Knitting Through the Recession

Being unemployed sucks. On the up side, I have had a lot more time to knit. I have also been wondering how crafts such as knitting and crochet are faring during this "recession". News reports I have read lead me to think that as some people have less money for movies, travel, and starbucks, they are buying yarn, hooks and needles.

Here are some examples:

• In the article Living with Less: Getting Creative During a Recession, Robin Cowie Nalepa reported interviewed a Yarn Shop owner. "A $24 yarn purchase could garner two weeks of knitting and a scarf, while a sweater project may last two months and cost $80, explained Winburn. It gives new meaning to 'bang for your buck,'" said Lara Winburn." Nalepa aslo reported that this yarn store may not be seeing an increase in sales but is certainly not seeing a slow down.
• Channel KOAT 7 in Albuquerque has reported in the story Knitting Recession-Proof Pastime that a Local Yarn Shop is having difficulty keeping yarn on the shelves. The classes they offer on the fiber arts are also full.

This of course brings me to the issue which causes me irritation in a craft I otherwise love. The issue - the expense of natural fiber yarns, especially wool. I did some comparisons of some popular yarns that are available to me through LYS or online. My methodology was to look at the yardage for skeins of yarn, the price per skein and the number of skeins needed for a sweater.

What I found was the cheapest I could knit a wool sweater would be for about $40.00 in Lion Brand Fisherman's Wool Yarn. I would be extremely limited in the colors I could choose. The problem I see with this, is that I could buy a wool sweater for $40.00 or less. If I were to use one of the most popular Wool Yarns, Cascade 220, it would cost about $60 in yarn.

I could take into account the joy of hand knitting a sweater, but in many ways that adds to the value/cost of the sweater. The question is does the enjoyment offset the expense of materials and time? So far my answer has been no. The expense of wool yarn, especially while I am on unemployment, is way out of my budget.

This is why I knit mostly with acrylic yarns or blended yarns. They are less expensive. I also try to find yarn on sale. I make an exception with my washcloths. I use bulk cotton when I can get it.

Maybe I will begin to change my mind when I am flush again.

And So I'm Back . . .

Ooh been gone for a while. Sorry about that.

Work got busy during September 08 and continued through October 08. In November, my traveling for work slowed down dramatically and in December I didn't leave KC. Then in mid January my company - which had said just on a call in the last quarter that the company was doing well, no worries - laid off about 50 people, including me.

So with the work slowdown and the new "work" of job hunting, I have had the opportunity to get in some knitting. I am still working on putting together the Barbara Walker, Learn to Knit Afghan (I just can't seem to get motivated to do it).

So here are a few things I have been knitting on . . .

Baby Bib O' Love

I knitted several of these for a couple that are in my partner's Jewish Conversion Class and that are expecting. They are so cute, simple, and quick to knit.

The pattern is from Mason Dixon Knitting by Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne.

I also knitted some other baby things like a few burp cloths, some booties, and even a baby kimono, but didn't get any pics of those. I almost wish I was "expecting" a child, or had more pregnant friends because I really enjoyed knitting the baby stuff.

Irish Hiking Scarf

Earlier in the year I had picked up four skeins of Patons SWS Soy Wool Solids yarn on sale. I tend to buy yarn then try to figure out how I am going to use it later, so I had no idea what I planned on doing with this yarn. I carried it around in my suitcase thinking that inspiration would strike me during my travels. In October, I finally decided to knit the Irish Hiking Scarf to practice my cabling.

Let me just say, I hate this yarn - if you can call it yarn. It is more like roving as there is no discernible spin or ply to it. It is soft and I love the soft camel color, but to actually use it -- eck. I can't wait to get this project finished and use up all the skeins.

The Irish Hiking Scarf pattern is by Adrian Bizilia. It is easy and a great way to get into cables -- which are really not that difficult.

That all being said, I am liking how the scarf is turning out. I really love the pattern.

Hanukkah Washcloths

My partner and I host an annual Hanukkah Party and invite all of our friends to celebrate the holidays. This year was of course no exception. What was new this year is that my beloved wanted to give some inexpensive gifts to all that were going to attend. His thought was some simple hand-knit washcloths in blue and white.

So I spent the better part of early December knitting some simple cotton washcloths for Hanukkah. I actually enjoy knitting washcloths. They are quick to do, functional and always appreciated. Personally, I prefer my knit washcloths to the terrycloth ones you get at the store.

My First Gloves

Here is my first attempt at knitting gloves. In retrospect, I think I should have started with mittens. The pattern is House Gloves by Ruth Bendig.

Over all, it was a relatively simple project. The only real issue I had was figuring out how to deal with the "holes" that show up at the base of the fingers. In my research on the topic, I could not find any solutions to avoiding the holes. So if you have a good method on avoiding or hiding the holes at the base of glove fingers, I would appreciate your input.

The yarn I used was the ever economical Caron One Pound yarn. I love bulk yarn even though it is cheap and acrylic. I may have alpaca taste, but I have an acrylic budget.

Asherton Reversible Scarf

Love, Love, LOVE this pattern. It is the Asherton Reversible Scarf by Smariek. It was so easy to memorize and knit. I also love the way the pattern forms a geometric pattern that is kind of a three dimensional box. I'll wait why you check it out.

Again I used the Caron One Pound yarn because the gloves didn't use it up - naturally. I really think the color is great for the pattern as well. Yes I used the term color as opposed to the pretentious knitting term colorway. I mean is it really necessary to add "way" to the end of color?