Busy, Busy, Busy...

This past week I've been on Spring Break. For a whole week I didn't have to go to work, so I drove over 600 miles to rescue the remaining yarn stash and my pattern collection from my parent's house in Ohio. I've also gotten a large amount of knitting done on my works in progress while I was at home, gave Dot the Monster a mouth so she could talk to me, and have even started some new things as well.

In fact, I've gotten so much accomplished that I'm going to have to divide up last week's progress into two or three posts.  We'll see. I wanted to do nothing but knit while in Ohio on Vacation, but that may have been the 40 degree weather they were experiencing.  It was much nicer to knit in than the 8-+ degree weather we are having here in SC right now.

I finished 2 projects on Easter day.

The first was a pair of socks that I started at the end of January.

Pattern: Nanner Socks by Wendy Johnson
Yarn: Lime & Violet Sasquatch Super Sock in Just Ripe Nanners
Comments: I bought the yarn for these AGES ago back when I first started wasting all of my free time on Plurk.  I'm not even sure when the last time was that Lime & Violet were doing yarn, but I know this has been in my stash for ages.  So glad to have them done, kinda sad that I didn't make them just a smidge longer.  I have fat feet and always will, so I need to remember to make them just a bit longer so that I can actually wear them! These fit. Pull, tug and cram them onto your feet type of fit. Since yellow really isn't a color of mine (and I found 3 pairs of knit socks when cleaning my bedroom in Ohio) I decided to gift these to my little sister.  She has smaller feet than me, so she'll definitely be able to wear them.

After casting off the Nanner socks I immediately picked up the worsted wingspan I was working on and finished that off in less than 2 hours.

Pattern: Wingspan
Yarn: Bernat Mosaic in Waterfall
Comments: This was a great yarn for the price.  I picked it up when it was 40% off at A.C. Moore and had to do some ripping at the beginning when I messed it up.  I ripped the beginning out three times and the yarn still looks amazing!

I still love this pattern, especially with gradient and self stripping yarns. This shawl will be going to a friend in the future and I may make more for gifts because it's soooo quick and easy to knit!

Before leaving Ohio my mom picked up some felt for me so that we could give Dot the Monster a mouth.

Pattern: Dot the Dress Up Box Monster
Yarn: Handspun
Comments: Oh how I love handspun yarn. I used a superwash merino for the body (leftovers from another project) and less than 4 grams of a merino/silk blend for the ears and little eye patch. LOVE this monster! I definitely need to work on my seaming skills however.

At the beginning of this month I decided to knit up a pair of socks as part of a Knit-A-Long for the Knitting in Circles podcast.  It was a 56 stitch sock so it knit up SUPER FAST and as an added bonus it actually FIT Fiance's feet!  He now has a brand new pair of socks in boy colors for him to wear.  This I believe is his second pair of socks (the first pair was the Pomatomus Pattern that I knit AGES ago for him.)

Pattern: Crocodile Rock
Yarn: Knit Picks Felici Sport in Ecology
Comments: This was such a fast knit!  I cast them off last night (April 14th) so it was less than two weeks with one and a half socks knit in the last week alone! I absolutely love knitting socks out of sport weight.  I think I'll be buying some more and knitting a few more pairs for myself. Especially since sport weight socks means I can make socks that fit me with normal patterns!


A lot of finished projects huh?

Since I'm in a typing kinda mood I think I'll keep on going and make this one epic post!

If you remember, at the very end of March I wrote a post that said "I need to knit my March hat for the 12 hats in 2012 thing!" We'll I knit a hat!  I stash dove, I mixed and matched up a bunch of old cotton yarn in the stash and knit a hat that I am quite in love with!  I knit it up before March ended and yet I never got around to blogging!

For some reason I was on such a knitting/spinning high I never bothered to blog because it took away time from playing with fiber!

Wanna see the hat?

Pattern: Grace Lace Beret
Yarn: TLC Cotton Scraps
Comments: I knit this up with some blue and green cotton scraps I had in the stash for years now.  I used about 70 grams to make up this hat and since I have tons left I will be making a matching scarf to go with it!  Note to self: Start the scarf before you forget.

As far as works in progress go, as of this morning I have only ONE project on the needles!  Just one!  I made quite a bit of progress on that shawl as well while I was on.

I bought some of the little markers to use to keep myself motivated while working on larger projects. It helps me to feel like I'm accomplishing something because I can see how much I've knit up! From the marker to the end was the amount I knit while on Spring Break. Hopefully we'll see much more progress by the end of this coming week. :)

I've got a bunch of spinning to show and of course a stash update, but I think I will save those for tomorrow.  I hope you all have a great week! Happy knitting!

Finally some Photos

The first project was finished at the end of January; however, I didn't get around to blocking and taking photos until this past weekend.

Pattern:  198 yds. of Heaven
Yarn:  Bernat Handicrafter Cotton in Swimming Pool
Comments:  This was a great pattern, I used up some washcloth cotton I had in the stash and did an extra repeat of the body to use up more yarn and make it a little bigger. I may make more of these in other colors.  It would be great for handspun!

Also I showed you the Llama fiber I had been spinning up.  It's done! There is 8oz of handspun, 576 yards total.  Of course some of that yardage may disappear during washing, or maybe I'll get lucky and the yarn will grow during washing?

I love the colors of this and Llama is SO soft!  It will probably be a shawl or scarf, something that doesn't need to fit and will drape nicely.

Stash Update!

Yarn Out:  817g (2058y)

Yarn In:  0g (0y)

Yards Spun:  841y

The shawls yardage had already been added in since it was bound off for my last update, but the handspun is new!  Another 576 yards added to my handspun stash!  Lately when looking at my stash it feels as if it is shrinking quickly.  Part of me is sad to see the yarn disappearing fast, but another part of me is happy to see these things finally being knit with!  I have big plans for when my stash is gone, but you'll have to wait to see what happens. :)

February Goals:

• Knit my February Hat for 12 Hats in 2012
• Finish the Afghan started back in 2006
• Finish the Stripe Study Shawl
• Make some progress on my Candle Flame Shawl
• Buy NO yarn/fiber!

Two FOs and Two NEW Cast-Ons!

I said I would be setting some weekly goals for myself, to help myself keep motivated and feel like I've accomplished something, especially when working on larger projects.

Last week, I set these goals:
-Finish the Washcloth
-Finish 198 yds. of Heaven
-Use up the rest of the first skein on the Candle Flame Shawl

Finish the washcloth: DONE!

Pattern: The Cotton Dishcloth (once removed or dressed up)
Yarn: Peaches & Creme in Pink Lemonade.  Yes.. I still have more of this left.  This cloth only used up 39g and it seems like this will be the skein that never ends!

It is a great pattern though, I loved knitting it and already have plans to cast on some more, especially since it only requires 39 grams of yarn!

Finish the 198 yds. of Heaven Shawlette: DONE!

Pattern: 198 yds. of Heaven
Yarn: Bernat Handicrafter Cotton
Comments:  I added an extra repeat in the main body, and somewhat regret it.  It used up a lot more yarn, but it came out bigger than I expected.  I did use a size 10.5 US needle since I was using a dishcloth cotton for the shawl.  I'm sure once it blocks out I'll like it a little more, and if not I'll wear it inside when it gets cool.  This was done for a KAL on Ravelry and I love the pattern.  I may make it in another yarn, or even a laceweight yarn at some point in the future.

Finishing up the first skein of the Candle Flame Shawl.... yea, it didn't happen.  I had a very busy week between work and life in general, so no other projects happened this weekend, but it's okay.  After watching tons of podcasts and listening to everyone talk about socks I decided I needed more socks on my needles.  Then while chatting in virtual knit night the other day, someone showed me the nanner socks she was working on by Wendy Johnson.  Wait... I have that pattern, and yarn I bought FOR that pattern YEARS ago!  But that yarn was living in Ohio... or so I thought.  Turns out it was in my boxes upstairs!  So guess what I cast on?

Yup!  Nanner socks in Lime & Violet Sasquatch Sock (75% wool, 25% nylon) that I purchased ages ago from their shop.  This stuff has been in my stash for way too long, so it's finally nice to be using up some of those sock yarns I was hording...

Speaking of sock yarn, I also wound this:

Two skeins of Dream in Color Smooshy Sock Yarn in colors Gothic Rose and Deep Seaflower.  I bought these yarns over a year ago with intentions to knit them into gift scarves.  That hasn't happened yet, so when I came across the Stripe Study shawl for the Knitting in Circles Podcast I knew what I wanted to make out of these yarns.  The pattern has been downloaded, but haven't been cast on yet.  Hopefully I'll get them started at some point tonight.

Since I have two new FOs, I also have a new stash status update:

Yarn Out:  817g (2058y)

Yarn In:  0g (0y)

Yards Spun:  265y

Well.. It's Not A Washcloth!

It's January.  January.  I realized two days ago when going on and on and on about how I was going to knit gifts this year for all of my friends and family, that my mother's birthday was coming up soon.  In fact it was coming up very soon.  At that point I had 17 days to knit a gift and ship it back home to her before her birthday.  Well, I was busy with a washcloth.  (Are you surprised?)  So last night I went into my stash and looked for a suitable yarn that I could turn into a scarf for mom.  I know what is in my stash, and my color preferences do not always match those of my mother, so I was very concerned about being able to find something from stash to knit for her.  Luckily the first bin I opened up was the one that holds my handspun, and a bluish gray was sitting on top.  5 skeins of it.  This is the first handspun I ever spun on my Ashford Traditional wheel.  I loved the fiber when I bought it.  I loved the yarn after it was spun.  But it wasn't really my colors.  It is however something I think that would work very well for my mother.

I started the scarf last night and was able to get that far before turning into bed.  I think I'll be able to finish it with plenty of time.


In case you were concerned... I did also finish another dishcloth. ;)

Pattern:  Seamless Circular Cloth
Yarn:  Peaches & Creme - Pink Lemonade
Comments:  Good Pattern.  I'm getting sick of the yarn a little. LOL.  This is the 4th washcloth I've finished this year so my gift box is picking up some items fast while my stash is beginning to dwindle!

I'm in a few groups on Ravelry, and although I am tracking my stash busting by tracking the grams used, another group of mine is tracking the yards knit.  So I thought I would add that to my destash list as well!

Yarn Out:  181g (388y)

Yarn In:  0g (0y)

Yards Spun:  150y

I Luv Washcloths

The washcloth high continues.  This one was finished yesterday and a new one was cast on immediately after.  This pattern was good, but it wasn't my favorite.  Not sure why just wasn't for me.  Maybe it's the way my yarn striped out?  Or maybe it's just because I wasn't thrilled with the shape of it.  NO complaints about the pattern itself.  It was written well, and her patterns are easy to read.  I had a few difficulties but that was likely due to errors with my own reading. ;)

Pattern:  Leafy Surprise Cloth
Yarn:  Peaches & Creme - Pink Lemonade (50g)
Comments:  Good pattern, I had some difficulties with the problem, not sure if it was me or the way it was written.  I found it odd you never knit across completely to finish off each section.  I ended up with one stitch that seemed to be carried along throughout the project without being knitted.  Was weird especially when casting off.  I'm not seeing where I made a mistake in the pattern, but maybe it was something I did wrong.

New Yarn Totals for the Year:

Yarn Out:  136g

Yarn In:  0g

Yards Spun:  150y

Another Cloth for 2012

Well my holiday break from work is coming to and end.  Tomorrow will be back with all of the usual chaos and pandemonium that happens on a daily basis.  My goal is to get things done, and enjoy life with as little stress as possible.  Hopefully the new year will mean a better situation in work and home life.

Of course, back to work will also mean less knitting time for me, so posts may slow down a bit as my knitting slows down.  Hopefully I will still have time for my craft, but we'll have to see.

Early yesterday after finishing my blog post, I finished yet another washcloth that has been added to my "gift box."  I'm on a roll with the cotton washcloths lately.  They're quick, fun, and help with my stash numbers!

 

Pattern:  The Windmill Dishcloth
Yarn:  Peaches & Creme in Pink Lemonade
Comments:  Love this pattern.  It was very easy to follow and made a cute little cloth.  I still have a ton of yarn left on this cone so you will see lots of Pink Lemonade colored washcloths in my future. 

I'm really enjoying the variety of patterns I'm finding on Ravelry.  It's been fun to go through and queue about 10-15 washcloths at a time then work my way through them.  The nice thing about having a lot of one color yarn is that I get the chance to try out patterns, without running out of my "favorite color."  Once I find a few set patterns I like I'll be able to whip even more cloths out and use up all that cotton that seems to be lingering in my stash.  I bought this stuff ages ago with intentions to knit washcloths and it looks like I'm finally getting around to doing it!

The only bad thing about knitting washcloths is that after awhile my hands start to hurt from the cotton.  I am using a size 8 needle when I knit, so it's not a horribly tight stitch; however, I am a tight knitter and I've been knitting non-stop for the past few days.  I decided to give my hands a little break, and pulled out some BFL to spin that has been in the stash since 2008.

I started spinning after dinner last night and was done plying before I went to bed.  I did aim for a worsted and got pretty close.  I am amazed sometimes at how two skeins of handspun appear to be the same weight, yet one is 300 yards and the other is 150.  I really like a tightly spun and tightly plied squooshy kinda yarn and that does eat up the fiber when spinning.

This was 4oz - 150 yards of BFL handspun in the color Thermograph from the Spunky Eclectic Fiber Club.  I really enjoyed spinning it up, and I'm thinking I'll make a hat from it after the twist has been set.  One of my goals for 2012 was to knit 12 hats during 2012, so I have a need for some nice quality worsted weight yarn.  What better than my own handspun?

Finished items means a new count for 2012!  Yay progress!

Yarn Out:  86g

Yarn In:  0g

Yards Spun:  150y

Bring on 2012!

It's a new year, and I am one step closer to completing my knitting goals of 2012!  We're off to a great start already.

The truth, I needed something to knit last night while I was "celebrating."  There was no alcohol on my new years eve; however, I did have family over and it's hard to socialize and knit on an intricate lace shawl.  Because of that I cast on for a washcloth that I had been itching to make for a few days now.  I finished this just after midnight last night making it my first finished object of 2012!

Pattern:  4-Corners Dishcloth
Yarn:  Peaches & Creme - 42 grams
Comments:  I have knit several of these and I love the pattern.  It does have you slip the stitch as if to purl but make sure the yarn is held in back.  I was holding it in front (as if I was purling) and it left some gaps that I didn't like in the washcloth.  Apparently when I made it in the past I didn't read the directions, or I just slipped as if to knit.

As I said I will NOT purchase any yarn or fiber unless I've used up twice the amount.  So with each finished object I will be posting my current yarn status.

Yarn Out:  42g

Yarn In:  0g

Yards Spun:  0y

So as of right now I can buy 21g of yarn if I really want!  I think I'll start saving up now so I can make a knit picks purchase later in the year for a few Christmas gifts.

Also this is the first washcloth of 2012 to go into my "gift box" where I'll be storing finished objects to give out in years to come.

Happy New Years everyone!!!  I wish you all a safe and happy year.

Yarn Stash Revisited

It's December, and since New Years is just around the corner I decided to reorganize my stash and plan out my knitting goals for 2012.  I hit a bumpy start when I pulled out my yarn basket and as I began to organize it I ran into a few bugs.  Literally, evidence of carpet beetles.  Although I have been fortunate never to have any wool moths invade my stash, I have had carpet beetles.  Luckily the first time I found a few carpet beetles, they hadn't done any real damage to my yarn.  One little bit of roving was tossed and the rest of the stash was fine.  This time unfortunately there were a few casualties.  Two 50g skeins of knit picks memories that I had purchased years ago (it's no longer sold) had several holes chewed in them.  They immediately went into the trash along with some leftover Lisa Souza yarn that I had used when knitting a pair of socks years ago.  Overall it wasn't a huge loss, and I do still have tons of yarn left in my stash.  Although, taking photos of my yarn and roving today I realized I'm still missing a lot of fiber and yarn.  Things I know I haven't knit with, but have no idea where they are.  They aren't in my current house, so I'm assuming they're still back in my bedroom somewhere in Ohio.  Next trip home I'll dig through my stash and hopefully bring the rest of my supply home.  I miss my yarn.

This is the yarn stash currently living in my house with me.  Organizing it really made me realize just how much of my yarn I do not have.  Yes I have a lot, but there is quite a bit that is missing from this pile.  Sock yarn on the left, some cottons in the middle, and then on the right side there are some current works in progress and some leftover yarn from old projects that I plan on using in a fun scarf or something else.

My Roving stash is quite large too now that I take the time to go through it.  In the back left I have quite a bit of Crown Mountain Farms superwash merino that I plan on making some sock-hop yarn out of.  Once upon a time I used to spin sock hop for CMF so I do know how it is spun and I did horde it back when I used to spin for them.  There are my two Sheep2Shoe kits in the back, some louet fiber in the front which is just delicious, and several 8oz balls on the right side.  Of course, I have quite a bit of silk in the stash as well that I'll need to find something to do with.

Since I have quite a bit of roving I also have quite a bit of handspun in my stash as well.  It's kind of sad actually, I had forgotten I had the majority of this handspun.  I have a few ideas of projects I'm dying to make for myself, and my sister really likes some of the handspun I don't like, so she may get a scarf or shawl for herself.