Organizing My Knitting

For the last few days, I have been entering my knitting books and magazines in Ravelry and bringing some organization into my knitting world. Spurred on by my success with UFOs this summer, I have been eager to bring everything together in one place and evaluate what I have. For years I wasn't able to knit much, but still managed to accumulate stash, so now I have a gold mine to dive into.

For anyone who doesn't know, Ravelry is a great website for knitters. In fact, it probably is a little knitting corner of heaven:) On Ravelry, I can type in the name my books and magazines and most of the time up pops a picture of what I have. I can then click on the picture and most of the time I am taken to a page with photos of all sorts of projects that are featured in the publication. The next thing I do is look at all the many variations made by other knitters and read their comments. But that is only the beginning! From there I link to the project page by marking it as a "fave" and if I really like it, I put it in my queue which is on my "notebook page."

I've had my grandson bring down all sorts of yarn from the attic and I am working on adding photos of my stash and linking them to the projects I've picked out. I had some ancient Bucilla Glace that I was going to just take to From the Heart in Richmond. I clicked on the yarn and found a great idea for it. Knittindiva made a beautiful shawl using the Glace as one of the anchoring yarns and added bits and pieces of other scrap yarn.

This is part of my resolve to get order in my knitting life. Actually, my doctor recently put me on a stronger thyroid medicine and I am feeling so much better that tackling it seems much more doable now. I am trading back and forth between working on the computer and actually knitting the projects I am working on now. The success I had this summer has fed upon itself and I am ready to go.

Also, to keep up the energy, I have contacted two women who were also on Ravelry and live in Fernandina and we have already had one knitting session in our local Kafe Haus. It is so much more inspiring to have someone to look at what you have accomplished so far or to have a "show & tell" deadline than to just knit on your own...at least, it seems so for me. I got really spoiled in Virginia with all the great folks in my sister's group.

What projects are left?

I'll get photos up as soon as I find that charger cord, but here's what is left:

1. Baby vest - started for Charles, got off count somewhere and couldn't fix it. Now I am making it for Jonathan.

2. Lavender fluffy sweater for Addie. This one is just lacking the sleeves. It just got put on a back burner for a while - no problems.

3. Knit red coat for 18" doll - sew together

4. Knit blue coat for 18" doll - sew together

5. Knit green sweater and skirt for 18" doll - sew together

6. Red ruffled baby sweater - sew together

7. White baby sweater - sew together

8. One green hunting sock

AM I SEEING A PATTERN HERE???

Charity Knitting - more projects done!

I am on a roll. I got 2 more chemo caps done and finished an isolette blanket. I'll upload some photos when I find all the cords and things I need to download my photos. Nothing is going to happen if I can't get the camera charged up again and that cord seems to be elusive.

For the isolette blanket I used a tiny mock cable that I frequently used years ago. It is such a sweet pattern for baby things and it is so small that tiny fingers don't get caught up in it easily.

I met a knitter from Ravelry this morning at the Kafe Haus in Fernandina. We had no problem picking each other out of the crowd...who else is dragging bags with sticks sticking out and balls of color peeking over the edge. I hope we can get a few more knitters to meet with us. I did the finishing on the charity projects I had with me and then picked up a sweater for my granddaughter out of lavender Fluffy. That was in my UFO basket also, so I am looking forward to counting that in my list of finished projects.

I am making some progress on my project to inventory all my books and needles. I entered some more on Ravelry, but I find that I have to take photos of some of my books and, of course, I need the camera. I have also gathered a number of old projects and put the yarn and pattern in the bag so I am ready for the next one when I finish.

I am trying to do my UFOs in an 80/20 ratio. I work on UFOs 80%of the time and new projects 20% of the time. I am only doing this for one year and if I make it, I get to go with my sister on a Virginia Shop Hop next spring. Even my 20% should be from my stash unless I find a really good sale; We shall see.

How do things get to be UFOs?

There is something that I wonder about in knitting. I see a pattern and grab some yarn and start to work on it with great enthusiasm. I like the way the yarn looks, every thing is going along nicely and suddenly, I loose interest. Sometimes it is because I have a problem with the pattern, but a lot of times there is no reason. I tuck in back in the closet where it reproaches me each time I see it. I try not to look too deeply into the closet while I do my best to keep thoughts of the cost of the yarn and the time invested. Yuk! I do not want to do this project.

AND then... one day, I look at my knitting and fall in love again. Now the color is lovely, the pattern is interesting and I am raring to go. Has the yarn changed? No. Has the pattern changed? No! Obviously, the knitter has changed, but how? I swear I am the same person who looked into the closet a month ago. Is it hormonal? Have my biorhythms changed, is Venus in a different house (whatever that means)?

Now, if I could find an answer to that question and turn it into a potion, I could get rich!!!! Just think...upon nearing the closet, you take a pill and slowly approach. Wow! You can't wait to get back to that pattern you started in the 70s! (Well, perhaps not the 70s. Some fashion eras do not bear repeating.) Now you love your project and can't wait to start knitting. Think how much money you would save!! Maybe you could even use the pills for other things that have been started and not completed. If only...

Back in town

Yeah! I am back in town again in my own little house..which is now a mess because I am starting a project to gather all my needles and hooks and take an inventory. That means getting out more unfinished projects and evaluating them.

I GOT EVERY UNFINISHED PROJECT I BROUGHT WITH ME TO VIRGINIA FINISHED!!!!! What a high! I made 4 pair of hunting socks, 2 pair of regular socks for presents this Christmas, a vest for my granddaughter's friend, 3 mittens (one for spare), Charles' sweater, a novelty scarf, a baby sweater, and ??? I can't remember, but I photographed them and will upload soon. Every single project had something wrong with it, which is how it got to be an UFO in the first place.

I also made about 10 chemo caps for From the Heart, a sweater for Addie which I didn't bring quite enough yarn to finish the last sleeve, 2 more baby sweaters, designed and started an incubator blanket and an Aran sweater for Eli.

I can hardly stand myself I am so tickled! I accomplished this marvel because I had my mother and sister around me to talk to while figured out what was wrong, unknitted the mess, corrected the problem and finished the project. If I was at home, I would be mumbling about the yarn, the pattern developer (mainly me), the fickle knitting goddess etc. I also brought these projects in their own little bag and when I went somewhere, I only took that bag...no other choice:)

So now, I am going upstairs to sort out some more projects and see how well I can keep this up. I did bring back some beautiful fall colored sock yarn that I am going to make for myself and I am trying to decide if I start it before Addie's sweater or after. Since I live in Florida, I think I will finish the sweater first so Addie can wear it (if it ever gets below 80 degrees!)