I feel like I had no one else to turn to so I decided to write to you. You see Noro I have a love/hate relationship with you. I see you lined up on the shelves of a yarn store and I get wooed by your brilliant colors. I tell myself, "No", again and again but you always win out. After much deliberating I purchase your high priced yarn and I bring you home.
I am a bit of a yarn snob and so you fit right into my stash. You can mingle with all of my alpaca and silk and don't even blink when I put you next to my Autumn or new Lang Mille Fiamme. You can hold your own in any stash. When I reach for you to make a project I know will not be appropriate for your loveliness I can not stop myself. It is like the Noro Fairy comes out and sprinkles Noro fairy dust all over me making me lose all knitting sense.
Take this lovely Queen Anne Lace Scarf. I was looking for a beautiful scarf to make as a Christmas present for my knitting group Christmas Exchange. You Noro Kureyon jumped out of my stash so fast I couldn't believe it. I didn't even remember you were there. I knew I should not be swayed by your colorway and your lovely yarn fumes. Yet I picked up my size J hook and got to work. I worked on you while waiting for my son's state swim meet to start. Your scratchiness was distracting, yet I kept on. I knew I should stop and use you for a felting project because you were so rough in my hands, I was nervous about the swim meet and didn't have another project so I kept at it. So here we are today, with a beautiful yet extremely scratchy scarf that will be washed a million times yet never be right.
Noro books you are not off the hook either. I get wooed by your glossy photos of people having a lovely time in your Noro goodness. I buy you even though I try to resist.
Then I almost hyperventilate until I can buy more of your over priced yarn to make another project. Noro Taiyo you caught my eye even though your depth of color does not show up in these pictures. I have been waiting with much anticipation until I could cast you on. I have ignored that your yarn has broke now several times as I have tried to implement a crochet cast on. Do I stop and think this may not work? No because you are Noro and you have powers over me that I can't seem to control.
Will I still love you tomorrow when I am frustrated with this vest? Probably not but I know your power and I will sucumb to you again.
Thanks for listening,
Meredith
17 comments:
Great post, Mer. Noro is very pretty, but you're right - it's too scratchy!!
xo
Claudia
What a lovely story ....
Marjo
What on earth would one make with a scratchy yarn? I have run across a few cheaper yarns that scratch but never figured that any of the higher priced ones would be that way. Oh I do miss having a yarn shop close by. Around here one has to depend on Joann Fabrics or Walmart to relieve the "itch" of buying more yarn. I receive Mary Maxim, Knit Wits and a couple other catalogs with yarn, but have never bought anything but a couple of baby sweater kits and one afghan kit that are still in the package. I like to feel yarn when I buy it so I tend to shy away from mail order....but I need to get my feet wet on that one.
Ha! That is Noro exactly! I have made several felted hats with it, but I succumbed to temptation and made a cardigan with it once. WAY overpriced, full of knots and veggie matter, and the stripes are all wonky because of all the knots disrupting the colorway. Thankfully, I can wear it with turtlenecks so no part of my skin has to be subjected to the constant loofah treatment that is wearing Noro, but I won't buy anything from them again EVER.
Naughty Noro fairy! I'm going to watch out for her, so thanks for the warning, Meredith!
Jane x
OH MEREDITH, I JUST LOVE YOUR POST........YOU SHOULD WRITE A BOOK.......I WISH THERE WAS A PATRICK OR A ROBERT IN THE STORY FOR NORO COULD GET TOGETHER WITH....WITH ONE WASH WHOOOSH ALL THE SCRATCHINESS IS GONE :) ......HAVE A GREAT DAY....RIZZI
What a clever post, nd so true! The colors and stripes of Noro are worthy of admiration. The texture; however, is not... Hopefully you can put Noro in its place next time it tempts you beyond reason ;)
~Lacey
I can sooOOOooooo relate to this!! I got a skein of Noro because of the colors.. and like you.. continued to do a Queen Anne's Lace scarf.. and it's pretty, but sooo scratchy that I would never wear it nor can I feel good giving it away. And there was HAY and sticker-y veg matter all through it I tried to pick out. I'll never buy it again, either.
((hugs)), Teresa :-)
This is such a cute post!!
I love the idea of the Noro fairy sprinkling Noro fairy dust!!
Thanks so much for your as always lovely comments!! I so appreciate them, and am also so glad we are blogging friends!!!!!
x
Oh, I get ya 100% on the Noro. When I treat myself to some, it usually doesn't even make it to the shelf. I doesn't really like to mingle with most of my stash. And it just loves to jump right on the hook. I made like 11 Q.A.s last winter, great gifts.
HOWLING! I have a sweater in Kureyon that I adore but it pretty much got me over the Noro Virus. I love the colors but (so far) have resisted it's siren song! Can't wait to see the vest!
You nailed it!
But it is so lovely...
Noro haven't caught me so far, but I have to admit that I love the colours, not the prize though. And it's scratchy, hm ... Maybe I can resist.
:-)
Oh Meredith...you're killin' me. I have to agree with EVERYTHING you wrote !! Love the colors, love the designs, hate the yarn!! LOL ... Love you and miss seeing you ... HUGS
You crack me up! Noro colors are amazing and it is so fun to watch them change. I knit an entrelac scarf with Kureyon and yes it is scratchy. I crocheted an edging all around with a softer yarn and it definitely helped, though I am contemplating putting the scarf in the Goodwill pile as I'm just not drawn to using it. Hmmm.....
I did knit a very easy sweater with Kureyon and wear it with a shirt underneath so I don't feel the scratchiness. I have several more skeins of it in my stash but no plans yet. It seems too expensive to use for felting but...
That vest is very cute. You know you want to knit it ;-) Can't wait to see how it comes along!
I love the colors of Noro yarn, but haven't used it for a project, because I can't find it locally. Maybe I should consider myself lucky, and continue to admire it from afar. Your Queen Anne Lace scarf is beautiful though, even if it is scratchy!
I have felt that NORO hypnotic pull too!! but it is so scratchy. When are they going to come up with something in their wonderful colorways that isn't itchy!
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