Monday, May 11, 2009

Lucky Penny

I always love how Sarah says that her husband is her lucky penny when he goes thrifting with her. My lucky penny is definitely my friend Nine. Every time we thrift together, which isn't too often as she lives 4 hours away, I find something fabulous. Our trip to the thrift this past weekend was no exception.



Now first I will tell you that I did spend about $50 (including high New York taxes) for this fabulous find but believe me, it was worth it. Yarn. And not just any yarn, YARN store yarn. The good stuff.

For you non-knitters out there, the yarn from the craft stores is okay. Most of it is crap but there are some nicer yarns put out by Bernat, Patons and Lion that I do like. I'm a cotton girl so the choices are limited. Yarn stores stock abundances of fabulous yarns from all over the world. Problem is that they are uber expensive. I'm talking $8 to $10 for a small ball. When you want to make anything larger than a tea cozy you need upwards of 10+ balls. You do the math. So while $50 is a HUGE price for me to shell at any thrift, this was the deal of the century for this avid knitter.

In my stash I found:

23 Balls - Rowan Handknit cotton (made in England) - retail cost: $6.00 a ball - $138.00

11 balls - Phildar Marjory cotton (made in France) - retail cost: approx. $6.00 a ball - $66.00 (no longer produced)

10 balls - Stahl Schuler Lambada cotton viscose (made in Germany) - retail cost: $7.00 a ball - $70

26 hanks - Classic Elite Willough cotton silk (made in England) - retail cost: approx. $8.00 a hank - $208.00 (no longer produced)

So what's that . . umm . . carry the one . . . $482.00 of fancy yarn ALL of which are cotton. Bliss.

Included in my $50 splurge are also a skein and half of Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece (about $8 a skein), 7 skeins of Bucilla Wondersheen (a vintage crochet cotton used for making super fine doilies and table cloths) and 5 skeins of Coats & Clark Luster Sheen which is also a vintage fine gauge yarn.

Whew! So you can see why I'm excited, right?? I can't wait to dig in! Of course I REALLY need to finish a few projects first before starting another, right? RIGHT? lol I'm dying to start making that cotton silk (all the white you see there) into a Garden Plot Squares throw.

There is one thing that saddens me about my yarn find. You know there is a knitter out there that gave up. Fancy yarn store yarn does not randomly show up in this abundance at the thrift store. Don't worry fair ex-knitter, I'll make you proud. :)

Give Away Update:

I will announce a giveaway next week before I leave for a long Memorial Day Weekend. I do believe the prize will be a nice fat Goodness paper pack to include vintage wrapping paper and wall paper, all sorts of vintage tallies and playing cards, vintage book pages, ephemera, you name it. Lots of fun stuff for you to play with. I think most of use have a fondness for all things paper.

Until the next time . . . same thrift channel, same thrift time . . .

rebecca

11 comments:

Gloria P. said...

Wow...I am impressed and excited for you at such a wonderful find. I am just learning how to knit and I only own one set of knitting needles. I belong to this site called free cycle and this woman posted a free offer today of several pairs of knitting needles and crochet hooks so I emailed her and said I would love to have them, hope I hear back from her today.
Yesterday I went to visit my grandmother in the hospital (she fell and broke her shoulder) she was sleeping when we walked in and knitting in her sleep...I woke her and she looked at me and said" Oh I think I was dreaming I was knitting" we all laughed!

Kitten With a Whiplash said...

Congrats fellow thrifter - that's a great haul.

Heidi said...

Lucky you! I never even find yucky yarn at the thrift, never mind this great stuff. Too bad someone there knew to price it so high!

Jane said...

Score! Couldn't have happened to a nicer knitter. :)

Unknown said...

I love being your thrifting lucky penny! What a WONDERFUL time I had! Your good company was balm for my sould, my friend. And I think you may be MY shopping lucky penny. Seriously... could I have gotten cuter sandals?! (BOTH pair, haha.) You are a treasure, sweet friend :) Hugs, 9

Unknown said...

Or how about my "soul"? Ah... I love a good fat finger :)

Jenn M said...

I love thrifting days like that. Good for you! I found a hundred skeins of DMC embroidery floss last week and 70 skeins of tapestry wool at my thrift shop last week for $5, so I know exactly the good vibes you're feeling right now!
Happy knitting!
Jenn

Queenly Things said...

Wow, I'm excited!! That is one of those finds that most of us only dream of coming across. Good show!!!

Roxanne said...

Wow. Now, that is why I thrift, cause you just never know when you might hit the jackpot!! Honestly, I don't think any knitter could give up such amazing yarn...maybe she passed away and you are carrying on her legacy by making something out of her stash. I bet she would be really happy that you found it and gave it all a good home. Have fun with it!

wayfarer said...

Wow, that is truly the motherlode! So much to enjoy! The Rowan alone would have made my day. Great score!

Natasha said...

Oh my, I am not a knitter but my mother is and I know what she spends on yarn. I even recognize some of the brands from searching for her on-line. So exciting to find such a savings!!

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