In which virtue is not rewarded.

The solution to pollution
Originally uploaded by teamkaty

Bet you thought my next post would be about finishing something, eh?  Nah--FOs are for sissies!  When faced with a raft of half-done projects, the tough...go shopping.  Actually, there is a logic here, tenuous though it may be.  I have some pillow tops for Pete's room that I need to finish. (And then you'll get the full show, I promise.  Although there's some, um, styling that needs to happen first.)  To do that, I needed just a yard or two from Purl Patchwork, but making it into Manhattan is a little more complicated than it used to be.  So I thought, oh for Pete's sake (heh), just order it online and pay shipping; subway fare would be $4 anyway.  But of course...I had to get a little something to round out the order, didn't I?  And who can resist HIPPOS, especially HIPPO BUTTS?  (You have to cap it, sorry.) No, I have no idea what to do with it.  I'm thinking maybe little HIPPO pants for several small persons I know.

The irony here is that PP actually ships from California.  So what I could have picked up in a two-mile trip on public transportation I had shipped several thousand miles.  Good one.  Quite a carbon footprint on those HIPPOS.

I've been mulling over the Surprisingly Large Baby Issue (I seem to do more mulling than knitting these days, alas) and I think the Pea Pod will not answer.  It's apple green cotton, you don't get much Springier than that, and by Spring she'll probably be wearing pre-teen sizes.  Instead, I think I'll make her a Vestee--short-sleeved with a hood, perfect layering for Fall and Winter.  I've always wanted to use some of the heavier weights of Lorna's Laces, and since they're superwash, this seemed like a good time.  A scroll through the completed projects on Ravelry encouraged me to try a subtle variegated.  And then...I started playing with the sell/trade feature.  Which is, as most of you probably already know, pure genius and pure evil.  I found three skeins of the worsted weight going for a steal--$30, including shipping!  True, it wasn't in one of the colorways I wanted for this particular project, but hey, I could use it for something else, right?

Oh, you know how this goes. 

On Thursday I plunked down the Paypal, and guess what came this morning, courtesy of the lovely Tomtenknits?  That's practically the speed of light! Clearly the USPS in Minneapolis is a whole 'nuther animal from Brooklyn's, or perhaps Ann is just made of sterner stuff.  Thank you, Ann!  I promise not to let it languish in my stash...well, not too long.

While I'm obsessed with sell/trade: what's up with some of the "bargains" out there?  Like people selling skeins of STR for $25.  No, not discontinued or club colors.  Just regular ol' skeins that you could buy direct from STR...for $19 plus shipping.  Are their shipping costs outrageous?  I don't get it.  Seems to me that when you're de-stashing, you should expect to take a slight loss, unless you have something extremely rare or coveted.  If, for example, I decided to part with some of my Hello Yarn (not gonna happen).   Calculate further loss if you wound it, and still further if some of it is frogged.  Right?  Am I missing something?

Comments

[Elinor]

OK, that's pretty funny about the hippo fabric! I'm totally with you on the destashing for a loss bit. If I want to pay full price for yarn, I'll buy it new, right? I think Wollmeise and Sundara and a few others are just traded around Ravelry like cigs. It's a weird second market.

[schrodinger]

That fabric is adorable, don't feel bad about ordering from purl online, I did the same thing a few weeks back - had no idea they shipped from CA (doh!). I totally agree about the destash "bargains", I thought it was just me, since I am pretty tight when it comes to money, but I'm glad I'm with good company on this one.

[Heather]

Yes, the Purl shipping from Ca. was a surprise to me as well, but since I'm in PA. it didn't make me feel quite as bad...

Yes, the destashing thing is a major mystery. I always list for less than what I paid, I even stupidly sold Wollmeise at cost. Even that made me feel like I was ripping people off--wtf?

[Veronique]

Stash enhancement? That's my girl! :)
Those hippos are fantastic.

[Craptina]

Baby schlepping forgives the shipping, your guilt is probably larger than the carbon footprint.

You know, I could some hippo pj's, Mom....

[Kelley]

I totally agree with you. I'm willing to take the few dollars loss if it gets the yarn out of my house. Hell, throw in the shipping for free. Five lousy bucks.

[jess]

for a second i thought to myself, "i wish i had some hippo pants!" then promptly reconsidered.

good call on the peapod set v. vestee, btw.

[carrie m]

oh my goodness, jon is going to die when he sees the hippo fabric.