The Secret Life of Yarn

I wonder if yarn has a mind of its own. Yarn, when it becomes part of a “stash,” goes on to give birth to more yarn that you don’t remember purchasing. Yarn seems to tell you what it wants to be. On the weekend I purchased a handknit sweater at the thrift store. It was gigantic and a beautiful shade of orange, and it didn’t want to be a sweater.

I thought it wanted to be felted into a rug and the sleeves wanted to unraveled and transformed into something new. It turns out that it tricked me into thinking it was 100% wool, and therefore feltable. Unfortunately it didn’t react that way when washed in hot water so I believe it's hiding another fiber besides wool. The former sleeves are now balls of yarn waiting to become something new...maybe socks?