I have been on a repair frenzy lately. It might be because I am studying non stop and that gets me into this mood, but the advantage is that I get things done that I have been postponing for a long time. One of these things, is the addition of patches on a pair of jeans.
These jeans were store-bought with the worn-out look (I still wonder why I bought them, since I don’t like holes on my clothes), but over time the holes became so big, that I needed to wear something under the jeans in order not to feel the cold.
Then I had the idea to make patches. Time went by and it wasn’t only until recently, that I got to work on this idea. I decided to knit one patch in a new stitch (a type of stretchy herringbone stitch) and another one to weave, using an improvised square loom.
For both I used leftover stash yarn. I am very pleased with the color matching and overall feel of both patches. Weaving turned out to be far easier than expected. I might get a proper loom one day.
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On other news: I had a serious issue with my ball winder. It broke in the summer, and even though I was sent a replacement (from the US), it never arrived. I was left with skeins that I couldn’t wind into ‘cakes’ for several months. I was considering to buy a new one from a shop closer to home, but from the very few online shops that provide them, the price range was something I couldn’t afford. Especially not for a replacement. I even went to a local machinery workshop, and asked if it was possible to replace the broken gear. The cost just for a small gear was more than a few hundred euros, since it had to be produced from scratch with special machinery. So I gave up on that option too.
I had no clue what to do, until I stumbled upon this Etsy shop and discovered what a Nostepinne is! The old-fashion ball winder! It was something I could afford, and so I ordered one. I have already used it, and even though one needs some practice to wind yarn fast and efficiently, it is a great tool! It is small enough to fit in a bag (the plastic ball winder is not for travel), which also makes it very convenient for travelling, moving around a lot, but also big enough to wind a big skein of yarn.
It is so beautiful! Not to mention the added utility of the wpi lines! 😉
This is definitely a case, where the classic version wins in practicality.
Do you own a ball winder? Have you ever used a Nostepinne?
