Tricks We Play on Ourselves

These three cones are part of the inheritance I received a few years ago.  Lynn had an eye for a bargain and would routinely buy yarns on deep discount, not necessarily with any project in mind, just because it was 'cheap' and too good a deal to pass on.

When I sorted through her literally rooms full of yarn, I kept pretty much all the linen.  Much of it simply wasn't any longer available and I knew I could use all those singles linen yarns as weft in tea towels.

Since bringing the 600 or so pounds of yarn home (not all of it linen, there is also cotton slub, some of it destined for this towel series, some very fine worsted wool, which will be used to ply my handspun) I have made dozens and dozens of towels from Lynn's linen.  Fine yarn goes a very long way!

This yarn was left until 'last' because it isn't the best quality.  It is primarily tow linen with chaff left in it, but also fluffy bits of what I think are likely cotton.  But there was no information on fibre content with this yarn.  And now I'm determined to use it up so I'm using it 'first' before I can use the 'nicer' yarn in my stash.

The down side of using it is that it is dusting off copious amounts of fibre - something I knew would happen.  It's textured, so selvedges are pretty ratty, but textured yarns will do that.

The up side is that it is getting used up fairly quickly.  I've woven four towels and it looks like the first cone will be enough weft to weave six.  With three cones, I should come pretty close to using most of this yarn up on the two beige (predominantly) warps I've wound with this yarn in mind.  Once this yarn is done I have one large cone of a nicer linen/cotton blend.  And then Lynn's linen will be all used up.

But right now I'm feeling a wee bit like Pigpen from the Peanuts cartoon strip.  Only with fibre, instead of mud...