What's Going On

I've been largely absent here lately. My shift change has taken longer to get used to than I thought but I think I'm starting to get into a routine I can thrive in. My free time has been spent knitting. Last time I shared the projects I have planned for Mad May and I'm working on checking off that list. As a bonus, there is a contest to go along with the KALs for the most FOs. So far, I have finished nine things and am in various stages of more. I started the month with a goal of finishing ten knits, which will be easily met. Now I'm shooting for fifteen. FO posts will have to wait until June for these, and the ever-growing stack of knits that have been waiting all year.

In addition to my knitting, spring has finally came to the Red River Valley. Getting off work while the sun is still up makes it hard to want to be inside. Of course we are on a rush into summer, where everyone here will soon be complaining about the heat, humidity, and mosquitoes (versus snow, bitter cold, and wind).


This month will also bring a bit of travel. I have to go to Minneapolis for a few days for work again and this time I will be going alone. I need to drive down on a Sunday so I will have an extra day to visit old and new places in the area. For all the time I have spent in the Twin Cities, there are still things I haven't seen, so I'm taking advantage of this. I'm staying by the Mall of America and will be skipping going there (for the millionth time) though. Rain is in the forecast the entire time I will be visiting, but I still hope to get some photographs to share.


The other trip I have planned is to head into Canada to visit Winnipeg, Manitoba. Again, this is a city I have visited many times in my lifetime, but it has been awhile since my last visit. In addition to seeing the city, I have some side trips in mind that are off the interstate.

To be honest, I have plans for many exploratory trips this summer. It seems my over-planning has moved from projects to travel. I do still have many projects in the great queue in my head and can't wait to get to them starting in June. As much as I love to knit, I miss creating in other ways.

Another post may come in May, but more likely won't be until June. See you soon!

Upcoming Knit-a-longs

The next month or so is going to be knitting heavy in my world. There are two KALs I am participating in and some double dipping between the two.

This comes along with a change in the shift I'm working, so who knows how my productivity will be. Back when I was going to school, the early morning hours were ideal for getting things done.
I thought I would share my goals for knitting through the end of may and tell you about the KALs in case you want to join in.

The first is the Spring Tanks, Tops, and Tees KAL hosted by Shannon of luvinthemommyhood. Basically any top without long sleeves. I have three (!) projects planned. Don't worry too much about my sanity. Two of them qualify for the other KAL as well.

The KAL runs from April 24th to May 22nd. The project I am casting on first, and hope to finish in a week, is the Gemini tee. I am knitting it out of a single ply made from merino wool, alpaca, and silk from The Woolen Rabbit. It feels like heaven to touch. The colorway is called Plum Island.


Before talking about the other garments, I will tell you about the madness that is Mad May. This is a KAL that runs in the MadelineTosh Lovers group on Ravelry. It runs for all of May and projects have to use MadelineTosh yarn.

I have ten projects planned, with another possible one. Those ten would be two garments, four (maybe five) hats, three cowls, and a pair of fingerless gloves. Completely nuts? Yes... but I'm going for it. I will probably have to not knit for a few days after the madness is over.

This winey purple will be a cardigan called Low Tide.


This brown/blue/black combo is going to be a sweater called Window to My Soul.


The next photo has the yarn for the hats I have planned. From left to right they will become Drizzle, For Good Hat, Chelsea Market Hat, and Rosebud.


Finally, this photograph shows the yarn for the cowls and mittens. From left to right they wll become a Honey Cowl (pink and green), Heart on a String, Cowboy Cowl, and Goldilocks Mittens (two on the right, held together as one).


I don't have the yarn yet for the other hat I'm considering knitting. I traded the second skein of the bright blue above for an iris (blue-violet) skein and it's currently on its way to me.

Care to join in? No need to go as crazy as I am. There are seperate categories for whatever you would want to knit or crochet for Mad May.

WIP Wednesday and a UFO Plan

I realized it's been a few weeks since I posted about my WIPs. I only have a couple to share as the other things I've been working on are finished. However, it is still snowing here so FO photos are going to be delayed.

I've made a little progress on my Woodland Sampler.


My most exciting WIP is this sock. It's my first ever and was easier than I thought it would be. Just a lesson in following the pattern and working each stitch as I come to them. I'm taking a hiatis from casting on the second sock to finish up a couple other things but should have it done by the end of the month.


Over this upcoming weekend my goal is to catalog all of my UFOs (WIPs are included). Judy of Patchwork Times is hosting a UFO Parade through the end of the year. It's a goal of mine (and many others it seems) to cut down on the number of projects in limbo. I've been setting rules for myself, like having to finish two projects in order to start a new one. That hasn't worked longer than the first finish.

So I've been wondering to myself why I don't finish everything I start. And how can I change that? I spent some time at the end of last year throwing some UFOs into my scrap bin for use in other projects. With those fabric based projects, it was simply that I fell out of love with the idea. It was easy to move on. The ones I have more trouble with is my knitting projects. I still love all of the unfinished projects. I just only have the two hands so I can only work on one at a time.

All of this boils down to my ideas. When I am on a roll with ideas, it just spurts out, usually to the point of being out of control. I also think I have more time to do things than I actually do, so there is that factor of not taking into account reality. I desperately need a plan. Some way to have my cake and eat it too. My life is full with work, Chad, friends, my dogs, taking care of a home, and the other activities I enjoy outside of creating with fabric and yarn. Sometimes there is a lack of balance.

While I don't have a complete plan, I know I need to focus, find balance, and follow through. An ambitious goal would be to end 2013 with no unfinished projects. I'm not sticking to that (yet). We'll see once I list all of those lingering items.

How about you? Do you have a plan to finish your UFOs? Or, do you not have any at all? (If so, please share your tips for keeping them under control.)

Finish-a-Long Quarter Two

Quarter one was a complete failure as far as finishing any of my goals went. I've been trying to be conservative with the projects I pick for this and think I need to widen my scope of what I include. This might not work as May is looking to be full of new starts, but I'm always game to take a stab at something.

Without further adieu, here are my goals (and current state of said projects) for this quarter.

1. Handstitched mini

  2. Sourwood Mountain

  3. Cora

  4. Driftwood

  5. Nesting Place

  6. Temptress

  7. Hand quilting practice mini

  8. Notebook cover

  9. Ranrike

  10. Canyonlands


I decided this quarter to leave off the quilt tops that need to be quilted and bound. I have so much fabric set aside for different quilts that I would rather accumulate tops to clear some of the clutter. Another rule I have set for myself is to not have any knitting WIPs older than a year. Eventually, I would like that to be six months.

Linking up Leanne for the FAL goals linky party.

A Year of Lovely Finishes: April

Let's try this again, shall we? I didn't get very far in my March goal. In fact, my fabric is still intact and I haven't settled on a design. YES, I realize this is an item for my dogs. That it will get wet and dirty, but that doesn't mean I can't have something appealing, right? Can you tell I've been tossing all of this back and forth in my head?

As a refresher, here is my stack of dog fabrics. Since this is a project that I've been meaning to get to for awhile, I really want to finish it this month.

Linking up with Sew BitterSweet Designs and Fiber of All Sorts (just under the wire too).

To Do First: April

Seriously, how is it April already? On one hand, time is moving way too fast and on the other, I am happy to see March gone. It's my least favorite month and historically a difficult one for me.

Before getting to my lists, I have to admit my goal of fitting sewing in every day wasn't met. I started experiencing severe back pain a little over a week ago and with no cause or solution for it, kneeling on the floor to cut or lay out fabrics isn't in the cards. Hopefully this will pass and I can get back to working on all of my projects.

First, my March recap.

Knitting:

1. Joji Mystery - still haven't started.

2. The Sermon - didn't touch.
3. New Beginnings - didn't touch.
4. Cora - stuck on the damn sleeves.
5. Itasca - didn't touch.
6. Mystery Sock - didn't start.
7. Driftwood - didn't touch.
8. May Day Shawl - finished. Will post more about it in April.
9. Madison - finished. Another one I will post about in April.
10. Boo Knits Mystery - didn't touch.
11. Sourwood Mountain - didn't touch.
12. Olympic National Park - finished. Yet another post to come.
13. Canyonlands - started on Saturday and have the rest of the edging to finish.
14. Cowboy Cowl - didn't start.
15. Abalone - didn't start.
16. Age of Brass and Steam - didn't start.
17. 28's Big Sister 77 - didn't start.
18. Business Casual - didn't start.
19. Tank top test - I have started and have to finish by April 15th. I can't share any photos until after then either.
20. East Gable Shawl - started.


Sewing:

1. Project Quilting - well, I skipped one challenge because I didn't feel it posed a challenge and didn't get back into the rest. The season is over so this will come off my list.
2. Row QAL - didn't start.
3. Handstitched mini - haven't touched.
4. Kaleidoscope back - didn't start.
5. Baste and quilt Drunkard's Path - didn't do. Will explain more in my FAL post.
6. Emerald Challenge - started but didn't finish in time for the challenge deadline. In other words, it still isn't done.
7. Sugar Block Club - caught up.
8. Weekender - didn't start.
9. Low Volume top - didn't start.
10. Dogwood Blossom - didn't start.
11. Honeycomb SAL - I changed my mind on fabrics and haven't started.
12. Road to Round Rock QAL - I've started but my back issues have stalled me.
13. Dog dish mat - didn't start.
14. Curved tree mini - didn't start.
15. Zig Zag top - didn't start.


Embroidery:

1. Nesting Place - didn't touch.
2. Garden Tote - didn't touch.
3. Dessert of the Month - didn't start.
4. Gorey SAL - the SAL for this one is over so I'm taking it off. I do like the idea of stitching one of Gorey's illustrations so it may make its way back here.
5. White on White - didn't start.
6. Woodland Sampler - caught up.
7. Reindeer banner - didn't start.
8. Sampler from school - didn't touch.
9. Cloth from EEC class - didn't touch.


Now for April. I'm not adding too many new things as I'm really trying to finish up WIPs first.

Knitting:

1. Patina socks - the March club package from Tanis Fiber Arts
2. Juego - a MKAL on Ravelry.
3. Love Letters socks - another KAL on Ravelry.
4. Pooling Socks Challenge - hosted by Judy.
5. Second Quarter Challenge - for The Loopy Ewe. It hasn't been announced as of yet so I'm not sure what I will be knitting up.

Sewing:

1. Forest QAL - I posted about this earlier this month.
2. Quilted Block Holder - as seen here. I love the idea of having something pretty to rangle those rouge blocks.

Nothing new in the embroidery category.

What do you have on your to do list for April?

WIP Update

I hear it's spring but you wouldn't know it looking outside. To top it off, there was an announcement today that we should expect major flooding once the snow melts and the ground thaws. Oy.


As for my update, I really only have one project with any significant progress. That would be my Woodland Sampler. This past week I have found myself wanting to work on at home instead of solely at work. I should be all caught up come April 1st.


I hope spring is treating you nicely so far. See you soon!