Author: Sarah

So, the general rule of thumb for yarn amounts (and time spent knitting) is: back of sweater = 1/3, front(s) of sweater = 1/3, sleeves = 1/3. I guess it didn’t really hit me that a hood is probably another 1/3. (Yes, that adds up to more than 1.) Not that I’m running out of yarn, it just surprised me, that’s all.

Oh, and intarsia, while it came out fairly well and is marginally fun to do, is not something I’d contemplate for a larger project (like something me-sized) at any point in the near future.

I’ll stop now, before I give something away. One of these days I’ll get back to knitting things I can show pictures of. Right this minute, I have 5 out of 22 gifts done. Two more are almost done, and two others are about half done. The rest of what’s left are teeny-tiny things…well, sort of. I’m not panicked. Yet. Ask me again in a week or so.

I need help! Elann has a new yarn on their site, Sierra, which is a wool/alpaca blend… I’ve been dying to knit the Green Mountain Gardens cardigan from the Green Mountain Spinnery book, but their yarn (while lovely) is way expensive…and I think this would make a good substitute, assuming I can come up with a colorway that works with the colors of the yarn available. The Eggplant and Plumberry shades are calling me…as are Spruce, and Ocean, and Mid and Dark Indigo.

Should I? Can I really justify buying another sweaters’ worth of yarn, when I have a fair isle vest and another sweater I haven’t even started yet? It’s such a good price, and such gorgeous colors.

Help!!!

Knitted things have been just flying off my needles! I finished the patchwork sweaters, but final pictures will have to wait for a good blocking and some good lighting. (No peeking, Mary!)

I started another mystery project, and I’m already about halfway through. I love little projects!

I also managed to get to the yarn shop in between all of my other errands this weekend and buy the yarn for the rest of the things I need to knit for Christmas. Hmmm…how many days are left?

I went to a meeting of the Genesee Valley Handspinner’s Guild today – remember, the bus group I ran into on my way back from Rhinebeck?

There were probably about 50 women there, most with spinning wheels, although some were using drop spindles. I got some great pointers, and met some nice people. Nobody there believed me that I had only been spinning for about a month – I guess my yarn is too even!

Unfortunately, I had no idea how much fun it would be, and had made other plans for the rest of the day, so I was only there for a couple of hours. Next month I’ll know better!

I feel like I’m not getting any knitting done…although really, that’s just because everything I’m working on is a gift, and is secret. I literally have to plan every opportunity to knit based on who’s going to be around, and whether someone might pop in at any moment. It’s starting to get complicated!

I’ve never been very good at being sneaky, either, so I’m just waiting for the minute I slip up when someone asks me what I’m working on and say something like “this for person a, and that for person b, and this for person c” while I’m talking to person c.

Oh, well, I’m getting close to having the bulk of the gifts done, which means I’ll be able to work on things I can show people. I did cast on another aran square, but only did about four rows before I realized I really should have been working on…something else. :)

I started my first official block for the sampler afghan-a-long last Sunday…with the goal of having it done by today – since the idea is to do one block a week. Considering that as of yesterday I’d only gotten the bottom border and the first 8 pattern rows done, I did managed to get quite a bit finished: I only have 6 more complicated rows left (out of 64)…but I’m too tired to try to remember the difference between a 1/1 LPC and a 1/1 LC, and I’ve made (and fixed) too many mistakes at this point. I think it’s time for sleep.

However, I did get a lot of Christmas knitting (and shopping!) done this weekend, which is really more important now, right?