The 30 Day Knitting Challenge: Day 13

Before I start: My heart is aching for the people killed in Orlando yesterday morning, for their loved ones who survived, for the communities this event has touched, for our country and for the world. I cannot comprehend such a mind-numbing tragedy. I hope that, this time, we can do a better job of learning from this event. I typically leave my politics at the door, but sometimes things just need to be said: There is no reason that one person should have access to enough weaponry and ammunition to handily end the lives of dozens of people. Maybe we cannot recognize and address the hatred behind such an attack in time to prevent it, but we can remove the tools that make it possible.

With that said, I hope that you and yours are safe and well.

Day 13: Do you have yarn that you love but can’t find a project for?

Well, yes. I’ve got lots of that. Where should I start?

I guess I’ll start here:

This would be madelinetosh Pashmina, colorway Free Range Eggs. Two skeins of it means I have 720 yards of sport weight 75/15/10 merino/silk/cashmere. What’s not to love?? Well, I was thinking it would make a nice shawl for my sil, but man, I haven’t been able to come up with a pattern that seems just right.

I think the answer for this one is going to lie in swatching. I really think the colors are gorgeous, but…I’m just not sure how they’ll look knit up. I’m afraid the pinkish-red is a little too pinkish-red, and that the contrast with the softer minty blue and peach will be too much. I’m pretty sure the right pattern for this yarn is going to be a “less is more” type. Thoughts?

Okay, who’s next?

And here we have 615 yards of Lorna’s Laces Lion & Lamb in colorway 50 Skeins of Grey. This is an aran weight single that’s 50% merino and 50% silk. It’s really, really lovely, but I have no clue what to do with it. I actually can’t find any projects on ravelry using this yarn in this colorway, so I don’t even have a sense of how it looks when it’s worked up. If I had one more skein, I’d consider making it a Clapotis.

Who else is floating around here?

Here we have three skeins, or 123 yards, of Noro Gemstones. This yarn is super bulky at 3 sts/1″. It’s mostly synthetic except for a hint of cashmere (???). It’s not something I would typically pick out, but it is pretty and I do love Noro. This was part of the original, legendary, Goodwill windfall. I would like to use it to make something for my daughter, but what? Part of my problem with this one is that I’m just not used to working with super bulky yarns. I don’t have a good sense of how far 123 yards will go*. The other problem is durability. I have this idea that things I knit, especially for my daughter, should be very much functional. However, this yarn (and most other Noro yarns) sure can’t be thrown in the washer. So, what can I make, with that yardage, that won’t need to be washed much/at all?

Okay, I could play this game all day. I have tons of gems hiding in my stash that just need the right pattern to show them off. I welcome any comments or suggestions you might have! What about you? What’s lurking in your stash that you’re not sure how to use?

*Aside from the obvious: it’ll go 123 yards.

The 30 Day Knitting Challenge is the creation of Meggiewes who blogs at Knitting in Wonderland.

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