Recycling Yarn

Recycling yarn is the loving act of rescuing knitwear and unravelling it to reuse the yarn in new projects.

You can recover luxurious, decadent yarn from thriftstore rejects. Look for sweaters that are outdated or have holes or stains or are otherwise unwearable that can be had for a fraction of what it would cost to purchase the yarn.

I've had wonderful luck finding cashmere, angora, lambswool and other luxury fiber knitwear at the Goodwill as is bins at the main store in Portland located at 1943 Se 6th Ave, Portland, OR. Everything in the bin is $1.19 (well, except for jeans and coats, which are $2.49). Many of the items I've purchased are in perfect condition, some have imperfections that make them perfect candidates to be recycled in some way (whether by being felted or being unravelled). I have about 10 oz of gorgeous cashmere that I retrieved from two $1.19 sweaters.

Then, follow this wonderful recycled yarn tutorial: http://neauveau.com/recycledyarn.html

The tutorial, above, was created by Ashley Martineau. She is a contributor to Interweave Knits, and she recounts how she got interested in recycled yarn in this article: http://www.interweave.com/knit/interweave_knits/ashley.asp

For a time, she was making extra money recycling yarn and reselling it on eBay.

Hey, in case you don't feel like unraveling a great sweater check out these pin cushion teacups they are super cute:

http://www.marthastewart.com/page.jhtml?type=content&id=stv4070083