A Little Yarn On The Side

Aside from needing a button (which will have to wait until the spending ban is over), Sitcom Chic is DONE!!!!!! So, my 4th WIP in a row has been finished! YAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! And even better, I haven't found any more WIPs lurking any where. That's a nice feeling Callisto seems to be enjoying the huge WIP pile, but I find it a little intimidating. Still, there's one less of them. YAY!!!!!!! So, how is everyone else doing?

As I am a bit young for Devo, I'm guessing most people aren't going to even remember that one, but I thought it was fun. Of course, I've been slogging through rows & rows of stockinette today, so my threshold for humor is really low right now. I did use up another 2 balls of yarn (73--YAY!), but I when I got to the point where I just couldn't continue, I decided to pull out the heavy artillery. This is just missing the neck ribbing, buttons, and snaps and it will be the fourth WIP in a row that I have finished. I was hoping to hold out a little longer before resorting to this, but I'm casting off the ribbing now and will add the buttons and snaps tomorrow. Maybe I'll force myself to alternate a few rows of stockinette for every few stitches I cast off. I respond REALLY well to bribery!

So far, Jennifer might be our front-runner in the WIP contest, having finished 5 so far. I think I'm going to be making two or three divisions--small projects versus large projects, and maybe a third for crochet. I want to make the contest fair enough to keep everyone motivated. So, no one get discouraged! We're all in this together and all projects will count! I have spent tonight undoing & redoing last night's work. Smart knitters double-check patterns quite often. Others of us choose to live on the edge and plow ahead blithely in spite of all previous experience with knitting disasters. Last night I noticed that one sleeve looked okay after being attached to the body but see those increases on this sleeve? Those are supposed to be on the underside of the sleeve, not the topside. Oops. So, after tinking several rows while swearing to the Knitting Gods that I would finally this time learn to start double checking, I tried again and everything is where it shou...

I'm still amazed at the sheer number of Works in Progress. It's almost overwhelming. Makes me want to cast on a new lace shawl....... !!!!! Bizarrely enough, I really do. How insane is that????? Wouldn't it make more sense if I had a mad desire to finish something? Insane! Though, the does help explain the 21 WIPs left, doesn't it? Luckily, we are the WIP Team , and everyone else is holding strong--I can as well. I can soon be at 4 WIPs finished in a row--a personal record. Heck, two in a row might have been a personal record, but four sounds better. Tonight I have been working on Sitcom Chic . After a couple failed and very stupid attempts that had the sleeves inside-out, the sleeves are joined and the yoke decreases have begun. Even better, there are 3 balls of yarn in use right now (I will do anything to avoid weaving in ends), so working on this project will allow me to move the stash-busting tally soonest. Such priorities in life! I've heard from a co...

I keep trying to count my remaining WIPs, and keep coming up with a different number. After the Finish-itis contest, we will be embarking on a "learn to count" campaign. So, let's see if I can list them: 1. Magikal Earth Shawl (photo to come when the camera battery is recharged) - more than halfway through the mind-numbing edging (what is it with edging?????) 2. Plum baby aran: front in progress: 3. Poodle mohair: body done to sleeeve join, one sleeve in progress 4. Blue toddler sweater - back not quite done. Nothing else finished 5. dem fischer sin fru - still not quite halfway through the first clue. Out of 6. 6. Fleur - just missing the edging and the right front 7. Toddler sweater: needs seams, edging, and one piece knit 8. sleeveless sweater - back mostly done 9. Alpaca cardigan: back, one side, and most of the second side done 10. Glitterspun sweater - back finished, front half finished 11. Pi chemo cap - no picture yet. 12. Fir cone shawl - 40% d...

Did you see that????? I have passed the 10,000 yards of yarn mark for the year! There are now 66 (there were those 3 balls of mohair to finish the Lady's Circular Cape, after all) fewer balls of yarn in my stash than when I started the year. YIPPEE!!!!!! But on to other things... The Stealth Project is now in the hands of its new owner, and to directly quote from the text messages received: "OH. MY. GOSH. I LOVE IT!" "It fits perfect, I love the color, and I love the style!!" "It's my favorite piece of clothing." "Ha ha! It's so beautiful, I already had someone comment on it!" Now THAT is what makes knitted gifts worth doing! The "finishitis" contest--The rules: 1. Post a list of your WIPs in the comments. Remember, they must already be started. 2. Keep us posted on your progress 3. Any and all projects will count, but size and complexity of the project will be considered. 4. The winner will be the one who finishes...

Independence: The freedom to choose to NOT work on swoopies if you don't want to work on swoopies. As today was a national holiday, I decided it was a time for fun projects. A sleeve finished and a second sleeve started on Sitcom Chic (notice the new yarn tally--9031 yards!!!): A new summer ensemble for my loving husband: And a soon to be skirt and dress from this lovely cotton that I've had in the stash for at least a year: When this is done, I will used up about 42 yards of material, which doesn't sound like that much until you think about laying it all out on a football field (not that I follow football, but after 2 years in college marching band I do have pretty intimate knowledge of football fields, as well as how much one can smuggle inside a trumpet case). It may not have made a noticeable dent in the stash, but I have sewn farther than most people can kick. I have no idea why, but that thought makes me feel good. Maybe if I think about that long enough, I'll...

I was able to arrange my work schedule enough to take a 5-day weekend this week, and I was so excited about having a day off that I was up by 6:00 and had this done by 8:00 AM: The first part of sleeve number 1 for Sitcom Chic and yarn ball number 61 for the year. The Top Secret project got some attention today: though the Lady's Circular Cape remained at the bottom of the knitting bag. This is going to be the final ball of yarn used on the LCC, but while it stared at me from the shelf all day long, I just couldn't bring myself to take it up. Ever been completely buffaloed by a ball of mohair?

4 more swoopies to go!!! And then of course, two corners, the side, and the back of the neck, but it will FEEL like it's done after the mind-numbing-bottomless-pit charmingly consistent edging on the bottom of the lovely shawl. (soothing herbal teas are doing so much for my outlook....) The true love of my life lately is Sitcom Chic This lovely work of art is knit on size 8 needles and worsted weight yarn that comes in skeins of a delightful 82 yards . I have now used up my third skein and will be joining the fourth after some, er, " quality time" with the Fluff Monster--formerly known as the Lady's Circular Cape.

Last night I just couldn't bring myself to face the mind-numbing-endless-abyss that is the mohair edging, so I spent a little time with Sitcom Chic: And the Top Secret project: which is safe to photograph for a while as it is still in "amorphous blob" stage and could be anything--sort of like knitting in general. I don't want to get distracted from finishing the Lady's Circular Cape after having come this far, but I just couldn't face the mohair again. To put things in perspective, I dug this out: Many of my friends cross-stitch and they absolutely rave about it--how relaxing it is, how enjoyable it is, etc. I can actually see how it can be relaxing--there is something very soothing about doing little thread x's all over a piece of material. What I don't get is how there are ever finished cross stitch projects. It takes forever . I worked on this thing for at least half an hour and do not even have a square inch to show for my efforts. Know who w...

Actually, 8067. Even better. Tomorrow night I'll be ready to face the swoopies again, but for tonight, I'm in it for the yardage!

See this? It's an entire ball of yarn. Completely used up & out of the stash. Bringing me to 53 balls used this year. That was SO rejuvenating! Rejuvenating enough to spend some time with this: We've reached 7 swoopies now, which would be REALLY exciting if there were 10 swoopies. With 12, it's just one past the halfway mark. But at least it is PAST the halfway mark. Slowly, slowly, slowly......

This freak of never-ending-mohair-edging has driven me to lengths no other project has ever done. Yesterday, I cleaned the sewing room. Not clean enough that I'm willing to post pictures of it or anything--let's not get crazy here--but it is cleaner than it has been since the Christmas Gift Blizzard of '07. Bare table has even been glimpsed. Then, in a moment of true weakness, I slipped..... In the corner, looking lost and a little shy, was a lovely worsted weight cotton And I know--I have this great thing going with the mohair, but look at this: 82 yards to the skein and size 8 needles. SIZE 8s! With those I could knock 3-4 balls out of the stash each week! I'm not proud, but.... before I knew what had happened, I had 7 rows of Sitcom Chic on the needles. I was WEAK--beaten down by those unending rows of edging--1368 rows!!!! Can you blame me?