Hi guys! Welcome to this week's blog entry. The more I think about this blog, the more it's like podcast show notes. :) I really like that. I'm not brave enough to podcast, just yet. Although, there are things I never thought I'd do that I am doing; but I'll get into that a little later in On The Back Burner and Adventures, so let's get started...
On The Needles
I didn't make as much progress as I had hoped this week, so I still have some things on the needles that I thought would have been a FO. I'm still working on Amy E's Greek Fire shawl. I am on the last section, so I should have that finished next week.
I'm still working on my Hitchhiker by Martina Behm in "Bad Day" by Lemonade Shop. That has become purse knitting so it's not getting as much love and attention as it did in the beginning. I am still loving the results with those pops of neon rainbow colors!
I'm still working on my Hitchhiker by Martina Behm in "Bad Day" by Lemonade Shop. That has become purse knitting so it's not getting as much love and attention as it did in the beginning. I am still loving the results with those pops of neon rainbow colors!
I've started a Rikke hat by Sarah Young, and I'm knitting that per pattern with some Malabrigo Arroyo in Jupiter.
As always, I have socks OTN and work on them where I can/when I feel like it. Usually they are my "basketball practice" knitting....but I'm actually blogging at practice today.
Finished Objects
In My Queue
I am always looking for new hats and shawls to knit, so if you have any ideas/projects/patterns, please enable me!
Like I mentioned last week, I am joining Ysolda Teague in her Follow Your Arrow 2 KAL. This officially starts Monday, January 19. I still have no idea what yarn I'm using for this. *Note to self: it's later in the month than you think it is; you should get going on this!*
I'm still planning on making Barn Raising squares and should have had at least one casted on, but it's been a busy few days. I'm sure I'll have one OTN or as a FO next week.
New in my queue is the Topography Kerchief by Melissa Stajda. I'm still unsure of which yarn I will use for this. I do have some Republic of Wool and it is what the pattern suggests, but I don't know if the specific colorway I have is right for the pattern. I may test it out and see what happens. There's also a YouTube Video where Melissa explains the detail of this shawl further. Check it out. You have officially been warned, and enabled.
Finally, I am planning on making a baby blanket for a co-worker. She's a recess aide at the school I work at and is a newly wed. She was told she'd "never" have children. This baby, like all babies, is a miracle! She's so excited and rightfully so. She moved here (Indiana) from California recently (because of her husband's job) and has no friends and no family nearby. She's always complimenting my knitwear and often mentions how she wishes she could do that, so I thought it would be nice for her to have a hand-knit item for her baby. I'm not sure exactly which pattern I will make, but I do know I want it to be square.
Stash Enhancements
I went to Tuesday Morning in hopes of getting some ChiGoo needles I've seen everyone and their grandmother post about on Instagram. No such luck. I did, however, buy a skein of Llama Lace by Queensland Collection, which is 100% llama. There are no colorway names, but it does say color 12 on the label. It sort of reminds me of the Anna and Elsa colorways you see from several indie dyers. I've never worked with this llama before and I'm excited to try it out. Not sure what it will be yet. Maybe fingerless mitts.
What I'm Wearing
This week I've really only been wearing my outerwear pieces: my Norwegian Star hat and a mobius cowl I made years ago out of some chunky art yarn that I cannot remember the name of for the life of me! And socks. I'm always wearing hand knit socks this time of year.
On The Burner
I have been working hard in the studio (my kitchen) to get things dyed up and ready for my first shop update! I should be ready to go the weekend of the 24th. I'm not going to lie. It's a difficult thing to get a business going; especially when you're still working elsewhere full-time. I'm enjoying every minute of it...even when I make dyeing mistakes. It's a great learning experience! I'm sure all the indie dyers out there can relate. No one is perfect and everyone makes mistakes. Even the greatest/most popular/hardest to get/cart-jacked (every. single. time.) dyers has experienced set backs. Heck, knitters, crocheters, crafters of all varieties have had set backs. I keep reminding myself of this, and remember how far I've come as a knitter. Five years from now I can't wait to look back at today's work and admire my progress. Anyway, I have some fun colorways for y'all and I hope you enjoy them as much as I do. (SPOILER ALERT: one of them is self-striping!)
On The Back Burner
I have to give credit to Stacie and Steph of the Must Stash Podcast for this next idea. I've recently discovered their podcast (I know, I know....I've been under a rock, apparently, and have been missing out!) They talked about WIPs and frogging and "month of (fill in the blank)". So, I will be doing "Finish It or Frog It February", and will be using #finfrofeb on Instagram. Please feel free to join me and do the same! Basically, during the month of February I will dig out all my UFOs from deeeeeeeep in the UFOS closet and either finish them, or frog them. Off the top of my head I know I have at least 2 shawls, 2 pairs of socks, and a sweater in that bin. Now, I am not counting my current WIPs in this. The idea of this is to clear out stuff I haven't worked on, or even looked at, in months. My current (and future) WIPs will get love too; but these UFOs will take priority.
I am also declaring March: Month of Socks! In my own personal goal to knit 15 pairs of socks in 2015 (#15pairsin2015), and to work on #operationsockdrawer from the Knitmore Girls Podcast, I plan to only work on socks during the month of March. Again, please join me and add #mmos15 to your posts on Instagram.
Adventures
First, non-crafty adventures:
Adventures
First, non-crafty adventures:
I had a Mommy & Me date with Bopper last Sunday (the Hubs and our oldest, Bubs, had a "boys only" football date). We saw Big Hero 6. It was great!! In fact, it was so great I'd pay to see it again in the theater! Bopper is 7 and has autism and ADHD. The school calls him "double exceptional" because he's very smart. He's very good in math and science. He wants to go to M.I.T. for college and make robots. Well, robotics is a major theme in Big Hero 6, so needless to say Bopper loved it!
Now, as if knitting wasn't crazy enough....I bought a drop spindle!! I've never spun before. Well, I've touched a spindle once, and kind of attempted some sort of spinning, but it wasn't really spinning....unless one ply chunky/roving weight counts.
Again, thanks to the amazing ladies of the Must Stash Podcast, I bought a Turtle Made Turkish spindle. Steph did a review of one and I just had to have it. It really looks amazing!! It is 3D printed and comes in a wide variety of colors! It took several days to choose which colors I wanted. I heard Falkland is great for beginners. Thanks to an IG friend, I will have a little bit to practice on. What I want to know from y'all is: What is your favorite fiber to spin? Who are your favorite indie dyers to buy fiber from?
I will be joining Amy Lamash of the Hudson Valley Knits Podcast in Adopt a Senior 2015. She is still running her Senior Love Along, and taking it a step further.
Directly from Amy's Rav post:
"Many of the senior residents at the VA nursing home do not have family and do not receive visits. This is a very lonely life. I am working with the Activity Coordinator to come up with a list of residents they would benefit from having a person to keep in touch with them throughout the year".
The commitment includes:
~cards sent on birthday and holidays
~a personal handcrafted item made specifically for your senior
Additional written letters and small gifts may be sent during the year
It is a big commitment, but as Amy explains, you will be making a beautiful difference in this world. I do hope this is something you will consider. If you'd like to help/donate, but are unable to commit to Adopt a Senior, you can still help! The Senior Love Along is a craft along to collect washcloths for the seniors. You can find more information on Amy's Rav group.
That's it for this week. Thanks for checking me out. I'm not too sure how many read this blog, but I do appreciate every one of you! If there is anything y'all want to know, please feel free to ask me in the comments and I will reply in next week's post. As always, you can find me on Rav and IG as wittyknittingyarn. I hope everyone has a great week!
Tell your tale and make every stitch count!
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