Skip to main content

WIP Wednesday: Selfish Knitting Edition

After the last several months of knitting primarily for others, I am very happy to indulge in a little selfish knitting for the start of this year. I haven't made too many resolutions for 2013 thus far, but I do know this: I need to knit myself more sweaters this year. It just needs to happen. I also would like to fold this in with another ongoing goal I challenge myself with each year: destashing! I have many sweater's-worth quantities of yarn in my stash, and it's criminal that they haven't become beautiful wardrobe staples by now.

I finished the lacy top I was knitting with Bijou Basin Ranch's yak/silk laceweight yarn, Shangri-La (thought I still need to photograph it and share it with the world at large), so I decided to cast on for another dolman-style top using some sock yarn for my stash and breaking my cardigans-only rule for sweater-making yet again. Go figure!

While I'd love to make the Roxborough Dolman with the yarn specified, Canopy Fingering from The Fibre Company, I thought I'd try shopping from my stash this time around (that makes more room for future yarn purchases, right?!). Naturally, I didn't quite have enough yardage for the main color lurking in my stash, so I decided to get a little creative, using a leftover skein of Malabrigo Sock for contrasting ribbed bands, then mixing a skein of Anzula Squishy in Clay and Shalimar Zoe Sock in Loden for the body of the sweater. I'm not very far along, but I like the way the colors are playing together so far!

No, really - this is my Panoramic Stole.
I've also made modest progress on my Panoramic Stole - plus I tracked down another skein of Malabrigo Sock in Chocolate Amargo, which turned out to be a more difficult task that I would have imagined. Apparently this is a very popular color, as most places I checked (Doodlebug Yarn, Webs, Jimmy Beans Wool, etc) were completely sold out of it! I finally located a skein at Eat. Sleep. Knit., so I placed an order last Friday and it arrived promptly on Monday afternoon.

I finished the first cycle of mesh patterning and short-row shaping; already it's becoming difficult to photograph. This will definitely take several months to complete; my guess is the destash dolman will be done long before I even reach the halfway point on this stole. It will definitely be worth it, though, as I'm sure I'll get plenty of use out of the stole once it's complete. Any bets on when that might reasonably occur?

Don't forget to check out more awesome bloggage (that's a word now) by visiting Tami's Amis for WIP Wednesday shenanigans!!

Comments

  1. Yay to more selfish knitting and to stashbusting! Both great goals that I hope to do more of myself in 2013.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Overdyeing A Finished Knit

Even after just a few years of knitting or crocheting, you're bound to have some finished projects lying around that never get worn or used. After 10+ years of crafting, I have more than just "some" or "a few"....and with my ongoing quest to declutter my house this year, I've become obsessed with going through these forlorn projects and making some Big Decisions. Sometimes, they are perfectly fine and just need a new and loving home. Other projects may have not turned out quite right: there might have been some mistakes in the knitting that I thought I could live with, or the yarn was gorgeous but not well-matched to the pattern, or my  taste has drastically changed since I finished making the project...in any case, why on earth did I keep knitting?! Who knows, but I don't feel good about gifting anything that falls into this category to someone else. These projects have been relegated to the "frog pile" (or should I say, frog pond?), to b...

Easy DIY: Beaded Vintage Snowflake Ornament Kits from Solid Oak Inc.

I was really excited to step outside of my comfort zone and try something new as part of my "Christmas in July" theme this month. The kind folks at Solid Oak Inc offered me a chance to review one of their Nostalgic Christmas beaded crystal ornament kits I couldn't resist. My tree is already full of ornaments I've inherited or been gifted from other family members and friends,  so these pretty crystal beaded ornaments will fit right in I think! I was super impressed with  this compact little kit , which includes everything needed to create three gorgeous vintage-style ornaments - just add a pair of round nose pliers (I found mine on Amazon for less than ten bucks).  The instructions had some fabulous tips for newbies like me; for example, it recommended sorting the beads and laying them out in order on a towel or beading mat to prevent them from rolling away. That may seem obvious, but I was totally ready to start beading on my kitchen table without a...

What If I Didn't Add Heels?

Last weekend, I finished the first sock with my Waterlilies yarn , and just for yuks, I tried it on even though it was basically just a tube sock. Much to my surprise, it fit really well, even without a heel. Who knew? So, that got me thinking: what if I just didn't add the heels?  I never thought a tube sock would actually fit nicely, but I genuinely like the fit, so...why spend time to add the heels? As the saying goes, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.... Let's say I decide not to add heels once the second sock is done - there will still be placeholder yarn for the afterthought heels, as you can see above, so should I leave it in and just weave in the ends? Or should I remove it, put the live stitches back on needles and at least graft them together using more of the Waterlilies yarn? I plan on mulling all of this over as I knit the second sock, and I'd love to hear your opinions of what you think would look best (or if you think this whole "n...