*DING* - Light Bulb Moment

My story is old.   I see a project on Ravelry, rush to the yarn store, buy the yarn, wind the yarn, see a new project on Ravelery, stash the yarn I just bought, rush to the yarn store ... This is a vicious wooly cycle that needs to be broken.  I am dependent on yarn and it's taking over my basement, my office, and every unused basket, shelf, and container in my house.  I've tried to go "cold sheep" but I need help.  I need a 12 step program and a Ravelry group as my sponsor.  

Step 1:  Admit that I am powerless to yarn. 

(see paragraph above and second paragraph under Step 2)

Step 2:  Find a group/sponsor.

Enter The Yarn Stash Project 2013 group.  A group designed to knit your stash one week at a time, yard by yard.  

Step 3:  Comply with group guidelines:

Immediately upon joining I had to assemble a Challenge Box and commit to the day of the week that I would post my progress.  Down to the basement I ran to figure out what yarns and projects I wanted to include my first Challenge Box.  At the time I didn't realize that box was monthly and I went a bit overboard - throwing in yarns for a cowly short sleeved cardigan, an adult-sized afghan, a Gap-tastic cowl, felted slippers, a BFF cowl (I'm starting to see that I may also have a cowl addiction), a 5th Avenue Infinity Scarf (yup definitely an addiction), one more cardigan, and some preemie hats.   All in one month!  

Then it hit me (here comes the light bulb moment).  My addiction isn't just with yarn, it's with trying to knit too much - eyes bigger than stomach kind of scenario).  There is no way in H E double hockey sticks that I could knit all of that in one month.  I am addicted to the concept that enough is never enough.  Oh boy ... this may require professional, medical assistance.  But let me take this one step at a time.

1. I've figured out and admitted my addiction(s).
2. I've found a group/sponsor.
3. I've assembled my Challenge Box and I've committed to posting my progress each week on Sunday evening.

Gauge and Taxes - the 2 are related.

I try not to knit much during January and February because in my house, it is tax season. And although I am not an accountant, we have a small business that is both complicated enough, and not-so-small, that it takes me 2 months to prepare so our accountant can then prepare. I'm not a fan of paying the government thousands of dollars, so the topic of taxes makes me knit a little tighter! My nice, even gauge constricts in unison with my blood vessels at the mere mention of paying MORE money in April after we've paid 4 other times throughout the year, PLUS what I've had withheld from my weekly checks. Couple this with the "Stimulus Package" and "Bailouts" and I've got myself a piece of knitted fabric that is so stiff and dense that it is now impenetrable.

I have two resolutions for the new year. The first, and already broken, was to use stash yarn instead of buying new. (HA! Never a possibility.) The second is to embrace my weakness and figure out a way to make them work for me. My tax related high blood pressure and tight gauge condition (AKA Vasogaugo Hyperknitus) can be put to good use. I'm knitting a straight jacket at a blindingly small gauge, that can be worn to prevent law makers and fat-cat executives from doing anything. On my design board are plans for a chastity belt. Forget the governments upcoming Contraceptive Plan - you can't make someone take a pill or practice safe sex, but a liquid-proof chastity belt ain't coming off!

As we proceed into March, our tax stuff moves from my desk to the accountant's. My even-gauge projects come out and my Vasogaugo Hyperknitus is under control. I hope to get several projects done, before the dreaded "How much you owe" phone call comes in and I forced to go back up to a size 15 needle just to get 4 stitches to the inch.

Knit Night in Milton

The following is a copy of the article in the Burlington Free Press about the knitting group I started in Milton. We now meet weekly and seem to add a knitter at every meeting!

Once a solitary hobby, knitting now a social event.
Tuesday, January 2, 2007 By Lauren OberFree Press Staff Writer

Elaine Campbell hates knitting thumbs. If she had a choice, all mittens would be thumbless. Jane Lewandowski is a whiz at making socks. That's all she makes, but she'd like to change that.

Barb Consentino is a bit of a knitting newbie, but already she's addicted. She now sneaks yarn into the house.Each woman has a different knitting tale, but all made the choice to move their solitary hobby to a more social environment at the first meeting of a newly formed knitting group in Milton. The group drew nine women to The Alley Coffee House recently to knit, swap stories and drink coffee.

Renee Johnson, a Milton resident and long-time knitter, came up with the idea for a knitting group in Milton, although she insists that the group is not exclusive to Milton residents. Johnson wanted an informal group to share ideas about patterns, stitches and yarns while getting out of the house, a brief respite from the toils of everyday life.

Each woman had a story to tell about her knitting experience. Johnson started with Icelandic sweaters and has made everything from hats and scarves to felted bags and bowls. Colleen Sauve learned to knit as a little girl and recently returned to it, making chemo caps for her sister-in-law, who has cancer. Jeannette Cavanaugh's grandmother taught her to knit and while recovering from a long illness, Cavanaugh found herself digging back into her old yarn stash to pick it up again. Sarah Shepherd, who whipped her way through a lap blanket, thought the group would be a good way to meet new people, especially as a relative newcomer to Milton. "I thought, 'This sounds like a good way to be social,'" Shepherd said, her fingers moving the needles at dizzying speed.

Many of the women brought pieces they were working on, including a wool shrug, a few winter hats and a royal purple wimple, headgear that covers the head, neck and chin. They swapped opinions about the best yarn and the best place to buy yarn. Julie Gennrich, the owner of the coffee shop, crocheted a hat between serving customers. The group decided that charity knitting would be a good way to put their vast and varied talents to good use. They discussed knitting chemo caps to donate to cancer patients at Fletcher Allen Health Care and making soft caps for premature newborns. Gennrich, who is on the board of directors for Earth Angels, an organ donation advocacy group, proposed a plan for the group to knit prayer shawls that transplant recipients would give to the organ donors' families.

The group, still in its developing stage, is looking for knitters. While the group is not instructional in nature, group members will try to teach tricky knitting, such as continental stitching or making those pesky sock heels.

Knitting Circle

Several women in the book group I belong to and students from previous knitting classes have asked me to start a knitting circle. Why knit alone? I agree, but don't really know how to go about setting one up.

Any suggestions ....