Well, I blew that...

So much for the goals I set in the last post. I obviously haven't posted once a week. I haven't documented any finished projects, and I even made my Grandma a pair of mittens for her birthday. I haven't sewn, not one stitch. And I don't even want to talk about no. 4 on the list, other than to say I have definitely decided against keeping a public record of what I've spent on crafting supplies. (There is a chance my husband could see it! What was I thinking?!)

What have I been doing? I have been suffering from a raging case of start-itis. I've been averaging two new knitting projects a week since Christmas and so far the finished projects tally is one (maybe two if you are feeling really generous, it was a pair of mittens...)

One of the biggest stumbling blocks has been what I have come to loving call Blue Death on a Stick (or the BDS as it will be known from now on.) It is a knitting project that will definitely receive it's own post and quite possibly drive me to seek some form of therapy before it is finished. But if nothing else it has shown me the depth of determination I possess, or proven the depth of my craziness, depending on who you ask. It's also brought out into the open the procrastination issues I have. As in I would rather do just about anything else than knit on the BDS, except maybe scrub the toilet. Hmmm. I don't know, that may be a toss up...

So far I've started a blanket, a pair of color-work mittens, and I'm making my own fancy-dancy beaded stitch markers rather than knit on the BDS.

A few of my first attempts.

 I kind of think the black one with spots looks like a fishing lure...

I have found that my taste definitely runs to natural stone and pearls.

I would have made more of these, but I ran out of the gold pearls. 

Carved wood and coral, so pretty and feminine.

Blue and silver with pearls, a slightly nautical feel.

Pink and gold, vaguely floral.

These are just fun. They look like candy rocks, plus I love the rainbow colors.

I call these my Othello set. (Anyone else play that game as a child?)

These are my current favorites, but each set that I finish has been my favorite and these just happened to be the last set that I made...

I'm even using some of them in the BDS on the theory that it would make it more fun to knit. So far it isn't working...

I would be making more stitch markers right now, but I ran out of the rings. The thing is they are just so much fun and pretty much instant gratification. Five minutes to a finished product as apposed to three weeks to get 5" of the BDS... it is a pretty blue though, isn't it?

2012 Goals: Crafting Edition (and the 1st finished projects of the new year)

Last year I had a goal to post everyday on my family blog, and I did it. But something had to give and it was my crafting. Not the doing of crafts (because I made a lot of stuff last year) but the recording of them. Perfect case in point, for Christmas I knitted nine hats, two capes, one pair of mitts, one pair of mittens, one shawl and one vest with cables. And I didn't take a single picture before sending them off to their new owners. I also haven't sewn in quite awhile. A lot of knitting, but almost no sewing. (I have a lot of fabric to get through.) So here are my crafting goals for this year.

1. Post over here at least once a week, even if it's just a work in progress.

2. Document finished projects, especially if they are gifts.

3. Sew! (I have a subset goal to attach to this one, but I am still working out all the details. So we'll come back to this one later.)

4. Use what I have. Which is a whole lot. Almost ridiculous amounts of things, as I found when I was relocating my sewing room. So no buying anything until I use up what I have. I'm thinking that I may have a running total on the side to keep track of my craft related spending... (I have not yet decided if that will include yarn. It probably should... okay, no new yarn. Unless it's out of like, birthday money, or something...)

So now that I have those listed out, let's get to the fun stuff:

Today I finished two projects, both for Evie. 

A hat/neckwarmer out of one skein of dk self striping yarn.

The top has an i-cord drawstring so it can be opened to fit over the head.

It can also be used to keep the hair out of the way.

And it's pink of course...

P.S. This makes 10 hats since October. I have really been on a hat kick...

I also finished the sewn bind off on this sweater that has been taking up knitting bag real estate for months.

It's not really the sweaters fault. It was just bad timing. I finished it once and it was too short and too tight. So I ripped it back to the armpit and knit the body again, and finished it off with ribbing instead of a rolled hem. It looks so much better.

This is the yarn I dyed last year and I love how it looks knit up as much as I did while dying it. 

She looks peachy-keen!