What have I been doing for the past four days?
I have NOT been knitting.
I did make a swatch…over four days ago.
I then decided to rewind the ball I had knit the swatch from, since I had wound it by hand prior to owning a ball winder. Since I now own a ball winder, I decided I wanted a neat little cake, and I started winding. Which turned out to be a good thing.
Because about 5 minutes into it, I found this…
And there was more. (I dare not show you for the horror of it.) So for the past four days, I have been untangling over 1400 yards of black, hard to see which strand goes where, lace-weight yarn. (I won’t tell you how many times I broke and spliced this yarn. Let’s just say it’s more fingers than are on one hand.)
Davis said to me after the first three hours, “Why are you bothering? Don’t you have more in your closet upstairs?”
I explained, “No, I do not have anymore black, lace-weight yarn.”
Davis: “Why don’t you use something else?”
Me: “Because I want black, lace-weight yarn.”
After another hour, he asked why I don’t just buy more. I explained that I have black, lace-weight yarn, and I have some, that I am currently untangling.
After seeing that I was not going to listen to reason I was hesitant to give over on this particular yarn, he tried to take some more subtle approaches
On day two, he asked me how much it cost. I told him, then explained that that wasn’t the point.
On day three, he told me that he was going to go buy me more himself. I told him that it would take longer than me untangling the yarn.
Today, he mentioned tactfully that my cats were getting antsy, since I wouldn’t let them upstairs, since that was where I was untangling the 1400+ yds of black, lace-weight yarn.
I think he is quite relieved that it now looks like this:
Who Needs Gauge?! 
Too bad you didn’t let us know sooner. I actually enjoy untangling tangled messes of yarn and I’d have volunteered to do this one for you. If this ever happens again, keep me in mind.
I’ve even blogged a useful method for untangling tangled skeins.
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Damn. You are one determined woman – I think I would have folded after a day and still thought I was pretty tenacious 😉 Congrats on the ball winder though, at some point I will throw in the towel and get one too!
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Oh dear, I’ve been there. Sometimes I wonder whether stubbornness is a good thing or a bad thing. Great job getting it done!
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I will make sure that Davis has the phone number of the place in Woodsboro where I get my lace yarn. Mary probably has every color you might need and she winds it into cakes since the yarn is coned for weaving. And it is only a 30 minute drive away.
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YAY for determination! Deb loves to untangle things, so i would have given it to her if i grew frustrated!
Davis just doesn’t understand that it’s the satisfaction of the win over the yarn and knowing that you are a woman of strength who has tamed her yarn into submission. Heehee!
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I have my husband convinced that he is world’s best yarn untangler, and that I admire and respect him for this, and I am always astounded and impressed at his prowess. Do you see where I’m going with this?
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