:groan: THAT is a tortured title if I ever saw one!!
Hi, everyone! Am I the only person who thinks the yarn world has gone a little bit nuts? $400 for sweater yarn. $120 for hat yarn. $250 for shawl yarn.
Then, you still have to (get to?) knit it! Plus, I just heard about a knitting retreat that is $9500 for three days! Is everyone a billionaire but me??
Okay, Susan, settle down. Anyway, I just finished a cute little hat that I did not spend $120 to make. I spent around $40. Still a lot, but not in the billionaire range! It is the Farrell Hat from the latest issue of Making. The hat struck me right away, as it did my friend Kim. We decided to buy Peerie Yarn – the new Brooklyn Tweed offering – and divide the skeins. That is why it was cheaper!!
Reds sure photograph weird! It looks absolutely electric in the picture — much more subdued in real life. As I started this hat, I hated it. I thought it was the ugliest hat I had ever seen. But it has since grown on me. I love it. It has such a retro, Europe in the 40’s, crazy feel to it!! I see myself wearing this quite a bit. It is very “un-me,” but that is what I like about it.
The yarn was nice to work with and blocked beautifully. 🙂
PS to Pru: It IS a carnival! That is such a good word to describe it! And, yes, Sally and I are blatant and unapologetic enablers! “You knew that when you took us in.”
Yes to everything you said about costs! And, thanks for the Peerie report. So much whimsey in the hat.
Comment by Susan — June 7, 2018 @ 11:34 pm
I like it.
Comment by surly — June 8, 2018 @ 10:20 am
“Am I the only person who thinks the yarn world has gone a little bit nuts?”
No, I am in agreement with you on this. I can afford to splurge occasionally but I can’t justify those prices to myself.
Comment by Jo Anne — June 8, 2018 @ 11:42 am
I can’t even begin to imagine a knitting retreat for $9500, regardless of how long it might be! My Google-fu fails me – I can’t find anything about that. I do agree about price creep, though. It’s crazy how high some yarn prices are getting. I’m also seeing pattern prices start to creep up on Ravelry. It seems that around $6 was pretty standard, but I’m seeing more patterns coming in at $7-8. I realize that a lot of time goes into creating a pattern, but I’ve also seen some very simple patterns creep into that range.
Comment by Samina — June 8, 2018 @ 11:54 am
I received a message on Ravelry about the $9500 retreat. I deleted the message, which I NEVER do, and have searched for this crazy retreat ever since! It is this fall, at the Four Seasons (in Santa Fe?), and included a custom designed sweater pattern by Amy Herzog and custom designed shawl pattern by Andrea Mowry. Yarn packs for both were also included. There was only one slot left as it had filled so quickly!
Comment by Lv2knit — June 8, 2018 @ 1:40 pm
Wow. I can’t even afford the $3000 retreats (not to mention that they’re not $3000 because you have to add airfare and maybe a car rental, even if lodging and food are included). I’m lucky to afford Yarnover, and an occasional class here and there. I’m amazed there are enough “well-off” knitters to fill a retreat for $9500.
I haven’t noticed a lot of the price creep in yarns because my stash is so extensive. There does seem to be more of the “name” yarns, that tend to be a bit higher-priced. Sigh. I guess it’s a good thing I knit so slowly! Lots of hours of enjoyment for my $40.
Comment by Amy — June 8, 2018 @ 3:17 pm
Very cute hat and your pompom is perfect as usual!
Comment by Bonnie — June 9, 2018 @ 10:32 am
A retreat for designers and yarn dyers? Love your yarn sharing idea!
Comment by Michele — June 10, 2018 @ 11:07 am
Yes, I will never get to a yarn retreat again it seems. Even my local yarn guild has had to go up in price for our retreat. And I have not bought anything but sale yarn in the last couple of years as I just cannot fit it into my budget. I really enjoy knitting but my go to hobby may have to change if prices continue to go up.
Comment by Mary Mac — June 11, 2018 @ 6:42 am
The hat is a carnival, I love it!
As for a $9,500 retreat being almost sold out, I guess the organizers don’t need many attendees to make a fat profit at that price. Good grief, one could buy an awful lot of yarn for that money.
And FWIW the Rainey Sisters are responsible for my increase in yarn expenditure, starting with a project in Rowan Lima, at the time the most I’d ever spent on yarn – and only justified because it was a Christmas present for DH.
Comment by Pru — June 11, 2018 @ 2:38 pm
Hi, May be because English is not so familiar to me, but I wouldn’t think “Carnival” for this hat, but singular and lively harmony! Anyway, it is very, very beautiful. Thank you for what you do, what you are.
Comment by Gisele — June 14, 2018 @ 9:01 am
I can’t stop staring at your impeccable color work transitions! Is there any chance you can show the inside of the hat? I think the price of yarn is very, very sad. More often than not do I pass up a project because I just cannot justify the cost, especially when I’m not sure I won’t love the process. I am always open to the budget version and that’s why I love Ravelry. There if you have the patience to wait, you may just stumble across a more affordable option for a project.
Comment by SharonF — June 15, 2018 @ 6:48 am