Indecision

I have been struggling to find projects to settle down too. I've been spending hours on Ravelry looking at all the lovely patterns and matching them to yarn in my stash. Part of my indecision is due to the fact that I am having eye surgery next month and thus I won't be able to knit anything too fine or intricate (so of course that is exactly what I am in the mood to knit!). Another influencing factor is that I need to get some gift knitting done to take on our travels in April and May. So what to knit?

Well it helped that Shur'tugal was the first pattern on the Super Special Six Pattern Sock Club 2011. So I could actually start and finish my first project for the year. And I made these from stash yarn.



In preparation for not being able to see too well soon I started the following two projects both of which are destined to be gifts. The first is the Lacy Baktus.



And the second is the Cerus Scarf. Both these patterns are very simple and knitted on relatively large needles.



I also managed to reach the half way mark with my never ending blanket and yet I remained restless. Then, last night, I cast on Nypon. Relief! Finally a little bit of lace to keep me happy.

Fresh start

I had considered doing a retrospective post but once I started adding my projects for 2010 together I decided not to. Should you be interested and you are on Ravelry then you can see my forty completed projects here. And no Mary, I didn't count socks and mitts separately and even if I did I couldn't match your massive achievement of 97 completed projects!

Instead I am going to focus on the year to come. What would I like to achieve in the knitting world this year? Well, first and foremost, I would like to complete my Summer Squares Blanket. This poor blanket was very badly neglected during most of 2010. Just before christmas I decided to mend my ways and had a spurt of activity. Over the past two weeks I have managed to complete 11 more squares. I am now only two short of the halfway mark. I have completed 26 of the 56 squares.



This project also ties in rather nicely with two new groups I have joined on Ravelry. The first is the Stash Down Under group. Yes, yes I intend knitting from stash this year. With a caveat or two! For example, yarn acquired while traveling falls into the souvenir category and has nothing to do with stash enhancement nor does gifted or swapped yarn count. (These are my rules and I will bend them as I please).

The other closely related group is the Super Special Six Pattern Sock Club 2011. The intention is to knit six patterns this year. The patterns have been preselected through a voting process. The good thing about this club is that the rules are there to be adapted to suit your own purposes. The first pattern, Shur’tugal, is already underway and here is my progress.



I also intend learning new techniques and this sock pattern has already taught me something new in terms of twisted stitches.

My knitting output will be seriously compromised in the first half of the year for a couple of reasons. Nevertheless I intend to make the best of the situation by choosing appropriate projects but more of that at a later date.

Happy Knitting to all in 2011!

The last one for the year

My last shawl of the year is the Crest o' the Wave Stole. This stole has been on my needles forever and a day. I would pick it up and knit a couple of pattern repeats and then put it down for something more interesting. The yarn, which is Touch Yarn Kid Mohair Merino 2 ply, has been frogged a couple of times as well. I could just not find the right pattern for it. I finally realised it needed something simple and that was the problem. The pattern is a simple 12 row repeat. So simple in fact that I got very bored with it. Still, I persevered and finally finished the stole. I had intended to keep knitting until I had used up all the yarn but I fear that after 40 repeats I had had enough!






The stole measures 170cm x 52cm. It is intended as a gift but after trying it on I realised how soft and warm it is. It might just not quite make it to the gift pile!

Magic Yarn Ball

This year I decided to participate in a Magic Yarn Ball swap for the first time. I have often seen them happening on Ravelry and wondered what it would be like to take part in something like that. Well now I know and can highly recommend it. It is great fun.

The object is to discover the likes and dislikes of your partner in terms of yarn, colour, patterns etc.. You then collect a number of appropriate little gifts which you then wrap up in the yarn you have chosen for your partner ending with a pattern at the top of the yarn ball. The intention is then that you partner starts to knit the pattern and the further they go the more little gifts fall out of the parcel.

My wonderful partner discosmurf sent me my yarn ball wrapped in this cute little project bag. The yarn she sent me is from Jolly Jumbuck and the pattern was for a Multnumah shawl. This is a shawl I have long been meaning to knit and the yarn was perfect for the shawl. I immediatly started knitting the shawl.





My first gift to be revealed was this wonderful apron.



The further I knitted the more I discovered. Here are all the lovely little delights that awaited me.



And here is the end product.



Thank you again Kate for a wonderful magic yarn ball. I can't wait to do this again.

Time flies

Its been a while since I've posted. Time is just flying by at the moment. I blinked and next thing I know Christmas is upon us. Nevertheless my needles have been clicking away and I managed to finish this Maia Shoulderette for 27gab on Ravelry. This was another Work for Yarn commission. And my reward was a skein of Wollmeise in Rhabarbar.





The yarn is Wollmeise 100% Merino Superwash in Merlot and I knitted it on 3.75mm needles. I ran out of yarn just 50 stitches short of completing the cast-off but fortunately a friend who came to visit was able to help me out. She very kindly dropped off her skein of WM and I could use as much as I needed to finish the shawl.

A little bit goes a long way

I have taken a liking to Malabrigo Lace. Not just because its wonderfully soft and feels great against the skin but also because those tiny skeins seem to last forever. Have a look at this. Out of a 50g skein (colourway Orchid) I got the following:

Abrazo knitted without any mods on 5mm needles. This used 30g of the skein. Next time round I would knit the short rows two stitches past the decrease rather than 4 stitches to create a larger shawl.




Then with the left over 20g I knitted this little cowl, the Lacey Small Shell Cowl. This was also knitted on 5mm needles. Its a simple pattern repeat and I just kept on until I ran out of yarn.



I am not knitting many gifts this year but these two were quick and easy and very satisfying to knit.

Left over sock yarn

In one of her recent post Mary reminded me that there are other useful things that one can do with left over sock yarn. I have a whole tub full of left over sock yarn and I have been meaning to knit a sock blankie with it. I don't really need a sock blankie I just happen to think its rather pretty. On the other hand, the amounts of left over yarn from each skein is quite large - enough for something useful. I don't wear knitted hats and thus I don't knit them but I would wear fingerless mitts and I am happy to knit them for myself as well as for others. I made a pair a little while back for a swap and so decided I would do so again.

This time the pattern is Blackrose Wristlets, the yarn is Conjoined Creations Flat Feet and the mitts were knitted on 2.75mm circular needles.




Any suggestions you might have for mitts made with left over sock yarn will be most welcome.