Tenth Year of Projects - Week 4

This week has given me a lot of progress on my projects!  This is thanks to many hours of Zoom meetings - still...

Ongoing works in progress:
1) Sock Scrap-ghan - I managed to add 7 squares to my scrap wrap - I think this is the new nickname for this project - it kind of popped out in my podcast... and I love the name!  I now need to add 86 more squares to get this to completion. 

2) Stillness Shawl MKAL - this is a mystery knit along by Helen Stewart that I cast on June 25th 2020.  We get one clue each Thursday in July.  This past week gave us Clue #5 - the final clue - and I am am almost done!  I won't post pictures here as it is still a mystery.  I have shown it in detail on my podcast (linked below) so if you wish to see it please take a peek.

3) Tegna - this is a summer sweater by Caitlin Hunter.  I cast this on June 28th and am making decent progress on it.  I have added another two inches of stockinette this week (progress is from the stitch marker upwards)!  It is still a long way from completion, but I am making progress!

I also spend some time showing my progress on my projects on my podcast.  I just posted a new video on Saturday in case you want to check it out!  And I am having a little give away over there!  I would be so happy if you subscribed to my little channel ♥

Please head over to the forum on Ravelry to see what others are up to with their YOPs!

NaBloPoMo 2018 Day 14

Hello!!  I had another busy day at work and today looks about the same...  Tomorrow I begin my Thanksgiving break and will be home with plenty of crafting time until we go back to school on Monday November 26th!  I plan to do a lot of knitting this upcoming 11 or 12 days!!  Plus there is a winter storm that is expected here tomorrow - a perfect excuse to stay home and indoors!  YAY!

So I did no knitting yesterday, but I did get my editing done on my WIP-it Down week intro vlog (which I will post tomorrow morning) and I dyed some yarn for the Advent Scarf that I am going to be making.  The yarn is drying now and I hope to get it caked up tomorrow.  Then I can cast on and get the preliminary clue knit up (the ribbing).  The remaining clues will begin coming out every night beginning on November 24th and will continue until Christmas Eve.  I am excited to work on this project!!  Here is what my yarn looks like:

I am hoping it is not too tonal for the design.  Time will tell.  If it is too tonal, I will redye it and even that out.  We shall see if it is necessary or not!

Until tomorrow!

Eighth Year of Projects - Week 16

Welcome to another weekly update!!  I hope you all have had an amazing week!  I have kept busy with knitting and work.  Here is what I did this past week:

One of these weeks I will finish the sleeves on my Rowe Cardigan!  This past week I did make a fair bit of progress, but still have a little ways to go.  I have finished the sleeve increasing and now am working on the shoulder cap decreases.  I think I have about 25 or 30 rows left to go and the sleeves are complete.  Maybe by next week??  My progress from last week is shown from the little green marker on the sleeve here:

And I made a little progress on my Sockhead Slouch Hat!  I have rolled the cake into a ball since it was getting pretty disheveled from being my travel project.  I have added maybe two more inches to the hat and hope to have this one done one of the days soon!  Here is my progress:

Spoiler Alert!!  I you are slower than me on the Texture Time Mystery Shaw do not continue to read because I will be posting a progress picture a bit lower down here. 

And I finally cast on my Texture Time Mystery Shawl!  I got a start once and messed up so I frogged it.  Now I am still working on Clue #1 and Clue #2 was released a few days ago.  I suspect I won't catch up...  Oh well, I plan to continue and hope to finish Clue #1 before Clue #3 comes out!  Maybe I will even have some progress on Clue #2 before I show you next week.  I am thinking I may regret this cast on while I look at all the ends!!  We have been told we will deal with them later so I guess I have to be patient!  Here is where I am now (I am about 1/3 to 1/2 way done Clue #1):

And I have Episode 5 posted on my podcast!!

And I have been keeping up with Vlogtober and now have 13 posts!!  Check out my playlist!

Please Like & Subscribe (if you have not done so yet!)

Eighth Year of Projects - Week 15

Hello for another week!  I hope everyone had a nice week and got lots of crafting done!

I had a fairly productive week, although work took up quite a bit of my time!  I managed to get a few more rows done on the sleeves of my Rowe Cardigan.  I had honestly hoped to finish the sleeves this past week, but didn't...  Oh well, maybe this week I will get them done!  Here is my progress - from the green marker up:

And I made some progress on my Sockhead Slouch Hat.  I moved on to the next color now.  I need to practice dying gradient yarns - this isn't really a "gradient".  Oh well, I still love the colors!  My progress from last week is from the blue marker.

And I got my yarn all dyed up for the Texture Time Mystery Shawl.  The first clue was released a few days ago but I have not cast it one yet.  Maybe I'll do that this afternoon.  Here is the yarn I dyed (the pattern also includes a fluffy yarn, but I forgot to take a picture including that...

I posted my latest podcast yesterday:

And I have posted each day so far in October for Vlogtober!!  If you have not had a chance why not check them out??  They are each less than ten minutes long and this morning's vlog includes alpaca butts!

Time to get moving here!  Have an amazing week!!

NaBloPoMo 2017 Day 30!!

Today is the final day of NaBloPoMo and I have managed to post each and every day this month!  I have amazed myself by doing this!  It has been a great experience and one I look forward to doing again next November!

Yesterday I finished one of my mystery socks and today I need to finish the second sock.  Today I also need to dye some yarn to have ready for casting on one of the mystery Advent scarves!  I think I have decided on a nice green shade and once it is complete I will give it to my Mom for a Christmas gift.  She loves green!  And I also need to pick out yarn for the second Advent scarf I plan to knit along with.  I already have the yarn for the December Mystery Socks chosen :)

Here is where my mystery socks are at now:

Seventh Year of Projects - Week 10

Back again for another weekly update!  I have not much to show this week other than my Tour-de-Sock Stage 5 completed socks!  These were a fun knit and I love the final product.  Here they are:

The second picture shows the beads and cables quite nicely.  The second sock has the bead color placement reversed.

Tour-de-Sock Stage 6 - the final stage in the challenge - was released earlier this morning.  It called for four colors - so I set to work dying yarn to use in hopes that it would work well.  I decided on a yellow and purple to dye (the two main colors).  For the smaller contrast colors I am using leftovers of the blue I dyed for Stage 4 and some bare.  I'll be casting these on later this morning!  The socks look amazing, but I am not sure if I will finish in time - these beauties involve stranding with three colors in a row...  I suspect that might slow me down a bit!  Here is a picture of my colors - purple and yellow are my main color and contrast color with blue and bare being my two highlight colors.

Then, once these socks are complete I will knit something NOT socks!  I may switch to crochet and work on catching up on my BAMCAL squares, but time will tell.  I suspect I will have nothing to update next week except my Stage 6 socks, but we shall see!  Until next week!

Seventh Year of Projects - Week 1

I have decided to join the Seventh Year of Projects blogging adventure!  I joined up in the very First Year and managed to get a few projects done.  I again joined the Third Year and suspect I accomplished even less.  And I joined up for the Fourth Year, Fifth Year, and Sixth Year too and was not so successful.  Now I am joining up for Year 7 and we shall see how I do!  I am convinced that I overestimated my ability to finish up all the projects I chose!  My projects are mostly knit and my plan is to use only stash to see how much I can use over the next year!  I am going to try for completing 12 projects - one a month!  

Ongoing works in progress:
1) Find Your Fade - using hand dyed by me yarn - cast on July 1st 2017 and I have section one complete.  I plan to work on this one a fair bit over the next couple days - I am eager to get onto my second color!!  The first picture shows the colors I will be using - beginning with the lighter pink on the bottom.  I cast on yesterday and have completed Section 1.  Lots to go yet!!  I hope to work on this one some over the next several days.  I am excited to fade into the second color!!  Maybe I'll get to that later tonight! 

Find My Fade colors!

Find My Fade progress

2) John's Vanilla Socks (no pattern) - cast on June 26th 2017.  I have to travel for a conference later this week - 6-8 hours of train time each way - hope to make some serious progress on this pair!

3) Temperature Scarf - began January 1st and will finish around December 31.  I have finished this up to the end of June 29th.   I should try to catch up again!  Plus I should get to tucking in the tails (about two weeks worth)

4) Cocoa Coffee - cast on May 29th 2016!  I had this on my YOP list last year and have made virtually no progress since then!  Might be time to frog this!!

5) Lambs and Chickens and Bunnies, Oh My! - cast on April 23rd 2017 One sock complete and the second needs making!

6) Sock Scrap-ghan - cast on July 24th 2014 It is time to keep moving with this one!!  I currently have 95 squares complete!  I have not worked on this much in many months now!!

7) BAMCAL squares - Monthly crochet squares that will turn into one or two afghans by the end of 2017. Complete to the end of June.
8) BAMKAL squares - Monthly knit squares that will turn into one or two afghans by the end of 2017. Complete to the end of June.

New plans for using stash include (and if time permits I hope to add more to this list):
1) Summer Shawlette - use Berroco Comfort Solids and Heathers
2) Elva Shawl - use Manos del Uruguay  (need to buy the pattern)
3) Casu Cowl - use Premier Yarns Deborah Norville Alpaca Dance
4) Abundance Table Runner - use Bernat Soy 
5) 198 Yards of Heaven - use Cascade yarn

Sixth Year of Projects - Week 31

Oops!! I have been missing here for a while now!  The new semester at work has been keeping me busy and I have not made the time to update my blog.  I have been working on several projects and have several finishes but I do not have pictures of everything yet.  I plan to get those done for next week and am going to try to be more regular on my posting here!

I finished a scarf for my niece for her birthday gift (back in the beginning of January).  I knit her Boom! and used some long gradient yarn that I dyed myself.  The design shows off the gradient nicely but I am not 100% happy with the dying I did.  Oh well, I'll try again and see what I create next!  My niece loved the scarf!

Sixth Year of Projects - Week 25

Back for another week!!  I am keeping up with my Advent scarf and today completed Day 22 of the 28 days the pattern will be released on.  This is running four days longer than the "usual" Advent season.  Here are two pictures:

The first 14 days worth of knitting

Where the two orange markers are marks the end of Day 14

And I decided to cast on something else!  I am going to knit a little scarf for my niece for her birthday (January 5th).  I dyed the yarn myself - my first attempt at a long gradient.  It didn't quite turn out how I hoped, but it is still a good attempt!  I am knitting her Boom!  It is a nice. simple, mindless project and one that should show off the gradient!

I am going to be away over the holidays so I doubt I will post until January.  Happy holidays and Merry Christmas everyone!

D is for Dyeing Yarn

Edit:  I had this post scheduled to post yesterday mid morning and clearly I did not set it quite right as I look this morning and find it did not post as it was supposed to.  I will have to figure out what happened and what I may have done incorrectly!!

I recently tried dying yarn and it is so much fun!!!  I think part of the fun is not knowing exactly what you will get once the yarn is all dry!  That is part of the adventure!!  I suppose it is more important if you want to replicate what you did, but for me I am happy just to see what comes out of the dye pot.  I have tried several methods and found found things I like and don't like about each. I suspect that is part of the fun and attraction - seeing what parts I like!!  I have used some of the yarn I have dyed to make a few things and I like how they turned out!  Here are a couple pictures of my own dyed yarns:

WIP-it Down Thanksgiving 2015 - Day 10

So yesterday this was what I accomplished:

1, All my yarn is now photographed.  I still need to get it posted into my Etsy store.  That will have to wait for a bit.  I need to double check that my pictures are a good representation of the true colors!

2. I got some good pictures of the two samples and the ten swatches for my book idea.  I got the patterns for the two samples all written up and got the first draft of the proposal written!  I want to let it sit for a day or two and I will go back to it in a few days to proofread it before I send it away!  Wish me luck!!

3. I got some more work done on my Herding Cats design.  I just have to bind off and finish the thumb.  I may work at finishing this off today since I am so close!

Day 10: Today is the final day of my WIP-it Down week (well, week plus a couple days) Tomorrow I am back to work, but today (after we get home from Church) my plans include:

1. Frogging my Advent Scarf and reclaiming the needles, yarn, and beads for something else (this has not been touched in ages - check the date in the picture - July 24th 2013!!).  It is time to let this project go.

2. Tucking in the tails on my Sock Scrap Blanket and maybe adding a few more squares.  I have quite a few tails already tucked in but I have several more that need to be tucked in.  I have not done anything with this project sine July or so.  Time to shake the dust off it!

3. Finish my Herding Cats Mittens and get the pattern written up so I can get it out for testing.

4. Adding more squares onto my charity afghan.  I got some work done on this one earlier this week and I want to get some more squares added on today!

WIP-it Down Thanksgiving 2015 - Day 9

Yesterday I managed to get a lot done on my Herding Cats Mittens!  Here is my end of day progress picture:

Day 9:  My WIP-it Down Week is nearing an end :(  Today is my last full day to play around with my WIPs and I originally had nothing specific set for today. I have a few things I want to accomplish today.

1. I have numerous skeins of fingering weight yarn that I hand dyed which need to be photographed and posted into my Etsy store.  I want to get this done today!  I'll post another link to my store tomorrow once I have it updated.

2. I have an idea for a book that I want to pitch to a publisher.  I have knit two samples and I also have several swatches (ten of them actually!) complete.  Today I will get decent pictures of the samples and swatches and I will work on getting my first draft of the proposal written.  No pictures here as this will be kept private until it is (hopefully) accepted for publication!

3. I managed to get several projects WIPped down this week and I think today I will pick something that is closest to completion and will focus my last day on that project (after I get 1 and 2 on my list done).  So that means I will be working on my Herding Cats Mittens.  I have 42 rounds complete and am five rounds from finishing the thumb gusset increases.  Then I have about 10-20 rounds to complete on the body to complete it (plus finishing off the thumb). I am hoping that I can finish the mitten today so that I can get the pattern finished off and then get the pattern up for testing.