A Little Yarn On The Side

Last night I finished the body of the Elann.com shawl-back shrug, and have only the ribbing to knit, and out of the 8 balls of yarn the pattern asked for, I have about 1 and 3/4 balls left. This disturbs me, as that generally has meant I have missed something important in the pattern, such as, say, a sleeve. But, I have tried the shrug on, and it fits, and the 3/4 sleeves are on purpose, so maybe the ribbing is much more yarn-consuming than I am picturing.... Yesterday's WIP inventory count (which missed a few things, I admit) motivated me to finish something, so the fleece blanket for my new nephew is finished, complete with name & satin binding. OK, it wasn't a difficult project, but at least it is something that is no longer "in progress." And might be a good reason to start something new....

Sometimes, reality just can't be avoided--even in knitting. Thursday I was feeling the "new project" bug, and was seriously debating between a shawl and a sweater, when I noticed a distinct shortage of available knitting needles in my bag. For someone new to knitting, this might really be possible, but for someone who has been knitting for almost 30 years, this is not highly probable. So, I went looking for the missing needles. Generally, I have several projects going at once, but I think I might have reached an all-time high this time. A sampling: A cotton tank top, knit in the round in order to keep it from languishing in the "knit but needs to be sewn together" black hole: A cashmere blend cardigan that I truly do love and only put aside because I was wooed by other projects: A shawl intended for my next friend who turns 50, that was zipping along nicely until I discovered that she doesn't want a shawl for her 50th birthday: A new sweater for my husb...