Works in Progress: February 10, 2021

A lot of progress, a fun t-shirt, and Crafty Organization

I was able to finish two of the three projects I had on the needles last week. The blue hat and fingerless mitts are complete and the socks are almost done. The three projects were all fairly small and straight forward so I’m pleased but also would have been surprised if I was writing this and they weren’t all just about done. The blue hat’s pattern is also ready for editing, which is really exciting because I want to get that hat pattern out in the world.

This week, I’m about a third of the way through one new knitting project and about 20 percent-ish of the way through the second. I’m really excited about both of these because I knit samples last year, but the stitch patterns and construction are just complex enough that I’m going to knit second samples while refining the patterns before having them edited.

This first project is a lace cowl. I find I’m becoming more open to introducing colors into my wardrobe through my knitting. I don’t wear very many green garments (shirts, sweaters, etc) but have a number of a green handknit accessories that I like to wear as layers ( the Twisted Trellis hat and cowl, as an example). I’m excited to add this to my collection.

• Pattern: Name TBD – It’s a lacy worsted weight cowl.
  • Size: This is going to have a 32″ circumference and be approximately 20″ tall.
• Yarn: Patton’s Classic Wool Worsted in meadow (100% wool, 100 g, 194 yds), 3 skeins
• Notes: This is not a super complex lace pattern, but I think it’s really effective. I’m reworking the pattern slightly so the transition between the ribbed edge and lace pattern is really seamless. I knit the first version out of O-wool and I’ll have to share more about that in a dedicated post on this project because the classic worsted O-Wool is just an amazing yarn to work with (it’s gorgeous and the stitch definition is stunning!). I like the color and feel of this Paton’s wool but I’m frustrated because the skeins have been really knotty (I don’t know if this is a fluke or common for the yarn, but the two skeins I’ve used have had a bunch of knots and breaks in the yarn).

My second knitting project is a generously sized scarf. I’ve wanted to offer a scarf with the cable pattern used in the Rhode Trip Hat and Cowl set but I wanted to do something a little more interesting than a simple ribbed edge plus cable pattern.

• Pattern: Name TBD – you can’t see it yet but it has the same cabling as the Rhode Trip Hat.
  • Size: This is going to be about 11″ wide and 78″ long.
• Yarn: Lion Brand Fishermen’s Wool in oatmeal (100% , 227 g, 465 yds) 3 skeins
• Notes: I drafted and knit this pattern last year and was actually a little concerned about how to write the pattern so it would be user-friendly . It requires really big charts and a lot of row instructions. I think I’ve figured out how to break this into really readable chunks (that’s right, pattern chunks). I’m really excited about this in particular because I think that just a little added cable detail is going to make a real statement with this otherwise very traditional looking cabled scarf.

I also spent some time over the weekend working on some projects that are a combination of skills building and shits and giggles. I want to do more things with my Cricut Air and finally completed two projects that I’ve had designs prepped for weeks for. First, I made a t-shirt with iron-on vinyl. I wanted to practice making another t-shirt because I’m still figuring out how to use the Cricut and apply the iron-on vinyl with consistent success (I had some hiccups with the last shirts I made). I texted a picture of the shirt (below) to my family and said that with the pandemic, I wasn’t sure I knew how to interact socially in person any more so made a t-shirt of the things I like so I can attempt to make friends when we can finally go out in public and spend time with strangers again. I’m lucky my family finds me funny….or at least mildly amusing.

The second Cricut project was a vinyl label for these plain little tins I found to hold stitch markers or other small knitting notions. I’m really happy with how this project came out and this is another design I’d put together in Canva weeks ago, but hadn’t gotten organized to actually do. This is going to help with my knitting organization as I usually just toss a few stitch markers in a project bag for a specific project, which is a fantastically efficient way to lose stitch markers. I’ve only used these tins for a couple days, but with a 1 1/2″ diameter, these tins take up hardly any space in a project bag, have really secure lids, and have made it so much easier to keep track of my stitch markers.

Lastly, I was able to spend some time Sunday sewing and did my first zipper tabs. I’m so pleased with this pouch and it’s tidy zipper; it’s the perfect size for holding a small knitting project. I’ve made a number of zipper bags, but for whatever reason I had not yet added zipper tabs. I’m so pleased with how the finish looks on this zipper. I also cut out the pattern pieces for the Pedal Pouch by Anna Graham of Noodlehead, but tackling a curved zipper was more than I could take on. I’m hoping to get some time next Sunday to work on that sewing project.

I had mentioned in the first February WIP post my two goals for February were using my supplies to work on my project queue and only buying  what I need to complete projects in my queue that I have the majority of the supplies for. I was also feeling moderately overwhelmed by everything I want to do and by the amount of craft supplies I’d purchased over the last few months. So far I’m at 50/50 with my goals. I’m definitely working on my project queue, but I may have also bought that really pretty blue fabric the pouch pictured above is made of (but I had the lining and zipper, so maybe this still counts as partially meeting the goal?). Even with that small craft purchase, I can say that I’m feeling a lot less overwhelmed and a lot happier with my crafting. I’m also going to have a couple of patterns ready for editing in the next couple of weeks because I’ve been more organized and focused over the last two weeks.

If you’ve made it this far – thanks for reading! I’ll post my week three update next Wednesday. If you’re working on something great, let me know in the comments here or over on instagram (@knitmckinley). I hope you take time to craft this week.

Happy Knitting,

Kara