If you, like me, have a “stash” of yarn, I suspect you have laying about single skeins left over from various projects. Any chance you’d like to give them to a good cause?

Two weekends ago I met Elena Anderson of Baah Boots at the Massachusetts Sheep and Woolcraft Fair, where there was a sign in her booth requesting yarn for a Ukrainian lady who has recently moved with her family to the US. She is the grandmother of the family, and when Elena met her, she was sitting in her bedroom in the dark with her head in her hands, depressed and lonely. Elena talked to her for a while and found out that among other things, she missed knitting and had left all of her yarn and needles behind when her family evacuated. With a little help from her friends, Elena was able to bring this grandmother needles and a few bags of yarn. The next time Elena saw her, she was full of smiles and happy as could be. She hugged Elena and thanked her for saving her life. It literally meant that much to her.

Grandmother (Lydia Alekseevna Kritskaya) is making, among other things, knitted slippers, that Elena carries in her booth at wool shows, but Elena and her friends have emptied their stashes and are now looking for help to keep this lady going. She is happy to have all types of yarn, so I’m quite sure that anything you have sitting around would be welcome. Message me and I’ll give you the information on how to reach Elena.

We all know how much joy wool gives us. This is a small way to share and pass that joy along. Thank you.

As a little post script to this story, Elena will be making me a pair of the short boots on her website that are decorated with the white locks, but it will be delayed for a couple of months while she recovers from hand surgery. Believe it or not, we share the identical hand malady — trigger fingers on the middle and ring fingers of our right hands that after surgery developed Dupuytren’s Contracture. We got to moan and laugh together about how the pain is always there, but won’t deter us from working with the wool. Small world!

When I sent Elena a note letting her know that a box of yarn was on the way, she sent back these photos:

On the needles

The other thing on the needless is the endless sock for the Yarn Journal. I have written the pattern and it’s out for a test knit, but I need the second sock to send the pair to the photographer as soon as possible. I have till the end of June, but given the speed (or lack thereof) of my knitting, it’s going to be a close call.

As soon as the socks and cap are done, I have a date with a sweater cast on. Since I finished the Wednesday knitting group sweater, I’m excited to try another yoke pattern. I’ve been looking at the multiple (many hundreds of) patterns on Ravelry and other online sources and have come up with elements from three different ones that I like (why can’t I just knit a pattern without having to completely change it?). Now to craft a mash-up that will work with what I have in my stash. I have some wonderful Malabrigo in a deep red, and a couple of possible variegated skeins in the purple range that would make a good (but subtle) contrast. The red is so strong that I don’t want to choose a pattern where the yoke is too “in your face.” Decisions, decisions.

Meanwhile…..

We continue to try to avoid most of the news (I’m really worn out from all the speculation as to what will happen to our former president), and once again have returned to early spring weather (cold) for a week or so. Good weather to be inside knitting. So keep calm and craft on. Until the next time……