Saturday 14 June 2008

Am I being creative - or just making a mess?






I have been busy over the last couple of days trying to organise myself in the stash department. Maybe my ex husband's remarks stung a little or perhaps I looked at my house in a different light but either way I decided to reacquaint myself with my stash. I need to sort out some mohair for Ambermoggie. If you have any spare mohair look on her blog as she is doing a swop of mohair for one of her elementals. Even if you haven't got any take a look at her blog anyway!

I have discovered lots of wool that I bought for specific projects and put away and forgotten all about. Come on girls you have all done that, haven't you? Now I have to think of other projects as I can't remember what the wool was intended for in the first place. I sorted out some of the bits and bats into co-ordinating colourways which started me on crocheting the dreaded granny squares into a shawl. I made one many years ago and decided to make another one. I will ,of course, bitterly regret this decision when I come to sewing up the gadzillions of tail ends. As I am crocheting on the wing, using stash, the completed squares are pinned together on my dining table along with the half completed squares to give me an idea of where the shawl is going. What else is a dining table for anyway. There is only me and I can always eat at the computer desk! I have another bag of mixed shades of purples and greens ready for something similar. Help I am entering a granny square phase again! Thankfully I have another Sweet Pea shawl yet to crochet to save me from getting sucked in.

Vic's sock is progressing slowly. This is my first toe up sock and so far I like the neat way the increases are at the toe. I have yet to encounter the heel so the jury is still out on whether I will be a toe up or toe down knitter in the future.

The consequence of my stash tidying (ha ha) is that the house now looks much worse than it did in the first place and my mind is whirling with new projects for the stash wool that I have uncovered. My father used to say I had the mind of a butterfly as I flit from project to project, knit to crochet and in the old days when I had good eyes - sewing, and he wanted me to finish off one project at a time. Come on girls how boring is that slogging away at one thing until it is finished and then going on to the next?

The patterns I uncovered as well. They take me back quite a while. I never made bags or jewlery but I used to love Goldfingering. I hated crocheting with it as it used to cut my fingers to ribbons. Many a bikini I crocheted (not for me I assure you) that went from me to be lined and then sold in a boutique. I had a much loved vest type top in gold that I used to wear with my de rigeur long black velvet skirt whenever I went out clubbing. There was none of this "have something new everytime you go out" in my generation. We had a couple of good tops and a skirt and used to alternate. I was considered to be a bit posh as I had a few knit and crochet tops to dazzle my dance partners with. As you can presume I was quite a popular girl with the girls who wanted tops similar. My mother used to say imitation is the sincerest form of flattery but I wanted to be an individual and liked the fact that no-one could look like me so I only crocheted for my best friend.

I am off to Bury market. Ivy, the trolley, and I will be catching the metro shortly. I shall try to resist having a peek at the wool stall on there. It has a siren call and it is right next to the fruit and veg stall that I am visiting. Wish me luck as you wave me goodbye!

6 comments:

Ambermoggie, a fragrant soul said...

Oh you are being most creative Jan, not at all messy:0 Hope you and Ivy had a great trip to Bury:)

River Glorious said...

I like the colors you chose for your granny squares. :) Hope to see the finished object soon, it looks so nice. :)

June said...

We all have to have a granny square project at some time and yours looks very nice so far. Hope you have a nice trip out with Ivy the Trolley. Bet you can't resist the wool stall and come back with some more stash.

Crobbles said...

Having seen the original Granny Square shawl, I know this one will be lovely too. The colours are very pretty.

I'm with Amber, you're being very creative. When I'm really caught up in some creativity I'm most untidy. It's ordered to me, as everything is where I need it. It only looks like bedlam to the non-creative onlooker!

Anonymous said...

It's only you and Buster in that house. You don't have to impress a soul! So let your creative juices flow and clutter up your home at will. As long as you don't have old pizza boxes and stale beer sitting among the yarn, I see no problem. lol

Can't wait to see what the shawl will look like. I like the colors you've chosen.

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