[YOP] Week of January 17th, 2016

I participate in "A Year of Projects" which is run by a group over on Ravelry.

I am hoping it will (a) help me be more productive (b) help me finish more projects and (c) help me blog more often... Fingers crossed!

Here is an update on current goals, and progress towards those goals.

General Overall Goals

• finish more projects - Nothing completed this week except a full clue of one of my MKALs.
• start fewer projects - Ummm...I started four new projects since my last update...
• use more stash yarn - Out of the four projects I started last week, 2 of them were started with yarn I had in my stash. 50% is not a bad ratio for me!
• buy less new yarn - I picked up some more of the worsted yarn for the GAL afghan, so I couldn't help myself there, and I also got sweet talked into some really awesome self-striping sock yarn.
• sell or donate stash yarn I no longer have any interest in - I found some crochet cotton in my closet I won't use and that will be going to my sister. I also found a bag full of knitted and crocheted squares that I will be donating to Blankets For Canada. Just have to find a way to meet up with someone for the drop off.
• add stash I plan on keeping to Ravelry for easier tracking - So far just entering what I buy as it comes in. Still need to find time to do back stash.
• organize stash room - Not going to happen any time soon. just discovered several leaks in the roof so just bundling everything up safely until we can get it repaired/replaced.
• sell some of my finished items - I now how finished items as well as hand-dyed yarn listed on Etsy. I have sold some yarn, but none of the finished items yet. Hopefully soon! It will help pay for the new roof!

Technique Goals

• double knitting - As promised, I cast on my first GAL DK square and it is going even better than I hoped! Not so scary at all!
• toe up socks - I received some good tips from an avid sock knitter at my LYS, so going to work up a swatch and then attack some socks with my awesome new self-striping yarn I scored.
• more complicated lacework - The MKAL lace shawl I am working on right now is actually pretty complicated. It has lacework on both the RS and WS and beads as well.
• clothing items - I think I am going to leave this goal until after surgery in June because my body should change quite a bit afterwards.

Specific Project Goals

I have created a project page on Ravelry called Knit The Bin where I am collecting WIPs that I want to finish that were started before the beginning of 2015.

• 2015 Advent KALendar Shawl (completed 01/09/16)
• The Doodler Shawl
• Meander Cardigan
• Wintersweet Shawl
• Spellbound Shawl
• Mara Shawl
• Hello Sweetie Spoilers Socks
• 50 Shades of Awesome

Projects Started in 2016 I Want To Complete This Year

• A Wrinkle In Time Shawl - Completed clue one January 16th!
• Nemesis Shawl - This has become my new TV/car knitting project.
• Opal Shawl
• GAL 2016 Video Game Themed Blanket - Cast on Square one this week!
• Scoreboard Scarf A - Completed a few rounds this week.
• Bow Ties Are Cool Doctor Who Themed Shawl - Cast on this week.
• Depth Charge Shawl MKAL - Cast on this week.
• Askews Me Brioche Dress - Cast on this week.

Here is a kind of bunched up picture of clue one of the Wrinkle In Time MKAL. It's actually very pretty, I'm just not very good with the camera.

And here is a sneak peek at my Bow Ties Are Cool MKAL. I am quite enjoying this one!

The results of this week's visit to the LYS. The Shelridge Yarns Soft Touch Worsted Yarn is some of the softest and squishiest I have worked with, and it`s Canadian! Such a great choice for my GAL afghan. I am so glad the owner of my LYS encouraged me to try it.

A close up of the super awesome self-striping sock yarn!

And the best part, the complete set of ChiaoGoo twist needles I have been drooling over for close to two years...

I think I'm in love!

[YOP] Week of January 10th, 2016

I participate in "A Year of Projects" which is run by a group over on Ravelry.

I am hoping it will (a) help me be more productive (b) help me finish more projects and (c) help me blog more often... Fingers crossed!

Here is an update on current goals, and progress towards those goals.

General Overall Goals

• finish more projects - Finished a project this weekend!
• start fewer projects - Not working our well since a group I am part of is actually having a cast-on-apalooza!I have already started 4-5 projects since January 1st...
• use more stash yarn - I have been using stash and/or inventory yarn as much as possible, so that's good!
• buy less new yarn - Not so good since two projects I really wanted to work on both required worsted weight yarn which I did not have so I did have to buy some this week.
• sell or donate stash yarn I no longer have any interest in - Before Christmas I actually gave my sister a few big bags of yarn I no longer will use. I am sure both her and my mom will receive more from me in the future. I also did manage to sell off some of the higher end stash I knew I was never going to get around to using, so yay!
• add stash I plan on keeping to Ravelry for easier tracking - So far just entering what I buy as it comes in. Still need to find time to do back stash.
• organize stash room - Not going to happen any time soon. just discovered several leaks in the roof so just bundling everything up safely until we can get it repaired/replaced.
• sell some of my finished items - I now how finished items as well as hand-dyed yarn listed on Etsy. I have sold some yarn, but none of the finished items yet. Hopefully soon! It will help pay for the new roof!

Technique Goals

• double knitting - Going to hopefully cast on a DK GAL square tonight!
• toe up socks
• more complicated lacework
• clothing items

Specific Project Goals

I have created a project page on Ravelry called Knit The Bin where I am collecting WIPs that I want to finish that were started before the beginning of 2015.

• 2015 Advent KALendar Shawl (completed 01/09/16)
• The Doodler Shawl
• Meander Cardigan
• Wintersweet Shawl
• Spellbound Shawl
• Mara Shawl
• Hello Sweetie Spoilers Socks
• 50 Shades of Awesome

Projects Started in 2016 I Want To Complete This Year

• A Wrinkle In Time Shawl
• Nemesis Shawl
• Opal Shawl
• GAL 2016 Video Game Themed Blanket
• Scoreboard Scarf A

I have many other WIPs and I cannot list them all. I will add more as I dig them out and actually touch them again to make sure they are real... As you can see I have a real starting problem...actually it's not starting that's the problem...it's finishing!

Picture of the finished Advent KALendar shawl. I still need to soak it and block it, but it's lovely!

And here is the yarn I bought this week. To be fair...I had not visited my LYS in almost a year, so of course I had to stock up a wee bit!

Just some of the yarn "donated" to my loving sister...

Happy New Year!

It has been almost a full year since I last posted to this blog.

2015 was a busy year for me. I was diagnosed with a chronic illness (details if you are interested can be found on my more personal blog Everything Gwenny) and spent pretty much the entire year sick and in pain. I missed a lot of work and realized that at some point I might lose my job and so therefore needed to look at other options.

Being the yarnie that I am I decided to open both a retail online yarn store, Serenity Yarns, and an Etsy shop (also named Serenity Yarns) for my hand-dyed yarns. So far it has been a lot of fun. It's still not enough to support me full time, and maybe it never will, but it's very enjoyable, and it makes me happy...which is the most important part.

As such, I am going to be using this blog to support both those outlets as well as continue using it for my own personal crafting as well. I will feature product reviews, both yarn and accessories, as well as contests, special deals, and more!

I didn't get a whole lot of projects completed last year, partially due to the illness and being in an almost constant fog of pain and painkillers, and also partially due to my love of constantly starting new projects.

The first project I completed wasn't until June, almost half way through the year. It was a test knit for an indie yarn dyer and designer I adore, Pandia's Jewels. I think it was the fastest I ever finished a project like this as well, taking me only 6 weeks to knit the entire shawl. I used one of her themed colorways, Gamora, based on the character of the same name from Guardians of The Galaxy.

Other than that I mostly did knitting to sell on Etsy including various cozy cowls and hats. Active listings for my hand knit items can be found on Esty, here.

My goal for this year is to finish more WIPs. I am running a Knit The Bin KAL (an awesome idea from our fabulous group member REJ) over on my Ravelry Group Page. Come on over and join us and we can encourage one another to finish our WIPs. I mean just look at this picture of my desk right now...I obviously need the help...

My other main knitting goal for this year is to learn double knitting. It is something I have really wanted to learn for quite some time, and some new patterns that have come to my attention require this skill. So it is definitely a must!

What are some of your crafting related goals for this year? Fell free to comment on the blog and/or join us over on the Raverly page.

[YOP] Year of Projects - 2014 Year End Wrap Up

I have lost track of what week number this should be. I am going to move to a fiscal year tracking instead as it makes it easier.

Last year was a year of great illness for me. I spent almost just as much time healthier as I did sick and in pain. I have a new specialist and hope for 2015 to be a much healthier year, and therefore a much more productive year as well!

Below is a short list of projects I completed over the course of 2014.

Pioneer Cuff (not blocked) completed February 22 2014.

Sleeveless Sweater completed May 28 2014.

Lace Bookmark completed June 4 2014.

Simple Armwarmers completed July 5 2014.

Simple Hat completed July 20 2014.

Show-off Stranded Socks completed August 17 2014.

Saundra's Mitts completed September 30 2014.

My goal moving forward to is to focus on less projects at a time and complete them, buy less yarn and use up my stash including WIPs previously started.

Currently focusing on my Boo Knits Wintersweel MKAL and my Americo Mulberry Pullover.

[YOP] Year of Projects - Year 4 - Week 4

Welcome to week #4 of a year of projects!

I spent most of this week finishing up and photographing my entries for Nerd Wars, Tournament #11, Round #2. I had to post my sock to prove my 50% dissertation progress, and I added the hate I shared with you last week as one of my challenge posts. I also posted the armwarmers for my WIP challenge. On top of that I posted two blanket squares for two other challenges. (Only the hexagon square was completed this week.)

I cast on two new socks this week as well. Yes...I might be addicted!

The first sock is a dedication to Doctor Who's Companion, River Song, knit in a hand dyed yarn specifically for this sock pattern. The yarn is the Snug base from Pandia's Yarn and the colourway is called Spoilers dyed specifically for the Doctor Who Companion Sock Club. The pattern is called Spoilers Socks by C.C. Almon (JavaPurl) on Ravelry.

I am not entirely sure how I feel about this weird little toe, but we will see how it goes.

I finally cast on my son's Vinovia Socks, but after working toe up on the above socks I am not really loving this cuff down pair.

The hubby and I took a nice trip up to Bobcaygeon, Ontario and enjoyed walking around town and watching some ships pass through the locks. I think I finally found (fell in love with) the place where I would like to settle down in the near future. It is just so calm and relaxing and quaint. I just adore it!

As it was quite the drive there I obviously got a little more work done on my car travel project as well.

Last but not least I also finished the first lace repeat on my Tabitha Cocoon Cardigan. It's going slowly, but at least I am working on it. This picture is not up to date, but it will give you a feeling for what it is like.

In summary:

• I finished one square
• I did start two new projects
• I did use stash yarn
• I did not buy new yarn

Specific Project Goals

• My Nerd Wars T11 Dissertation project - show off stranded socks
  (Over 50% completed July 20, 2014)
• My Hello Sweetie Spoilers Socks - Started July 25 2014
• My Son's Walk On The Wild Side Socks - Started July 27 2014
• My Tabitha Cocoon Cardigan - progress this week
• My Cable Love Cowl Neck Poncho - no new progress this week
• New Life Building Blocks Baby Blanket
  (Completed block 6 of 25 July 24, 2014)
• The West Linton Cowl
• (25% completed July 13, 2014 - no new progress this week)
• Smock Coat
  (This is my travel knitting project right now, did quite a few rows this week)

[YOP] Year of Projects - Year 4 - Week 3

Welcome to week #3 of a year of projects!

I did a lot of knitting this week, but not a whole lot of finishing. We had a family emergency Thursday afternoon and had to rush out of town and didn't return until very late Friday. We then went back out of town Saturday to check in and make sure everything was OK. I took some mindless seed stitch knitting with me so I at least had something to do.

I did manage to cast on my second sock this week and at least complete the ribbed cuff and the first repeat of the pattern.

I also managed to whip up the matching Simple Hat to go with last week's Simple Armwarmers. Sadly it didn't fit me very well. I will have to add at least two more inches before the decreases if I am going to make this one again for myself. It fit the hubby pretty well though. (Don't tell him I shared this picture with you all...)

 

On Friday I won a pattern (#163 Cable Love Cowl Neck Poncho) from SweaterBabe. This obviously required a visit to my favourite LYS, Amercio, to pick out the right yarn for the job. I settled on one of my top picks, their fabulous Cadena Alpaquita in a lovely natural cream colour. While I was out of town dealing with the family emergency I visited one of their LYS and picked up some nice ChiaoGoo needles in the correct sizes. I almost succumbed to picking up their whole interchangeable set! But was strong...at least for now...

My new favourite Knitter's Pride Karbonz DPN needles set was waiting on my desk this morning, which will make my son happy because now I can start his Vinovia Socks I mentioned last week.

In summary:

• I finished one project (Simple Hat from my list)
• I did start a new project (Added to my list)
• I did not use stash yarn (Plan on doing so with the boy's socks)
• I did buy new yarn (1 skein to gauge swatch new project)

Specific Project Goals

• My Nerd Wars T11 Dissertation project - show off stranded socks
  (Over 50% completed July 20, 2014)
• New Life Building Blocks Baby Blanket
  (Over 50% completed block 6 of 25 July 13, 2014)
• Simple Hat
  (Completed July 20th 2014)
• The West Linton Cowl
  (25% completed July 13, 2014 - no new progress this week)
• Smock Coat
  (This is my travel knitting project right now, did quite a few rows this week)

[YOP] Year of Projects - Year 4 - Week 2

Welcome to week #2 of a year of projects! I am pretty excited with my progress this week!

First off, I finished a project that had been languishing in my WIP pile since September 2013. And I don't even know why I was putting it off! It was a breeze to finish. I completed the second armwarmer of the pair in about 4 hours while re-watching Doctor Who! Awesome right?

I also finished the first sock of the pair I am working on for my Nerd Wars Dissertation project. This means I have made the 50% check-in period with time to spare! And doesn't it look stunning?

My son loved it so much he asked me to make a pair of socks for him. Since one of my goals s to use up some stash yarn, and I want to do this Canadian Designer KAL, we agreed to make the Vinovia Socks in the Schachenmayr Regia Ffluormania Color since I had 6 skeins in my stash. My son chose the Neon Ocean colourway. This should be fun!

In summary:

• I finished one project (Simple Armwarmers from my list)
• I did not start any new projects (but plan on starting the boy's socks soon)
• I did not use stash yarn (but again, plan on doing so with the boy's socks)
• I did sort of buy new yarn as I placed a custom order for T12's dissertation
• I took some of my unloved yarn to my mother's house this weekend and placed still more in a charity donation pile
• I added some stash to Ravelry, mostly the Fluromania (6 balls) as mentioned above
• I did not get any work done on my stash room, but the hubby and I worked on the other half of the basement now that the sister is gone (it is not a pantry/library/work space)

Specific Project Goals

• My Nerd Wars T11 Dissertation project - show off stranded socks
  (50% completed July 13, 2014)
• New Life Building Blocks Baby Blanket
  (50% completed block 6 of 25 July 13, 2014)
• The second Simple Armwarmer
  (Completed July 5th 2014)
• The West Linton Cowl
  (25% completed July 13, 2014)
• Smock Coat
  (This is my travel knitting project right now, did a few rows this weekend)