For someone who spends a great deal of time trying to keep things together, it’s odd to find myself trying to unravel something. In this case, a sweater.
I found this woman who unravels sweaters from thrift stores and re-spins the yarn, often with other colors, into lovely new skeins. Fabulous. I’ve seen so many ugly sweaters knit with nice yarn. It just never occurred to me. Wool sweaters can be shrunk into felt, pillow covers, wristlets, objet d’art. But think of all those hideous Christmas sweaters, presently lining the racks of Goodwill. Did someone, I wonder, finally tell those women, “Don’t. . . just DON’T.” Or did some husband secretly snag it from his wife’s closet, sneak it off to a thrift store, screaming, “Take it! I can’t bear to look at her in this one more holiday!”
Now that WOULD be an undertaking: de-clutter and unravel those poor, poor sweaters. It would be a mercy killing, then a rebirth! Ugly sweater turned Parisian scarf or cloche. It would be Extreme Makeover, except for sweaters.
So, I bought two non-Christmas pullovers. One I rather like–the tag is gone but I’d swear it’s an Eileen Fisher–in the softest moss green yarn. The other is this unsightly pink vest, an 80s cut–that horrid round in the middle, tight at your knees look. What were we thinking?–but the yarn was soft and blushed, worth saving.
I began w/the pink. I plucked and plucked–professionally stitched to outlive the sweater. Pulled apart each frame, but got inpatient. Very time consuming. So, I tried a short cut, scissors. I only meant to clip the bottom from some trim. I thought it would cut only one line. I was wrong. It looked like I fleeced a pink poodle. Sigh.
There is still the moss sweater. But having failed the first, am I willing to maim an Eileen Fisher sweater? Am I that brazen? Especially when it might even fit. I don’t know. Stay tuned. . .
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Meanwhile, I hooked two small red pocket purses w/petit purple buttons. Very quaint. The countdown to V-day is on. My showcase, Feb. 9th. 🙂 Now, off to coffee and a brisk walk on a very wintry day.
d. ♥
Snowflower Street 