You may be surprised to hear that I am immensely fond of knitting. I love everything about it: the rhythm and synchronicity of needles, yarn, and hands; the building of the fabric, stitch by stitch; knitted fabric itself, an ancient miracle of comfort and flow, with endless possibilities for weight, texture, color. And the yarn itself, so many varieties! Harsh, tough and warm or light, delicate and smooth or squishy, fluffy and cozy. I feel that we’ve had the privilege of living in a paradise for knitters, with yarn coming from all over the world in an amazing array.
I wish I could say that the current uncertainty of markets and who’s exacting revenge on whom won’t affect the mills that supply this bounty, but I fear that, as tariffs bounce around the world, prices on everything, including yarn, will rise. Hand-knitting yarn is not a basic necessity of life, and putting food on the table and keeping a roof over your head come first, and we know that will all get more difficult for many people. But if you’re a knitter, yarn and knitting are necessities. It helps us to get through the anxiety many of us are feeling, it helps us to process life’s tragedies and carry on, and it creates beautiful things for us to wear or to give to people we love.
Which, when I think about it, justifies our having a stash, doesn’t’ it? It’s like having a well-stocked pantry, or a basement full of canned goods that you can draw on when the budget is tight or when you’re out of ideas for dinner. My mother had shelves of home-canned tomatoes, jams, and things she considered necessities, as well as a chest freezer full of meat and vegetables bought when she found a good price. She was a wonderful cook and homemaker, thrifty and inventive. We should all be the same and not worry about how much yarn we have. It will get us through the apocalypse!
Anyway, I’ll try to stop being a Cassandra, warning of dire circumstances. While we await what happens next, let’s have some beautiful inspiration for our own knitting. First, here is Deb’s first sock in her Sock Club series, starting April 1. It’s a honey, isn’t it? And you should feel the combination of yarns she used. There are still a few spaces left!
We just got in some new sock yarn, called Ruby. A merino and nylon blend, dyed in gorgeous semi-solids in Canada, it’s lovely to work with and will make a beautiful sock. I hope we’ll be able to get more at at the same price, but there are no guarantees at this point.
Super-pretty.
And now I have to brag on my Mermaid Sweater class a little bit. Everyone is doing well, and Lynda Slovitsy and Michelle Wheatley were first to finish and wore their sweaters to our last class on Sunday. Just very beautiful work!!
Thanks for modeling, guys, and no, I’m not cutting off anybody’s head. (Not on purpose anyway.) You look great!!
