Thrifty Crochet

The next new-to-me yarn I decided to try in August was Premier's Farmstand, which is a superfine #1 weight 93% acrylic 7% PBT (Polybutylene terephthalate, a kind of polyester) yarn, and comes in a skein with 235 yard/215 meters and 1.75 oz./50 grams. I purchased my skein in the colorway Pumpkin. I usually make socks or slippers with superfine yarn, but I really enjoyed making the Dragon Egg Dice Bag by Cindy de Vries , so I decided to make another one of those. This yarn is very thin, really just a hair thicker than crochet thread. It has a nice hand and doesn't stretch too much, which I find some superfine sock-type yarns can do. I found the center pull with only a little bit of yarn barf. I really liked working with this yarn. The springiness helps in tight spots, and it works up really pretty. No problem whatsoever in frogging. Amazing stitch definition, too. A confident beginner would probably do well with this yarn; it's very forgiving and eas...

The results are in on the three lots I was interested in and bid at $10.00 max; this one @12.6 lbs. I won for $9.99 with no challengers. Alas, a last-minute sniper got this very nice lot lot for $11.00. I don't mind losing; to me sticking to my max is better than getting into a last second bidding war. As if to make up for me losing the nice one I also won this huge 15 lbs. lot for just $7.28 with no challengers. It's worsted weight, and the photos show some untidy skeins, which is likely why no one else bid on it. That is a phenomenal price. Very happy with the results of my less than ten bid lots. :)

I got this skein of Premier Bloom Chunky self-striping floral print yarn in my last mystery box. This is a 100% acrylic #5 bulky weight yarn, with 109 yards/100 meters in a 3.5 oz. 100 gram skein, and the colorway is called Bluebell. I have used Bloom once in the past, and I really like how the print works up, so I decided to use it to make a basket for my sewing table. The yarn is thick, sturdy yet soft, and has that satisfying hand that most bulky weights offer. I did encounter one factory knot right at the beginning of the skein, but it was so tightly tied I just trimmed off the fuzzy bits and left it. I love the palette; the gray is a perfect accompaniment to the blue and cream, and the variegated pattern is interesting -- part stripes, part speckling. I used a modified version of Jayda in Stitches big beautiful basket to make mine, and it took almost no time. I was able to use up all but about 12" of the skein, too. I put my crochet and sewing pou...

Since I was in the mood to make hats last week, and I really like the free crochet pattern Bev's Basic Hodge-Podge Beanie , I grabbed this cake of Sweet Roll in the colorway Birthday Cake Pop that I got in a mystery box and decided to make another one. I've reviewed Sweet Roll in the past , but here are the specs: this is a three color self-striping 100% acrylic #4 medium weight worsted, with 245 yards/224 meters and 5 oz./140 grams in the cake. It presently retails for $6.49 per cake on the Premier web site. Don't buy it at Wal-Mart unless they've marked it down under that price; they currently charge $8.49 per cake. The yarn is quite soft yet sturdy, has a lovely hand and very nice stitch definition. It works up with no issues other than a bit of dye spillage now and then (I had only a couple faint spots of that in this cake where the cream ran into the lavender.) This is really ther perfect yarn for a warm winter hat (if you live in subtropical humid...

The yarn lot I purchased via the Buy It Now option at the online auction just arrived; let's see if it was worth what I paid. There are seventeen skeins, just as pictured in the listing, and all of them are in like new condition with no odor. Only the Red Heart Super Saver in Lavender is used. Berroco Remix yarn retails for $14.00 per skein, and the Vintage is $11.00 per skein on Knit Picks. These two skeins at retail are worth more than I paid for the entire lot. Ah, Premier Puzzle, which retails for $7.99 per skein. I really like working with this yarn, and I've been wanting to try some of the darker colorways. Big Twist Plush is $9.99 per skein at Herrschners. I'll estimate the lot to be well over $100.00 worth of yarn at retail value. I paid $24.91 with one-cent shipping. Definitely worth it.

This week I'm bidding on three lots of yarn that are all under $10.00 for the starting bid, and had no other bidders at the time I placed mine. My max bid on all three lots is $10.00 each. I liked the white yarn in this $9.99 lot, as I can never have enough of that. This $9.99 lot just looked interesting, especially in regard to the mystery/unlabeled balls. The variety of colors appealed to me, too. For some reason this huge 15 lbs. lot had a starting bid of only $7.28 and no bidders. I can't imagine I'll get it with a $10.00 max bid, but let's see if I do. Stay tuned to the blog to find out if I win any or all three lots. Image credit: all of the images in this post came from the original auction listings at ShopGoodwill.com.

For the last new-to-me yarn I wanted to test on the blog this month I bought a skein of Premier Basix Mosaic, a 100% acrylic #4 medium weight worsted in the colorway Sea. This comes in a nice big 4.23 oz./120 grams skein with 216 yards/198 meters. I paid $5.49 for it. Since the colors are totally me I decided to make a winter hat based on Bev's Basic Hodge-Podge Beanie , a free pattern that is worked in half double crochet. I make it long enough (25 rounds) to create a brim I can roll up to cover my ears. The center pull was already out so I didn't have to hunt for it inside the skein. Premier's acrylic yarns are uniformly nice, I'm learning. The hand is sturdy but not scratchy, soft but also substantial. It works up like a tweed yarn, and has a nice heathered look to the stitches. It frogs like a dream as well. I think Mosaic is one of the better acrylic yarns I've crocheted in a while. The stitch definition is great and the yarn had no f...

Future me here again. I've gotten a bit ahead of myself with pre-written posts, so I'll be double posting until I catch up with my one-week-ahead-only schedule. For my latest crochet project I decided to roll the dice again, and chose two pattern books and four inidivudal patterns I've been wanting to give a go. The Universe got cheeky and had me land on #1, or the Dragon Egg Dice Bag by Cindy de Vries . This is a free pattern I found on Ravelry, and I thought it was really cute -- perfect dice or gift bag for any fantasy or Game of Thrones lover. For the dice bag I decided to use the cake of Premier Sweet Roll Vivid in the colorway Lava Lamp. This is a 100% acrylic #4 medium worsted weight self-striping yarn with 174 yards/160 meters and 3.5 oz./100 grams. Sweet Roll is one of my favorite acrylic yarns so I was looking forward to testing out this line variation. Also, the vivid colors are amazing. I've reviewed Sweet Roll many times, and the Vivi...

In my thrifted Wool Ease lot I also got this ball of Plassard T'chao yarn. This is a French-made specialty yarn, made of 85% wool, 10% acrylic and 5% polyamide (nylon.) It's 1.75 oz./50 grams and 43 yards/40 meters, and such a small amount I can't really make a lot with it, but let's try anyway. Believe it or not, I found the center pull on the first try with no problem. Working with this yarn was a bit of a wild ride; you basically can't see your stitches so you have to feel your way along. I did a moss stitch, which you can't tell because of the fluffy bits. The hand is a bit like a soft Brillo pad, and the stitch definition is, well, laughable. The end result is in the "the cat already got hold of this and had a very good time" category. I cannot imagine any practical (or impractical) use for this yarn, or why anyone would spend $14.50 on a single ball of it. Still, it was kind of fun -- like crocheting with my eyes closed. ...

The yarn lot I thrifted with the new Wool Ease skeins in it just arrived, let's see if I got what I hoped I would. Twenty-two skeins, including nine brand new skeins of Wool Ease still in their shipping sleeves. The colorway is called Carousel, and these skeins give me enough yarn to do a bed-size blanket. I can definitely start pattern hunting now. This ball of something very arty has a $14.50 price tag on it. I'm impressed. Not sure what this is, but it's interesting that it comes on a card. There are a few skeins that appear to be quite vintage, too, but I can use them in baskets and such. I'll figure out the value of the lot and report back on the numbers, but I already know I got a very nice bargain.

My guy wanted to stretch his legs last week, so we went to walk our local Goodwill. There was no yarn or fabric on the shelves, so I drifted back to the books, and found a brand new hardcover copy of a cookbook I wanted to give my nephew, and four paperbacks for myself. The books cost me $3.00 total -- here's my receipt. That cookbook alone retails for $28.00. When we got home my latest thrifted lot arrived. Although the package was soiled, the six Vera Bradley bags inside were none the worse for wear. These two are in brand new condition. I thrifted this lot mainly for the big solid navy purse, which I plan to use over winter. These three need a bath, but otherwise are in very good shape. This little wristlet is on the shabby side, but I'm going to rehab it in a fun way. I paid $9.99 for the bag lot, which makes each bag cost $1.66. Can't beat that price.