January 2017 in Review

I’ve decided to post quick (hopefully) monthly reviews so I can better track what I am finishing, as well as track my stash management goals. This is also going to be a bit of a test for me to see if I can put together a post quickly. Aaaaaaand…….go!

This is my first official finish of 2017. It is the Earl Grey hat by Clare Devine.  This was part of her Tea Collection. I do have another skein of this yarn (Patons Classic Wool Worsted) to make the matching cowl. I absolutely love the double cable look. I’m sure that is not what it’s called but you can probably tell which part of the cable I am referring to. The weird thing for me is that the hat is not a beanie, nor is it a slouchy hat. So it sits atop my head in a bit of a pointy fashion and I probably look like a conehead. I’ve decided not to worry about it, since I don’t have to look at myself when I am out and about.

Next came the Sonder shawl by Helen Stewart of Curious Handmade. This was the last pattern in the collection she released last summer called The Shawl Society. It is also the first of the collection that I have made. Some of you may remember last November after the US election there was a wonderful hashtag going around Instagram #knitterspayitforward For that initiative, I decided I would let people comment on my post and I used random number generator to choose someone to knit for. Random Number Generator chose a lovely woman named Amy who lives in Oregon. I asked her a few questions about her preferences and she told me she like purple. Well, I happened to have a skein of Cascade Eco+ in Purple Heather deep in my stash so this turned out to be a marriage made in heaven. The pattern is very intuitive and I knit it in three days.

This is my monster finish. I started the Match & Move shawl by Martina Behm last year and picked it up at the end of the year when I was on a mission to clear my needles. There was no way I was going to get it done in 2016 but I am very pleased with this finished object. It came out over 1000 yards! The yarn is souvenir yarn I got last year from Gauge in Austin, Texas. It is hand dyed by a local Austin dyer Little Green Finch and it was such a treat to find fingering weight yarn in 150 gram put ups. This shawl is getting a lot of wear, and a lot of compliments.

 

I put off writing this post until February because I wasn’t sure if I would squeak out this last finished object. Lisa, who is a moderator in the Down Cellar Studio Ravelry group, came up a wonderful idea called #WIP2017InTheButt. Each month, we have an opportunity to declare a WIP by the 5th of the month that we will finish by the end of the month. I can tell this is going to be a great support to me as I vow to finish 2017 with no hibernating items. These are my Hermione’s Everyday Socks by Erica Lueder. I started them in August 2015. Yes, 2015. People rave about this pattern, but I had such a hard time with the instructions for the heel that I gave up and did a regular slip stitch heel flap and gusset. I also tried a swirl toe from the Lara Neel Sock Architecture book and I didn’t really like the look of it. The biggest problem with this pair of socks is that I hated the yarn. I got it on sale for $5. It is the scratchiest yarn I’ve ever worked with, in fact at one point it started to rub the skin off my tensioning finger! But I was determined to finish as I already had the second sock started. I decided to make life easier and knit a Fish Lips Kiss heel and regular rounded wedge toe. These socks are going to live with the Assistant Farmer’s Market Manager where I work part-time. I warned her that the socks would be different and scratchy. She tried on the first sock and didn’t seem to mind so she is getting her first pair of socks. I’ve washed them so I’m hoping they soften up just a little bit. I might try this stitch pattern again someday with better yarn.

 

I’ve had no real pull to buy yarn for quite some time. However, when I was at the farmer’s market last weekend I spied these gorgeous skeins of yarn from one of the organic farmers (Nith Valley Organics). I’m guessing it is about a DK weight (263 yards in 100grams) and it was selling for $15 Canadian per skein, directly from the farmer who raised the sheep. I couldn’t resist. A friend showed me lots of colours that would match this so I’m looking forward to making an accessory I can wear with a lot of clothes I own.

 

After Rhinebeck last year I decided that would start a sock yarn scrap blanket. I was gifted eight minis there and I really understood the concept of a Memory Blanket. I am using the Pinwheel Scrap Blanket by Mina Philipp of Knitting Expat Designs. I am participating in a KAL right now called Winter Camp and one of the activities we do in teams of four is called the Snowball Fight. For 72 hours we make as many modular pieces for our blankets as we can. I turned out to be the low producer on my team. I completed 26 triangle wedges. My Rhinebeck square is on the bottom right, The top right is my own sock leftovers and the upper left is my Shameka square, made of minis sent by my friend and teammate Shameka from the Knit Night with Mekamika podcast.

Other crafts: I signed up for a beginning sewing class at The Make Den. It was a four week class with three projects. Part of my goal was to learn to make project bags so I could send them to knitting friends and I’ve now learned to do that. The drawstring bag was our first project. It is not squared off at the bottom as it was meant to be a shoe bag but I’m using it for knitting (naturally). The adorable pillow was to learn to install invisible zippers – quite fussy but worth the effort. I was just a bit disappointed that the pillow form turned out not to be the advertised size so the cover is too large and these is extra fabric bunched up in the corners.

But here is the piece de resistance! I made a lined, zippered wedge bag. It is a great size to use as a notions pouch and I will definitely be making more. I’m quite proud of this. Now to practice making more.

I’ve also decided to participate in the Yarn in the City #spinningsundays. I haven’t practiced my drop spindling since the Tour de Fleece last July. So I’m going to do some spinning every Sunday when I am in town so see if I can improve. I will show you once I have more singles to photograph.

I’m going to leave it at that for now. This is a bit dry, but I’m trying to wrap things up for the day so I can pack for a short long weekend trip out to Picton, ON in Prince Edward County. I’m really looking forward to the “mini-break” (in the words of Bridget Jones) as well as a trip (oh who am I kidding, it is going to be multiple trips) to Rosehaven Yarn shop.

I’ve already had a lovely knitty start to February so I look forward to sharing more later.