A few weeks ago my MIL and SIL spent a few nights with us while they helped clean out my MIL's cousin's house. I would have loved to help with this task but was working. Each evening they'd come back with tales of what they discovered in this house - unfortunately, the cousin was a bit of a hoarder. However, the last evening they brought back a treasure trove for me! A bag full of Rauma strikkegarn - I did some research on Ravelry and found out exactly what it is. There is enough here for a sweater and I think she (cousin, Ellen) intended it for some type of Norwegian sweater. No pattern but lots of possibilities.
Then there was this Reynolds Fisherman Knit Kit which looks rather old - the yarn has yellowed a bit and is musty smelling but it is "Irish Fisherman Yarn" and is "unscoured". Potential here too - however, I think I might have to soak and dry the hanks before using them.
A bag of unknown skeins of lovely green/blue yarn...this too is loaded with lanolin and there is enough for a sweater here as well.
And to top it all off a odd shaped container which had old knitting needles in it! Truly a treasure trove. If anyone has advice about cleaning hanks of yarn, I'll take it as everything is musty (don't worry I'm keeping it far away from my stash).
Then there was this Reynolds Fisherman Knit Kit which looks rather old - the yarn has yellowed a bit and is musty smelling but it is "Irish Fisherman Yarn" and is "unscoured". Potential here too - however, I think I might have to soak and dry the hanks before using them. 
A bag of unknown skeins of lovely green/blue yarn...this too is loaded with lanolin and there is enough for a sweater here as well. 
And to top it all off a odd shaped container which had old knitting needles in it! Truly a treasure trove. If anyone has advice about cleaning hanks of yarn, I'll take it as everything is musty (don't worry I'm keeping it far away from my stash). 
3 comments:
Ooh - what fun treasures! I'm so glad they thought of you!
Hi, Estella,
I am sending you an e-mail since this is the second time I attempted to comment on your blog and could not send it. Do I sound technology-challenged or what?
About the yarn, lucky you! The first yarn is just gorgeous. I have seen a needle holder similar to the one pictured in an antique store a while back.
As to washing the yarn: first you will need to have the skeins in the figure eight-style hanks as the first yarn you have pictured. You need to use a swift to make that style hank or you can also use the back of a chair (or someone’s hands). Make sure to loosely tie the skein in at least four locations. You can wash it in a bathroom sink with just a bit of Palmolive dishwashing liquid. I only do one skein at a time and rinse until water is clear (the rinsing is where using just a wee bit of Palmolive comes in). Wrap in a heavy towel and then hang on a plastic-coated hanger by draping it over the horizontal bar and distributing the weight evenly.
I know this sounds labor-intensive, but just look at what you have when you are finished. One time I bought (much cheaper) skeins of Mountain Mohair from Green Mountain Spinnery which did not meet their standards for first quality. One of the things that kept the cost down was that it needed to be washed before using.
As to the yellowing, I’m afraid that I can’t help you with that, but perhaps someone else can.
Hope this helps!
Happy knitting,
Millie
Good old,
one man's trash is another man's treasure!
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