Mojo-a-gogo

Tidbit

Leafy Newborn Beanie

Seventh

From Left to Right: Tidbit, Leafy Newborn Beanie & Seventh

 

I’ve been busy. There’s some serious knitting mojo goin’ on up in here. Plus, I’ve been bustin’ me some stash! It’s all good at Chez Funkytown.

These little hats are for my friend at Knitting Up North.  Every spring she knits baby hats for a contest her local Optimist Club holds. I always like to donate a few.  It’s for a worthy cause, I get to help out a knitting pal, and it’s pretty much instant gratification. I’ve actually made 6 already, but have only photographed the 3 above. I mean, these fingers are too busy knittin’ to stop and take photos people! The deadline is April 15th – hint hint. Not only should you check out her blog for some awesome inspiration, I’m sure she’d love to receive a few extra hats to add to her total ;) Just sayin’. Oh and she’s also hosting a knit along beginning March 20th for the Jujika Cowl. I’m in!  If you’re on Ravelry (and you totally should be!) come join us at her group here.

I decided early on this year that I was going to try to keep myself to a strict set of rules for my knitting in 2016. Well, it’s really not a set of rules, more like one big rule.  I have a penchant for getting totally obsessed with any new pattern that comes across my radar, to the complete detriment of whatever else I may be working on.  I have sweaters that have taken me years to complete (if they’ve been completed at all) not because they were difficult, but because I lost momentum and then lost interest in going back to figure out where I’d left off.  I gots me some serious start-itis folks.

This year I plan to end my wayward habits by instituting “The Rule of Two.” The Rule of Two states that I may only have 2 significant projects on the needles at one time: a UFO/WIP that needs finishing and one new project. This rule will remain in place until I have finished all said UFOs/WIPs in which case I will cast on with complete abandon. Or something like that.  Anyway, The Rule of Two has served me well so far this year.  I finished an afghan I’ve had in the works for a year, finished Los Monos Locos socks (picture to come later), am nearly finished with a sweater for Uptown, and finished the Frisson I mentioned last time (pictures later of course). Now if only I could be this successful in reducing my winter’s worth of insulation that has been accumulating underneath all those warm bulky sweaters I’m not knitting/finishing!

Ribbon Afghan

 

PATTERN:  Ribbon Afghan by Olivia Rainsford

YARN:  Acrylic in Black (Caron One Pound), White (Lion Brand Pound of Love) & Olive (Vintage Bernat)

YARDAGE:  1004 yds

CROCHETING DURATION:  May 16, 2015 – February 15, 2016

PREVIOUSLY MENTIONED:  Briefly, here.

RECIPIENT:  Donation to Warmth for Warriors (Ravelry group here)

DODGY BITS:  None

BLISS FACTOR:  8

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This pattern was well written and fun to knit. Definitely pretty mindless & a great stashbuster.  Love that it’s only meant to be lap sized for veterans in wheelchairs to use.  I could see myself making another for sure! Bliss factor of 8 because, well, it’s acrylic (not that I’m a snob or anything, I just don’t love the stuff).

 

Begin Again

2014 began with a bang. 

Well, a shriek really.  Knittymunchkin climbed in bed with us around 5:15 AM this morning & proceeded to squirm around for a good half hour before telling me that he was thirsty & demanding I go get his water bottle from his room upstairs.  When I said, “Go get it yourself”, or perhaps something a little less polite or intelligible, he proceeded to shout at the top of his lungs thereby effectively ushering in 2014 just a little too early for all of us.

But I did allow myself the pleasure of casting on my first project of the year while indulging in some bad parenting & letting Knittymunchkin watch a movie as we waited for the sun to rise.  This will be a pair of Rye socks by tincanknits for Knittymunchkin made from stash yarn. For the offspring of a knitter, he is woefully light in the hand knit department.  And, it’s kinda cold here.

This year I’m participating in a “14 in 2014” challenge with the Ewe La La Swap Group on Ravelry. I’ll be attempting to complete 14 projects from stash and/or my Ravelry queue before the end of 2014.  As a side deal I’ll be attempting to complete 14 UFO’s alongside my 14 projects from stash/queue.  Because, yes Virginia, there IS a languishing UFO stash of at least 14 items (gasp!) lingering in my household at this very moment, thumbing their fibery unfinished noses at me.  Does that really surprise any of you who have been reading my nonsense for any length of time?

Anyway, there’s a lot I want to accomplish this year.  It’s too much to explain here (and probably too boring) but I will hopefully be checking in here a little more frequently with progress on whatever challenge I’m wrestling with at the moment.  I didn’t make any resolutions (I usually don’t). But, after all, it’s only the first day of the new year.  I’ve got to pace myself if I want to make it to the home stretch.

Here’s to a Happy New Year for each & every one of you!  I wish you nothing but the best!!

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P.S.  It’s been a while since I’ve posted here & I’ve noticed some good & bad WordPress changes.  The bad being that there are now occasional ads here after my posts.  Sorry about that.  I can’t do anything about it except cough up $30 to get the ad free upgrade. Which, when your salary is zero, just isn’t going to happen.  But just so you know, it wasn’t my idea to slap those ads up there. Thanks for your patience!