Off the Needles

I finally finished the 9-month socks. I cannot express how glad I am to be done with these. I like them very much for wearing on the feet, but man I hate them for the amount of time they took on the needles (my fault, not theirs, but still I hate them).


Project Specs:
Pattern: Baby Cable from Sensational Knitted Socks
Yarn: Trekking somethingorother, ball band is long gone
Needles: #1 addi turbo
Notes: Begone, devil socks!

Ravelry=Danger

Exactly why Ravelry will be the death of me:

-read email from Webs this morning, noting Elsebeth Lavold Silky Wool on clearance
-successfully defeat the rationalization gremlin telling me I must get some now
-wahoo! I have such fabulous self control!
-pat self of back proudly

{work for a while}

-on a pumping break, not so aimlessly wander over to Ravelry to see projects made with same.
-So many projects!
-I know I'd want enough for a sweater.
-Filter list of 300+ projects using same yarn to just those that are cardis or pullovers
-Look at some of these in detail, get a sense of how much yarn I'd need for something cabley in my size
-Back to Webs, credit card number flying effortlessly from my fingers.
-Won't this look nice all knit up?

How Not to Finish Things

If you've been reading here for a while you probably know that I rarely have more than 2 or 3 things on the needles at once. I tend towards serial knitting, only allowing myself to start something when a WIP has been completed. I do this for a couple reasons, with the primary one being I like to actually finish things and when I have long stretches of time where I don't complete a project I start to get antsy and impatient.

The WIP count in the sidebar accurately accounts for my 3 main projects, two of which are very long term (shawl and sweater) and one of which has become long term because of some odd mental block against them (socks).

In an effort to give myself the satisfaction of finishing something, I started in on a baby sweater last week. A quick, easy project that I could start and finish and feel accomplished about. I cast on for Daisy with some WoolEase from the stash. I knit up the body over the course of a several days - even my "quick" knitting isn't too quick lately. As soon as the body was complete, I realized I hadn't enough yarn to finish the sleeves, and that even if I did, I hated the piece - the color was wrong, the yarn was yucky, and in the time I had taken to knit it, I could have easily finished the socks that I've been gestating for almost as long as it takes to build another human. I took the needles out of it and threw it in the garbage.

Then I cast on for this.


Much better. Its amazing what loving a pattern and a yarn can do for your productivity. Please ignore the fact that my socks could have been completed in the time I've spent on my "instant gratification" project, I sure am trying to.

Project Specs:
Pattern: EZ Baby Surplice, from Spring/Summer 07 Vogue Knitting
Yarn: Handspun, Chain plied "Cricket" BFL from Hello Yarn
Needles: #5
Notes: I think I still like the looks of the traditional EZ Baby Surprise Jacket, but this is a nifty pattern too. Buttonholes all along the bottom edge, so can grow/shrink accordingly to fit the baby. This yarn is some of my best handspun to date, and I will be sad to see it go. But its going to a wonderful new baby boy, whose Mama is the closest thing to a sister I had during my formative years, so special yarn is most certainly called for.

Packages

Friday was my Birthday - one of those pesky ones that end in a "5" and somehow hit me a little harder than the ones that are supposed to be bothersome. Lucky for me, the next day brought my Sockapalooza4 socks to brighten my mood. They are utterly perfect in every way - Koigu, a gorgeous pattern that I haven't had on my feet before, and um, take a look at the color - matches my blog colors to a tee. Thank you Amy G. from Portland Oregon, I truly adore them.