I was gifted musty smelling yarn. I opened out the skeins and lay them in the sun for a few days, turning and spreading them out every so often. The uv light kills the spoors. The smell disappeared. I then blocked with wool wash when knitted up. Perfect.
I agree with the exposure to the uv light of the sun. I would recommend a pre wash with vinegar before sun drying. The acid can help kill some forms of mildew.
My husband just purchased the Vogue stitch dictionary for me. So sweet of him. This is a bit embarrassing to admit, but a few years ago, during the Christmas season, I was gifted some yarn, and a lovely loaf of brown bread. Once I got home, I promptly put the bag of new yarn onto a cedar chest with the rest of my yarn stash, and went about the rest of the year. About two months later I got the urge to cast on something new, and opened up the cedar chest, and there was something that smelled wrong. To my horror, tucked among the yarn skins, wrapped in a plastic bag was a sweaty, green loaf of bread. Then I remembered we never ate it. Everything reeked. The wood, the yarn. I took everything out, sprayed the yarn and inside the cedar chest with vinegar water, anxious about the possibility that I would have to throw everything away. I put everything outside in the sun. It was nice weather for winter, and then it snowed. I left the chest and yarn outside until it melted, probably 3 days total, and then brought them inside and dried them infront of the fire. I told my knit group about it, and one of them said it's called 'snow bathing' I think. It worked and all the skeins smell sheepy again. Hopefully, this information is helpful, or at least laughable!
I just “unearthed” 40 year old yarn from Bartlett… Since it was from our sheep, I wanted to be able to use it. Soaked it in small amount of Woolite and Downy in my sink, rinsed it twice, spun out the water with a salad spinner and dried it outside. 40 years of mothball smell has dissipated quite a bit! Now, I have 36 skeins of Maine island wool to knit with.
I have success demildewing wool with a warm vinegar soak with a little dawn. Why risk the Dawn? Degreasing detergents actually work as a mild antifungal. Mildew spores have a lipid exterior to their cell walls so the degreaser will package up (emulsify) and remove them like oil. In the lab we use a really strong soap to explode spores but milder soaps are pretty effective at removing them.
Interesting, and good to know what's done in a lab environment! So you would do the acid and alkaline at the same time? I had thought about starting with a detergent, and rinsing with something acidic afterwards (e.g. Unicorn's Power Wash or Power Scour, followed by the Fibre Rinse)
@@RoxanneRichardson good question. Ive done both at once before but following alkaline up with acid (like you suggested) is probably better for the fiber
"Lange Fädchen, faule Mädchen". It's been 50+ years so my German spelling may be off. It means " long thread, lazy girl". Literal reference is to using too long a thread in hand sewing, which invariably results in knots and tangles.
Thank you Roxanne, you have given me my knitting mojo back! It has been so hot down here in South Texas this summer, I couldn't even think about knitting. I have been sewing hexagons (I purchased a queen-size worth of hexies from Keepsake quilting years ago) . I have an ulmer quilt frame and my goal is to get this on the frame and then back to my knitting. It will take some time to quilt this and I will do that in between knitting this winter. Enjoy your trip!
I’d mix vinegar and lavender oil and soak it. Rinse a few times. Or a lot of lemon juice and water. Both are acidic and will kill mold and odor. Ive used oxiclean and zote soap, soak and the rinse several time. Oxiclean will kill the mold, zote has a citrus scent so it will help lift the smell.
Regarding the smelly yarn, something that works for killing mold inside a car that's been sitting is ozone. I purchased an ozone generator for one of our older cars that had a plugged sunroof drain which caused water to build up inside (UGH), and ran the ozone generator in the closed car for a few hours. Smell was gone! Not sure if this will work with yarn, but if you decide to try, just make sure to not breathe in the ozone and give the space plenty of time to air out after use.
I live in New Brunswick, Canada which is the home of Briggs & Little Woollen Mills… I believe that Briggs and Little now have the distinction of being Canada’s longest running woollen mills. I learned recently that they clean their wool fibres using a natural process - no harsh chemicals - which preserves the natural lanolin - that leaves the yarn with a light wooly scent. The natural lanolin also offers protection against moths. For any wool that has been stored for years, and has developed an off smell, I will still use it… knitting it first into the desired garment (usually socks and mittens) - then washing it as usual. The following is Briggs and Little’s washing care instruction: Washing & Care We recommend Eucalan delicate wash for cleaning your woolens. This product gently cleans your garment, while maintaining the lanolin content and also contains a natural moth inhibitor. We stock five natural scents: Eucalyptus, Lavender, Grapefruit, Jasmine and Natural unscented. These are available in 100ml or 500ml bottles. If not using Eucalan, hand wash with mild soap, in warm water. Squeeze excess water from the garment (do not wring) and lay flat to dry.
Another great episode, chockfull of yarnie goodness and knitting shenanigans! Thanks for sharing your colossal knowledge and techniques. We certainly are the lucky recipients! ❤❤❤😊
I was gifted yarn that had been stores with mothballs eek! I gently washed the skiens in baking soda and wool wash. I let the yarn dry outside in the sun. It worked!
In Dutch there's a saying 'heet van de naald' (hot from the needle), meaning that it's new, just made. Another saying that might be interesting to you is: 'hij wil het naadje van de kous weten' (he wants to know the seam of the stocking). It means he wants to know all little details, he is very curious.
Thanks for another enjoyable Casual Friday episode. I especially enjoyed your comments about Yarnover’s Vendor Market and sock knitting. I’ll refer to this episode often as I knit my next pair of socks. Looking forward to trying the plain heel and round toe.
My daughter started working on a school bus. So my small projects now are topsy-turvy's. I have a pumpkin when turned inside out becomes a black cat. I was going to show them to friends on Friday, so left them by the back door. She grabbed them and gave them to her bus kids. The middle-schoolers liked them best. The pre-school students didn't get the idea of turning them inside out and back.
Apples and oranges I know, but when you said the odor wouldn’t leave with just soap and water, you made me think. I have two cotton towels I knit several years ago. They have always had an odor. I decided to put them in water and a little bleach, voilà. They are odor free and I can stand to use them again!
Yes I agree with Cheryl the SUN is the best disinfectant I would wash them first and then put them out in the sun. Another very interesting episode Roxanne. Have a good trip !
I too was gifted free yarn that had been stored and was musty. I unwound it into a hank as if I had just spun it, soaked it in Eucalan, and put it in the sun to dry. I haven't used it yet, but it seems fine.
Hi Roxanne I found some newspaper articles regarding Hallin Handweavers etc. I wrote it here first but it got too long so I emailed you. BTW, thank you for your wonderful work.
Hi there, its so nice to see you and you are looking so well. We have started Spring here and the weather is atrocious, we have rain one minute, hail the next and the wind is gale force today. I am inside knitting this afternoon and I cannot think of a better thing to be doing. I am so sorry for the delay in finishing this comment. It's my Birthday today and I have had so many visitors and deliveries of flowers that I watched your video and wrote something and then the dam burst and it just got so busy. Your daughter is so lucky to be getting that book, I received it from a book club a little while ago and I couldn't put it down, I am sure she will enjoy it too. I hope you both enjoy your break away catching up and having a spell. I am going to head off now, I am exhausted. Thank you for your visit and all the information that left. Take care.
I saved very musty smelling wool sweater by washing it and letting it hang outside in winter (it was -31F). It froze stiff and I brought it inside only when it became soft again by itself. Took several days. So maybe freezing after washing will help?
I love your socks!! I have the same Vogue stitch book. I really need to look through it again. I don't remember some of the colorwork, slip stitch or Brioche patterns you were pointing out. I recognize the sweater you're wearing. Such a unique pattern construction. It really looks lovely. I was surprised to see Canadian yarn - I just returned from Knit City Vancouver, learning about the history of Wool in Canada, knitting with Canadian breeds and West Coast Fibersheds. Canada does produce some beautiful yarn for knitting, out of some local small mills. I'll be interested to hear what how the 'de-scenting' goes.
I've successfully removed diesel, oil and gas covered clothing smells using coke and baking soda mixture. My clothing was soaked and I was unwilling to part with them, since they're my yardwork clothing and I was practically soaked in diesel. The clothes had to live outside even after several washings otherwise my whole house would smell like a truck stop. I just filled a bucket and dumped one full 2l bottle of coke on it and then some baking soda. I let it set at least overnight. Now I threw the liquid from the bucket into the washer to wash the clothing and I know that's not possible, but you'd never know that I literally smelled like a diesel rag except for the oil stains 😂
Spread ground coffee ( not coffee grounds) on a car's stinky floor mats and leave the car in the sun, windows up, for a few days. Then vacuum thoroughly. This worked.
This worked really well for a must smelling tent that had been put away wet. Not sure if it would work on yarn, but it worked on nylon! Mirazyme Odor Eliminator
A long time I was told that a used car dealer would put coffee grounds in a car that had an off smell to freshen it up. I assumed it was after the coffee was made but it may have been unused. You might try enclosing some of the yarn in a zip lock bag with those. It will be interesting to see how you make out😊
I usually use a vinegar rinse adter i scour raw wool for hand spinning. Yes, vinegar smells, but will neutralize the bad smell, and the vingsr smell will dissipate. What ever you do, consider the fiber. Do not use oxiclean on wool, or any harsh detergent as you know, it damages the wool fiber.
Turns out Dutch has several yarn/knitting-related sayings. "Heet van de naald" (hot from the needle) means something made that has just been finished. "Er een eind aan breien" (knitting an end to it) means wrapping up, as in ending something, preferably quickly. "Een steek laten vallen" (dropping a stich) means making a mistake.
Unicorn fiber wash (Gentle) or Unicorn fiber scour (super strong) takes the smell out of very dirty fibers. Can also be used for baby diapers. If it is a fungus maybe a fungicide used on plants. Copper sulfate maybe. Excellent experiment,
There's an expression in U.S. English that's obsolete now but one occasionally encounters it in older books. "The judge looked over at the murmurers and then returned to his knitting" -- to get back to business.
I would try a Skunk Wash Recipe for Pets to remove old, musty smell from yarn. 1 Quart Hydrogen Peroxide 1/4 Cup Baking Soda 1. teaspoon Liquid Soap Use immediately. Do not store. Wipe/ soak, rinse, wash with appropriate wool soap. ***May bleach clothes, hair or fur.
I had a cardi from a opshop with an very strong mothball smell. I put it in a bin bag with bicard soda for a few weeks, that took some scent away. I washed it in woolwash with a dash of extra eucalyptus oil, this also helped but didnt get rid of it entirely....but after a few more washes and wears the smell finally left. I have not put this in clothing but have soaked my shower curtain in it. Clove oil mixed with water kills mould spores. I have lived in places with serious mould issues and I have tried everything, and I mean everything, clove oil is the only thing that worked. Hope some of these hints help.
PS I also have the vogue knitting book and vogue stitch dictionary, I check them out alot, and the dictionary has made me hungry to get more dictionaries, they are great.
My mum has sat smelly yarn in cat litter and found it works, I've knitted with musty smelling cotton yarn and after washing the finished top in the machine and air drying a couple of times the smell went
How to get rid of musty smell: This might be a bit lengthy, but it works. I bought a vintage nighty that smelled, so I soaked it in vinegar and put it in the washing machine -- still smelled. Rinse, repeat, still smelled. I put the nighty into a basin with water and borax and let it soak. After several washings in the machine, the now soaking nighty turned the water black. Rinse, repeat, more black. After a couple more tries, the water came clear, the musty smell was gone. Caveat: the texture of the polyester in the nighty changed, but the color did not. I put it away and never wore or washed again because I sort of didn't want to sleep in it after seeing the soaking water. Perhaps, the texture was changed because I didn't completely wash out the borax. All said and done, after all of the vinegar washings, the borax soaks revealed a shocking amount of "black" water.
Oh my neighbor has the 'Vogue.' Absolutely marvelous book. I keep meaning to buy one for myself. For an oh so basic yet completely comprehensive tome, I agree, that's the one to get. Nina will love it.
Getting the smell out of yarn-hanging it in the sun might take care of smell! Used to store with phenolphthalein, gets smell, to remove that smell putting the sweaters in sun helps
That August sock KAL is the best! I used it to create a pattern for socks that really fit me. Now I can knit whatever kind of socks I like, using that pattern as my base. And then I made a pattern for socks for my sister and for a friend too.
Great episode, Roxanne. Except for the socks. You're never going to get me to knit socks LOL. Can you tell us where to watch the State Fair review for your Knitting Guild? I was looking forward to that--you had mentioned it might be available last week. Thanks!
I’m an independent consultant for Norwex. A couple months ago my parents house burnt down. We salvaged just a few items and I was able to clean the smoke smell out of a few items using Norwex products. LMK if you’d like to try them and how I can send you a few samples.
I live in Amsterdam too. When my parents visit from America I always like them to bring NyQuil / over the counter drugs for colds, vitamins, certain candy and toothpaste. It's just not the same here. Also thank you for the knitting content ;)
That's so funny. My daughter requested a Costco quantity of her favorite toothpaste, and a bag of Kirkland Halloween candy. I guess if she's going to eat that much candy, she's going to need that toothpaste! :-)
This was great! I've been considering getting that Vogue stitch dictionary, but I wasn't quite sure about it. It looks really good, though, so I think I will get it at some point. That yak down yarn looks and sounds gorgeous as well! I love the feel of yak! Very excited to see the Danish sweater as well when you can finally start that one. The designs are all so stunning.
Holy cow, you covered a ton of things in this video. The teal yak yarn is fabulous, I look forward to seeing your finished project. I too have been thinking about purchasing a stitch dictionary but have hesitated not knowing a good one. Thank you so much! I also joined Rox Rocks today though it's going to take me a while to figure out how it all works, I've not participated in a chat group before, 😬 yikes!
You might try Bicarbonate of soda. I tried it on some woollen fabric. I just sprinkled it over the fabric. I got the idea as I used Bicarb to deodorise the fridge. If you were wary of spinkling the fabric with the Bicarb you might try putting the wool in a sealed contained with an open bowl of bicarb Either way it might be a thing to try before you have to wet the wool.
Shoutout to all tatters and wannabe tatters! If you want to learn, no better time than the months leading up to the holiday season. We love to make pretty lace ornaments in the shapes of stars, snowflakes, etc. Like knitting, it's fairly quick to pick up, but you can spend a lifetime learning several techniques and variations. There are many books and beautiful threads to be had, but all you need to start is one, or better yet, two, colors of size 10 or 20 thread, a shuttle or tatting needle and steel crochet hook to match the size thread. We have a wonderful community that is hell bent on keeping our beloved craft alive and we welcome you!
I am in my seventies and I have a knitting needle that I inherited from my Grandmother i. I am sure that the metal joining the working ends ❤😂❤isn’t as flexible as you would want to use 😮
Hi Roxanne, first let me say thank you for all the wonderful videos. Even though I consider myself an experienced knitter I'm always learning something new from you. My question is about mitts using stranded colorwork, specifically Norwegian style. I have several patterns and the big book of knitted mittens by Joris Linvik. My problem is that no matter what size needles I use the mitts come out far too long and the thumb gusset is far too small. Do you have any suggestions or resources that might help me fix this. Thanks.
Figure out how long you want the mitt to be and aim for the number of rounds that will take, given your gauge, to get you there. You will likely have to alter the number of repeats of the stitch pattern(s) you are using to make that happen. It's not clear to me if your thumb gusset is too short, or if the problem is that the circumference of the thumb is too small. If the gusset is too short, that may be why the mittens are too long (i.e. the mitten doesn't come down far enough toward your wrist because it's blocked by the thumb pit). Extend the length of the gusset for additional rounds, if necessary. If the circumference is large enough, then you will need to spread out the increases by working more plain rounds between increase rounds. If the problem *is* the gusset length, that may bring the body of the mitt down far enough on your hand for the length to be correct. If the problem is the circumference of the thumb, then you will need more increase rounds to create a larger circumference. My video on how to knit a fingerless mitt without a pattern might be helpful for the gusset portion.
As an engineering nerd, I'm extremely interested in your "spreadsheet" process(es) 😁Have you done any videos on that? I've looked through ALL the videos on your channel, and I did not see one...unless that topic is covered under some of your "reorganization" vids. 💖
That might depend on which edition of the book you have. I believe the most recent edition contains multiple methods of short rows. The previous edition likely would have had only W&T short rows, as that was the only method presented in books published in the US prior to, say, 2015 or so.
I'm in Belgium and I have a lot of trouble finding nice non-synthetic yarn that is not fingering, sport or in the bulky range. Especially worsted seems hard to source. No clue if your daughter has the same problem!
@ingeleonora-denouden6222 not every bible translation translates it the same. I'm not sure which one has knitted. Maybe NIV or good news? Mine says, "Covered" in kjv but people at church say the phrase "knitted our hearts together." Usually in reference to a couple, adoption, or a really close friendship. An ordained relationship. Knitted is a word very descriptive of omnicient creation. This month's guest on fruity knitting also mentioned this. Art is a little taste of what it's like to create like God creates, although we can't create like God.
I was gifted musty smelling yarn. I opened out the skeins and lay them in the sun for a few days, turning and spreading them out every so often. The uv light kills the spoors. The smell disappeared. I then blocked with wool wash when knitted up. Perfect.
I agree with the exposure to the uv light of the sun. I would recommend a pre wash with vinegar before sun drying. The acid can help kill some forms of mildew.
My husband just purchased the Vogue stitch dictionary for me. So sweet of him.
This is a bit embarrassing to admit, but a few years ago, during the Christmas season, I was gifted some yarn, and a lovely loaf of brown bread. Once I got home, I promptly put the bag of new yarn onto a cedar chest with the rest of my yarn stash, and went about the rest of the year. About two months later I got the urge to cast on something new, and opened up the cedar chest, and there was something that smelled wrong. To my horror, tucked among the yarn skins, wrapped in a plastic bag was a sweaty, green loaf of bread. Then I remembered we never ate it. Everything reeked. The wood, the yarn.
I took everything out, sprayed the yarn and inside the cedar chest with vinegar water, anxious about the possibility that I would have to throw everything away. I put everything outside in the sun. It was nice weather for winter, and then it snowed. I left the chest and yarn outside until it melted, probably 3 days total, and then brought them inside and dried them infront of the fire.
I told my knit group about it, and one of them said it's called 'snow bathing' I think. It worked and all the skeins smell sheepy again.
Hopefully, this information is helpful, or at least laughable!
I just “unearthed” 40 year old yarn from Bartlett… Since it was from our sheep, I wanted to be able to use it. Soaked it in small amount of Woolite and Downy in my sink, rinsed it twice, spun out the water with a salad spinner and dried it outside. 40 years of mothball smell has dissipated quite a bit! Now, I have 36 skeins of Maine island wool to knit with.
I have success demildewing wool with a warm vinegar soak with a little dawn. Why risk the Dawn? Degreasing detergents actually work as a mild antifungal. Mildew spores have a lipid exterior to their cell walls so the degreaser will package up (emulsify) and remove them like oil. In the lab we use a really strong soap to explode spores but milder soaps are pretty effective at removing them.
Interesting, and good to know what's done in a lab environment! So you would do the acid and alkaline at the same time? I had thought about starting with a detergent, and rinsing with something acidic afterwards (e.g. Unicorn's Power Wash or Power Scour, followed by the Fibre Rinse)
@@RoxanneRichardson good question. Ive done both at once before but following alkaline up with acid (like you suggested) is probably better for the fiber
"Lange Fädchen, faule Mädchen". It's been 50+ years so my German spelling may be off. It means " long thread, lazy girl". Literal reference is to using too long a thread in hand sewing, which invariably results in knots and tangles.
Luie naaister draad said my grandmother. No surprise the Dutch have something similar to the Germans.
From the south of England, my Mum would say of a poorly sewn garment that it was “made with a hot needle and burnt thread”.
Thank you Roxanne, you have given me my knitting mojo back! It has been so hot down here in South Texas this summer, I couldn't even think about knitting. I have been sewing hexagons (I purchased a queen-size worth of hexies from Keepsake quilting years ago) . I have an ulmer quilt frame and my goal is to get this on the frame and then back to my knitting. It will take some time to quilt this and I will do that in between knitting this winter. Enjoy your trip!
I’d mix vinegar and lavender oil and soak it. Rinse a few times. Or a lot of lemon juice and water. Both are acidic and will kill mold and odor.
Ive used oxiclean and zote soap, soak and the rinse several time. Oxiclean will kill the mold, zote has a citrus scent so it will help lift the smell.
Regarding the smelly yarn, something that works for killing mold inside a car that's been sitting is ozone. I purchased an ozone generator for one of our older cars that had a plugged sunroof drain which caused water to build up inside (UGH), and ran the ozone generator in the closed car for a few hours. Smell was gone! Not sure if this will work with yarn, but if you decide to try, just make sure to not breathe in the ozone and give the space plenty of time to air out after use.
I live in New Brunswick, Canada which is the home of Briggs & Little Woollen Mills… I believe that Briggs and Little now have the distinction of being Canada’s longest running woollen mills. I learned recently that they clean their wool fibres using a natural process - no harsh chemicals - which preserves the natural lanolin - that leaves the yarn with a light wooly scent. The natural lanolin also offers protection against moths. For any wool that has been stored for years, and has developed an off smell, I will still use it… knitting it first into the desired garment (usually socks and mittens) - then washing it as usual.
The following is Briggs and Little’s washing care instruction:
Washing & Care
We recommend Eucalan delicate wash for cleaning your woolens. This product gently cleans your garment, while maintaining the lanolin content and also contains a natural moth inhibitor.
We stock five natural scents: Eucalyptus, Lavender, Grapefruit, Jasmine and Natural unscented. These are available in 100ml or 500ml bottles.
If not using Eucalan, hand wash with mild soap, in warm water. Squeeze excess water from the garment (do not wring) and lay flat to dry.
Another great episode, chockfull of yarnie goodness and knitting shenanigans! Thanks for sharing your colossal knowledge and techniques. We certainly are the lucky recipients! ❤❤❤😊
I was gifted yarn that had been stores with mothballs eek! I gently washed the skiens in baking soda and wool wash. I let the yarn dry outside in the sun. It worked!
In Dutch there's a saying 'heet van de naald' (hot from the needle), meaning that it's new, just made.
Another saying that might be interesting to you is: 'hij wil het naadje van de kous weten' (he wants to know the seam of the stocking). It means he wants to know all little details, he is very curious.
One day I need to wrap my head around doing your spreadsheets etc. You are such a hero! Thanks for your sharing with us.
Thanks for another enjoyable Casual Friday episode. I especially enjoyed your comments about Yarnover’s Vendor Market and sock knitting. I’ll refer to this episode often as I knit my next pair of socks. Looking forward to trying the plain heel and round toe.
My daughter started working on a school bus. So my small projects now are topsy-turvy's. I have a pumpkin when turned inside out becomes a black cat. I was going to show them to friends on Friday, so left them by the back door. She grabbed them and gave them to her bus kids. The middle-schoolers liked them best. The pre-school students didn't get the idea of turning them inside out and back.
Apples and oranges I know, but when you said the odor wouldn’t leave with just soap and water, you made me think. I have two cotton towels I knit several years ago. They have always had an odor. I decided to put them in water and a little bleach, voilà. They are odor free and I can stand to use them again!
I've been successful with washing in wool wash and letting it hang outside in the sun to dry. It does wonders
Yes I agree with Cheryl the SUN is the best disinfectant I would wash them first and then put them out in the sun. Another very interesting episode Roxanne. Have a good trip !
I too was gifted free yarn that had been stored and was musty. I unwound it into a hank as if I had just spun it, soaked it in Eucalan, and put it in the sun to dry. I haven't used it yet, but it seems fine.
Hi Roxanne I found some newspaper articles regarding Hallin Handweavers etc. I wrote it here first but it got too long so I emailed you. BTW, thank you for your wonderful work.
Thanks, Jessica! I did get your email. Much appreciated!
Looking forward to the episode on reconditioning the old yarn as I love shopping yarn in thrift/second hand stores.
Hi there, its so nice to see you and you are looking so well. We have started Spring here and the weather is atrocious, we have rain one minute, hail the next and the wind is gale force today. I am inside knitting this afternoon and I cannot think of a better thing to be doing. I am so sorry for the delay in finishing this comment. It's my Birthday today and I have had so many visitors and deliveries of flowers that I watched your video and wrote something and then the dam burst and it just got so busy.
Your daughter is so lucky to be getting that book, I received it from a book club a little while ago and I couldn't put it down, I am sure she will enjoy it too.
I hope you both enjoy your break away catching up and having a spell.
I am going to head off now, I am exhausted. Thank you for your visit and all the information that left. Take care.
I saved very musty smelling wool sweater by washing it and letting it hang outside in winter (it was -31F). It froze stiff and I brought it inside only when it became soft again by itself. Took several days. So maybe freezing after washing will help?
I love your socks!! I have the same Vogue stitch book. I really need to look through it again. I don't remember some of the colorwork, slip stitch or Brioche patterns you were pointing out. I recognize the sweater you're wearing. Such a unique pattern construction. It really looks lovely. I was surprised to see Canadian yarn - I just returned from Knit City Vancouver, learning about the history of Wool in Canada, knitting with Canadian breeds and West Coast Fibersheds. Canada does produce some beautiful yarn for knitting, out of some local small mills. I'll be interested to hear what how the 'de-scenting' goes.
Sunshine can do wonders for smells
Another great episode. A few drops of clove oil in your washing water can help remove musty smells from fabric and fibre.
I've successfully removed diesel, oil and gas covered clothing smells using coke and baking soda mixture. My clothing was soaked and I was unwilling to part with them, since they're my yardwork clothing and I was practically soaked in diesel. The clothes had to live outside even after several washings otherwise my whole house would smell like a truck stop. I just filled a bucket and dumped one full 2l bottle of coke on it and then some baking soda. I let it set at least overnight. Now I threw the liquid from the bucket into the washer to wash the clothing and I know that's not possible, but you'd never know that I literally smelled like a diesel rag except for the oil stains 😂
Spread ground coffee ( not coffee grounds) on a car's stinky floor mats and leave the car in the sun, windows up, for a few days. Then vacuum thoroughly. This worked.
This worked really well for a must smelling tent that had been put away wet. Not sure if it would work on yarn, but it worked on nylon! Mirazyme Odor Eliminator
A long time I was told that a used car dealer would put coffee grounds in a car that had an off smell to freshen it up. I assumed it was after the coffee was made but it may have been unused. You might try enclosing some of the yarn in a zip lock bag with those. It will be interesting to see how you make out😊
I usually use a vinegar rinse adter i scour raw wool for hand spinning. Yes, vinegar smells, but will neutralize the bad smell, and the vingsr smell will dissipate. What ever you do, consider the fiber. Do not use oxiclean on wool, or any harsh detergent as you know, it damages the wool fiber.
Turns out Dutch has several yarn/knitting-related sayings.
"Heet van de naald" (hot from the needle) means something made that has just been finished.
"Er een eind aan breien" (knitting an end to it) means wrapping up, as in ending something, preferably quickly.
"Een steek laten vallen" (dropping a stich) means making a mistake.
Unicorn fiber wash (Gentle) or Unicorn fiber scour (super strong) takes the smell out of very dirty fibers. Can also be used for baby diapers. If it is a fungus maybe a fungicide used on plants. Copper sulfate maybe. Excellent experiment,
There's an expression in U.S. English that's obsolete now but one occasionally encounters it in older books. "The judge looked over at the murmurers and then returned to his knitting" -- to get back to business.
I've seen "stick to your knitting" before, indicating that someone should mind their business, or stay in their lane (of expertise).
@@RoxanneRichardson I've heard something similar and took it to mean particularly for a woman to stay out of the affairs of men.
Somehow I missed your using the hold yarn as part of your cast on for the heel. That is a great idea.
Sun light is the best disinfectant.
I would try a Skunk Wash Recipe for Pets to remove old, musty smell from yarn.
1 Quart Hydrogen Peroxide
1/4 Cup Baking Soda
1. teaspoon Liquid Soap
Use immediately. Do not store. Wipe/ soak, rinse, wash with appropriate wool soap.
***May bleach clothes, hair or fur.
I had a cardi from a opshop with an very strong mothball smell. I put it in a bin bag with bicard soda for a few weeks, that took some scent away. I washed it in woolwash with a dash of extra eucalyptus oil, this also helped but didnt get rid of it entirely....but after a few more washes and wears the smell finally left. I have not put this in clothing but have soaked my shower curtain in it. Clove oil mixed with water kills mould spores. I have lived in places with serious mould issues and I have tried everything, and I mean everything, clove oil is the only thing that worked. Hope some of these hints help.
PS I also have the vogue knitting book and vogue stitch dictionary, I check them out alot, and the dictionary has made me hungry to get more dictionaries, they are great.
Activated charcoal worked for me in removing musty and smoke smells from yarn., leaving it in a box for about a week.
My mum has sat smelly yarn in cat litter and found it works, I've knitted with musty smelling cotton yarn and after washing the finished top in the machine and air drying a couple of times the smell went
How to get rid of musty smell: This might be a bit lengthy, but it works. I bought a vintage nighty that smelled, so I soaked it in vinegar and put it in the washing machine -- still smelled. Rinse, repeat, still smelled. I put the nighty into a basin with water and borax and let it soak. After several washings in the machine, the now soaking nighty turned the water black. Rinse, repeat, more black. After a couple more tries, the water came clear, the musty smell was gone. Caveat: the texture of the polyester in the nighty changed, but the color did not. I put it away and never wore or washed again because I sort of didn't want to sleep in it after seeing the soaking water. Perhaps, the texture was changed because I didn't completely wash out the borax. All said and done, after all of the vinegar washings, the borax soaks revealed a shocking amount of "black" water.
Perfect pronounced Roxanne thank you for mentioned❤❤
Oh my neighbor has the 'Vogue.' Absolutely marvelous book. I keep meaning to buy one for myself. For an oh so basic yet completely comprehensive tome, I agree, that's the one to get. Nina will love it.
And the format of the Vogue is so visually and tactile-y satisfying.
Roxanne, you are the best teacher! I am also a late night knitter. I was just wondering what you watch or listen to while knitting at midnight?
Getting the smell out of yarn-hanging it in the sun might take care of smell!
Used to store with phenolphthalein, gets smell, to remove that smell putting the sweaters in sun helps
At long last I’ve been knitting a pair of socks using your 2019 August Sock KAL. It’s been so helpful for customizing a pair of socks for my husband!
That August sock KAL is the best! I used it to create a pattern for socks that really fit me. Now I can knit whatever kind of socks I like, using that pattern as my base. And then I made a pattern for socks for my sister and for a friend too.
Great episode, Roxanne. Except for the socks. You're never going to get me to knit socks LOL. Can you tell us where to watch the State Fair review for your Knitting Guild? I was looking forward to that--you had mentioned it might be available last week. Thanks!
I just worked the round toe on my husband’s boot socks. It works so well.
I’m an independent consultant for Norwex. A couple months ago my parents house burnt down. We salvaged just a few items and I was able to clean the smoke smell out of a few items using Norwex products. LMK if you’d like to try them and how I can send you a few samples.
I live in Amsterdam too. When my parents visit from America I always like them to bring NyQuil / over the counter drugs for colds, vitamins, certain candy and toothpaste. It's just not the same here. Also thank you for the knitting content ;)
That's so funny. My daughter requested a Costco quantity of her favorite toothpaste, and a bag of Kirkland Halloween candy. I guess if she's going to eat that much candy, she's going to need that toothpaste! :-)
This was great! I've been considering getting that Vogue stitch dictionary, but I wasn't quite sure about it. It looks really good, though, so I think I will get it at some point. That yak down yarn looks and sounds gorgeous as well! I love the feel of yak! Very excited to see the Danish sweater as well when you can finally start that one. The designs are all so stunning.
Holy cow, you covered a ton of things in this video. The teal yak yarn is fabulous, I look forward to seeing your finished project. I too have been thinking about purchasing a stitch dictionary but have hesitated not knowing a good one. Thank you so much! I also joined Rox Rocks today though it's going to take me a while to figure out how it all works, I've not participated in a chat group before, 😬 yikes!
Great episode!
You might try Bicarbonate of soda. I tried it on some woollen fabric. I just sprinkled it over the fabric. I got the idea as I used Bicarb to deodorise the fridge. If you were wary of spinkling the fabric with the Bicarb you might try putting the wool in a sealed contained with an open bowl of bicarb Either way it might be a thing to try before you have to wet the wool.
Shoutout to all tatters and wannabe tatters! If you want to learn, no better time than the months leading up to the holiday season. We love to make pretty lace ornaments in the shapes of stars, snowflakes, etc. Like knitting, it's fairly quick to pick up, but you can spend a lifetime learning several techniques and variations. There are many books and beautiful threads to be had, but all you need to start is one, or better yet, two, colors of size 10 or 20 thread, a shuttle or tatting needle and steel crochet hook to match the size thread. We have a wonderful community that is hell bent on keeping our beloved craft alive and we welcome you!
Wow, that Condon's Yarn is as old as I am! 🤣
I am in my seventies and I have a knitting needle that I inherited from my Grandmother i. I am sure that the metal joining the working ends ❤😂❤isn’t as flexible as you would want to use 😮
What about adding vinegar to the water to get rid of the smell???
Hi Roxanne, first let me say thank you for all the wonderful videos. Even though I consider myself an experienced knitter I'm always learning something new from you. My question is about mitts using stranded colorwork, specifically Norwegian style. I have several patterns and the big book of knitted mittens by Joris Linvik. My problem is that no matter what size needles I use the mitts come out far too long and the thumb gusset is far too small. Do you have any suggestions or resources that might help me fix this. Thanks.
Figure out how long you want the mitt to be and aim for the number of rounds that will take, given your gauge, to get you there. You will likely have to alter the number of repeats of the stitch pattern(s) you are using to make that happen.
It's not clear to me if your thumb gusset is too short, or if the problem is that the circumference of the thumb is too small. If the gusset is too short, that may be why the mittens are too long (i.e. the mitten doesn't come down far enough toward your wrist because it's blocked by the thumb pit). Extend the length of the gusset for additional rounds, if necessary. If the circumference is large enough, then you will need to spread out the increases by working more plain rounds between increase rounds. If the problem *is* the gusset length, that may bring the body of the mitt down far enough on your hand for the length to be correct. If the problem is the circumference of the thumb, then you will need more increase rounds to create a larger circumference. My video on how to knit a fingerless mitt without a pattern might be helpful for the gusset portion.
I'll watch that video, thank you so much
As an engineering nerd, I'm extremely interested in your "spreadsheet" process(es) 😁Have you done any videos on that? I've looked through ALL the videos on your channel, and I did not see one...unless that topic is covered under some of your "reorganization" vids. 💖
There are two Casual Friday episodes with the word "spreadsheet" in the titles. If you do a search on my channel for that word, you should find them.
The Vogue Ultimate Knitting book didn’t have German short rows when I needed help. I was disappointed.
That might depend on which edition of the book you have. I believe the most recent edition contains multiple methods of short rows. The previous edition likely would have had only W&T short rows, as that was the only method presented in books published in the US prior to, say, 2015 or so.
Lovely socks ! Lucky daughter !
Could the yarn smell be the lanolin? I imagine it would go rancid like olive oil over time.
❤❤❤
I give free knitting and crochet lessons at a local library. (Duncan Public Library, Oklahoma)
Que lindo todo ,ese libro de Vogue es hermoso todo lo que contiene ,que lindo teje su hija felicitaciones 🇺🇾
Successfull for an old book, not wool: wrap in newsprint and put in a box with cat litter for some weeks.
I'm in Belgium and I have a lot of trouble finding nice non-synthetic yarn that is not fingering, sport or in the bulky range. Especially worsted seems hard to source. No clue if your daughter has the same problem!
The shop she works at caters to an international clientele, so they have yarns of all weights.
@@RoxanneRichardson oh that's nice! Do they have a webshop you're comfortable sharing?
@@k0nijnemans It's stephenandpenelope.com
Wow. That's Stephen West's shop. How fun for her. He is a great designer of color & stitch patterns.
fibraries! :)
Non bleach laundry sanitizer (Lysol brand),
I realize this is 11 months later, but I use vinegar for most smells
If she doesn't mind not having an actual book there are several TH-camrs who's channels are basically stich dictionaries.
In the bible ps 139:13 says "For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb." David is talking about God creating him.
in the Bible translation I use it's woven instead of knitted. Still textile related ...
@ingeleonora-denouden6222 not every bible translation translates it the same. I'm not sure which one has knitted. Maybe NIV or good news? Mine says, "Covered" in kjv but people at church say the phrase "knitted our hearts together." Usually in reference to a couple, adoption, or a really close friendship. An ordained relationship. Knitted is a word very descriptive of omnicient creation. This month's guest on fruity knitting also mentioned this. Art is a little taste of what it's like to create like God creates, although we can't create like God.