Kay's Korner - A Knitters Notes

OK, maybe it is not quite that bad. Yet. But I hear an increasing number of knitters, crocheters, and spinsters referring to their love for fiber as an addiction. Actually, I do start feeling a mild withdrawal when I go a couple of days without knitting. In the past, I have slipped bags of yarn from my car trunk into the house when no one was looking and hid them in the back of a closet. And yes, I have fudged when telling my husband the amount that I spent at the yarn shop. It is sounding more like an addiction all the time.

By the way, I suppose I am a yarn dealer, as well. If someone comes to me looking for some yarnie happiness, I am going to do my best to satisfy their fiber lusts. I understand their need for softness and their attraction to color. Many of us justify our fiber cravings by saying there are gifts to be made, feet that our cold, but more often the truth is that we see a particular yarn as a must have, then find a need to rationalize the purchase. This usually involves some line about love or someone else's need or both.

But truly, if I must have a vice, this is not a bad one to have. Hey, it is legal! And after all, isn't fiber supposed to be good for us? No one goes without food to get a yarn fix, although Cat Bordhi has suggested eating peanut butter sandwiches for lunch in order to save money to buy good circular needles. Yes, I am afflicted with yarn lust. I even go to support groups at least once a week to share my experiences with other knitters. But the way I see it, if I am going to have a monkey on my back, I want it to be one of those cute knitted ones with floppy arms, red mouthes and feet. Hmm, I could knit the body in kettle dyed alpaca and the feet in...

Happy Knitting!

On Kay's Needles
In a word, socks! For our 29th anniversary, I am knitting my husband a pair of socks using OnLine Supersocke, a wonderful German sock yarn spun from 75%Superwash wool and 25% nylon. The self patterning yarn keeps the knitting fun, as I watch the stripes and patterns spring alive from simple stockinette and ribbing. Next week, look for my thoughts on sockitecture and some advice for those wanting to jump on the sock knitting bandwagon for the first time.