Some yarn winding tips.... aka trial and error humor

Some things I learned about yarn and recycling yarn both from my own projects and sweaters and such.

Fuzzy, boucle, mohair or even slightly felted (sweaters someone has tossed in the dryer thus disregarding the instructions) yarns are next to impossible to unravel.

Lace weight sweaters will wear you out in a very short time unless you have a winder.

Never try to unravel a sweater with stripes unless you are going for small bits of color or a magic ball. The fabric may be all one piece but the yarn isn't when you unravel it.

Knitting with lace weight yarn (or crocheting for that matter) is a pain in the ..... not to mention the hands.

When trying to unravel or wind yarn, confine the cat (or in my case cats) to one room. A DIFFERENT room.

Lock the Husband out of the house.

When he gripes about the yarn laying around, remind him of his collection of hats, t-shirts, watches, potato chip and snack bags, etc. laying around.

Now get yourself a yarn winder, a good CD or TV show, some nice yarn to be wound, and wind away!


Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Yarn Yarn and Yarn

I've got too much yarn. And this time, that isn't a good thing. My living room, back room, truck you name it are just about full. Some of it is reclaimed yarn to sell, some of it is mine and some I have reserved for charity that needs to go out. I just need a good size box.

I'm going to work today on getting some of it skeined, photographed and posted on Etsy if I can get all that done between work. I bought a travel size niddy noddy for winding skeins but not sure if thats going to do the job on some of my bigger skeins or not.

Meanwhile I'm trying to clear out my etsy shop too so if you see anything under MeowCreations you'd like please do let me know. I'm offering 10% off my entire shop until Valentine's day. Need to make room for some of this yarn! And to walk thru my house.

OK off to see if I can't get something done, not much is happening on the net last few days. Later all and keep in touch!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Finished Cocoon Pictures- As Promised!

Here's the pictures I've been promising of the two finished cocoons going to Relief Share. It almost took me longer to get pictures posted than the cocoons made since my time on the internet is limited due to work. I made both of these out of Hobby Lobby's I Love This Yarn worsted weight although any SOFT acrylic yarn from baby to chunky can be used as long as it comes out the right sizes and doesn't have holes in the pattern. The pattern I used is my own and listed several places including here. Although you're welcome to use this pattern for charity or personal use, please don't use it to make something to sell.

Here's the two small newborn 16" around by 16" long cocoons (8" wide by 16" long) one in light green and one in a pastel variegated color.

Here's another I had started but partially frogged to redo to size.

If you'd like to make one or more of these Relief Share needs 350 of them for their hospital and some for their crisis center.

Marla

Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet

Marla's Nursery

Gifts of Love

Snow!

We woke up this morning (and I came home last night) to about 3" of snow. It was all very pretty but most had melted off by this morning at 9am when I got up. RATS. I keep hoping for about a foot where everything will shut down for about a week. No such luck. Oh well.

I'll be back later today with the promised pics of the 2 finished baby cocoons. Stay tuned. Until then doing some work on my ETSY shop.

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Another cocoon in progress

Well, two finished (One picture taken, one to go and both to be posted) and another one I frogged and redid to match the size needed in progress, yet another one just started in a pretty purple simply soft yarn. I'd love to make this a picture blog every day but my limit of time doesn't always permit like I would like.

I've gotten stuck on these cocoons lately. A newborn size requested by the hospital is 16" around by 16" long, or 8" around by 16 long. The softest of acrylic yarn is required whether worsted weight, sport or baby. Relief Share's blog has a good bit of detail as well as knitting, crochet, and sewing patterns to make these as well as sizes needed. These are used for newborns rather than receiving blankets in the hospital and at home.

Nothing going on in blogland or otherwise on the net today so off to spend my precious hour or two before work crocheting and playing with yarn! I updated some of my ETSY shop which now has a 10% off sale thru Valentine's day. Enjoy!!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Etsy Sale and Goodwill

As part of my decluttering, I am offering a 10% off Sale on everything in my Etsy shop, under the name MeowCreations- link is below. I gotta get some of this stuff outta here.

Several more things have gone into a flat rate box for Relief Share and will fit it all in best I can. Still more is going to goodwill and I have to stay out of their shop for a while- have brought more sweaters and things home than I can unravel lately. Need to post some of the yarn to Etsy.

2 baby cocoons are almost finished, just lack a few rows each. Will post pictures when they are done, I promise. Link to pattern is here. If you want to make one or more I'm sure they'd love it! These are for a 5-8lb newborn and are used instead of recieving blankets. Ok all now to see what else I can get done before work this afternoon.

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Decluttering

Lord, what a mess! Between Scott and I working such long hours over the holidays and me marrying the worlds biggest pack rat and lack of free time and energy.... my house is a mess!! No, I won't show pictures. Its mostly junk that needs to be put up, go somewhere or be donated somewhere. And it's about to be.

Goodwill, charities, post office, trash can- here I come!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Recycled yarn and Etsy and pics

WHEW!! After a wild week with Scott being home with his neck hurting, I finally am getting him back to work tonight. I did take about an hour or less and listed some yarn and recycled yarn on Etsy. I much need to move some of my items on there.

Got one sweater fully unraveled, orange 100% wool and got six hanks out of it. They will be for sale after washing. Working on a pretty off white sparkle acrylic/cotton blend now.

Maybe now I can also have time to work on my charity things like baby stuff and cocoons for Relief Share. Have some other things needing mailing off too if I can just get those boxes in my truck to go to mailbox.

OK unfortunately I have to get ready to go back to work but will leave you with some pics I took, mostly of things for sale on Etsy.

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Cocoon Charity Request

I have a request for the cocoons or any items you make from my blog or website, especially baby:

Please send these items first and foremost to Relief Share as they need lots of baby and charity items and the hospital there and crisis center use lots of cocoons. Lots of warm items are needed, primarily baby and children's items but adult items can be used as well. If you crochet or knit, acrylics work well for baby items.

Thanks Everyone!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Goodwill, Sweaters and New Washer and Dryer

Hi all,

I've been playing with my new washer and dryer I got hooked up today! (*Bragging*) They are super quiet, just my height, front loading and run like a dream.

Didn't get any more yarns listed on Etsy today but definitely will soon. I've been trying to pick up a few things in the house and took one sack to Goodwill where I also found 11 (Yes, count them- 11!!) sweaters with beautiful yarns for recycling. I did miss a pretty thick dark purple one that a lady grabbed before I got to the rack though. Lots of lambswool, silk blends, cotton blends, 100% cotton and a few acrylic. Some people are yarn snobs and won't bother with the acrylic but these were pretty enough that it was worth the $2-2.50 to get quite a bit of yarn out of that sweater. If noone else will use the acrylic, I will. I am by no means a yarn snob, in fact I am not crazy about wool unless it is very soft and washable and hate using cotton yarn. Acrylic is my favorite texture, and usually holds up best and is the best to work with. I am not one of these people picky about working with synthetics like acrylic- I love it. These sweaters really are nice though- should keep me busy for a long time.

And my new washer and dryer have those extra delicate and hand washables and air dry cycles on them!! I can wash things now that would otherwise have to be done by hand. My old ones still work- they are going to a lady whose house burnt on New Years Day along with quite a few things I cleaned out she can have.

OK, I'm off to supper then some unraveling time with one of my new movies I got for Christmas and didn't have time to watch til now. This unraveling thing just might catch on after all!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Etsy, Washer and Dryer and Recycling yarn

Good afternoon all-

Itenerary for the day:

Eat Breakfast, List some spare yarns on Etsy, work on that sweater I'm froggin, I have a package to mail before work today (YUCK!!- but they don't pay for staying home.) then I have to buy a blue t-shirt to go over my long sleeve because I forgot my work clothes at home before I came down. Figures. And with gas $3 a gal, I'm not wasting the gas to drive back to the house then back to Southside of town. Or the time.

Listed a few yarns on Etsy, will do more tomorrow and Fri when I get all my pics taken and as time allows.

I hope to have some recycled yarn on Etsy soon, both from sweaters and from UFO's that the yarn was lost, discontinued, pattern lost, etc. Another mission: GET SOME OF THIS CRAP OUT OF MY HOUSE!!! You can't walk thru it right now between a husband who puts stuff wherever he drops it, my stuff laying all over, Christmas stuff needing to be put up.... well you get the idea.

On top of that, I have a new washer and dryer coming tomorrow so I gotta clear them a path and get stuff off the old ones. Something I'd been wanting for a long time and with Christmas $$ we finally made it happen. Now to learn to use all the bells and whistles...

OK a froggin' I go..... giving hands a rest from crocheting for a bit by unraveling- it's actually fun! Later all!

Have a great week!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Newborn Cocoon pic

Thanks to Mimi for testing this pattern and sending me her pic! Here's the picture of the Newborn cocoon suitable for going home from the hospital. It should fit a 5-7lb baby.

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Froggin and Thanks Mimi!

Hi Everyone,

Hope your new year is going great. Mine would be except for that darn thing called work that keeps interrupting my crocheting and yarn play time. What am I up to now? Recycling yarn. Yeah, you heard me. Recycling yarn from my projects I now pick up and say "What the heck was I thinking??", Thrift store sweaters, UFO's that have long since lost the pattern or yarn that was to go in them was discontinued or lost. While most people hate Frogging, I've been doing plenty of "Rip-it-ing".

Also a huge thanks to Mimi for testing my Preemie/Small Newborn cocoon pattern. The picture is up on her site and it's adorable and according to her came out exactly to size.

OK I'm going back to that lovely teal brushed acrylic sweater I'm froggin for the yarn!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love

Happy 2011 Everyone!

Happy New Year Everyone!!

Just a post to say may your 2011 be filled with God's blessings, good health and happiness! Oh, and lots of yarn!

Marla
Meow Creations Etsy Shop- Supplies and Crochet
Marla's Nursery
Gifts of Love