Crochet among the Travels

ScannedImageThe end of July and the beginning of August was a time of travel for me. I spent time in San Diego at the Knit & Crochet Show, an annual conference for TKGA (The Knitingt Guild Association) and CGOA (Crochet Guild of America). This annual conference is a time of visiting with old friends and making new ones, a time for learning, a time for inspiration, and a time for furthering the passion for fiber arts.

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Vashti and I on our coastal California road trip, here we are at Morro Bay

I always enjoy attendance at this show, well it seems a little like going home since it was at one of these annual conferences that I began my career as a crochet designer. There are so many different opportunities and experiences that occur, that I am always finding myself not wanting it to end, and then looking forward to the next one (July 2016 in Charleston, SC). This year I helped my friend, Vashti Braha, with her first ever show floor booth selling her new yarn line, Designing Vashti Lotus. It was a fun experience and aided in seeing the show from a completely different perspective.

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The Ball & Skein & More shop in Cambria, CA

Following the show, Vashti and I took a quick road trip up the California coast, where we found a fun little yarn store in Cambria, CA, the Ball & Skein & More. It was warm and friendly, I loved how well organized it was, with portable, well labeled bins of yarn, that did not leave you feeling overwhelmed or mislead. It kept everything feeling bright and fresh. The shelves were even mobile as well, so the store could easily adjust its layout for workshops, or special functions. It was a great visit after an Asian fusion lunch and before the visit to the little French bakery just down the street; definitely a place to visit again.

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Anderson’s Alternatives In Mendocino, CA

After getting home, it was time to get on the road again with my family for a quick vacation. We drove further up the California coast to the quaint town of Mendocino, CA, just south of Fort Bragg. We love visiting this little town; my kids are even looking forward to our next visit. My son has been enjoying the skills of woodworking, so we visited a local art gallery that was featuring local woodworking artists, where my son was greatly inspired by what he could create in woods. Inspired enough that we stopped by another artisan shop Anderson’s Alternatives, where the owner was discussing properties of different types of wood and what he has created with them. So as a souvenir of our vacation my son decided that he wanted to bring home small slabs to create with.

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Mendocino Yarn Shop in Mendocino, CA

My daughter, in her learning to knit adventure, was enthralled with the ever charming Mendocino Yarn Shop. I love this store. They are so friendly, and have a very nice assortment of yarn, as well as the knowledge to educate and answer any question a patron might have. There is a nice seating area that always is clamoring with various enthusiasts, that of course after my daughter found her “yarn souvenir” was exactly where she wanted to be. Of course she talked me into some new needles and some fancy yarn, I guess I might be a bit of a sucker in this location, as I understand the obsession all too well. Anytime I am in the area, I have to visit this little store….okay, anytime I am in the area of a yarn store I at least have to take a look and possibly sample what they have to offer, it is only polite after all.

Learning the Hank (part 2)

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From Hank to Skein with Blue Heron Yarn

ScannedImage(Continued from April 19, 2013 post)…. So I finally understood the concept of a “hank” of yarn, it was intimidating me anymore, so I would simply open it up and roll it into a ball. Needless to say I had nothing but a tangled mess. After freeing the large loop of yarn so that I could unravel it from its loop, I learned that it might want to hold on to its neighboring thread and pull it ever so slightly with it, moving the neighboring thread from where it sat and growing into a mess. It took me hours, and even then I needed to cut places and work out knots that I had made, it was a head ache.  But this time I was not discouraged. I would find a process.

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Let the loops hang smooth, note the yarn that ties to loop together, keeping the yarn in place

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Usually you can fond the end of the yarn tied to a securing yarn, that holds the loops in place

After playing with some hanks I learned that before I even attempt “freeing” the yarn from its loop, I need to make sure the loop in smooth, not twisted, that it hangs nicely, this will definitely help. Then I need to place it somewhere that will keep it taunt, maybe over the back of a dining room chair, but I found that I use my knees (not very lady like but effective for me), I have learned that some people use a swift…it reminds my somewhat of an umbrella, but without the fabric. This expands to the size of the loop and will spin as you pull the yarn). Then I can make it into a ball, if I want to pull it from the center I can wrap the yarn around an empty toilet paper tube (open finishing wrapping it up, I can pull out the tube and use the middle yarn, as pulling from  the center means that the yarn will not be rolling around that floor as I use), or there is a little tool called a ball winder that you place your yarn end in and crank its little handle and it spins it onto a tube, to make a pull from the center skein.

So why is yarn placed in hanks? Is it just to give you a little more of a work out, or to look fancy? Actually it does have a reason; it places less stress on the yarn. By being in that “loop” it helps the yarn to relax, where putting it into a skein or ball, the yarn in the center is under more pressure than the yarn on the outer edges. This may be a subtle thing, but it can make a difference in some processes and designs, especially if the fiber has been sitting in this more pressured state of a long while. If you think about it you have seen this with a basic skein of yarn, when you pull out the beginning end, it is often bent of twisted, where by the end of the skein it is smooth. So if you want to use a hank of yarn, only wind it into a ball when you feel you are ready to use it. It will help the yarn stay consistent.

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Notice the hank lets you view the length of the color change, whereas the skein it is less obvious

One of the benefits I have found with a hank, it a purely visible one, I can open a hank to a loop, and see how long the color changes are for a variegated yarn. This is something that I have difficulty seeing in a skein.

I have found that I am not alone in my understanding of this “yarn hank”, so I hope my experience will help you take the step to attempt a yarn you may not have used because of the way it is presented. (And I have since learned, that most of these Local Yarn Stores, will in fact wind the hank into a skein for you at purchase, you just have to ask). Take the plunge and explore the world of fiber!

Learning the Hank (part 1)

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Hanks of Blue Heron Yarn

ScannedImageOne of the more challenging aspects of my personality is not really wanting to admit that I don’t know something, especially when everyone around me thinks it is common knowledge…This probably caused me not to grow in my crochet abilities as early as I could have, but everything happens in their own time for a reason. So what is this that held me back? Understanding a hank of yarn.

I grew up with all of the big name yarns, I can probably identify most blind folded, and just by feel. These are the yarns that are most readily available for me to buy in larger stores, with a nice skein that has a “pull the yarn from the center” string. They are easy to use, come in a wide arrange of colors, and there are many projects to tackle with them.

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Hanks of Lisa Souza Knitwear and Dyeworks Yarn

I had received a gift certificate to a Local Yarn Store (a.k.a. LYS), and went to check it out. There were rows and shelves of yarn, but none of it looked familiar. There were no pretty little ends to pull from a center, most of these were twisted up and I couldn’t even see an end. People in the store were talking about how nice is or that fiber was, and I began to feel a little uncomfortable. People were purchasing these little twisted “hanks” and were talking about the projects they had in mind for them. I did not have the inclination to ask “how do you use that”, since I didn’t want to appear ignorant. So I found a little ball that looked somewhat familiar, though smaller then I was use to , but it appeared to have a pull from the center once I got the band off it (since the band was run through the center and kind of attached like a hand cuff to the round). I purchased my little ball feeling like a complete novice. I thought about those hanks when I got home, but for the life of me could not figure out how they were to be used.

The little ball I got was nice, and introduced me to new fiber types, but it wasn’t until I took my first spinning lesson that I got a firm understanding of the hank, and the light bulb when off in my head. Basically the hank is a twisted loop if yarn, like I saw in old movies where little Jimmy was having a circle of yarn held between his arms as grandma as knitting. These hanks just have to be opened up, find and end and roll into a ball! Then I could use it fine. Damn my pride for standing in the way for so long… or was it that easy….(to be continued…..the saga continues on the next post)