Almost Crafty

You’d think, since I ended up having all of last week off, and won’t be working until after the move in a couple of weeks, that I’d be getting a lot of knitting and crafting done between all of the packing and organizing and preparations for the move.

Sadly, there hasn’t been that much knitting. Last week I was so on edge with worry about booking movers that I couldn’t even focus to knit. Finally, about mid-week, I had to do something to distract me from the stress, and started a super-bulky, garter stitch scarf on size #17 needles. It was just what the doctor ordered. I hadn’t used such huge needles for awhile, so while I didn’t have to think about the stitches, I had to pay attention to actually manipulating the needles.

Right here is where I would normally put a picture of the scarf, but I’m just not that together.

Instead, I put together this collage of all of the WIPS I have that I would LOVE to finish before the move (although we all know that probably won’t happen):

From the top: a shawl I finished knitting OVER A YEAR AGO that just needs blocked, an orange hat that’s done that needs photographed, a Caliormetry that needs nothing but a single button, a Tulip cardigan that just needs a final photograph, a shrug that Ruby is sitting in for, since I have finished the knitting but didn’t even get a picture of the yarn, a Baby Surprise Jacket that just needs two simple seams and five buttons, the smaller Babette blanket that just needs some seaming and maybe some edging, and (DEEP BREATH) that’s it.  Phew! (The final spot is a avatar I made at www.faceyourmanga.com that I though was cute - plus, I needed another photo to even out the collage. Although I could have put the super-bulky scarf there. Oh well.).

Yeah, none of that is getting done, not even the photos.

But that’s OK - because in a couple of weeks, I’ll be in Louisville, all unpacked and moved in and settled and back in my routine, and I’ll be able to sit down and knit and crochet and sew my little fingers off.

I can’t wait.

I’m not sure why, but once the warm weather hit, I can’t seem to stop knitting. Which is strange - I figured that once the warm weather hit, I’d be all about the sewing. Weird.

Actually - not so weird. We have air conditioning in the current apartment, while the previous apartment did not. I suspect that has something to do with the urge to play with wool in July.

Here are some recent projects that are off the needles. This year, I decided that I would only join one sock club, and I would knit each and every pair that came in the mail as soon as possible.  I decided to sign up for the Woolgirl sock club for a few reasons, including: variety of yarn companies included, excellent word of mouth/blog about the club, ability to choose either sport or fingering yarn (that clinched it for me) and its fairly affordable price tag considering the exclusive nature of the yarn and patterns.

I have not been disappointed. In fact, I’ve kept my promise to myself, and have knit the first two kits immediately upon arrival.

Here are the April socks:

Project: Reina Socks, (Ravelry Link). Pattern by Lisa Dykstra

Yarn: Mama Llama Perfect Sock (sport weight) in Georgia’s Inspiration on size 2 needles, Magic Loop

I experimented with these socks by knitting both socks at the same time. Not on the same needle, though. I happened to have 2 size #2 circs in my drawer, so I would knit on both socks back and forth on both needles - cuff of sock #1, then cuff of sock #2, then the leg of sock #1, the leg of sock #2, then the heel of each, etc. etc. etc. Not only did this keep me from finishing one sock and putting aside the second, it also helped me to keep them remarkably similar, since anything I fudged on sock #1 I would remember for sock #2. I have to credit Stacey with this idea, as she mentioned it in the comments way back in this post, and I finally tried it. I’m now a believer!

Here’s the June Sock:

Project: Froggin’ Socks, (Ravelry Link). Pattern by Lisa Dykstra

Yarn: Dashing Dachs Dachs Sox:Sport Superwash Merino in Froggin’ colorway on size 2 needles, Magic Loop

When I saw this yarn, I thought it was the anti-Susan yarn. I mean - green? orange? YELLOW? These are not the colors I gravitate towards. These are usually the colors I avoid at all costs.

However - I told myself that I’d knit each kit, and figured I’d give these a go. I am SO glad I did, because I absolutely love these socks and this yarn and (yes) even these colors.

I didn’t follow the pattern exactly though. Instead, I knit these from the toe up, with a plain stockinette foot - both at once, magic looped on the same needle. While these got a tad fiddly, it was still no more fiddly (to me) than DPNs. The actual knitting seemed to go slower, though, but when I got to the heel, I had to remind myself that I had already knit TWO sock feet instead of just one. That was pretty nice.

I turned the heels, then proceeded up the legs using the pattern stitch. While the stitch pattern itself is obscured in the colors, I liked the overall texture of the stitches (rather than the pattern for the pattern’s sake, if that makes sense). From there, I knit each sock separately, and finished with some twisted 1×1 rib.

Those were the first two of the five club kits, with the next due to arrive in August. I can’t even imagine what the yarn or colorway will be. I can’t wait to find out!

After my marathon sewing projects, I wanted to do a little knitting. Not just any knitting, though. I had criteria. Criteria that could actually be listed in list-format. (What can I say, I love my lists).

Susan’s Recent Project Knitting Criteria - In List Format

1. The yarn had to already have been wound into balls. Any yarn still in the skein was right out. Hey, it’s hot, winding yarn takes time and energy and also? There’s always a cat sleeping in my prime yarn-winding location. First rule of the SpaceCase/Martini household is, “Don’t disturb a sleeping cat.”

2. The project had to be relatively simple. A little pattern-reading would be OK so as not to grow too bored too quickly. But I was planning some prime TV-watching time, and didn’t trust myself to take on any complicated lace projects while trying to keep one eye on “So You Think You Can Dance.”

3. The project had to be relatively small. No puddles of wool in my lap, please, now that the weather has finally warmed up.

4. No socks. I know, right? I love knitting socks! But I knew I had a sock kit from Woolgirl heading my way, and I knew I’d want to start those socks ASAP once it arrived, so I didn’t want to be in the middle of another pair when it did.

After careful consideration and stash perusal, I found the perfect project. The funny thing about the first project was that I started it right as my parents came to town for a visit. So when I pulled it out of my knitting bag to work on a few rows, I felt the need to say, “NO, this is NOT a HINT.”

Because I had decided to knit a baby sweater. More specifically, the famous Tulips Cardigan from Dream in Color, that came in a kit with all of the yarn pre-wound. It was perfect!

Here’s progress shot:

This is actually all done, with ends woven in and everything, but it needs a bath and a blocking before I do a final wrap-up. But I will say this - there’s a reason this pattern is so popular. So cute! So fast! Not all that boring! Did I mention so cute?

It was so much fun to knit something so small, so quickly, that I had a yen to try another baby sweater. I had 3 skeins of Knitpicks Shine Sport just sitting in my stash, which have now become this:

An almost finished Baby Surprise Jacket. Just two seams, and 5 buttons, and this will be done, too.

Luckily, the Woolgirl sock kit arrived in time (the socks are already on my needles). If it hadn’t,  I would have probably started another baby item and really had people wondering.  But now I have to figure out if anyone I know is expecting, so I can pass these along to someone who will use them.