I love yarn. I really really do. I therefore buy a lot of it. Sometimes, I keep buying yarn over and over again for the same project because nothing I buy seems quite right. Often, I will buy yarn just because I like it with absolutely no idea what I’ll use it for. Lately, I’ve been trying to knit more items from my ever burgeoning stash because I generally still love most of the yarn that overflows the bins in my yarn room. Even so, I am still tempted into buying new yarn. I just engaged in some minor stash enhancement — right before I learned that I am not supposed to knit for a few weeks. That is very frustrating, let me tell you.
First, I’d like to thank everyone for their kind comments on my latest finished project and for their sympathy over my wrist woes. It was encouraging to hear that others have struggled through this and been able to return to knitting. I’m optimistic about my prognosis because although de Quervain’s can occur as the result of over use, mine was triggered by hauling heavy luggage up some broken escalators in New York. I just got my custom splints yesterday and I think they’re helping. They’re quite sculptural looking actually:
In the meantime, I have so many projects I want to work on: my Damask Kauni, my Pearl Buck Swing Jacket, Cross Lanes, a few shawls, and, of course, the projects involving my new yarn.
The first yarn I bought was some Nature’s Palette Fingering Weight for the Koigu Keepsake Shawl. I had seen that shawl knit up in just one color instead of the ten or twelve they recommend, and I much preferred how that looked. (Shhhh — don’t tell my sister about this purchase. She doesn’t know.) It’s in the colorway Spruce.
I love how this yarn shades from green to blue and back again.
I must be in a blue frame of mind because when I bought this lovely blue yarn in New York. It’s Koigu’s Kersti Merino Crepe, which is a really wonderful yarn to knit with. I’m thinking about doing a Mitered Cardigan like Susan’s out of it.
Sadly, thinking about it is all I’ll be able to do in the near term. On Thursday, however, I have something to look forward to: a trip to Minneapolis. Yes, the Rainey Sisters are about to be together again — so watch out!!
P.S. Susan and I love sharing how we fix mistakes (because we certainly make our share of them). Romi, one of our favorite readers (and owner of the Rosemary Go Round blog) has a fabulous tutorial on how to fix a big lace mistake in her April 7th blog. It includes wonderfully helpful photos. You can be duly impressed by clicking here and scrolling until your jaw drops.
Here’s hoping that your wrists and hands heal far faster than foretold.
I love how your new yarn coordinates with your furniture. Whenever it gets knit it will be lovely.
Comment by anmiryam — April 8, 2008 @ 3:04 pm
From Susan — Whadaya mean you bought new yarn? How did I miss that one? 😉
Comment by lv2knit — April 8, 2008 @ 3:10 pm
I hear wrist braces are the new black. 😉 Feel better soon!
Glad you liked my lace surgery. Thanks for mentioning me!
xo!
Comment by Romi — April 8, 2008 @ 3:47 pm
You have my empathy on your hand/wrist pain. I had tendonitis so severely in both elbows/forearms that I couldn’t even comb my hair. Several things helped me – acupuncture for pain; Active Release Technique therapy by an A.R.T. certified chiropractor; and, being diagnosed with hypothyroidism – believe it or not tendonitis/carpal tunnel are symptoms of thyroid disease. Consider finding an A.R.T. certified doctor in your area and go for a consult. It greatly helped me recover.
Comment by Kate/Massachusetts — April 8, 2008 @ 7:16 pm
So those braces? if they are made out of the same stuff I had when I cracked a bone in my wrist, and the tech tells you do not leave them in a hot car or in the sun? Trust them. I got to have some freedom from the brace after a while, left it in the hot car, and no more sculpture. Just kinda flat and limp. Hope you are better soon.
Comment by mary lou — April 8, 2008 @ 7:20 pm
who what where when on the couch?! the color scheme is great!
feel better soon!
Comment by Laura — April 8, 2008 @ 8:20 pm
The braces really do look like sculpture. Might want to have those bronzed when you no longer need them…or maybe not.
Here’s wishing you a speedy recovery.
Comment by kay — April 8, 2008 @ 8:25 pm
Hey you girls have wayyyyyy too much fun together! Sending you warm wishes on the speediest of healings 🙂
Question: when you purchase yarn without a project in mind… how do you know how much to buy?
Comment by Michelle — April 8, 2008 @ 8:49 pm
Hope your wrists heal soon. I can’t imagine being told not to knit even for a short while. When no longer needed, the wrist splints might make good models for fingerless mitts or mittens.
Have fun on your trip.
Lynn
Comment by Lynn — April 8, 2008 @ 11:04 pm
Hello, coming out of lurk to wish you a speedy recovery. A few years ago, I broke both wrists. Pure misery for 6 weeks. And I was told that knitting would be an impossibility with the casts on, which looked very much like yours. I managed to knit anyway after a while and I think I got away with it because it was a bone, and not a tender, delicate tendon. A word of warning: do not put your braces in the window as a work of art. I did when I got out of the blasted casts as a celebration…but from the street it looked suspiciously like something that is very socially unacceptable!
I am in awe over the beautiful knitting, and I love your blog! Been reading for a while, just stayed quiet. Have a great and fun time on your trip.
Comment by Meribeth — April 9, 2008 @ 6:59 am
Sally, Thanks so much for the link to Rosemary-go-round and the lace surgery. I know it will help me out a lot next time I knit a lace shawl. Are you going to Yarnover with Susan? If you are, I’ll see you there.
Comment by Michele with one "L" — April 9, 2008 @ 9:19 am
Sally- I think Susan found out. oops.
Comment by Lorraine — April 9, 2008 @ 10:17 am
I didn’t know that I needed a reason to purchase yarn.. Wow this is news to me.
Comment by cici — April 9, 2008 @ 5:37 pm
I have some lovely sculpture just like yours! Mine are in black. I felt rather awkward trying to do some relatively normal things while I wore them….especially when driving. They felt pretty much like stumps. Sleeping was a whole ‘nother issue. My husband slept in a fetal position, or on his stomach when I had to wear them to bed. ~:)
Comment by Pam — April 9, 2008 @ 7:31 pm
good luck with your wrist!
i messed mine up last year, and have been trying to be good (it isn’t easy).
Comment by vanessa — April 10, 2008 @ 9:55 pm
My, oh my! That’s a bushel and a peck of gorgeous you have laid out there. I have confidence you will return to knitting very shortly. Meanwhile, don’t tear up the town too much 🙂
Comment by Karen B. — April 15, 2008 @ 12:33 pm
I have only just encountered your blog and I am so very sorry to hear about your wrists!
My right wrist first turned into a burning swollen stabbing a week less than a year ago. I personally found De Quervains much harder to cope with than when I broke my arm because a broken bone has a predictable timeframe and once it’s better it’s better. As an architecture student and knitter I found not being able to draw or make things terribly upsetting. After being on hand rest for 6 weeks I hadn’t realised that I’d have to take it gently for quite a while after.Be prepared for it to take a long time before you can go back to the same kind of hand work load as before as your muscles have to build up their strength again once the tendon has recovered.
The hardest but most important thing is to not reinjure it. I sincerely hope yours is not as bad as mine. I did injure my wrist quite badly as I had an assignment due a couple of days after it first flared up and when i could no longer hold a pen I taped it to my fingers and kept going. Utter madness. Because of that I found myself unable to lift a glass without it springing back to life. Try not to be too stubborn. Be patient and the better you are now the faster and better your wrists will heal.
As for staying sane in the meantime planning future projects is marvelous and (for me) finding any other sort of creative dose for my head helped a great deal. Maybe tripod photo shoots/studies of some of your FOs? It’s funny but I started to find that ‘anatomical snuff pouch’/ groove between the two major tendons of an unswollen thumb a beautiful moment.
I expect your physio has given you all the advice you need but if you ever feel like venting feel free to email me.
They *will* get better. Good Luck and commiserations,
xx e
p.s. Ice is wonderful when you first notice it flaring up again
Comment by Erica — April 18, 2008 @ 12:35 am
I hope your wrists recover soon. I had De Quervain’s in my right wrist (I am right handed). Your trigger was far more glamorous than mine, which involved a large sack of potatoes… I had to have several operations but what really seemed to do the trick in the end was the splinting. If it’s any encouragement, I have made a full recovery with the help of excellent physiotherapy and occupational therapy and can knit just as before, and perhaps faster even.
Comment by P — May 7, 2008 @ 6:20 pm
I am new in the alpaca industry. Have you ever thought of using alpaca fleece? I am acquiring a range of colors in the alpacas. Next year (2009) I will have lots of fleece that I can have made into yarn. I will have cria (baby alpaca) fleece by the end of summer, it’s the softest. I would really like to find someone to knit my fleece instead of turning it over to the co-op. If you know of anyone, please let me know. Hope your wrists are doing better! Thank-you for your time-Justine
Comment by Justine Price — May 29, 2008 @ 10:26 am