Tuesday, June 12, 2007

I had no idea.

Seriously. I really didn't know how much fun it would be to wind my own wool with my new wool winder. Positively addictive. In fact, after I wound my first one, I simply had to do another, and then another. I found myself frantically scrounging through my stash in search of any yarn that needed to be wound. My boys both wanted turns winding, which they did get - briefly. But soon enough, I was (gently) shoving them out of my way, insisting, "Mommy's turn! MOMMY'S TURN!!"

Nevertheless, the boys enjoyed the spectacle, even though they didn't get to play with my new toy very much. When I first opened up the swift, they called out "Umbrella!" which I thought was very brilliant of them. (For awhile I was trying to teach them to call umbrellas "umbershoots" but it didn't really take, I guess.) When I finished my first winding experience, I pulled the yarn off the bobbin and showed the boys my yarn cake. When they heard me call it that, they insisted I put a candle it. Of course I obliged. It was a festive afternoon.

My Old Man really did right with this gift. I am possibly a little difficult for him to buy presents for. I have very specific desires, and I make a detailed list (with URLs and Amazon wish lists and everything) for him. Which sort of takes the element of surprise away. But I never asked for a swift and winder because: 1) they are so expensive, 2) I thought I just didn't need more crap to store, and 3) I thought I could just keep making do with winding by hand. But once or maybe twice My Old Man heard me say, while I wound by hand, "I could do this a lot faster with a winder." It wasn't a hint, honestly. It was just me complaining while taking a whole hour to wind a single hank of yarn.

So right before my birthday, he snuck off to my (awesome) LYS and inquired about such a contraption. It ended up being more involved - and more expensive - than he had imagined, and at one point he started to just give up, saying he wasn't sure it was something I really wanted. But the (brilliant) LYS salesclerk asked him, "How much does your wife knit?" "Oh, she knits a LOT. It's like her thing. She even has a blog where she writes about her knitting and shows pictures of what she's made." The (fabulous) salesclerk (wisely) advised, "If she has a knitting blog than she definitely needs a swift and winder." So he bought it. When I opened that surprise, I think he got the single best gift reaction that I have ever given (and as you might have noticed from yesterday's post, I generally react very positively to good gifts!). It was a happy moment.

So anyway, the yarn in the picture above is for my Sockapalooza socks. It is my first-ever Etsy purchase. 100% Blue-Faced Leicester Superwash wool, hand-dyed by Collette. The color is Stellars Jay, inspired by a bird Collette sees a lot when her family camps in the mountains. Isn't it gorgeous? I thought this color would go great with jeans. I am still trying to decide on a pattern. My first pair of Monkeys only whet my appetite to make more of those, so I may well decide to go with that (I think that pattern would be a great match for this yarn). But I'm also spending time with Favorite Socks to see what else might inspire me. I suppose I ought to cast on sooner than later, given how long it is currently taking me to finish knitted objects. And now that I know how much fun it is to wind yarn, I just have one more thing competing for my attention....

12 comments:

Sunflowerfairy said...

What a great gift. The old man did good.

I think everyone who gets a new ball winder finds it addicting. It's fun, isn't it? Just be careful winding slippery yarn too quick. The ball came flying off one time while I was winding tencel. lol

unstable knitter said...

Remember when I got my winder and swift at Christmas, and I told you I spent hours and hours winding every hank and skein of yarn I could get my hands on?

See, I wasn't as crazy as you thought. ;)

Mandy said...

Yay for ball winder addiction! I think I've had mine out each day since I got it (it's been a week now). Way to go Old Man!

Unknown said...

Isn't yarn winding fun? As soon as I snip off even the shortest end from knitting, and especially if there's a longer piece hanging around, my younger son asks if he can wind it. Definitely falls into the "fun for all ages" category.

June said...

Good job, Old Man! I'm the same as you for gift buying. :) Nothing wrong with that.

Melinda said...

When I got mine my husband spent two days winding my stash. :) And just now my 4 yr old ds stayed up late to help wind two hanks up. Fun for children of all ages. . .

schrodinger said...

The old man did good!!! So impressive that he folowed through with it all. I know what it's like - I'm the same way, very specific tastes and wish-lists, so it's challenging for Mr B to find a 'surprise' for me.

lyca said...

woohoo! thanks for leaving the first ever comment on my first ever blog! and have fun with the winder!

Felicia said...

I've always wanted my own winder but could never justify the cost. Can't wait to see how your new yarn knits up. :)

Felicia
http://www.fluffyflowers.typepad.com/

Meredith said...

Isn't it fun? It makes me almost want to buy everything in hank form so that I can wind it up. :)

Unknown said...

Everything about this is wonderful!
Do you think he could e-mail my husband and encourage him to do the same?

Rachel said...

This was a fantastic post. First of all, I just love the image of you elbowing your children out of the way so you could dominate the winder. I also love that you have tried to teach them to call umbrellas "umbershoots," and I have made a note to attempt this with my own eventual offspring.

Finally, HUGE points to your Old Man for the birthday surprise. I predict you will not ever get tired of winding your yarn into wonderfully satisfying little cakes. The enjoyment hasn't worn off for me yet.