Smoke

Life has been rather involved lately and fiber time has been at a premium.  Luckily I have the sock to keep my fingers calm and there have been moments each day devoted to the simple pleasure of knitting simple socks.

One of life's interventions came in the form of an electrical fire in my clothing closet last weekend.  Luckily it was a small thing, the breaker tripped and the fire put itself out before we came home (we were in NYC at the symphony).  All that we found upon our return was a dead circuit and the smell of burnt plastic/electrical wiring in the master bedroom.   Now the reclamation process begins.  There was very little that was actually burnt, but everything:  my clothes, fabric, yarn, and some roving, smell strongly of burnt plastic.  Everything has to come out to be cleaned or replaced.

The cleaners, who specialize in smoke damage and other damaged textiles, tell me they cannot clean the yarn  or the rovings however and the insurance company has told me to compile a list of all the yarns in the room so that they can reimburse me for the same.  There was not that much yarn, three 18 x 11 x 6 inch boxes, the contents of one of which is shown above.  I really think that I can probably unwind the yarn and put it in skeins then wash it and rewind it, although there is enough yarn that is going to be a tedious and time-consuming process.    G is not convinced that it is worth the effort, but I am a little sad that one of the projects in the closet was this yarn from Anny Blatt:

:

Which was meant for this sweater from 2005, which I had just moved back up to the front of the queue.

My small stash of rovings were also stored in that closet and even though I really have not spent much time practicing my spinning, I am very sad at the prospect of losing them.  The reimbursement is not really the issue, there is not that much money invested in the rovings, certainly under $100, but I still find myself very sad as I really love the colors and the potential they offer.

I suppose that if the smell can be removed by washing, the process of felting, with agitation, hot water and soap would take care of it.  So I might try felting a small piece of something, perhaps a scarf, to see how it turns out.

But I am not sure if I can wash the rovings and still use them for spinning or how I would go about this.  I am told I would need to use fairly warm water and a plenty of soap, that water alone will not remove that burnt plastic smell.

If anyone has any knowledge or suggestions, please let me know.  I suppose I will also inquire at NYS Sheep and Wool next weekend, but at the moment I just feel sad.  I might buy a tiny bit of roving, but I don't see me getting much time to try spinning in the immediate future, and I have plenty of roving to deal with in the meantime.

Still, we are very lucky.  And I am grateful.  But I will be very happy if life would go intervene in someone else's plans for a while.

Comments

[Gina]

Very sad, but at least it wasn't more of a disaster. Disaster enough, but when you think of what might have happened...

[Mardel]

I forgot to say I don't think anyone can replace my yarn. I was more surprised that it was just written off so quickly.

[Mardel]

I think the reason the smell is so noxious is the plastic/airplane glue aspect to it. Some yarns are airing out fine, other things still have a strong odor after a week on the screen porch with lots of airflow, enough to bring tears to the eyes. It might be a combination of fiber content and location. For example I know my silk fabrics have retained a much stronger odor than the wools. Anything plastic-based seems to be impossible.

[Susan]

oops I meant, IT could have been worse.

[Susan]

Oh, that's sad. I could have been much worse, though. House fires can be major tragedies. I'm glad yours didn't spread.
On the yarn, I don't really understand why the smell would be so permanent. I'd try airing the yarn out, maybe putting baking soda or something in with it. Whatever you think might work, is worth a try. The insurance can reimburse you, sure, but can they find the same yarn for you again?