The Work of Human Hands

Yarn. Books. The two things I could happily collect more and more of for the rest of my life. Book people tend to have a similar relationship with their collection as knitters and crocheters do with their stash. I prefer to think of myself as someone who doesn’t just buy for the sake of buying, someone who isn’t wasteful, someone who understands that “stuff” isn’t what makes this life grand. People, not things.

On the other hand, I see a value inherent in items created by fellow humans. The story held in a book. The hours and hours of the author’s life spent telling them, working it all out on a page (literal or figurative these days). The thrills of a new story begun, the persevering spirit as it works out all of the characters and details, the trust as it’s sent off to the publisher. The designers taking the author’s work and laying it out with cover art and fonts that support the writing. The joy of first proofs. And, of course, a box of freshly printed and bound books. The work of the mind poured through the hands.

Wolkenspiel, hand-dyed by Zitron

Yarn is the same thing for me. Handspun yarn. Hand-dyed yarn. These are really special items in a stash. The touch of the spinner or dyer so evident in what we hold in our hands. The colors they choose say so much about them. Some dyers work in bright, shocking hues. Others in earthy, subtle shades. There are the self-striping dyers, turning out skeins of colorful madness to become our wildest socks. 

It isn’t only the hand-dyers, though. Each yarn range has its unique aesthetic. There are the workhorse yarns (Simpliworsted comes to mind) that come in every color imaginable and all the slight variations in between. Is this red really different than that red? Then, we hold them close under a good light and see that, yes, they are two different red...very close, but different. There are people behind those colors, as well. Making decisions, comparing colors, watching fashion trends, making sure to keep alive the old standbys. Of course, there are always entire new ranges of yarn, with fewer colors than the workhorses, but oh do they shine (Rylie, for instance)! Your favorite jeans vs. the perfect dress, bought for a sparkling night out.

Simpliworsted

Rylie

Again, the work of the mind poured through the hands.

So, yes, I have books I may never read. I have yarn I may never knit. They are more than things, though, more than “stuff”. They are the work of the human spirit, creativity made tangible. They are about the people behind them…and where they might take me.

-Betsey