I couldn’t stop looking at this one, though. It was such a lovely color blue. I loved the gray accent. I didn’t think I’d ever wear it, but Tana said I could do what ever I wanted with it, so you know what happened next, right?

I’ve abandoned that silly vintage wool for now and have started making the Chromium Star blanket out of this yarn instead. It is already turning out much better than I had even imagined. Thanks for the two fabulous cardigans and this wonderful yarn, Tana!

reuse: Hand knit sweaters are such a joy to unravel. They are always seamed together with such care. I wish all sweaters unraveled this nicely. I didn’t lose one bit of yarn!

I crocheted another one last night and remembered to take a “before” shot this time. The second swatch was washed in cold. It also felted. Except that it didn’t shrink. Before and after are the same size and shape. Maybe “felted” is the wrong term.

It’s like the yarn is blooming. It’s incredibly soft. I’m starting to think I might even like it. I’m going to wash it again — maybe a few times — to see how it holds up. What’s more important to a newborn: soft and cuddly or nice stitch definition? I’m thinking soft and cuddly.

I usually don’t swatch. When I do, it’s never the 4×4 inch square I’m supposed to make. Mine are small. Calling them 2×2 inches is generous. Usually gauge doesn’t matter for a lot of the items I make.

Last week I made a swatch, not to check gauge, but to check the yarn label’s claim: machine washable and dryable. 100% virgin wool. Keyword that was missing: superwash. I put the swatch in with some linens on the warm setting. It didn’t felt that much, but a lot of the stitch definition has disappeared. I’m going to try another swatch washed in cold. After that, I’ll be stash diving for some cotton.

vintage yarn: I am in love with the color blue of this yarn. I read somewhere that a lot of wool used to contain recycled bits, so that’s why so many of the vintage yarns say 100% “virgin” wool. I can’t help but giggle when I read it. Apparently I have the sense of humor of a twelve-year-old.

My latest gift-giving obsession continues: fancy soap and washcloths. I know so many people who deserve a little bit of pampering, but are too busy to take time for themselves. Hopefully these will help them relax and wash their stress away. They are crocheted out of the super soft Aunt Lydia’s cotton.

Want to make some yourself? Here are the patterns.

Note: You’ll notice that I don’t chain at the beginning of each row. I’ve started using faux double crochets instead. They really make your edges much neater.

Basket Weave
gauge: 4 stitches per inch, blocked to 10 inches
first stitch in each row is a faux double crochet instead of chain 3

• Row 1: chain 40
• Row 2: dc across
• Row 3-6: *5 dc through the front post, 5 dc through the back post* repeat until 5 stitches left, 5 dc through the front post
• Row 7-10: *5 dc through the back post, 5 dc through the front post* repeat until 5 stitches left, 5 dc through the back post
• Repeat rows 3-10 four more times.

Columns
gauge: 4 stitches per inch, blocked to 10 inches
first stitch in each row is a faux double crochet instead of chain 3

• Row 1: chain 39
• Row 2: dc across
• Row 3: *4 dc, dc through front post* repeat until 4 stitches left, 4 dc
• Row 4: *4 dc, dc through back post* repeat until 4 stitches left, 4 dc
• Repeat rows 3-4 until you have a square.

Remember my stash-busting garden scarf? I still have some little bits of those pretty colors left and have been working on some projects to use them all up. Combining them with natural colored yarn again, I designed these cute coasters. You can find more pictures and details in my shop. I’m working on some other stash buster ideas, too. Stay tuned!

p.s. I plan to have the pattern available in my shop soon!

These cotton yarns kept me cheerful through a long holiday weekend of gray skies. Can’t wait for the sun to return!

They’re finally here! I think I love these too much to list them, but I can make more. Lots more, actually. I used wool from the big spool and clear plastic containers handpicked out of my very own recycle bin. More photos and all the details are in my shop.

Have a great weekend everyone!

I looked and looked for cotton yarn from every thrifty means available to me and finally caved and bought some from a craft store. Now, all I see is cotton! I got a nice sweater that’s in the unravel pile and the above lovelies for a buck each at a garage sale. I may have gotten a little out of control and bought a pink and purple, too. Oh, well. You can never have too much dishcloth yarn, right?

Since my last post, I’ve received some questions about my granny bookmark yarn. I can’t think of a better way to start up the blog again than to tell you about The Big Spool of Wool.

• It was gifted to me by my friend Lisa. I believe she bought it secondhand. (She’s a thrifty thrill seeker, too.)
• There is a lot of it.
• The label says it’s from Pendleton Woolen Mills.
• So far I have only wound off three colors: tan, navy and red.
• It smells a little sheepy, but in a good way.
• It’s rough to the touch, but after working with it for awhile, the lanolin makes my hands feel soft.

I have used it for packages, gift tags, bookmarks, flowers, vases and little boxes. I’ve just scratched the surface with this stuff. I wonder how long I can go before it gets passed on to someone else. Like I said, there is a lot of it!

My little granny bookmark is finished. Actually, this is my second one. I gave the first one to my mom and now I’m working on a third. I went down a hook size since the first and I think I prefer the tighter stitches for this wool.

The book I’m reading is The Kind Diet by Alicia Silverstone. I just happened to pick it up at the library because it was on display next to the knitting books. I had to give up beef and dairy once before when my daughter had an intolerance. I remember thinking how hard it must be to go vegan because you had to give up even more!

Her book got me thinking, though. Here I am trying to save all of these things from the landfill for a better earth. Then I go out and order a hamburger for dinner. The dairy and beef industry are definitely not nice to our planet! I might have to rethink how I spend my food dollars.

in search of: currently looking for an inexpensive, used version of this book for my home collection.