it’s no one’s fault. it just happens. it starts a little bit here and there, and before you know it, the whole house is infested. you know what i mean. yarn creep.
the yarn which gathers on the surfaces of high-traffic areas in your home and seems to grow.
even in some not-so-high-traffic areas.
here’s a really common instance
coffee table yarn glut. this one occurs and re-occurs faster than you can say “i wonder what this would look like in XYZ yarn??” you are sitting in the living room knitting away on something—say, a scarf—and you’ve learned the pattern and are getting somewhat ready for a break (meaning, you are getting a eensy-weensy bit bored, even though you love it), so your thoughts wander to the treasures in your stash (far be it from your mind to wander towards doing the dishes).
you decide you will take five, go to your yarn closet, and just look at the yarn. once there you decide it wouldn’t hurt at all to stroke it a little. and winding it wouldn’t be a crime. that done, you head back to the living room totally satisfied, set the yarn cake on the coffee table and commence to knitting the scarf. the new yarn provides eye candy and something to dream on while your WIP heads toward the finish. it might sit there for a month, soon to be joined by another goodie or two.
it’s the heartbreak of yarn creep.
and here’s another one that anybody with stairs can appreciate
let’s face it the stairs are a magnet for junkpiles. ok, maybe not yours, but mine are.
true, they are quite temporary; i put stuff there that needs to go upstairs (often stuff that just came off the coffee table). when i head up next, i grab it on the way, and deposit it in my workroom. the fact that this happens at least four or five times per day will tell you a lot about the trafficking of yarn around my house.
once in a while, i leave something on the stairs until i’ve written a thank you note to the person who sent it, but never overnight; i have coordination problems on the stairs as it is, i don’t need yarn there to trip me up.
here’s another common spot for yarn creep to appear
tv room. my end of the sofa. i always intend to get more knitting done there than i actually do.
now here’s a spot that in some homes would be sacrosanct, and at the other end of the spectrum, there are people like me, for whom the dining room is a flex space.
it’s a school room, it’s a dining area, it’s my packing and shipping station, and the high-traffic route between the office and the rest of the house passes right through this room (which is conveniently located just off the stairhall).
sometimes i drop some yarn on the table when i am on my way to and fro, or while i am unpacking boxes. and once in a while it sits there for a few minutes while i answer the phone, get distracted, and forget all about it.
it’s never long though, before i see it again and move it to the stairs (or the coffee table).
ok, now here’s where yarn creep becomes somewhat dangerous. i am on my way from the office, see the yarn on the table, pick it up to move it to the stairs, and smell the coffee boiling away on the stove (because the kitchen is off the path through the so-called “dining room”)
i set the yarn on top of the pile of old mail that sits just inside the kitchen doorway on the counter, turn off the stove, get a drink of water and head back through the dining room toward the stairs, empty-handed. while i’m there i notice that the mail has come and it looks like there is a package of—guess what??—yarn.
i stop. where was i going? i can’t remember, but “upstairs” seems right so if i go up maybe i’ll be reminded. as soon as i’m om the upper landing i remember. i had yarn at the bottom of the steps to come up. i look down and yep, it’s still there. but there was something else . . . i had yarn in my hand, didn’t i?
oh well, while i’m up here i might as well brush my teeth. and in the i-kid-you-not category
this isn’t a joke, nor is it a posed photo. this is a common occurrence in our home. see, the bathroom is right on the route between my workroom and the TV room. and that stand is right there, so handy! but i’m often in another world while using this room and forget to take up the things i set down when i move on.
that yarn really belongs on the arm of the sofa; i’ll need it later to start my second sock.
cuz, yeah . . .the first one is off the needles.
i love it, and it fits like a glove (except it’s probably not for me; it looks like a nice gift sock).
helen is already test knitting it (and hopefully having fun!).
yesterday i spent the better part of the day in cleveland with kim from class, exploring the west side city market. i had never been before but i was really glad to finally take the trip. it was a blast . . i brought my camera, but i didn’t use it!
my arms filled up quickly with bags, the crowds were heavy, and it was rather dark inside, so photo ops were scarce. if it hadn’t been so cold an rainy, i would have dumped my stuff in the car and gone back for pictures, but instead, i now have a reason to go back (besides the incredible food shopping).
i bought fresh pasta (which we ate today with sautéed asparagus and black olives), homemade empanadas (we ate those last night), special chocolate desserts (also gone), and lots of salt.
i had run out of my little horde of special salt long ago and was jonesin’. we don’t have stuff like this in the markets in my town. the smoked black salt is new to me. i wish you could smell it, it’s incredible. i’m not sure what i’ll use it for yet but i’ll try not to use it in EVERYTHING at first . . . .
today i have returned to tackling the design of the new shawl and discovered that walking away from it to take a break for a few days did me a lot of good. i should have a cohesive design plan in the next few days.
meanwhile, i started this little fun thing
more on these two projects later in the week.
62 thoughts on “the house is infested”
Anne, that bathroom photo gave me a huge guffaw! Absolutely priceless. I’m so glad I’m not the only one with yarn cakes, skeins, etc. ALL OVER THE HOUSe, and especially at the top and bottom of the stairs awaiting transport either way. BTW, any thoughts on winding yarn then having it sit in cakes in your stash vs. in the skein? Some people claim it’s “not good for the yarn” to wind it and not use it shortly thereafter.
LOL! I was waiting for the one in the bathroom, and you didn’t disappoint. 🙂
Oy Anne. I’m gonna have to start wearing a bib or something when I view your site because I dang near lost it when I saw you’d finished the first of that blue waterfall sock. Then that pink party scarf…. you’re just taunting me.
BTW, your infestation appears guilty of being clean. No dog hair, no dust. It’s as classy as I’d expect. As in very.
Heh, if I could I’d have yarn everywhere like that, as it is it takes over my whole desk and bedroom. Little fingers keep me from leaving it elsewhere. They would LOVE to tangle it.
First off, love the finished sock!! Lovely!!
Second, I loved your yarn creep infestation!! Call me before you call the Orkin man if you feel the need to exterminate! LOL!!!
Your house looks like my house! There is not CURRENTLY any yarn on the stairs..
but the kitchen counter, check,
none on the arm of the sofa — because there’s a basket full on the floor next to it… and some in the chair.
on the desk, check
on the dresser? often, just not today
in the bathroom? believe me it happens!
It’s comforting, in a way, to know that the infestation is not isolated to my house.
And as for having fun with Sock de Mer (and is that the French or Spanish Mer? cause if it’s French, shouldn’t it be de la Mer?), I’m doin’ it! Alas, I have to pause to knit a bit on DH’s sock. He’s starting to ask where his socks are….luckily, his are about to be at “knit mindlessly around and around for 8 inches” so I’ll use them for the places where I need that, and yours for the places I can pay attention.
Obviously a cat-free home…me too.
I love the new sock it is beautiful but the thing in this post that I loved the most is the pink lace scarf at the bottom. I can’t wait to hear more about that.
Yeah, my dining room table isn’t for eating at either. Ok, well maybe the occasional meal but most of the time, it’s a catch-all table. If I had stairs, there’d be junk on it that needed to go up stairs too. 🙂
Yarn creep has started to get on hubby’s nerves lately. But boy does he like hand-knit socks. 😉
I love the new sock, its gorgeous!
Thanks for the yarn creeping spots tour! That was a lot of fun!
Have to laugh at this post. My DH has asked if I really think yarn is decor and does it have to be dusted ;-).
Love the 2 completed scarves and the new one on the needles.
Heh. I don’t really have yarn in the bathroom unless it’s fresh handspun soaking or drying, but having a yarn chest as my “coffee table” means that I can’t think of the last time when there wasn’t either yarn or carded wool on the coffee table…
My goodness. And I thought *my* yarn creep was bad! Thanks for making me feel better (I’m off to take this post to Rick so he can appreciate my restraint, lol). I’m loving those new socks – the cuff is just scrumdidliumptious. 🙂
I used to leave stuff on the steps all the time too. You are NOT alone Anne! And I do believe there is yarn in every room of this house. Wait. There’s no yarn in my bathroom… you got me there….
So what’s the blue/orange stuff on the couch going to be huhhuh? WhatsitgonnaBE?! 😀
Can’t wait for the sock pattern to be released. I am REALLY liking this one!
none on the bedside table? or just under the edge of the bed where you hand can fall over in the middle of the night and mindlessly fondly in your sleep? None in the fridge from when you went to get a drink of water? or accidentally tucked in your husbands drawer from when you removed it from the fridge to put it away but was distracted by the basket of laundry to put away? No skeins tucked in you robe? you obviously only are in the early stages of yarn creep…
HAHAH! How Funny! Not only the obvious, yarn everywhere you turn, but the thought processes going on getting you from point A to point B and beyond, sounds Very Familiar!
The dining table is where I wind my yarn cakes.
You are so right…there is yarn creep all over my house too…however I have yet to have yarn in the bathroom…but I know the perfect spot for it.
Now…I have to know…which yarn and project is that at the end…I must knit it in exactly that amazing yarn!
What a delightful post to end the weekend.
Hee hee. I like it. You make me feel like I am among my own kind.
Awesome! I’ve only ever had skeins of handspun over the shower head hang drying. You’ve taken yarn in the bathroom to a whole new level. Well done!
I was nodding along with your yarn creep, uh-huh, looks like my house, my table, my kitchen, my stairs, sofa,,until you go to the bathroom. Too funny! You are surely the Queen of Wandering Skeins. Fun post, thanks.
Whew…I’m not the only one! 🙂
Be still my beating heart… another scarf pattern coming soon! Love that pink yarn too.
Wow! I see so many similarities w. my household!! ‘d do the same w. yarn but I need to have my projects in one area – not that it’s the ideal area 🙁 That’s wonderful though, to have eye candy in the high traffic areas of your home.
Too funny! I can definitely relate to the yarn creep!
Oh blessed infliction!! I can relate! I can’t see my dining room table for yarn from one end to the other, piled high. I need a storage box for it, and I keep forgetting to buy one, or two, or three. Besides my yarn creep everywhere, I also have books that go along with it. Books are everywhere! What more could a woman want?!
Any horizontal surface will have yarn on it. And if it doesn’t have yarn, it will have a niddy noddy or needles or knitting books or patterns.
My house is infested, too! It hasn’t reached the bathroom yet, though.
I’m knitting as fast as I can but my infestation won’t go away. In fact more yarn seems to come into the house everyday.
Not only do balls of yarn creep out of my stash to “auxiliary” sites in my house, but books, magazines, and patterns also have a way of covering any available horizontal space. DH swears he will never see our ironing board again because it is covered with WIPs.
A) Yes, my house seems to be this way as well. The laundry room is insane – bits of fleece and yarn in color samples hanging everywhere. So we won’t talk about the actual YIU – yarn in use – strewn about.
B) Love those little scarves. Perfect for this time of year (possible snow here again tomorrow after a day of 80 degrees!)
C) Re: 2 posts ago…. there is a huge chasm between outright plagarism and inspiration. Or at least IMHO.
Wow…lots going on here today and it’s all good! I love the new little scarf and who knew about black salt?
Heehee you clearly do not live with CATS. I cannot have wool all over my house, if I did SOMEONE would be dragging it away under my bed to subdue it and feed it to her family.
Funny you should mention Yarn Creep. I was off last week and the surfaces were pretty empty and the projects were sedately in their containers (at the start of the week) but yesterday as I looked around there was yarn or fiber for spinning on just about every flat surface in the living room. Now how did that happen? lol
Funny but this morning before I read your post I was thinking about clearing up the yarn creep because we have company coming this week.
Sock is gorgeous!
LOL!! And the creep is always accompanied by “OK let’s move this to the front of the line – no, wait, THIS! – No, I meant that one there – no, wait…….” And then Malcolm finds me frozen in place (and with a Golden Retriever look on my face) an hour later.
Anne- I thought for a second there that you got pictures of my house- but then I didn’t see any cat hair.
What’s that gorgeous color in the last shot?
Hee hee, that is really funny! I have the same problem, but with children’s toys, lol! Can’t wait to see what you’ve got “cooking up”, but literally and figuratively!
As always, you have me sitting on the edge of my seat. Especially the cliff-hanger at the end. Gracious!
I don’t have a huge stash, but as a dyer, yarn creep is definitely a big problem in my home. Especially when dyeing up a wholesale order. There’ll be yarn in the bathroom, in the laundry room, the kitchen and the dining room. Or pretty much anywhere there’s enough space for it to dry.
My roommate seems to be used to it now, but he did tell me once that he was a bit disturbed by the randomly appearing yarn and fiber that would pop up all over the place.
Perhaps yarn clutter could be a new trend? I bet you could write a book about decorating your home with yarn in creative ways, and become Martha Stewart for knitters 😉
Oh, and I love that cake residing on the couch arm 😉
Thanks for my morning giggle! Now excuse me, I feel a need to go pet my stash… or plan something for dinner. Why do yarn and good food go so well together? Are we all just sensualists?
Yarn creep in my house too. I haven’t seen my couch in over a year. I’m convinced that yarn cakes are nothing more than well groomed tribbles (Star Trek reference) and breed just like ’em.
If that is what infests your house then I’m jealous! The dog and the cat won’t allow me to close the back door so the only thing I seem to be infested with are flies!
I’m so seriously coveting your tv room yarn, those colors are just so bright and pretty. And I’ve already been trying to justify purchasing more yarn to match the new little scarf you are starting.
Ah, the West Side City Market! I miss it! One can find the most interesting things there – fresh and delightful and quaint.
The blue sock is beautiful. You have some lovely yarn around your house – isn’t this an accessory to decorating?
My first thought was “Well! It must be nice to be a FANCY DESIGNER and have all those people sending you FREE YARN and that’s how your house can be so full of YARN that you got for FREE, not like the rest of us who have a yarn BUDGET nyah nyah nyah!”
And then I realized that if dyers and shop owners sent me free yarn then I would feel obligated to do something fancy with it to do their kind gift justice, and that would bring on the dreaded Craft Pressure.
Nothing kills productivity like Craft Pressure. It’s guaranteed to send me fleeing to the sofa with a book in hand.
Or, if the Craft Pressure gets really bad (e.g., November), I resort to emergency tactics. I take on FREELANCE WORK. (dun dun dun!)
So very funny! I thought the continued references to “yarn traffic” were v, v funny! Kind of like drug traffic, only warmer.
I LOVE it when a home is infested in that manner!! I can just imagine what the cupboards look like!!
K, I really need to know about the blue stuff at the bottom of the first picture (coffee table) – is that the same yarn that later ended up in the bathroom? Also, that incredible blue/gold stuff on the couch. What is it what is it?
Never mind your chairs, I’m stealing your whole house. When you’re not looking. Packing it up and hauling it off.
It took me so long to figure out that little trick with the stairs. I don’t Have to go up or down every single time one thing needs to change floors.
I have book creep more than yarn creep. Well, the projects creep a bit.
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