Last week Baby John’s cashmere sweater came off my needles. Am I insane to knit a cashmere sweater for a 5 month baby? Probably. But he’s my munchkin to spoil. However, I will say I paid a total of $8 for this cashmere.

No, I didn’t get this lovely yarn at a yarn sale. I salvaged it from two lovely cashmere sweaters from the second hand store. After ripping out the two sweaters (one blue and one camel) I plied them together with my spinning wheel — yes, one of the lovely benefits of having a wheel on hand. It turned out to be a lovely, rounded, 4 ply worsted weight cashmere yarn that was heaven to knit.

So, if your dying to knit with cashmere but your budget right now will not permit that kind of a splurge — try recycled cashemere! It’s VERY rewarding.

I will say one thing — this sweater is VERY warm. Poor Baby John almost overheated in it on Sunday. I’ll have to make sure he wears it only on the coldest days.

Next time I recycle cashmere I think I’m going to make my Birthday Cake Cowl or my Pearl Street Scarf. Those are two items that would sing if they were knitted out of cashmere!