Year end review

It's very early in the morning, the day after my birthday. Too much rich food and not enough water/ibuprofen before bed to off-set the wine, and I'm wide awake. So I thought I would start my review of this year's knitting, just so I can see for myself what I've done this year.

In progress at the beginning of 2009 was my Feather and Fan stole from Folk Shawls:



I started this the summer of 2008, and finished it 7 months later. I well and truly sick of it by the time I had knitted the number of rows indicated in the pattern, so I stopped. But I should have continued on, as I still had plenty of yarn left, and I'm not happy with dimensions. It's not wide enough for the length. I still consider ripping out the cast off and adding more rows.

I'm much happier with my Icarus shawl which I cast on Christmas Day 2008, and finished in February this year. I wear this a lot, as both a neck scarf and a shawl.



So what have I started and finished this year? In socks, I've knit 4 pairs (that's not a lot!); 2 for me





one for Grace



and one for Maria.



Need to knit more socks. Heaven knows I have lots of sock yarn.

In lace, I've done a stole from Victorian Lace Today (given to my MIL when she was diagnosed with cancer; she's doing fine),


a shawlette in yummy Malabrigo,



and the Lily of the Valley scarf from Estonian Lace Knitting (given to a co-worker for Secret Santa).



Other scarves/stoles include a Clapotis (birthday gift for Sharon),



two garter stitch scarves with saw me through the Film Festival this year and were given as Christmas gifts for Sharon and Bruce,





a Scaruffle for Ginny,



and finally the Wool Peddlar's Shawl for me.



I love the shawl and am wearing it constantly. The yarn is wonderfully warn and soft, and the shape of the shawl is perfect.

In the garment category is a vest for me from Fitted Knits (which I wear often)



a dress for Maria from the same book



my February Lady Sweater (which I keep at work, though it's a little too warm, except around the neck which is too open)



this Elizabeth Zimmerman style sweater which I passed on to Maria because it's too warm for me



and adorable Tomten jacket which is Miranda's Christmas present.



I also knit 3 hats







and a pair of mittens for Grace.



In progess right now is the Forest Path Stole, which I started in June and continue to slowly plug away at (over 50% done with the centre rectangle),



my Oblique sweater (from Knitty)



and the Cambridge sweater for Tom in very yummy Galway tweed yarn (so soft and squooshy).



22 projects started and completed in 2009. Is that a lot? Doesn't really seem like it. I really want to do more lace and more socks. And I am determined to knit down my stash before the next Knitter's Frolic.

Happy Boxing Day

Yes, it's time to buy lots of crap you couldn't afford before. Tom has lots of shopping plans for the day. Yuck.

Christmas turned out lovely. We couldn't join our friends in Hamilton because of Maria's mono, so I whipped up a complete turkey dinner, and I actually enjoyed doing it. Amazing!

Maria's actually feeling much better, so we just relaxed and enjoyed the day. Tom and I went to church in the morning, and the service was perfect. Lots of traditional carols and beautiful decorations.

The gift giving was fun, with everyone happy with their gifts. Knitting related gifts I received were this book from the girls:



And this fabulous Hermosa bag by Namaste from Tom:



I love it!

Christmas knitting

Is done!!

Not to hard since I didn't do a lot, and I was stuck at home keeping my mono-stricken daughter company while Tom and daughter B entertained the MIL and hubby. Hours of knitting and TV watching. And more to come. It will be a while before she can do much.

So here is Miranda's Tomten jacket:



And while she was here, I decided to knit the MIL another scaruffle (she lost the one I knit her last year). Two days at home and I was done:

Nothing much to blog about

There's really nothing to blog about. Knitting is going along, but nothing is finished.

Well, one thing to mention is the knitting class I took with Amy Swenson. It was on grafting and it was great! She had some great tips which make it much easier to keep track of where you are (in case someone dares interrupt you while grafting) as well as establishing a nice rhythm. I was actually able to graft and talk at the same time! During the class I grafted the hood of Miranda's Tomten jacket and now I'm rather stuck on the finishing. I think I want to do applied i-cord with hidden button holes, but EZ's directions are a little daunting. I guess I'll go look for some instructional videos.