Account for 2023

 I knitted even less in 2023 than in previous years.  My output at 24.6 kg was down to pre-pandemic levels.  I don't have a problem with that, I'm not trying to improve my record.  The main thing is that I enjoy the knitting and I do.  

Having said that I did feel at one point that I had hit a break.  Working through my spreadsheets I had come to Rowan DK wool yarns, and there were a lot of them.  The earlier DDKs would fit in my standard blankets, but it got boring using the same yarn all the time, even with different colours.  I wanted other brands, other textures.  So now I have set them aside, possibly for crochet, and I feel better.  The Rowan pure wool DK is going into bus knitting mitred squares.

The other everlasting Rowan wool is Colourscape, the Kaffe Fassett chunky yarn.  According to Ravelry it has gone into eight of my non-standard blankets, often with chunky Noro yarns or Rowan Cocoon.  They are all nice yarns, but I yearn to use other yarns...  I am not up to disobeying the spreadsheets.

Next comes Rowan Summer Tweed, one of my all-time favourite yarns.  There is still a lot left.  I don't feel like another intarsia blanket or sweater although it would be suitable.  Perhaps crochet if it doesn't feel too thick.  I feel fine now about putting the remains of Rowan Tapestry in the standard blankets.  The irregular colour changes help, and it disappears in a nice way.

I started the year, obviously after I wrote last year's account, by deciding to reduce drastically my yarn purchases.  I managed for the first three months.  Then at the end of March I found over a kilo of hand dyed sock yarn that I had to buy, and a month later a lot of Cascade yarns.  That was it.  I continued buying.  Interestingly, I bought a similar amount to the previous year, without trying.

On a general point, there is less yarn for sale in charity shops now than before the pandemic.  Many chains don't do yarn, or bric a brac or homeware,
at all.  It makes you wonder where it goes, presumably people still donate yarn.  Much simpler than trying to sell it.