So I have cleared every last cone of skipped and gifted yarn in my studio – I have NO, repeat NO, cones of yarn…I’m reeling! (sorry, bad pun!)
I have a small collection of metallics and serging silks/nylons on cones, mmm, kingfisher blue, silver, copper, mmm…. for embellishment, but all my yarn now fits in the small plastic 4 drawer unit that sits on top of some project crates.
Wow! Where did it go, you ask? The largest/fullest cones and some fluffy acrylic that will go well with the fake mohair on some of the cones is going to the refugee forum, a bag so big I can barely lift it 
Luckily my home help volunteers at the forum, so she will happily drop it off with some baby toys my child visitors no longer use.
For the story on where I get this skipped yarn and tips on winding yarn to maintain good tension:
http://singingbirdartist.wordpress.com/2012/11/30/skip-for-joy-a-yarn-winding-tutorial/
The 47 cones I cleared (in slow stages! it was a lovely anti-anxiety aid when I was fretting about the missing benefits – now sorted, only the appeal to not worry about now ) are now divided into yarn for ‘whispering wall’ and balls to use for fundraising for the exhibition next year. What you see below is for the netting and bedizeners and is now stored in a newly cleared 80litre crate of materials and components for whispering wall and cradle for stones – they only both fit in because about 80 cones and cardboard inners that I will use for scrolls are now stored in a big cardboard box, waiting for winter when I can dry the brusho painting by the fire.
I want to make the most enormous braid/dreadlock so will bundle several of these together for one huge freeform crochet chain…I wonder what the record is for the most strands/ply in a crochet/finger knitting chain?
Some of these were so pleasing to mix – they may look a little brash in the picture but once mixed will hopefully be rich and sumptuous
My principle for choosing what yarns to mix is based on paying attention whenever I am in nature – there are colours and textures that like to be together. Too harmonious can become bland, so a little contrariness often pays off, too
The smaller balls are to be corded with a zigzag on the sewing machine, I have some dark golds, metallic brown and gold mixes and a dull orange that shows up as sandy gold against blues, oh yum!
The blood orange mixes will be corded with a metallic plum and black mix…oh yessy colours are so pleasing to work with!
The other mixes are a fluffy fake mohair based set, and a wide range of landscape inspired mixes…my favourites are the ones with flashes of turquoise and the strawberry sherbet mix 
I might knit some up as scarves, they would look lovely with machine cord tassels …
It looks as though I used picasa neonize for the bottom images, but I think my camera did some funny flash/solarise effect..no, I don’t understand the settings on it, it came free from a charity shop because it didn’t work properly and had no manual!! I will take better photos when I set up my fundraising site, promise
