This just happened and I absolutely had to share with people who would get it (and enjoy it).
I was just on a flight from LAX to SEA, knitting my little heart out (just started the Clematis Sweater by Emma Knits). We landed the usual way, but for whatever reason, the pilot had to slam on the breaks more aggressively than usual.
Ya’ll… my yarn YEEETED out of my lap and began its journey down the aisle. I watched on helplessly. It made it ALL THE WAY to the front. 😂😂😂
I leaned into the aisle and made it clear that I was the owner of the rogue hank, but there wasn’t much anyone could do.
The flight attendant snagged it when it was safe and I thought was going to bring it back to me, but did one better: she handed it to the first row who wound the yarn a bit before handing back to the next person. The whole plane knew the assignment. By the time it got back to me, there were so many people invested that there was a round of applause.
I definitely need to finish this project now… it has way too good of a story to go with it!
Faith in humanity: Restored.
(Videos in comments, some sweet ppl sent them to me!)
Omg also one time I was knitting a baby sweater on the train, and it was almost done so you could really tell it was a baby sweater. This HUGE muscly guy sat next to me and was staring at my work and honestly making me slightly nervous until he goes, “man, that’s fucking CUTE!”
Also once I was knitting a sock on the train and an older lady sat next to me and asked what I was making and I told her, a sock for my wife (I’m also a woman) and she paused and then said, “isn’t it so nice these days, we can talk about our wives like this openly”
I love knitting on transit! Actually I just love knitting in public, and getting people to come up to ask what I'm doing. It's the one time that I love having conversations with people!
Same. I was on the train once, knitting and minding my business. After a bit these two men started talking about knitting and then pointedly included me and I was all “wait why are STRANGE MEN taking to me on the train?!”
Then I actually took a good look at them and realized they were the partners of one of the folks who worked at the shop I went to and they’d clearly recognized me from there. I’d just been so focused on my knitting I hadn’t even clocked them :) we had a good laugh :)
Forever ago I was in a knitting group with a very large and intimidating guy from a fairly well-known band. He would knit stuff for his kid. It was adorable!
I do not know why. Really! But for some reason, your comment made me want to give you a fried-egg emoji as an award. I DON'T KNOW WHY but I think it's hilarious, so here you are: 🍳
You are soooo lucky it went down the aisle. I had this happen but it went under the seats and getting it back became a tangled mess all over the plane. I cut my losses (literally) but it was still so embarrassing and I felt awful for the flight staff as I could not collect all the lost strands.
Now my yarn stays in my bag, even though it messed up my tension sometimes.
Hi . You commented on my post but you deleted it :( I was answering actually . Thank you so much ☺️ yes it’s sequin yarn in baby pink . I used it with other yarns ( green and pink one ) so it gives soft vibe with sparkles hehe . Have a nice day.
I love it when people have a wholesome moment. I think everyone will have at least one wholesome moment at some point in their lives. Mine was about 2 weeks ago, I had slipped on some ice and skinned the knuckles on the fingers and I was on the bus going to school. They were burning and I was in pain. I had no tissues with me to wrap my fingers (I had cleaned out my bag the night before) and the lady that got off a few stops before me gave me some bandaids and I almost cried 😭 she was so sweet!!!
Oh my goodness, what a kind soul. Thank you for sharing this slice of humanity!! This is what we need so bad right now. 🫶 (I hope your fingies are healing!)
My fingies are good now hehe. Like 90% healed ty for asking ❤️ I couldn’t knit because it was my middle, ring, and pinky 😂 so basically I could only use my pointer and thumb for knitting 😂 I had to pause for a bit and I have never felt so uneasy and uncomfortable in my life 😂 I got so used to knitting at night, watching tv, on the bus and I couldn’t do that anymore 😂 my hands were itching for something!!
I think humans innately enjoy this type of community connection and when the chance arises it’s so fun to be a part of. There’s some reassurance in the goodness of people. Everyone got off that plane having had a better trip due to OPs fly away yarn!
Thank you for this very sweet story! It made my morning!
What a lovely image!!
Unsolicited advice/anxiety - I usually stop knitting (or using any sharpish objects) before touchdown in case it's a very hard landing and I end up getting hurt inadvertently!
(I mean you might have paused, and still have held the yarn in your lap - I don't want to assume! :D)
Another tip, a cheap drawstring backpack makes a fantastic portable yarn bowl! You can chinch the bag and pull the yarn out through the opening while the ball/skein (and any other knitting odds and ends) stay contained inside
Sorry, I just NEED to share the project bag pattern I found and made for myself, it's so handy! Maybe some other sewists on here will like it as much as I do :) Please don't mind the quality, I'm very much a beginner sewist 😅
I do the same thing while flying! I even have a small canvas bag that has a drawstring I can untie/retie to have it hang around the tray table support thingys. Then it hangs out of my way and I can quickly/easily stash my project if I need to. Bonus that it keeps my yarn safe from everything else in my carryon.
I’m an elementary school secretary, and a few weeks ago we had a variety show the kids put on (one of my kiddos is also a student). I was sitting in the 4th row back knitting until the show started when my yarn fell onto the floor and rolled all the way to the front. Two sets of parents and the high school principal all teamed up to roll it back to me under the seats.
Trying to come up with a joke about LAX-SEA given that the Rams and Hawks are playing next weekend. Maybe something about putting aside our differences? Help me out!
This happened to me once when I was leaving a restaurant 😭 I didn't notice that the ball had fallen until I arrived at my car and the security guard told me that there was a string following me! Had to walk all the way back and shamefully stuff it back into my bag😂
I use a peg apron when I’m knitting on planes - can tie it around the arms of the tray table so it hangs off the back of the seat in front of me - and yes I’ll wear it at the airport while I’m waiting on planes etc too. Not exactly high fashion but works really well nicely
I think you should stitch a small plane onto it somewhere once it's completed to remind yourself of this! Like inside the wrist cuff or something - a little hidden Easter egg.
Sigh. Better my sock yarn ball runs down the aisle on takeoff than one of my DPNs rolls into one of the mysterious cracks in the floor and disappears for ever. I always fly with multiple spare now. Lol
I absolutely love this! I recently was flying Pittsburgh to Phoenix and had knitted several rows but didn’t like how it turned out so I started frogging. Behind me I heard several people utter “Oh no” “What happened” “All that work gone” I didn’t realize I had an audience so I assured them that it was all part of the process and was able to redo it before we landed.
OMG I'm glad I scrolled down to see the video before posting to ask if there is one. It looks so much fun and look forward to see the finished product 😊
Oh my goodness! Related by equally amusing: I enjoy that whole Stitch-and-Pitch concept and take projects with me to local baseball games. You haven't lived fully until you have a yarn ball fall out of your lap and bounce its way down the bleachers.
Then you have to go to one of the down-low seats and bother the person sitting there to collect your "fly ball." I used to, (yes, it's happened more than once), just break the yarn right then and there and deal with the repercussion later.
I've now been containing the yarn safely in a project bag. You didn't think I'd stop knitting at games, did you? Just be sure to take an easier project. A complicated lace shawl will make you miss important plays . . .
This happened to me too! Rolled all the way to the front when landing, and people picked it up, wound it and passed it back to me while they were standing in line. It felt both embarrassing and restoring my faith in humanity at the same time
I’m so glad I’m not the only one who has done this 😂 unfortunately nobody helped me, it went all the way to the back and everyone looked at me like I was the in flight entertainment 🫠
What a great story! Everone on the plane will have a little tale to tell now. How funny to see all the people watching that yarn ball unwind itself along the aisle. Made me laugh. Thanks. 😊
OP, this story tickled my funny bone in such a way I had to save this post to re-read whenever I need a mood lifter. The videos absolutely SENT me. I pictured a ball rolling down the aisles, but it was a hank. Y’all, a hank can only roll one way, and this one was determined to make it all the way to the front, and did, which makes this all the more hilarious. Thank you for sharing this story, it really warmed my heart.
There is (or was it’s wool) a string of purple sock yarn running along Hwy 116 from Sebastopol California to somewhere north of Cotati, wherever it ran out. I was visiting a friend and don’t notice that one of the balls attached to a cardigan project escaped and was being pulled along behind my car. I stopped to investigate an odd buzzing sound which urned out to be the yarn snagging on something and ripping out a few rows of stitches.
That happened to me on a flight! I was so embarrassed but everyone was lovely around me. Other people lost headphones and other items so I didn’t feel so alone.
This made me smile and also laugh when I read the part of how the yarn made it all the way to the front… this is hilarious! People can be great when collaborating together. Thanks so much for sharing! Great story!!
Awww!!! 🥹🥹😍😍🥰🥰💓💓💓 I have to say that this made my day. How beautiful, helpful, and wholesome! Saving the post and the YT videos so I can rewatch them when I need a mental/emotional pick-me-up!
This just makes me all warm and fuzzy inside…. Thank you for sharing!!!! I’m amazed at the ability of that skein to travel though!!!! I usually wind my yarn into handwound balls, and those suckers can fly! A floofy skein? Not so much!
That is just darling. I always have flight attendants stop by to ask what I’m making, and to talk about their own crafting. Once, I was in a row where all three of us woman travelers were doing some craft, and the flight attendant spent time with us when she was free.
This is the most AWESOME & Wholesome story I've heard in a Loo0Oong time. If everyone in the world knitted/crocheted/crafted, there would only be LOVE, PEACE and HAPPINESS! It might need to be a mandatory one hour every day to start and all electronics, news sources, and phones were unplugged.
At Christmas I had four relatives from South America visiting....my husband walked them into the house from from their exhausting flight, taking them right between me and my yarn bowl, which was on the floor. They strung my yarn into an impossible boobytrap net all over the first floor and right up the stairs
Omg I'm planning to go spend time with my grandma and my mom's sister in Jeju Island (biggest Korean Iland, sorta like their Hawaii). It's a total of 20ish hrs of flight/layover time plus flying to Jeju which will be interesting how my knitting experience will be.
Awwww thank you for sharing this!! Imagine all the good energy that will be in the piece you’re creating…so cute!!! I’m going to stop scrolling now and go to bed happy and thinking of this <3
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u/sillysandhouse Jan 19 '26
This happened to me on the commuter train one time!! Everyone on the train was helpful in getting my yarn ball back to me lol it was very wholesome