In the beginning there was "wool". It was a generic term for stuff to knit with. I can clearly remember my mum explaining how to pick wool for a pattern and that, generally speaking, the less acrylic it had in it the better. I also remember being daunted by the fact that the stuff with less acrylic was as much as four pounds a ball! For a teenager looking at patterns that would require ten balls, that's a staggering price.
I spent a long time completely oblivious to the range of wool that truly was out there. My idea of a good wool shop was having Patons and Sirdar. Then I joined Ravelry and started to use the term "yarn". I went to Get Knitted and got my first proper glimpse of real quality. And real price tags.
Over the years, the amount of money that I consider to be a reasonable price for yarn has grown quite considerably. If I spend less than £5 on a ball/skein then I begin to suspect that I may accidentally be buying acrylic. And as my imagination and mental library of patterns and techniques have grown, so has my tendency to buy any yarn in which I can see the potential for something interesting.
As a consequence my stash of yarn grows regularly and relentlessly. No longer am I buying generic balls of generic double knit, instead my living room has become filled with clear plastic bags of expensive, beautiful yarn. They take up quite a lot of space.
I had a bit of a tidy up yesterday and gathered together my favourite skeins. In my living room I've got shelves that have always reminded me a bit of a yarn shop.
I guess the result was inevitable.
I bet you now know a lot more about yarn than your mother.
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