Catching up

It's been more than a week since I last posted (sorry!), but I'm here now :-) This is a post to catch you up on what I've been up to lately.

A long time ago, a friend of mine asked me to mend a few holes in her granddaughter's baby sweater.  She'd already outgrown the sweater, so there was no particular rush on this.  I held on to it for such a long time because I wasn't sure the best way to fix the holes.  Last week I had some inspiration, though, and ended up embroidering flowers and a heart to patch up the holes:

I'll return the sweater the my friend this week.  I hope the mending meets her approval! Note: I'm not sure what's up with the uneven sweater hem.  I think it is designed to be asymmetrical.

I've made a bit of progress on that scarf I started a few weeks ago.  I finished one full skein of yarn and started a second skein. One skein was just not long enough for a scarf, and two skeins might make it too long. But I think too long is better than not long enough.

Recently, a friend asked me to knit a hat for him.  I've made good progress on that, and am working on the crown decreases. I'll post pics when it's all finished.  But now ... more knitting and football. Yay!

Talk to y'all in a few days, folks.  Stay warm and safe out there!

-mz

New on the needles

Several years ago, I did a fair amount of knitting for charity. Earlier this week, I decided to renew that effort by dedicating every Friday to charity knitting.   I already have lots of projects on needles, but setting aside one day a week just for charity knitting will be good for me, and for my stash! 

I went "stash diving" to choose a yarn, and then I remembered that when I moved house in the spring, I gave away most of the yarns that I would have used for charity knitting ... those that were acrylic or acrylic/wool blends. I HAD to shrink my stash because the new place is much smaller than the old one, and there simply isn't room to store all the yarn I had. It was a tough decision for sure, one that literally made me cry. At the end of the day I'm happy that I decided to keep the yarns that I love the most but in hindsight it would have been good to keep some of those other yarns. While I'm not sure that 100% wool yarns are the best choice, I decided to go ahead and use what I have. Hopefully I can find a place that will accept items that have a high wool content. 

First charity project for 2016 is a simple ribbed scarf knitted from Lamb's Pride Worsted in a color called Turquoise Depths. Easy to knit: cast on 26, and do 1x1 ribbing to desired length. I got approximately 12" knitted this evening. 

Tomorrow I'm planning to cast on a scarf in these yarns:

This is a secret gift project. The yarn is Wool Ease by Lion Brand, and is an 80/20 acrylic/wool blend. Now the task is to find the perfect pattern. I think I might attempt double knitting an argyle pattern like this http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/uncle-argyle-scarves. Double knitting takes me a long time (at least it did last time I tried it in 2008!), and while there is no real deadline, I'd rather do something that isn't so tedious for me. Suggestions? Note to self: if you end up doing double knitting, use this slip stitch edging: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0-BLtYkAfa8. 

I'd better try to sleep. It's been a pretty restless night but at least it's been kind of productive. I am on track with weekly blogging!

Good night, um, morning!

-mz

P.S. I think this is the pattern I will use, but I will knit it to scarf length, in the round. It'll be PERFECT! https://www.imperialyarn.com/sites/default/files/errata/F01%20Argyle%20Cowl.pdf

P.P.S. Cast on as if you're knitting a toe-up sock.  That way you'll only have to graft one end together. 

There is nothing like starting over

It’s a personal tradition of mine to start a new project on Jan 1st.  And this year I’m starting TWO projects -- Ginny’s Cardigan and February Fitted Pullover. I’m livin’ on the edge here, folks!

About starting over, I'm going to try try try to be better about blogging at least weekly.  I fell off the blogging wagon early in 2015.  Please don't feel shy about nudging me if I drop the ball again!  Check the sidebar over there ( --> ) to keep track of my progress on those 85 million WIPS I have on needles :-) 

And with this first blog post of 2016, I'm going to call it a night! I brought in the New Year with my Mr., and now it's time to cozy up with a bottle of hard cider and more knitting.  Ginny is already on needles ... February Fitted is next. Aaaaaaaaaaaannnnnd ... GO!

-mz