn’t touched in those 30 years, going bye bye!  I loaded up two large bags of yarn, took it to charity shop for someone else to hoard for 30 years! 

Same as fiber—I’ve tried to turn it over as fast as my wheel will turn but it’s not fast enough to empty one bin.  Part of me wants to keep all this lovely stuff to finger and part of me wants to give it away.  I found a whole fleece that needs to be dyed—that could be another day’s adventure!  Surprisingly, I find all sorts of fiber I forgot I had—

As to quilt magazines!  Going through that bin, I discovered quilt magazines going back to 1994!  Quilters in those days used templates—today there is a faster easier way to build a top.  I bundled up those magazines and handed them off to charity shop too. 

I think there is something funny going on in my yarn closet!  Those leftover balls of yarn keep multiplying!  

With these few balls, I'm working on another hat--easy to knit while relaxing or watching TV show.

Years ago, we called this a gap cap--we'd seen some at the Gap Store (does store still exist?)  Take two yarns together, cast on 80 or 88 stitches and knit!  That's it!  Just knit!! till you reach the length you like, start decrease--knit 6, k 2tog one row, then knit;  Continue to the decrease reaches crown; k2tog. pull last few stitches together and tie off.  Add a pom pom--that uses more yarn!!

I also found some "peaches and cream"cotton  yarns in the yarn closet==decided to knit some of those Grandma dishclothes! Easy to knit.

No one knows who wrote this pattern originally but it's such a simple basic pattern for all who knit and love dishclothes. I have many variegated yarns so this is perfect pattern!  Also, lots of hand spun cotton—perfect for this pattern

I begin my pattern on double pointed needles, using variegated hand spun cotton

Then switch to long circular needles—I like to use tablet for pattern notations

Finished!  Ready for bathing or kitchen scrubbing!

This one is designed by The Kitchen Sink and will work well with my solid color yarns

For years, I loved knitting Kris Knits patterns-- but I have most of her patterns and love them to this day.  I like using my handspun cotton yarn for patterns--I hold two 2 ply together--it makes for a really nice size cloth and since it's handspun you can't go wrong with one of these as a gift!

As to de-stashing, that’s a never ending job!!