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Year in Review

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2021 FO Pile Last night I finished my last FO of 2021. Of course I have a ton of WIPs, but none of them are close enough to finish before tomorrow night.  2021 has been another crazy year.  The world's still dealing with a pandemic and nothing is quite back to normal. As I start to reflect,  my year was filled with too much work, major challenges related to having a chronically ill partner,  and normal, every day challenges. It was also filled with love,  a few adventures,  and lots of time for knitting.  Pandemic life has turned us into almost complete home bodies.  I absolutely don't say that in a negative way.  While occasionally getting out has its advantages,  spending time at home has let me focus more on what brings me joy - my family and my crafts. 2020 brought me back to my love of knitting, and 2021 has allowed me to develop new skills,  explore further than ever before and engage with a community of people who share my passion.   I'm not a very speedy
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FO Alert: Socks

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  Tree Farm Socks by Natalie Sheldon Cast on: 10/17/2020 Cast off: 9/7/21 Yarn: Leading Men Fiber Arts Show Stealer in Spritely Endeavors (226 yds) Kim Dyes Yarn Sourdough Sock in Murky Pond (156 yds)  I am not good at colorwork. I like to think I'm getting better, and this project definitely helped. Despite my uneven tension, I'm absolutely thrilled about these socks. I knew I had to make them for my mom the moment I saw them. They're too small for me to try on, so hopefully they'll fit her. Generally, if I can't get handknit socks on, I send them to her, so it should be ok. The yarns were great, the pattern was wonderful, and I want to make sooo many pairs of stranded socks now. I'm absolutely obsessed with the pattern on the bottom of the feet.  Excuse the terrible picture. They are too small for me to model! Curling Mist Socks by Helen Stewart Cast on: 2/10/21 Cast off: 10/13/21 Yarn: Birch Hollow Fibers Sylvia Sock in V
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Sweaters!

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 I think my biggest knitting accomplishment of the last few months was actually finishing Birdwatcher. After the hem, it was endless stockinette and I couldn't focus at all. Fortunately, i took it with me on a trip that involved quite  a bit of time in a car. It was perfect car knitting! I got so much done on that trip, that I was able to finish it up pretty quickly. It is now one of my favorite articles of clothing to wear and I can't believe I let myself take so long to make it! Birdwatcher by Casapinka Cast on: 6/6/21 Cast off: 10/5/21 Yarn: Miss Babs Yummy 2-ply in In The Meadow. 2.65 skeins (1058 yds) Maybe by most ambitious project of the year, Wolf River is not something I would have thought to make without the Yarnathon . I know I've mentioned it a bunch this year, but this competition, put on by a LYS in Georgia that I stumbled upon online last year has really been an amazing influence in my knitting this year. For the fourth quater, the focus was on chunk
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Catching Up

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I tell myself constantly that I'll eventually keep up with the blog,  but somehow life keeps getting in the way. I promise I've been knitting and  I'm hoping to spend the next few days catching up and sharing some of what I've been working on.  I don't necessarily love cowls, but I think I could.  They're quick projects and seem pretty ideal for Oklahoma winters.  I knit my first ever early this year, and now I've made a few more. It's just now getting cool here, so I'm interested to see how they work out.    Cross Stitch Cowl  by Laura Chau Cast On: 9/4/21 Cast off: 9/6/21 Yarn/usage: Mrs. Crosby Steamer Trunk in Scarlet Ibis. 281 yds (1.71 skeins) Notes: I mostly knit this  to meet some Yarnathon goals. It turned out to be a simple,  easy to memorize repeat and was the perfect project to work on by the lake, drinking beer over Labor Day.  Lush Brioche Cowl by   Cassondra Rizzardi Cast On: 11/6/21 Cast off: 11/11/21 Yar
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FO Alert: GAP-tastic Cowl

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  GAP-tastic Cowl by  Jen Geigley Cast on: 8/8/21 Cast off: 8/28/21 Yarn : Malabrigo Mecha in Mostaza. Just about every inch of 3 skeins (384 yds)  It's kind of a disaster, but it's done. I don't know if I would have ever picked this pattern to knit, but the Yarnathon keeps motivating me to try new and different things. The yarn was more green than the golden color I was hoping for, but otherwise it's dreamy. I always thought the pattern looked more interesting, but just turned out to be 15" of seed stitch. At least the bulky yarn made it go quickly. I managed to twist the cast on and not notice for six inches. Based on the deadline, and my general dislike of the project, I just kept going. It turned out to be some sort of weird mobious, but it wraps around my neck twice and is very soft and squishy. I'm contemplating frogging and re-doing it, but I doubt I'd ever actually re-knit it, so I think it will stay as-is and we'll see if it gets
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FO Alert: Dimbala

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  Dimbala  by Laura Chau Cast On: 7/3/21 Cast off: 8/27/21 Yarn/usage: Dream in Color Classy in Velvet Port. 1071 yds (4.28 skeins) Notes: My first sweater in a very long time. I loved the yarn, and enjoyed how quick it felt compared to my usual lighter weight projects. There were a few spots in the pattern that weren't immaculately clear, but overall, I found it very well written. I learned I'm not very good at picking up stitches (for the buttonband and collar) and that sewing in sleeves is not my favorite activity. I lengthened the body by three inches, and shorted the sleeves by about three as well. My gauge was a little off, so I picked the smaller of the two sizes I was considering, and I think the fit turned out perfectly. This sweater had been in my queue for 7 years, but I'm not sure I would have ever made it if it weren't for the Yarnathon 3rd Quarter Craft A Long. I can't wait to wear it, and I'm looking forward to knitting more sweaters.
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week of WIPs:day 7

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I saved my last post of the week to focus on neglected WIPs. I'm honestly surprised I only have three to talk about. Well, if I'm totally honest,  there are more we could check in on,  but they are so deep in hibernation,  I'd hate to disturb them at this point.   Reflecting on the stress I've been feeling about knitting deadlines and my attempts to relieve some of the pressure from myself,  I'm only mildly surprised that two MKAL projects find themselves in my collection of neglected projects.  I struggled to let myself do things on my own time, but I managed to put these aside and not worry. Even though I was enjoying the groups, it was better for me to stop trying to keep up. I'd love to finish both of these one day.  Knights Who Say Knit by Mary Annarella                                                          Long Winter's Night by Laura Aylor   And my one non-MKAL, The Birdwatcher by Casapinka.  I love the idea of
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