On to the Linen Closet

I've been sort of sliding on my stuff elimination resolution/goal. But today I tackled the linen closet (#16).

"Linen Closet" is sort of an honorary title. First off, nothing in it is actually made of linen. And secondly, "household linens" only occupy a small part of it.

The top shelf (half width) had a couple of hats: one a felt bowler and one Panama sun hat, some vintage hand knits, a "Christmas Sweater" with sequined Poinsettia. The Christmas sweater is now history. So, more reluctantly, is the Panama hat. It was a gift from a special person. But it flew off my head in the slightest breeze, so I never ended up wearing it.

Next shelf down held a jumble of sweaters and shawls. Mostly this one just needed straightening, but I did eliminate a couple lighter weight turtleneck sweaters and one wide scarf/shawl. I also found a wool pullover that I like and had completely forgotten - and in time to get some wear out of it yet this winter.

Third from the top: bed linens and socks (yes, I have too many socks to fit in my sock drawer. So?) Also spare soap, toothpaste, etc. I'm sending off two sets of sheets that fit a bed that used to be in this house. Also ditched a pair of knee high socks that had felted too much to fit. Also a pair of cotton socks that were too tight from the get-go.

Fourth shelf: towels and washcloths. Only one wrong color towel leaving, but I did tidy them up.

On the floor an assortment of cleaning supplies mutely but reproachfully reminds me that the best way to get rid of them is to actually use them. Um, yeah. Maybe tomorrow.

How far around?

So, the legwarmers are just straight tubes of 2 x 2 ribbing. What if you have a shapely leg with a neatly turned ankle, and there is a significant difference between your calf and ankle measurements?

Well, the first thing to remember is that 2 x 2 ribbing is very stretchy. My ankle measures 8" and my calf measures 14". The straight tube fits with room to spare.



I think these could fit up to a 17" calf without cutting off circulation (as long as you remember to wear the stretchier cast on end at the top). But your gauge may be tighter than mine (or, less likely, looser).

Here's what I recommend. Cast on the 48 stitches and work about 2-3 inches, then try it on (see last post). Ideally, it will fit your ankle snugly without being stretched much and your calf not so tightly that you can't slip a finger under it.

If it is allover too loose you could go down a needle size, or cast on four stitches less. If it is allover too tight you could go up a needle size or cast on four stitches more. And if you are intending these to be worn over a pair of pants, rather than next to the skin, you may want to start with more stitches in the first place. (Any multiple of four stitches will work. My choice of 48 was an educated guesstimate.)

But what if it fits like a dream at the ankle and is just too darn tight up top?

The easiest thing to do is to start with larger needles (one size larger is probably sufficient) and change to smaller ones about half way down. (This is an old sock knitter's trick for accomodating a wide calf.)

An only slightly trickier option is to start with more stitches at the top and decrease them on the way down. More on that later......

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While I have slowed a bit in the clearing out project, I have not given it up. Today was #15: Stuff from my grandmother's desk.

Note, this was not my grandmother's stuff, just things that had accumulated in the little drop leaf writing desk that was originally hers. It sits in a corner of our dining room and over the years I have been throwing things into it and very rarely taking any out.

A lot of sorting here. All this stuff plus a two inch stack of loose papers that is now headed for recycling were all jumbled up together. The writing pads are going upstairs to the real working desk. The rest is headed to the thrift store. I now have a beautifully empty drawer.

Nature abhors a vacuum. There is some nagging notion in the back of my mind that if you have a drawer you should put things in it. That is what a drawer is for. Nonetheless, I am going to resist. This particular drawer doesn't open and close easily. Things that go in are hard to get out. Better they shouldn't go in in the first place.

Sorting through the stuffed cubbyholes behind the drop leaf will have to wait for another day.

Not Rocket Science

or How to Knit Legwarmers

Use Worsted weight yarn and whatever size needles you usually use with worsted. Better yet, use needles one size smaller.

Cast on 48 stitches and join to work in the round.

Work in k2, p2 rib, changing colors as you fancy (or as the yarn supply dictates) until they are long enough.

Bind off loosely.

If you want to make these for a child, cast on 36 sts and proceed as above.

Edited to add: further discussion/elaboration here, here and here.








Not fancy, but functional. This one is about 3/4 done.











The Mix It Up socks are 100 per cent done. I was working on these at my regular Thurs night group last week and happened to mention that this was not self striping yarn. For some reason, this impressed two of the others beyond measure. I don't get it. One of them was working on lace, and the other has made a sweater with stripes. Maybe they were just being polite.



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Category #14 in the life destash project is "Things You Can Palm Off on Others".

Here are some nice pieces of cotton fabric, not big enough for actual garments, but would be good for cute crafty projects.






I do not sew worth beans, but I know some people who do. If any of these people happen to show up at Last Saturday Knitting, and happen to want any of this, I'll be hauling it along. Just sayin'.

Some benefits of the grand dispersal

My hands are in pretty good shape, considering that it's winter, from working on using up the 1/2 bottles of hand lotion.

I found a pair of nice warm mittens I had completely forgotten about.

Mr S was inspired to get a hanging organizer for the back of the coat closet door. I think it was really designed for shoes, but the pockets work equally well for hats, gloves, even collapsible umbrellas. (We saw this in action when visiting sister Annie P, and thought it was brilliant.) So the nice warm mittens are easily accessible, yet out of the way.

I can see sections of my bedroom floor that haven't been visible since the turn of the milleneum (also dust and cobwebs that have been there almost as long).

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Today I ventured into the basement and found



smocking books. When the dearest daughter was very little, I used to sew for her. I'm sure there are still a couple of smocked dresses in the attic (I haven't ventured that far in the clearing out process yet, but I'm sure they are there). I haven't needed these books in a long time, and probably never will. (If/when grandchildren arrive they will get hand knits). So why hold on to them? I just have a hard time letting go of a good reference book. I dunno, knowledge is power?

For now they will go into the "think about it stack". The think about it stack has been a useful tool in the divestment process. It sits where I nearly trip over it, so I have to notice it. And usually by the third time I look at/trip over something I had thought I might want to keep I say "naaah, let it go." I'm not numbering this bunch yet, though. I just might want to keep them.

Dispersals

Today I am letting go of (#12) some things I've kept out of a sense of obligation.

For the most part, these were gifts. I have a hard time feeling that I can dispose of a gift without in some way rejecting the giver. It's sort of magical thinking, I suppose. Certainly not rational, but there you go. I tend to feel rather guilty..... All the same, I'm letting go of a candle holder and a couple of books, a pin and some CD's, a dress. Call it guilty relief.
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On an unambiguously cheerful note, the little baby socks I did on a whim have found a destination. I'll be sending them as part of a package for the Ravelry KFO group's current service project. That just makes me feel good.

Hmmm, could be a slipper....

I did this



to test knit a heel. Wanted to make sure that the numbers I came up with on paper actually worked. After setting it down and glancing back at it, I realized that if I just kept knitting a while and then put a toe on it I would have a slipper. I want some slippers, but in heavier yarn. So what you see is probably as far as this particular piece will go. I'll tuck the idea away for later, though.

The yarn is Bernat "Sox", a 60/40 Acrylic/Nylon blend. And for what it is, it's not bad at all: Which is to say, Acrylic will never be Merino, but I've also felt wool blends that weren't appreciably softer, to my touch anyway. My feet (I can't think of a way to put this more delicately) sweat a lot. So for my own use I want sock yarn with some wool or cotton in it. Still, I could see using this yarn for kids' socks, or for a baby sweater.

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Today's disposal category is "Things that need to be washed first". (I'm sure St. Vinny's gets lots of donations that aren't clean, but hey, I'm trying to be virtuous here). This lot (#11 ) is just two aprons and a bathrobe. I would show you, but they are in the washing machine.

Moving Right Along

As you can see, there has been progress on the "Mix It Up" socks. They are looking rather rustic, but, I think, cheerful.

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The current elimination category is (#10) catalogs. There really aren't too many piled up around the house at the moment, because a lot of them go straight into the recycling while I'm still at the Post Office. That's kind of a cheat, though. It keeps some of the clutter out of the house, but doesn't do anything to eliminate the waste. So a couple of days ago I started calling companies to ask that they stop sending them. Then I thought I would try one of the online services to do this, and I went to CatalogChoice.org.

It was pretty easy to register. We'll see how well it works. A lot of the companies listed have not entered into an agreement with Catalog Choice, so I'm not sure if this will be effective or not. Have to give kudos to Patternworks for being one that has agreed. I like looking through their catalogs, but I know how to find them online, so it seems better to save the paper and the energy used to transport them.

The light bulb goes on

I-cord for little thumbs, why didn't I figure that out? It seems so obvious once it's pointed out. Anyway, thanks Linda for the illuminating comment.

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On the clearing out stuff front I've had a realization of a different sort: if a thing has been sitting in the same place long enough, it becomes functionally invisible. Alas, not actually invisible, I just stop noticing it amid the other clutter, or in some cases behind the other clutter. So today's disposal group (#9) is a mixed lot.

After I took the picture I also threw onto the pile a couple sets of old aluminum double points (too heavy & slippery for me), and a felted bag that was an experiment gone awry. It was one of those things I kept wanting to like, but never did. Also some leftover Christmas cards (about three years' worth).

I never seem to send exactly a box of cards. I'll go through 3/4 of a box, or a box and a half, but it never comes out even. So I save the few left over, thinking I will use them the next year. But by the next year, I can't remember exactly who got which cards the year before. The light bulb has gone on that it's kind of pointless to hold on to them.

Absolutely too cute

Molly Bee has made the teeniest mittens, and they are so cute. Scroll down past Ben, who is also cute, but definitely not teeny. I clicked on the mitten picture for a closer look, because I thought, "Maybe I can make some of those." And maybe I can, though at the moment I have a hard time imagining I could muster the dexterity to work those itty-bitty thumbs.

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On the "clearing things out" front, I have (#8) a stack of magazines ready to take to the free box at the library. They could just go into the recycling, but I'd like to think that at least one other person might get some use out of them first.

Of course, this is only a temporary measure, as the magazines keep coming into the house. This makes me think I need to reconsider our subscription list.

I've been spending a bit of time

(too much, probably) looking at Suffolk churches. Online of course, not in person. It all started when I did a Google image search for "angel roofs". (Those of you who are Dorothy Sayers fans will understand why.) The search led to a really exceptional website and now I stay up too late at night looking at pictures.


In the same search I came up with The Sock Tsarina's The Nine Tailor's Sock I will never knit this (too many things on my mental list already) but I'm delighted by the thematic and technical virtuosity and the fact that someone has based a sock pattern on one of my favorite books.

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Packed up and ready to go (#7)




Odds and ends of yarn destined for the High School art teacher, who has already told me she can put them to good use.

If you have been keeping track, you may notice that I am already probably close to eliminating 50 discreet items from my life. But there is still such a lot of stuff to be eliminated that I am aiming for 50 groups of items - though a "group" can be anything from two on up.

Disposal Categories

Tracy commented, "The clutter guy on Oprah says there's two types of clutter 1)Sentimental and 2)I might need it someday." And really, that about covers it. But I am finding subcategories.


Today's (# 6 on my list) has been "things half used up." More specifically, things half used, then pushed to the back of the closet/cupboard/drawer and forgotten. Some of these things only need to be pulled to the front and intentionally used (1/2 tin of Ghiradelli cocoa, 1/2 bottle of hand lotion, another 1/2 bottle of hand lotion). The others (2 bottles of half dried nail polish, 3 lipsticks in colors I won't wear again, seed packets several years past their germination date) The cosmetics are going in the trash. I will toss the seeds outside.

I also found a half used can a spray starch. I haven't quite decided what to do with that yet. I really need to find someone who actually irons things, with starch. That person doesn't live in this house....

I do not love a short row heel,

partly because I'm so comfortable with the rut I'm in. Working a classic "heel flap" heel is so familiar by now (and also tends to fit me so well), that I generally just launch into it, without considering other options. I don't have to think about it - whereas with a short row, I do. It's not that I don't understand how those other heels to work. It's just that I still have to pay attention to what I'm doing in a more intense way. (Of course, one could argue that this is exactly why I ought to keep working short-row heels until they, too, are second nature. One could argue many things. I may or may not pay attention.)

Part of the dislike, though, comes because I find those wraps so danged difficult to find when it comes time to lift 'em up and knit 'em together with the stitch they've been wrapping. It's an eyesight issue, especially in fine yarn, especially if it is dark or multicolored.

Sometimes, though, you need to stretch a little. Some designs just want a short row heel So I worked this

and by golly it wasn't half bad. I've decided that the most important trick in working a short row heel is to use worsted weight yarn. So much more enjoyable when you can see what you are doing

Of course, this makes for some pretty thick socks, but since this is a Christmas stocking, no problem.

You may ask why I am working on a Christmas stocking on the 30th of December. Lets just say it will be ready for next year, and leave it at that.

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On the "getting rid of fifty" front, I'm discovering some of my personal obstacles to shedding stuff. Perhaps this will be spiritual as well as physical endeavor, and exercise in self awareness while I clear out the house.

One of my obstacles is "That's a perfectly good _____ and I might use it some day."

Here (#4) are some perfectly good holiday decorations that I don't really ever have room to display because of all the other perfectly good holiday decorations we have.

Off they go. With a couple of perfectly good napkin rings thrown in for good measure. And a couple more tins I found in the back of a cupboard - they were perfectly good, too.

Quick update

We had a nice Christmas. Dearest Daughter arrived home about 5:00 on the 24th and we spent a quiet evening at home with a simple soup and sandwich supper, then a fire in the fireplace, conversation and opening family gifts. The next morning there were "Santa Gifts" and we watched the Geraldine Page version of Truman Capote's A Christmas Memory", then in the afternoon we went next door to the Brother-in-Law's for a large dinner, and family conviviality.

Yesterday we had a rather long drive to Illinois (heavy fog) to my brother's house for a visit and to pick up my Mom, who had spent Christmas there. It was good to see the niece and nephew who both seem to have grown 4 inches since last summer. Rain and snow on the trip back. It was good to finally tumble into bed a little past midnight.

Today I wrote my thank-you notes., because if I don't get them written before the gifts are put away (or eaten as the case may be) they tend not to get written at all. Since some of the gifts involved chocolate, this leaves a rather narrow window of opportunity.

I also started in on a sort of New Year's resolution. A little while ago I saw a passing reference on someone's blog (Marie's?) to getting rid of 50 things. This sounded like an excellent idea.

So far I have (1) gathered up one stack of clothes that have been unworn for at least two years.

These are now in a bag bound for St Vinnie's. I am counting this as one thing, because I have so much stuff to eliminate that this won't even scratch the surface.

Also bound for St. Vinnie's is (2) an assortment of tins.

They are cute, potentially useful, and collect dust like crazy (and I also have many more that I have not gotten rid of).

And (3) is a stack of books for trade-in at the Frugal Muse.

Not a very big stack, but I do clear off the bookshelves fairly regularly, because it's the only way I can find room for new acquisitions.