September 7, 2007
Ten Stages of a Knitter
1. “You know, I think it would be fun to learn how to knit a scarf to wear this winter. How hard can it be?”
2. “Isn’t my scarf great? I want to knit another.”
3. “Purling? Oh, no. I just do the regular knit stitch. I don’t want to try purling or anything complicated.”
4. Sigh. “I have 25 scarves and now I’m bored. How many scarves does one person need?”
4a. “I need to find another hobby.” Some people - the people-who-tried-knitting-briefly - choose to exit here.
or
4b. “Maybe I ought to learn to purl.” (The True Knitters continue on.)
5. “Socks? On those little toothpick needles? Are you kidding me? Absolutely not.”
6. “Socks! I love knitting socks. And aren’t they wonderful to wear? I need a bunch.”
7. “Stash? Oh, I just buy one project ahead, so that I know I’m going to use it. I don’t believe in the stash concept.”
8. “Stash! Everyone has stash. You never know what you’ll want to knit next. Of course I have a container full of stash.”
9. “I have more yarn than I can ever knit in a lifetime. Maybe I better stop finding more.”
10. “Yes, I have a lot of yarn and it’s always fun finding more. I’m a Yarn Collector and Knitter!” 
Sheri I’mtotallya#10howaboutyou?
Dawn said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:15 pm
I was going to say I’m getting close to a 10, but after thinking about it a minute, I am right there with you at 10. Definitely a yarn collector!
Anon. said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:18 pm
Yay 10s!!!!
Patricia said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:19 pm
How funny. I am so very nuch a 10. My friend Julie was talking to a common acquaintance the other day and I overheard her say ” yeah Patty has been building her stash and that is so bad for my checkbook” and then she laughed. This is because she is a nurse and is busy all day in the ER at the hospital, but I work in an office and am on the computer all day so when I see something new at your shop we both try it. I did try buying only for myself and she just complained about me not caring enough about her to pick her up the things I thought she would like… So goes friendship. In the meantime I shop for both of us and I am having fun and she is patiently schooling me on the fine art of socks. I am on my third pair! Thanks for your blogging efforts. you crack me up.
Casey said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:20 pm
I’m at 10 and will go further, if at all possible!
Karen said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:28 pm
Definately 10 - I’ve come to keeping stash in my desk drawers at the office - how bad is that?
Cheryl said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:32 pm
Oh I don’t even need to answer that browse my blog
Amy said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:32 pm
I’m definitely a 10! However, I do still have that little voice inside my head that is a 9 and it won’t go away completely… What is up with that?!
Have a fabulous weekend! : )
susan said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:36 pm
Totally a 10!! Always a new color or fiber to entice me! Now I need a new coffee table
with drawers to hide everything when someone comes over(the armoire and closets
are full).
Janice said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:47 pm
Is there an 11?? I might be there…..
Natalie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:56 pm
10 all the way!
Monica said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:57 pm
I am with Janice, I tink I am an 11 too. I start to get a little twitchy if I finish too many projects and no new yarn has entered the house to replace it.
Linda said,
September 7, 2007 @ 4:58 pm
you need to add #11.
I need more yarn - I’m running out of places to put it and I’m starting to hide it from my husband.
mouse said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:05 pm
I think #11 is ” I love yarn so much.. I think I’ll learn to spin so that I can make my own yarn and justify buying fiber”.. which leads to having wheels, spindles, and a fiber stash as well. I never liked knitting socks until I learned toe up and magic loop.. now I’m converted (and addicted) to sock knitting and sock yarns.
Mickie Taylor said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:05 pm
Yes I’m with you Janice. I was bad before I found the Loopy but now Oh. What can I say! Sheri loves to see us as bad as she is. But yarn collector sounds better then uncontrolable stash. Hugs
Adam said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:08 pm
Hmmm, definitely a #8. And it’s only been a year and 9 months for me. If I continue this habit the rest of my life, I’ll have 20,000 skeins of yarn when I die.
lyndsey-jane said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:10 pm
11-15 include lace knitting (and lace yarn stash)
15+ down spiral into spinning and fibre stash
melissaknits said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:14 pm
How about 11 - “I am a yarnaholic, a yarn enabler, utterly and joyfully enmeshed with my craft, have no plan of “overcoming” my compulsion which others around me seem to think is a “problem” and plan to acquire enough stash to force the building of a second oversized 2 car garage. But this time with shelves, floor to ceiling, and a bin system for sorting it all by weight and color.”
Jess said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:14 pm
#8, but it’s not just A container… more like two… and some sweaters in the back of the closet…
Michelle in SE AZ said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:17 pm
You summed up my last 19 years exactly! Step 1 lasted 2 whole years, but I finally managed to move on. Step 4b involved lengthy experimentation with sweaters and lace. I finally discovered socks a year and a half ago and with your cheerful assistance, I have achieved Step 10!
bellamoden said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:19 pm
I could claim I wished I was a 9, but who am I kidding? TEN!
And I’ve been knitting for um….23 months. Dude!
AJ said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:19 pm
Proud to be a 10!
Laurie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:21 pm
Being a proud Loopy Groupie who never misses a Sneak Up kind of gives it away, don’t you think?
Deb January I was probably more at a said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:23 pm
I’m an unabashed 10! It’s not just the yarn–it’s the patterns I clip and size or print and save, the magazines, the books….the needles…the fun accessories. And oh the yarn. Then of course there’s my fabric stash, my other pattern stash, my trim stash…I recently went through all of my stuff and it almost…almost made me feel a little guilty! I think of all the great Hawaii vacations I could have taken with the money I’ve spent–but then again, the joy of thinking about making all of these wonderful projects, running fingers through the luscious yarn, dreaming about potential finished projects….and it’s all worth it, right?!
Deb said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:24 pm
Okay, here’s a good lesson–look at whatyou’ve typed before you submit. I had originally planned to say…in january, I was probably only at a 7 or 8 despite years of knitting…things have ramped up this year–as the brain has obviously ramped down! Smile.
nichole said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:25 pm
I think I’m a #10 and a half! lol I just placed my order yesterday that should make me an official Loopy Groupie - woo hoo!
Hariamrit said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:27 pm
I am a 10 for sure. Once in awhile I think I have enough of a stash. Then I go to knit socks and never have what I feel like knitting. instead pf saying “cookies cookies” I yell “yarn Yarn YARN!”
Kathryn Sigman said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:27 pm
Hmmm does it count as stash if your best friend gives you closet space so your DH doesn’t complain? DOn’t you have to actually see it for it to count???
Pam said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:47 pm
11. If I buy one more skein of yarn, I won’t get alimony.
KnitSteph said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:48 pm
I’m about 7.5 I want to have more stash…but… I’m broke.
Alas poor college student.
Jenna said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:52 pm
Oh totally a 10. My stash has reached the size where I am now lying about its size to other household members and trying to get to the mail before anyone else in case more comes.
Lexy said,
September 7, 2007 @ 5:57 pm
I’ve just moved into #9 myself.
Julia said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:03 pm
I’m not really sure where I land on this. Let’s consider this. First, for simplicity’s sake, let’s only consider the sock yarn, since that is the bulk of the stash. I also have considerable (but not immense) lace yarn stash and a couple of sweaters worth of yarn about. But then we get into the realm of complicated mathematics. Let’s keep it basic - socks only.
In my stash, I have enough yarn for, approximately, 75 pairs of socks. That’s… a lot of sock. Right? Of course. No one can argue that they really need 75 pairs of socks. Centipedes don’t need 75 pairs of socks. However!
I do not knit socks for the socks. I mean, I like socks. Most people like socks, but I wear Birkenstocks everywhere. Even in the snow. I don’t wear them with socks, because that is silly. I also don’t wear handknit socks to work, because… let’s just not talk about what happens to the socks that go with me to work. It might scare the yarn. So, I personally only need socks for wearing at home, around the house, when my feet are cold.
Which means we have now established that the 75 pairs of socks are not for me. So, suddenly, the sheer volume of actual socks is irrelevant. I can knit 1000s of socks without fear of sock excess, because they are not going to be my socks. Which brings us back to the yarn.
I can knit, given my busy schedule, about three pairs of socks a month, provided I knit nothing else. (Ha! That’s funny.) That means I can knit 36 pairs of socks in a year. This also don’t count vacations where my knitting time increases rapidly. We’ll add another 4 to compensate and make it an even 40. 40 pairs of socks a year.
This means, even though I have enough yarn for 75 socks. A whopping 7500 ounces, an unbelievable 30,000 (ish) yards of yarn…. I don’t even have enough yarn to last me for the next two years. Which is not long at all.
Obviously, I must stockpile more, in case I find myself financially unable to buy yarn for an extended length of time. Think of it as disaster preparedness. I am not collecting yarn. I am preparing for the possibility of a yarn drought, so that in the event of famine, I am not bored.
*cough*Ialsomayjustlikeyarn*cough*
Wendy in Cambridge said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:07 pm
Oh, I’m so a 10. And if the list went higher, I’d be there!
Isobel said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:12 pm
Is there a 12 step program I can apply to, apparently I have a serious 10 stage problem?
Phyllis said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:19 pm
I’m a 10, and I don’t dare put it all on Ravelry. I really should destash. And every time I vow to go on a yarn diet, some new yarn comes along and ruins it. It’s a good thing yarn has no calories.
Robin said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:19 pm
I am probably only an 8.5 right now. It all fits into four containers. I think two of those containers have nothing or pretty much sock yarn. I love sock yarn Woo Hoo. But I am thinking about the wheel so I can learn to spin. LOL
Susan L said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:22 pm
I’m a definite 8, with some symptoms of 9 & 10! My non-sock stash is well under control, probably at a 7-level. But it’s my new sock habit that’s pushing me further up the scale, and at an ever-increasing rate! Gotta love that sock yarn!
freecia said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:28 pm
Does #11 possibly include “not only do I buy things that come off sheep, I have a ton of sheep themed stuff and I think my backyard could totally house an alpaca. Right? Yeah!!! Alpaca! Or I’ll just move to the countryside and get me some proper sheep!”
Dr. Jackie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:30 pm
Oh thank you, thank you! No one has ever before referred to me as a “Perfect 10″! Just like in the movie (remember “10″?), with strains of Ravel’s Bolero playing in the background! I knew my day would come when I would finally find out that I really am a 10!
I shall now go and braid my hair in tiny little rows…
Dr. Jackie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:33 pm
P.S. The sad (?) thing is that I passed #9 about 30 years ago! (Little did my grandmother know when she taught me to knit at age 4….)
kit said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:35 pm
yeah,buddy! I’m totally a ten and I can sympathize with every stage leading up to 10. I have you and Wendy to blame for my going-on-obscene yarn collection, especially sock yarn, although I have more mohair than ought to be legal and no idea what I want to do with it since scarves have gone by the wayside and I have single balls of various colors.
BalletMommy said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:42 pm
Oh Sheri, I’m most definitely a 10…and I got there in about 4-1/2 years. Probably quicker really, I only started knitting less than five years ago; started teaching knitting about 3 years ago and became a Loopy Groupie about a month ago. That in itself says I’m a 10! That, and maybe the yarn trailing me all around the house…the constant buying of yarn storage units (that means anything into which one can insert one or more skeins of yarn…), needles and stitch markers in every room and every purse…. And I LOVE IT!
Janet said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:43 pm
Based on your scale of 1-10, I’m about a 15. I passed 10 long, long ago! What I do find interesting is that all I want to knit anymore is socks. I left all my Alice Starmore fair isle projects in the dust. Unlike obsessive buying of other items like clothes or shoes, I never regret a single yarn purchase. I love it all!
Katie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:51 pm
I’m an 11. The point where your stash owns you.
debbie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:55 pm
this is sooo funny because i was just taking stash assessment (mentally of course!) and i am at #9, moving on to #10 as soon as i can hide most of my stash from my husband! the funny thing is that sock yarn is not supposed to count as stash, but i find i’m almost buying sock yarn exclusively, so my stash has become a sock yarn stash. it’s gotten to the point where i’m wondering who to will my sock yarn to, and have decided i must teach my daughters how to knit….maybe my son too - he wants to be a doctor, and knitting may be good therapy for his dexterity if he becomes a surgeon - wait, or is that cross stitching that’s good?
Leslie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:58 pm
I’m a 9 AND a 10. Does that make me a 19?? I have so much sock yarn that I doubt I’ll live long enough to use it ;). However, I have good intentions each and every time I buy another hank. I do believe the road to you-know-where is paved with those good intentions. I’m currently waitin’ on that there Wollmeise. I tell myself that’ll do it. It will be enough then. (cough cough)..until something else fabulous comes along. Ok…I admit it..I’m a yarn freak. lol!
Amelia Garripoli said,
September 7, 2007 @ 6:59 pm
Somewhere about 4a. I added on spinning, weaving, felting, nalbinding, & & & LOL so I’m a 10 in several areas now (grin!) eat your heart out Bo Derek!
Roberta said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:06 pm
I’m sad to say I’m only at 8, but that’s because enlarging the stash any further involves cleaning out a closet to store said stash, and right now, it just doesn’t seem worth it!
Bobbi said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:07 pm
My second project after a Harry Potter scarf was a pair of socks. Jump right in; yep, that’s me! And I didn’t knit another scarf for a few years.
Michelle said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:10 pm
Oh, you are just too funny!! Is that what all those lovely yarn fumes do?
What about when you take out your yarn and just hold and sniff and pet. And then when you take out all your fun accesories and play with them… And then when you take out your patterns and books and match it with your yarn….then you go to sleep and dream about knitting and yarn and shopping for yarn
Not sayin’ I do that… you know… I can only imagine what people do with their stash…
I don’t do *any* of that….
Kristi said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:16 pm
I am definitely a “10″ and the first sentence of #9.
Ronni said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:24 pm
I think I skipped a few steps. I think we both know I am totally a Yarn Collector. Actually, lately I’ve been trying to re-train myself to not buy everything I see that I love. Especially, now that I have enough sock yarn for probably at least 40 pairs. Which, at my current rate of sock completion, is 20 years of knitting. Only I’m not doing so well at that. I find I’m not believing myself when I say “There will be just as pretty a yarn next “Sneak Up” as a method of trying to stop myself from buying it all. Plus my yarn lust addled brain keeps saying “Besides, you’re gonna get faster at knitting socks soon so it isn’t even 20 years worth.”
Lois said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:31 pm
11. “Here, you need more yarn, too!” Otherwise known as The Enabler.
Adrienne said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:33 pm
I think I’m at about an 8, but the only things that are stopping me from moving up to a 9 or 10 (or more!) are a)my very tiny postdoctoral fellow salary, and b)lack of storage space in my 300 sq. ft. apartment. Someday I will have both a better-paying job and an ENTIRE HOUSE with actual CLOSETS in which to store yarn, and then the real fun will begin! =)
L-B said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:39 pm
Finally! I’m a 10 ! Shove over Bo Derek!
Emily said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:50 pm
I guess I’m in the minority at a number 8. But that’s only happened in the past 6 months or so.
I don’t think I could get away with being a 10 or a 15!
Jeannie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 7:56 pm
Hmm, I didn’t start with scarves. I jumped right in at around #4.5. Right now, I’m probably at around #8. I could probably knit all of it, if I stopped buying now. I do know that I’m in the “I own way too many hand knit socks” territory. But hey, everyone needs warm feet, right…right?
Cathy said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:09 pm
I’m way past 10 . .I’m in the “Will sell husband and son for yarn money. Refunds not granted”. . . where should that go??
Daisy Olsen said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:10 pm
Except that I pretty much started at step 4b this sounds just about right! Yay for being a 10.
Debi B said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:11 pm
I have gone beyond #10!!! I have enough yarn to last the rest of my life without buying more. It’s pretty sad when you start thinking you don’t have enough years left to knit all the yarn (and roving and fleece…) that is in your house! And I still want MORE!!!!! If only we didn’t have to sleep!!! I could REALLY use all those dreaming hours!!! When’s that next sneak up!!!
Sue J. said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:17 pm
Woohoo! #10 for sure! Bring it on! And the next sneak up is when? There is actually one or two square inches of my fiber room that is covered by my stash.
Liz said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:22 pm
I’m at 11: Yarn Enabler. As in: send BFF gift from Loopy. Encourage her obsession with Loopy. Pressure her (gently) into adding to already formidable stash before that color she is in love with sells out. Both laugh and sympathize when she says she went through every page at Loopy, put every yarn she wanted in her cart and it added up to over $1300, but she managed to restrain herself to *actually* buying one skein and 2 patterns. Complain to each other that we need better jobs so we can have both more money and more knitting time. Discuss why sock yarns don’t count as stash but lace weight does. Sigh with satisfaction that I have pimped successfully. Know that she will call me tomorrow with results of visit to LYS and make me so envious that I will be enabled right back and wonder how I can get to my own LYS even though there is a PARADE down my street and I won’t be able to get anywhere in the neighborhood.
Melissa said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:25 pm
I’m an 8, but would willingly become an 11.
sb said,
September 7, 2007 @ 8:39 pm
I’m beyond 8, on my way to 9. I just bought a dresser to house the yarn stash (how cute is that?), and itdoesn’tallfit…
Gina said,
September 7, 2007 @ 9:19 pm
HA! You crack me up!!
Gina said,
September 7, 2007 @ 9:25 pm
I’ve gone from #1 to #10 in TWO years….that is scary…
Jennifer said,
September 7, 2007 @ 9:49 pm
Hee hee! I think I’m a 7.75 - I’m not ready to admit that I have a stash, but I do….
Trish said,
September 7, 2007 @ 9:51 pm
Shoot, I’ve hit 10 and I’ve only been knitting for a year. I started with a scarf, made one then decided to knit socks and away I went.
Nancy said,
September 7, 2007 @ 9:55 pm
I think I started knitting on “toothpicks” cause I would knt mostly baby things in the beginning. I loved the little needles and lace, even than. I have only been doing socks for about 16 or 17 months and am doomed to never recover from the infection. Not that the symptoms are unbearable mind you.
I figure that fiber collecting is the only way I will ever be a 10. I have said for years that when the fiber famine strikes, I will be ready. I will have more than enough to carry myself and several friends thru.
Jocelyn said,
September 7, 2007 @ 10:11 pm
I’m between a 7 and an 8. With two young kids in school, I can’t stash as extensively as I want, but I knew I was crossing a line forever the day I bought an expensive skein of yarn that I knew I would never actually knit just because I couldn’t live without its luscious beautiousness. So, can I be a real-life 7.5 with very strong 11 leanings?
Sarah said,
September 7, 2007 @ 10:33 pm
8 here, I could easily be a 10… if I had a money tree
Laurie said,
September 7, 2007 @ 10:48 pm
Oh yeah, definitely a 10 here! My motto? She who dies with the most yarn WINS!
Doris said,
September 7, 2007 @ 10:54 pm
I am so far past 10…and living in the land of denial! The one happy thing about my College Guy going back to school is that while he is away I fill his closet and dresser with stash. This does create a bit of a challenge when he comes home for breaks, but I just put it in tote bags and pretend that it is out so that I can plan my next project. I am not sure exactly how many times this will work before someone (like my husband) figures it out. But until then…..
Marti Johnson said,
September 7, 2007 @ 11:15 pm
The trouble with being a 10 (like all the others!) is that when I was a full-time quilter (which I still do, but not quite at the pace I used to), I was also a 10 in that category! And I collected antique sewing machines, both handcranks and treadles, in order to sew my quilt tops, and I was pretty close to a ten there as well! The positive thing about all the tens is that I have two (count ‘em, two!) sewing rooms, one which holds all my quilt and dressmaking fabrics, and about seven of my various machines, and the other one that holds about half my yarns and the remaining machines …. except there is a machine in the living room, and one in the family room, and oh yes, two in the garage awaiting cleaning and refurbishment of their cabinets, and the remaining half of my yarn is in the second big cedar chest in the living room and most of my works in progress ….. so that’s also a down side to being a ten in so many activities. Heaven help me if I decide to take up spinning or weaving, both of which I’ve considered!
Katherine said,
September 7, 2007 @ 11:34 pm
I’m a 9 in yarn & cross-stitch, and an 8 in quilting. The last two have been abandoned in the last several years for the yarn. I’m not sure I’ll ever be a 10, because I really do feel overwhelmed by all the yarn I have. It’s in every room in my apartment, not counting the 6 huge tubs I have of it. I stopped buying tubs on the theory that if I didn’t have a place to put it, I wouldn’t buy so much of it. Clearly, that hasn’t worked.
I wouldn’t mind the “collector” thing so much, except I see where that’s gone in my family. When I was little, my family used to joke that if we had three of anything, we started a collection. Now my grandma has passed on, and my mom has grandma’s house and her own house. And she can’t throw anything away. She’s 78, and she has to hop over piles of things to get to the bathroom and the phone. The health department would shut her down in about 30 seconds if they knew. And all the collections (teacups, stamps, coins, birds, butterflies, pitchers, salt & pepper shakers, roosters, turtles, rabbits, lions, mice, owls, matchbooks, hotel sugars, and who-know-what-I’m forgetting ) are still intact. With all the Other Stuff piled around. I don’t want to live like that, and I’m trying to resist it, but the yarn is so beautiful.
amy said,
September 7, 2007 @ 11:49 pm
9.5, all the way. If/when the budget restraints lift, then sign me up for #10. Oh, and le’ts not mention my quilting habit!
I poked around the site a bit and was wondering if we can “borrow” the TLE buttons for our personal blogs? I know the whole “use your own bandwith” thing, but other than that? Didn’t want to take then ask, but would love to put a button instead of just text (if I can figure out how to do it!)
Michelle from Arizona said,
September 8, 2007 @ 12:05 am
Uh……yeah. :>)
Hattie said,
September 8, 2007 @ 12:16 am
Oh I’m way past ten, along with many others. I’ve moved into spinning and dyeing and all that good stuff. I hide everything I buy, including the boxes…lucky for me no one investigates where my stash lives so they’d never know…
Lori said,
September 8, 2007 @ 12:54 am
Ok, so you totally know me! I am every one of those!
Theresa in Italy said,
September 8, 2007 @ 2:11 am
I was stuck at 4b for longe than I’m going to admit, but now I’m definitely a 10 and edging towards 11 (thinking seriously about spinning, and not only crowding all the closets with yarn but crowding all the bookshelves with knitting books and patterns)!
Shari said,
September 8, 2007 @ 5:03 am
I am at a ten. I am also thinking of starting a mini stash in the car. Just a few skeins, patterns and needles so that when I get stopped in traffic I can admire everything and decide what I want to work on while waiting. And no, it isn’t because I have run out of places to put yarn in the house. Cause I’ll have plenty of room once I disassemble the exercise room and set it up as a craft room. ( not even mentioning how much yarn I’ll be able to buy when I sell the exercise equipment, look out Sheri!)
My husband thinks the fact that I am choosing yarn over an exercise room means I have a yarn problem but I completely disagree. It is very healthy to have a hobby that you enjoy. Right?
Michele in Maine said,
September 8, 2007 @ 7:22 am
Oh, yeah, totally busted, a ten all the way. This morning I was winding and sorting yarn to remind myself that I have enough because I’m going to a “Fiber College” later today just to pet wool (and alpacas and angora bunnies), but I am not, absolutely not, buying sock yarn. Must save $$ for next week’s sneak up! That’s my motivation not to spend elsewhere. Pretty soon it will be between buying groceries and yarn! That’s what you’ve turned me into, Sheri!
Jill said,
September 8, 2007 @ 7:53 am
It’s nice to know that I’ve followed the natural progression.
I think I knit cotton dishclothes for 4 or 5 years. Only in garter stitch–who wants to learn how to purl, that looks hard!
And then one day it happened. I decided to make a scarf! My second scarf actually involved purl stitches. Every teacher in my son’s school received a scarf for Christmas that year. All different patterns and types of yarn. My experiment was starting to get out of control.
I began to think I could venture past a four pattern row repeat! I had always told myself that if you could memorize the stitch pattern, I could knit without really thinking. Who was I kidding. Following a detailed pattern is addicting. My brain loves the workout.
I knit everything with size 7 needles and up–fast progression=more knitting projects, right? Need more yarn, I’m making lots of projects.
Enter felting. Who knew you could hide so many mistakes. Knit faster.
And then this is the kicker! Enter a little website that is contagious. I’m blaming you Sheri and College guy. Has anyone ever noticed that so many websites are not user friendly? That’s my excuse, because the Loopy Ewe is a joy to surf! I can’t stay away. Enter a whole new kind of stash. AND new needles.
Right now everything I’m knitting is on a size 4 or less. Who knew that those itty bitty needles were actually fun. Progress is still made! Amazing. The projects I’m currently working on are lace and socks. Who knew that I would come this far.
We recently built a new house and went from 800 sq ft. to nearly 3,300 sq ft. BIG PROBLEM. Lots of new places for yarn. As long as I’m home before my husband and son–I can raid the mailbox, run inside, unpack the box, discard all evidence, throw new stash into old stash—and then when the coast is clear, pet the yarn and stroke it between my cheek and hand. At this stage, my husband doesn’t realize that stash actually changes and grows, he just rolls his eyes at the site of yarn–he never makes a comment unless he finds the box. However, my 11 year old son–he is a little more observant. I must begin to find ways to trick him as well. Men talk you know.
I am so a 10+! I also have a stash of knitting books and needles. I lay awake at night wondering if I should SURF in case there is a sneak-up I’m going to miss. There are a lot of YARN HOGS out there ya’know. I WANT MY FAIR SHARE! Back off ladies, the yarn is mine.
If you couldn’t tell–a few years ago, I was diagnosed with obsessive-compulsive behaviors! I take medication daily. Thank goodness the meds don’t reach the YARN brain. I don’t think I could survive that.
BoyI’mintrouble! Justdon’ttellmyhusband!
bungalowmum said,
September 8, 2007 @ 7:57 am
Personally, I am an 8. I would probably have more of a personal stash if I didn’t have a yarn business. The fact of the matter is I have 60 - 90 lbs of transitory yarn “stash” that moves through my house on a 4 - 6 week basis….and we refer to the room that holds my tall shelves of yarn, huge boxes of yet to be dyed yarn, power skeiner and two swifts as the “Yarn Hole”. I also have two spinning wheels…..and of course a small fiber stash and a rather large dye stash.
So, I’m not sure if that qualifies me as being beyond 10 or not. I mean, when UPS shows up with a 19lbs box of yarn and I think “Hey, there’s my small order! Yay!” and you order yarn by the pound to try it out…..I think that maybe indicates 10-ishness?
Ruth Carapella said,
September 8, 2007 @ 8:40 am
I am not a 10. I am not a 10. I am not a 10. If I say it long enough, maybe my checkbook balance will increase. Who am I kidding!?
Of course I’m a 10. Why else would I be logging the computer and checking the bookmark for Wollmeise at the Loopy Ewe at 7:30 on a Saturday morning with a pair of almost finished Wendy’s Cabletini’s and a skein of the Knittery M-C that I just can’t stop touching sitting next to me. Yesteray I bought another under-the-bed storage box to hide my yarn from The Other One In The House Who Doesn’t Knit and Doesn’t Understand The Need For Stash. Optimistically, I got the second largest size, not the largest one. Ooopps. Didn’t all fit. I am not a 10. I am not a 10. I am not a 10.
Katherine said,
September 8, 2007 @ 8:42 am
I have exciting news! (Well, exciting for me, anyway.) This morning I woke up with an idea. Whoever said to sleep on things was right. I decided that if I actually have a collection, I might as well display the collection. (Almost obvious, huh?) I have a large bookshelf in the dining area that was free (how did that happen?), and I totally stocked it with sock yarn. Up to the top, like a yarn store. It’s beautiful. I have darks on one side, brights in the middle, lights on the end. I have a little piece of a yarn store in my home. I also found that fully half of one of my enormous storage bins was taken up with (get this) plastic bags. Some were from yarn stores. Most were zippered or snapped bags that I saved when I purchased sheets & blankets & things like that. I don’t actually like using them for yarn. I have a number of attractive totes that I use. But the plastic bags were Too Good to throw away. Not today! The yarn store bags are going back to the stores, and the zippered plastic bags are in (gasp!) the trash.
Before I had 6 tubs of yarn, and WIPs and more yarn spilling out over all the rooms looking frumpy and making me feel guilty. Now I have a gorgeous yarn shelf, some totes of WIPs, and, well, 6 tubs of yarn. A huge improvement, and it didn’t even take me very long!
shadkitty said,
September 8, 2007 @ 9:25 am
1-3 went more like this for me:
1. “OMG! I love that hat, must learn to knit”
2. “Okay, this pattern requires me to purl, let’s go.”
3. “You know, I have 50 hats and I never wear them, what else can I knit?”
I still hate scarves and knit them very rarely.
Katie said,
September 8, 2007 @ 10:22 am
I’m so an obssessive #10. Knitting has pretty much taken over my life since I successfully completed my first pair of socks.
Normally, I can resist new sock yarn to an extent. Like, this month, I am *supposed* to be on a yarn diet, ’cause it totally busted my budget last month. However….. I saw new sock yarn come in that matches colours of some of my favorite characters in shows I watch, so, of course, I’m obliged to buy it so I can knit…. Naruto socks!! LOL…. wow…. I’m pretty bad off. ^_^;
Sharon said,
September 8, 2007 @ 10:57 am
I’m another 7.5. I have yarn for 4 projects. And a wishlist of about a dozen in my head. Lord help me, I’m limiting my lattes. 4 lattes equals one pair of socks.
Latte? Sockyarn? Latte? Sockyarn?
Marsha said,
September 8, 2007 @ 1:21 pm
You know you’re a 10+ when you buy a yarn winder and a swift. As my husband said while watching me wind yarn’ “Oh, so it cost $100 to wind your yarn into a ball?” However, he did get into the mechanics of the swift…..
Karen in Toledo said,
September 8, 2007 @ 2:29 pm
I think I’m a 9.5… debating about not buying any more yarn… Awww, who am I kidding!? I am sooooo a 10!
Why would anyone stop buying yarn?? 
NewJerseyLaura said,
September 8, 2007 @ 4:09 pm
10 to the 10th power. I can’t even bring myself to get rid of bits of yarn from finished projects. Thank goodness for new yarn ball jars
Stacey said,
September 8, 2007 @ 5:06 pm
Is there an 11 option? Today I was trying to convince Hubby my stash helped insulate thehouse. I think I may be past the 10.
Meghann said,
September 8, 2007 @ 6:22 pm
Yeah….I’m most definitely a 10. I mean, come on, my husband collects all sorts of computer stuff, yarn at least keeps me warm!
Erin said,
September 8, 2007 @ 7:41 pm
I’m most definitely a #10! I’m finally realizing that along with being a knitter, I’m most definitely a collector, so collecting yarn is a logical progression!
Bronwyn said,
September 8, 2007 @ 7:58 pm
Hahah. I’m definitely on stage 10 by now.. It’s bad. You’re making it worse, I hope you know. HAhah.
Dorothy said,
September 8, 2007 @ 8:23 pm
Umm? I am not sure! I have knitted for about 40 years having been taught at age 6 by my mother and attending school in England. Yes they taught that to girls back then. I would bye yarn for a sweater and finish it…………..I do have yarn for a few summer sweaters…………..but then I discovered SOCK YARN. But this does not count as Stash. I however do have enough to make around a 150 pair and I have only collected this in the last year. I am constantly making socks and I complete about a pair a week, sometimes two. The ratio of sock completion to aquiring yarn some where got out of balance. I am seeing a therapist about this but I do not think this will work though as I am knitting her a pair of socks now.
Karen said,
September 8, 2007 @ 9:32 pm
I am in between 7 and 8, and have been knitting just under 2 years. So much to do, so little time. I have yarn for a few projects sitting here, multiple balls of dishcloth yarn, and a smallish container of sock yarn. I also have a few oddball skeins I’ve picked up for hats. I love making hats but don’t wear them much. Could definitely see myself becoming a 9 or 10, but am trying to avoid it. Buying the yarn for a project is half the fun of making it. But it’s hard. It’s all so beautiful. I want it all.
minnie said,
September 8, 2007 @ 9:51 pm
i’m half way between 9 & 10. depends on which part of my stash you’re talking about. my “good” yarn? is definitely a #10. my charity stash? the ack that is insulating my basement? definitely #9.
what a dilemma, eh?
moirae said,
September 9, 2007 @ 5:19 am
perfect ten,
there’s something about #6 that correlates with #10. going from a six to a ten takes 0 time at all. I’m not even sure #7 makes sense. Or maybe it ought to be #5. As in it’s easy not to believe in stash before you get to socks.
Angie said,
September 9, 2007 @ 9:28 am
I’m between a 7 and 8. I have a stash but I don’t like buying ahead in case I find a yarn that would be better suited to a project. I wouldn’t call myself a yarn collector. Now if you had a number for pattern collector, I would be off the charts!
Miss T said,
September 9, 2007 @ 10:45 am
Would any of us even be reading this if we weren’t 10s?
Susie said,
September 9, 2007 @ 12:42 pm
I admit nothing. I am a 0. I’ve never even smelled yarn. No interest at all. Whatever could you be thinking posting a list like this? Are there really people who :::gasp::: collect yarn?
Nope. Not me.
Beth said,
September 9, 2007 @ 2:20 pm
Between a 7 and an 8, but only because I bought a bunch of sock yarn for Christmas projects before realizing it wasn’t going to make sense to make socks for everyone I know! (duh.) I collect yarn with my eyes; enjoying it when I see it and looking forward to buying something wonderful when I’m ready to use it. Too practical to collect anything, really…..but I sure enjoy what I have, and look forward to having more time to use it all!!!
Kelly said,
September 9, 2007 @ 9:19 pm
The immortal line from “Spinal Tap” goes:
“This one goes to 11.”
Followed by a line from”Guys and Dolls”:
“…and I am told it is a worldwide sickness!”
Capi in the Arizona High Country said,
September 9, 2007 @ 10:00 pm
6. “Socks! I love knitting socks. And aren’t they wonderful to wear? I need a bunch.”
Now you realize that to love to knit socks you MUST have a ready and waiting supply of yarn at the ready….you know, just in case one wants to begin a pair of new socks in the middle of the night…never mind the 10 onesies that are just hanging around waiting for a mate…hmm so perhaps, just perhaps mind you, that might make me a 10…..let’s see…3 bookcases full of sock yarn and a 4th bookcase waiting to be put together. I just have to get someone over here to help me move the double bed out of this room so that I have ROOM for the next bookcase….sigh…yep, it’s an addition.
Martha DC said,
September 10, 2007 @ 8:39 am
Hello, my name is Martha and I am a yarn-a-holic. I have gone past the 10 steps and may be at a 15 step area.
Thanks you for all your help in allowing me to add to my stash.
Sheri, I love your blogs they are so entertaining and truthful.
Martha
Sara said,
September 10, 2007 @ 9:13 am
I’m a 10… I did tell my husband that if anything should happen to me before the kids reach college, I’m sure I’ve got enough in my stash to help pay for at least one year of tuition!
Elysbeth said,
September 10, 2007 @ 10:43 am
I spent the weekend at Kitchener with a bunch of 10s. It was interesting to see how people broke their “not buying unless I have a project in mind”, “not buying in this color”, “no more sock/sweater/shrug/novelty/ category yarn”. None of the ladies had ever knit with Smooshy. Can you imagine? There was oodles of it there and Fleece Artist too, but I decided to wait and buy mine from a certain sheep with red socks. ; )
Lou said,
September 10, 2007 @ 10:47 am
Needles down…I’m a 10+. I’m beyond holding it all in 8 large plastic bins. That said, so when is that next Sneak Up? ;o)
Toni Van B said,
September 10, 2007 @ 10:50 am
I still consider myself a beginning, albeit an adventurous beginner but I never really went overboard on the scarf thing. I think I’ve knitted maybe 3 or 4 scarves in total. If I’m going to do any flat knitting, I like something with a little more zip to it.
I’m a #10 but with shades of guilt. I haven’t quite embraced my #10-ness
Laura said,
September 10, 2007 @ 10:59 am
I always said I was a 10.
Anniebananie said,
September 10, 2007 @ 1:57 pm
I’m definitely a #10. I even convinced my sister to give me her old cedar chest to store my yarns in because I was afraid of moths. Oh, and there’s plenty of space in there for more yarn!!!!
Risa said,
September 10, 2007 @ 3:06 pm
I’m so totally a #10