Thursday, June 26, 2008

The Sorry Tale of SABLE


A friend of mine from our knitting group died this week quite suddenly which obviously upset us all but it did much more than that. This loss has made us all start to really think about our stashes and how SABLE (Stash Aquisition Beyond Life Expectancy) comes into the picture.
You see our friend 'L' left behind her a house full of wool. Now I know lots of us say we've a house full of wool but with 'L' I really mean it. Now I'm not directly involved with helping to clear this stash our but my close friend is and I can see how hard a job she's faced with. How best to dispose of bag upon bag of knitting needles; hank upon hank of cross-stitch threads (we're talking huge full carrier bags worth) before you even get round to the yarn itself which seems to have virtually filled rooms.
All in all it's left me feeling sad for the loss of a friend and the realisation that we barely knew her in some ways - we only ever saw her knit with acrylic yarns and yet her house was full of lovely yarns such as Rowan, Yaeger and Debbie Bliss which will probably have been there for years untouched. It's so sad to think of her sat all alone surrounded by all that wool. We will never know what drove her to gather all this wool together but I'm sure we've all been left with the huge lesson of knitting what we've got.


My stash seems to have changed over night from a growing thing to something to be used and enjoyed but with the emphasis on Used. The thought of buying new yarn is strangely unappealing as I know I've certainly enough yarn for a dozen or so socks (not including stash busting left over socks!), probably a dozen jumpers or cardigans in varying weights and half a dozen shawls. Surely that will be enough to keep me busy for the foreseeable future? And of course I'm spinning new yarns as well so the stash does grow...

So I ask you - How do we know when we've reached SABLE or at least when to stop feeding the stash? For me I think I'm there and have no intentions of adding to the pile. Now I'm sure I will fall of the wagon at times, don't we all!! But I'm certainly going to make a definate effort to knit what I've got and try to ignore the siren call of unpurchased yarns.


And on a lighter note I will leave you with the first of the great stashbusting projects - a stashbusting memorial flower garden for 'L' which we will keep in 'Made' in Wallasey, where the New Brighton Knitters meet so that 'L' will always be there with us for our knitting evenings. And quite probably some of her stash will also make it into the garden as well.

I will post again soon about our lovely holiday and try and remember to take photos of the flowers (which are really fun to knit!) but I'm not really feeling up to jollyness right now. The photos in this post were taken in 'The National Botanic Gardens of Wales' which are lovely and well worth a visit and will be the only holiday photos for now.

11 comments:

Sarah said...

So sorry to hear the sad news, your memorial flower garden sounds like a lovely idea

I guess what feels right in terms of stash is different for us all and varies from time to time through life. It's a pretty nice collection to make though even if it doesn't all get knit :o)

cyndy said...

oh, i am sorry to hear about the loss of your friend...

it is difficult to clear out a house, and go thru the possessions one leaves behind...and find new places for these thing to go...someone to inherit it....

maybe a charity or a guild could benefit?

I have inherited stash, several times. The worst part is that some of it (that has come from a loved one) has become a permanent part of my stash...a small connection and reminder of the person.

I have a wip still on the needles, something that was left behind...and I've never been able to pick it up and finish it for her.....

Linda said...

I am so sorry to hear of the sad news you have had.
It must be very hard to find homes for such a large stash, I hope it will be enjoyed. Its made me re-assess my stash.

Anonymous said...

Maybe she felt like she should practice with acrylic until she was "worthy" to use the good stuff. It makes me sad, especially since I enthusiastically spoil good wools and cottons regularly with my amateur efforts.

Jominx said...

Kath, I am so sorry to hear about "L", I may have only known her for 4 months but she really had a place in my heart, her wit and sense of humour will not be forgotten.

I will look forward to contributing to the memorial, a special lady deserves special memories xxx

Hellbelle said...

Sorry to hear about your friend. Hopefully her yarn will be put to good use some time soon :)

KnitYoga said...

I'm really saddened to hear about your knitting friend. I'm going to make shre that DH or whoever might survive me knows exactly what I want doing with all of my crafting and knitting stuff. It makes me feel very happy thinking that, when I'm gone, those friends of mine who are knitters and crafters will have a gift from me that they can really appreciate and perhaps have happy memories of me whilst they knit the yarn I've gifted.

Artis-Anne said...

It really brings home how much we need to re-evalute certain things in our life.
Besides I think I know who will ebd up with mine but does she have the room LOL

Anonymous said...

oh, sorry you've had a sad time. I hope you had a great holiday.

Anonymous said...

That was such a lovely post Kath, so sensitive, appreciative and thought provoking. Thank you.

Anonymous said...

Such a lovely post, and made me think about some of the yarns that I am "saving"