[English] A very belated update (YOP end)

Hellooooo! Long time no see! I figured it was time to give some love to this forgotten blog :) Unfortunately, just to conclude the Year of Projects and then move on again, blogging isn’t as fun and this list thing didn’t work out for me :) But I dshould wrap it up anyway, because it has been a fun journey getting to know all the other YOP-bloggers and most of you I’ll still follow from the sidelines.

So, my list. I think it mainly didn’t work out because I’m unable to keep focused on just one thing, there is always something more fun I’m dreaming of. When I started my list last June, I hadn’t yet begun to knit, and now I knit more than crochet! So many of my big crochet WIPs are more or less UFOs now, even though I intend to finish them some day. Putting four different blankets on the list, what was I thinking? Oh well. As I said, it has been a lot of fun and I’m full of inspiration for this next year to come. But, I’lll be keeping to Ravelry to share my projects, it’s enough to just have time to make them, the energy just isn’t there to keep up some kind of goals and blog about them :)

This is the result of my first Year of Projects! First, the finished stuff

• Finish my Dahlia shawl (finished December 8)
• Learn to knit socks (first pair finished)
• Give wool yarn some love (finally convinced wool is lovely, mainly helped by spinning and Malabrigo)
• Buy an expensive and luxurious yarn and find a project for it (Malabrigo sock and Whippoorwill!)
• Something wearable for wrapping up at work (Honey cowl CO Nov 17, BO Dec 15)
• A clothing item a little more complicated than a shawl/wrap (In threes cardigan, CO  Jan 1, BO Jan 6)
• Try out different dishcloths (made A LOT of those, see the #dishcloth tag in my projects)
• Learn some different sock techniques like toe up, magic loop and other heels/toes (Experimenting with socks from “Socks from the toe up”)

And the things I never got around to finishing, even though quite a few projects are closer to finishing than they were

• Finish my doily shawl
• Finish my Stitch Sampler
• Another lalylala-doll (first one finished July 2, Kira started November 1)
• A mixed stripes/sampler blanket in Stylecraft (project page)
• A blanket inspired by Cherry Heart’s sampler blanket in Drops Safran (project page)
• Finish the blanket for my sister and her fiancé
• Add a border from ”Around the corner” to something
• A bag or tote made of blocks (squares, hexagons..)
• Learn to make hats and mittens (Hats: Windschief and Stormhatt)
• Try spinning different kinds of wool (Done: Merino, Swedish breed mix)

So, I wish you all a very happy summer (or winter if you are on the other side of the world) and I hope your next YOP year will be fabulous. I’ll keep up with you from my little corner even if I don’t blog :)

[English] Slow progress (YOP #44)

Things are progressing slowly and steadily over here. I’ve had some finishes since last time and some new projects started as well, everything is as it should be :) Things will continue to be CRAZY at work until the end of this YOP year, so I will just make a evaluation of my list and year by then and keep posting progress and FOs in my weekly updates.

Firstly, I finished a doily! My first made with thread.

It has been quite some time since I last made a doily but I really enjoyed it. I think they look a little bit neater with thread that other crochet cotton :)

I also made some more hexagons for my bag, I think I will go with random so I can use as much as possible of my scraps. And I had a lovely delivery, spinning wool from World of Wool! I ordered some sample packs of undyed tops of different breeds and I tried to pick those that had several different natural shades, like Bluefaced Leicester, Corriedale and Shetland. I also ordered some Falkland because I’ve heard it should be fun to spin, even though that was only available in white. I might experiment with food colouring and dyeing for these when they’re all turned into yarn!

Here’s the first yarn from that batch, a light grey Corriedale 3-ply (navajo plied).

I’ve also finished the second part of the Malabrigo braid and started a cute little cardigan

All in all, a pretty good week! Wishing you all one too!

[English] Startitis hits again (YOP #43)

Update time! I’m still working diligently *ahem* on my big WIPs, trying to get closer to the finish line. None of them has a finish line in sight though and I just can’t be bothered to take photos and edit them for progress because I’m so tired of them! I am in a bit of a downperiod, working a short while on something here and there and not being able to focus and really make big progress on anything. I miss that energy to just focus of course, but at the same time nothing really gets forgotten, everything gets around 15 mins work each week at least :)

I do have a few FOs to share though, things that are small or some spinning which is the one thing I can keep doing for quite a long time without getting bored. First, spinning! My mum gave me some more Malabrigo fiber, and since it is just LOVELY I couldn’t keep my hands off it :) Here’s a skein I made, the yarn turned out a bit thinner than before but also higher twist, not sure which I prefer!

Second skein is already “in production”, of course. I also finished a mini skein of a merino milk fiber mix, just gorgeous! It spun like gold! Do try it if you get the chance :)

Apart from this, I’ve started a hexipuff project with my mini skeins from the club at The Natural Dye Studio, hoping to turn these into chair cushions or something equally small and decorative when I have enough of them finished :)

And last, but not least, I’ve finally made a start on one of my long standing list items, a bag made of blocks! I’m using Attic24’s hexagons and leftovers from my crocodile stitch bag to make myself a new project bag. I’ll just make hexis until I run out of yarn and that will decide the size. I need some advice though! These two hexis I’ve made so far shows off all the colours I have (5 in total):

I’m torn between just using all the colours in a random manner, or keeping to the same colour or two colours for the last round/border. If keeping to one or two colours for the last round, I would use the darkest blue green and, if two, the blue grey also. (Those are the last and next to last colours on the one to the left.) What do you think, random or more orderly?

I’m hoping you’ve all had a lovely week, we are just finishing spring break here so back to work tomorrow. :)

[English] An FO at last! (YOP #42)

This past week was the last week at work before spring break/Easter holidays, which means I’m now officially off work until next Sunday. Yay! I also went to see the eye doctor on Thursday, and everything looked fine. I don’t need to get back there for another month now :)

My crafting inspiration has definitely returned and I’m so excited! I’ve managed to finish my Pogona, so here it is:

I’m loving it! It’s quite big and very drapey thanks to the silk, so perfect for chilly summer nights. Finishing a WIP means you are allowed to start at least one new item, right? So I started a Semi-precious shawl in the blue alpaca yarn I’ve had lying around for ages. I love the yarn, it just hadn’t found its perfect project. Until now :) My list needs updating with some shawl goals, that’s for sure!

Haven’t worked on much else this week though although I’m itching to get a few more WIPs finished. Problem is, most of my WIPs are wuite big and need a lot of time to get even close to finishing. I might actually schedule 15-30 min a night for a long standing WIP that has lots of work left. That way I’ll make slow and steady progress and not feel so overwhelmed :)

The plan for the coming week includes lots of spinning and some shawl knitting. And some work on a WIP or two :)

[English] Planning and plotting (YOP #41)

This last week has pretty much been planning and plotting for me. Work is quite exhausting so I don’t have the energy to create all the time. But I can dream without any problems!

I’m dreaming of shawls and skirts and sweaters, but I also think I need to have a good thinking of the kinds of projects I choose to start. I can’t have too many more big projects or I will feel like nothing ever gets finished and I will get unhappy with my crafting. I made a small amigurumi cookie for just this reason, I might go back to small amigurumi for a while just to get my spirits up!

I’m progressing slowly on my new projects, not much happening on the list so I see no reason to update it yet. Instead I’m already thinking of next year, if blogging is for me and if this list thing helps me or stops me. I’m so glad I’ve got to know all the blog-along-friends, but I don’t think the blogging format is the best choice with my kind of work and stress levels. We’ll see what I think when I’ve thought this through thoroughly. :)

More planning and plotting scheduled for this week, and I might get a bit closer to finishing my Pogona!

[English] Back to (almost) normal (YOP #36 #37 #38 #39 #40)

Well, hello there. Long time no see! I’m glad to be back blogging again after my long involuntary break. I’m less glad about going back to work tomorrow, but it was to be expected. :)

On 28 February, I found out I had retinal detachment and for the whole of March I was home from work getting several treatments and lots of rest. I wasn’t allowed to strain my eye for the most of it, which meant not too much crafting sadly! But on 1 April I got ok from the doctor, things were mostly back to normal and I could start reading, crafting and working again, although I still need to get new glasses. I’ve been crafting like mad this week! Ok, not really, but definitely enjoying my time off with time to craft.

What has happened since my last real update then? I can hardly remember! But the biggest thing has to be that I bought a spinning wheel :) I bought it in the last weekend of February really, but I’ve been out since then so I haven’t had a chance to tell you. I finally decided on an Ashford Traveller and I’m loving it! It’s so small and cute and I can spin with great speed, which has turned out a bit of a problem. I’m prone to run out of fiber quite often :P Here are most of my makes so far

I still haven’t figured out what I’d like to do with them, so maybe that’s for next year :) Apart from spinning, I’ve also been starting a few new items to knit and crochet and continued work on a few WIPs. The colour bomb stripy blanket is growing quite steadily as you can see below

It has had a few more rows added since I took this picture.

I’ve also started an Oak park and a Pogona, none of them finished. You can click through to Ravelry to see progress pics of those. I think that’s quite a good summary of what I’ve been up to this last month :) I will do a proper list update sometime later, when I’ve got my new glasses maybe.

I hope you’ve all been well and had wonderful Spring weather, will go to visit and catch up with as many as I can now :)

[English] A (very) delayed update (YOP #34 and #35)

I have been a bit absent lately, and I will most likely continue to be for a while longer. Last week was Spring break, and I started out with food poisoning. Lots of fun! I barely had time to recover before I went to a scheduled appointment at the eye doctor, I’ve had some shadows floating around. Turned out to be retinal detachment and I was sent to surgery the next day.

Quite dramatic, so now I’m home from work with a red and runny eye and not much energy. I hope I’ll be able to knit and crochet soon, but my eye still hurts too much. I hope you all have had a better time! I’ll catch up with you when I can see better :)

[English] Amigurumi (YOP #33)

The sun has finally returned! Today and yesterday have been glorious, lots of sun and we have light mornings and early evenings again. I can feel the energu returning, that’s for sure :) Although tonight I’m quite drained, Tuesday and Wednesday are my toughest days at work.

Crafting wise, it’s a bit of a rollercoaster at the moment. Some days I have lots of energy and craft away of lots of things, other days I barely look at my WIPs, just surf the web aimlessly. At least, I’ve managed to make two small amigurumi. That’s some quick satisfaction :) Just what I need when drained like this :)

I really do love amigurumi, since they are the main reason I even started crafting. I just haven’t had the patience with fiddly bits lately, and I’ve also been tempted by all the new skills to obtain in knitting. Truth to be told, I haven’t been that confident in my sewing either. I simply don’t like the finished look of the seams on most of my amigurumi. It’s something I need to practice but I’m not much for that :P Some other day perhaps.

I’m hoping to finish the Isla wrap this week so I can wear it at work! We’ll see if I can do it :)

I wish you all a lovely week :)

[English] February mush (YOP #32)

 

It has been a week of bad weather, we’ve had temperatures around 0 C and some snow mixed with rain. With some I mean lots. Everything is wet wet wet and mostly grey, although some specks of white still remain here and there. I just wish it would be proper winter or proper spring! But I guess this weather will stay until April at least.

I tried to cure the bad weather mood with some colour, my second Lucy pack of Stylecraft yarn arrived! So now I’m back on my mixed stripes blanket. I’ve decided to not follow Not Your Average Crochet‘s pattern fully, I’m trying to improvise a bit more and use stitches from other blankets I’ve seen. Little Woolie‘s for example. I’ve also switched from always working back and forth to trying to keep one side as the front and always working from that side. Little Woolie did that for hers and it looks a lot tidier in my opinion!

I need people’s opinion on the duotone cowl I posted last week, I fell out of love with it. I think there is too little contrast between the blue and black for it to work out, really. It’s in hibernation now, but I will probably frog it if I can’t convince myself it looks good. Instead, I started an Isla wrap in my purple Madelinetosh. Loving it a lot so far!

I think that’s all for today, not a very eventful week :) I hope you’ll have better weather than we’ve had!

[English] Yarn yarn yarn! (YOP #31)

Sunday! We’ve had a gloriously lazy weekend, bad weather just made for staying indoors in pyjamas all day. Everything is back to normal now after Christmas break, which means super busy at work and tired when I get home. I do get some crafting done though, but mostly of the relaxing kind. I have a quite a few longstanding WIPs but none of them are seeing any work, really, I’m just too tired to be inspired. Instead, I’ve finished two hats with the yarn I got for Christmas (Stormhatt, which I shared with you last week, and Windschief). They were both real comfort projects due to the yarn being super lovely.

As my new comfort project I started a Duotone cowl with my yarn from SweetGeorgia yarns. I was a bit sceptical when the skeins arrived because they didn’t feel as soft as I’ve been spoiled with by Malabrigo, and this, unfortunately, still holds. I’ve worked some 20 rounds now on the cowl and the yarn leaves a slight burning feeling in my fingers when I work with it. Very odd! I will move on with it though because I really like the colours and I’m hoping a wash when it’s finished will soften it up. This is the progress so far:

I also finished my first handspun yarns this week, a green single ply from Swedish sheep breeds and a 2-ply chocolate merino/silk blend. I’m still a newbie at spinning so they’re far from perfect, but it’s enjoyable all the same :)

The list

• Finish my doily shawl
• Finish my Stitch Sampler
• Another lalylala-doll (first one finished July 2, Kira started November 1)
• A mixed stripes/sampler blanket in Stylecraft (project page)
• A blanket inspired by Cherry Heart’s sampler blanket in Drops Safran (project page)
• Finish the blanket for my sister and her fiancé
• Add a border from ”Around the corner” to something
• A bag or tote made of blocks (squares, hexagons..)
• *NEW* Learn to make hats and mittens (Hats: Windschief and Stormhatt)
• *NEW* Try spinning different kinds of wool (Done: Merino, Swedish breed mix)
• Christmas gifts (not sure about this one)
• Finish my Dahlia shawl (finished December 8)
• Learn to knit socks (first pair finished)
• Give wool yarn some love (finally convinced wool is lovely, mainly helped by spinning and Malabrigo)
• Buy an expensive and luxurious yarn and find a project for it (Malabrigo sock and Whippoorwill!)
• Something wearable for wrapping up at work (Honey cowl CO Nov 17, BO Dec 15)
• A clothing item a little more complicated than a shawl/wrap (In threes cardigan, CO  Jan 1, BO Jan 6)
• Try out different dishcloths (made A LOT of those, see the #dishcloth tag in my projects)
• Learn some different sock techniques like toe up, magic loop and other heels/toes (Experimenting with socks from “Socks from the toe up”)