Y4: Self-Imposed Year of Projects - Update #29

Happy Sunday :)

It appears that things have been happening around here....so we should get on with it :)

Finished Objects (FOs):  
1. Elefante: started December 19, 2014; finished December 28, 2014  
2. Hat #1 - FoH: started December 31, 2014; finished January 1, 2015
3. Hat #2 - FoH: started January 1, 2015; finished January 4, 2015
4. Hat #3 - FoH: started January 7, 2015; finished January 10, 2015
5. Hat #4 - Stitch's Rock Hat: started January 16, 2015; finished January 24, 2015
6. Vanilla Fingerless Mitts: started January 23, 2015; finished February 3, 2015
7. Paradiddle Hat: started January 24, 2015; finished February 7, 2015
8. Stitch's Rock Collection (of Hats) - Variegated: started February 22, 2015; finished February 24, 2015
9. Sorin Fingerless Mitts: started March 8, 2015; finished March 31, 2015
10.Stitch's Rock Collection (of Hats) - Variegated: started February 27, 2015; finished April 1, 2015
11. Stitch's Rock Collection (of Hats) Pattern Test: started sometime in February, 2015; finished April 18, 2015
12. Sooooooooper Secret Pattern Writing (project #2): started sometime in February; finished April 15, 2015 -- full disclosure in October 2015
13. Sacrificial Goat #5: started May 29, 2015; finished June 4, 2015
14. Baby Hat: started June 4, 2015; finished June 6, 2015
15. Elvish Leaves Dishcloth: started June 10, 2015; finished June 12, 2015
16. Baby Hat: started June 19, 2015; finished June 27, 2015
17. Homework for Alana Dakos Class: started July 1, 2015; finished July 5, 2015

Unsurprisingly, I've not really finished anything........which is kind of a lie. I did finish up a dishcloth I found hiding in one of my knitting bags.

I didn't bother to make a project page for it. There's no pattern and no, I didn't plan for the yarn to do that...it just happened to do it (and I'm quite pleased with it, actually). I don't know what I'm going to do with it. I have a ton of washcloths and dishcloths (some of which need retirement). Maybe I'll throw it in the "I don't know" box and I'll come back to it.


Works-In-Progress (WIPs): - carried over from 2014...and maybe earlier...*shifty eyes*
1. Dragon's Egg Socks: started September 2, 2013
2. Pacific Shawl: started June 8, 2014
3. Snape's Stockings: started August 20, 2014
4. Traveling Socks: started December 23, 2014
5. Wink: started January 5, 2015
6. Fire & Ice (Fire) Socks: started April 15, 2015

I've still got these six WIPs on the needles but some of them look vastly different, specifically my Pacific Shawl. If you didn't read my mid-month update on Friday, the basic run-down is that my Pacific Shawl pissed me off and wound up getting frogged and restarted. I had a mistake that was just bugging me (even though I had tried to fix it - it didn't work but I made it work) and then I couldn't figure out what I was supposed to be doing....so, frog. But, it's been restarted.

I also worked on my Dragon's Egg Sock. I've just finished up the ribbing and am now a couple rounds into the first chart. Nothing exciting yet.

Most of my fibery endeavors this past week involved Viktor, my Majacraft Pioneer. I put out a call on one of the Bay Area boards on Ravelry for some in-person help with figuring out how to not ply like monkey poo...and along came Bex. She came over on Friday with her wheel and Lazy Kate and we discussed what I was doing wrong or what may be causing extra problems. First problem: overspun singles (like that's a surprise). Second problem: obnoxious Lazy Kate (I can fit my bobbins on it but there's no way to adjust the tension so the tension is way too tight and I wind up snapping singles). Third problem: hand movements while plying (mostly for chain plying but also for two ply). So, we fixed some issues, she taught me some other tricks (like unspinning my overspun yarn a bit so it wouldn't tangle on itself while plying), and we played with fiber. It was a lovely time.

I have bobbins cleared off, some (crappy) plied yarn, and photographic proof:

This is the chain plied asshole Corriedale. I found out my dislike of Corriedale may not be an actual dislike of Corriedale....but rather this specific processing. It's Louet French Blue Corriedale...which means it was processed either by or for Louet and, apparently, they don't do such a fabulous job. Now, I've only ever spun this particular beast from Louet so I cannot say if it's all Louet fiber or just the Corriedale or just the French Blue color...but from what I've heard, Louet fiber is a pain in the ass to spin.

I may have to try out some other Corriedale.

This is a teensy bit of random BFL that I spun ages ago and some of the leftover asshole Corriedale. There's maybe 10-15 yds of it. Not much at all.

This last one is interesting. I had some of the two ply BFL/asshole Corriedale hanging out and I also had a teensy bit of random purple & blue variegated BFL (that was also overspun ages ago). So....I did something very random. I took the plied BFL/asshole Corriedale and then further plied it with the random bit of purple & blue variegated BFL. I took a plied yarn and plied it with a single. And it worked. All the singles were spun "S" (which is with the wheel spinning clockwise, for those of you that don't spin). I plied the BFL & asshole Corriedale "Z" (which is with the wheel spinning counterclockwise). Because the purple & blue variegated BFL single was over spun and my two ply wasn't, I plied them together "Z" so that the purple & blue would get a little less overspun and the two ply I already had would get a little more twist in it. The end result is sitting on the bobbin still but I expect it won't be too horrible. When I was done, I had some of the two-ply leftover (which is the middle photo above).


In my "OMGLSGWTFBBQ, crazy lady?!" lists...

Children's Items
1. George's Vest (for Stormageddon - sock/fingering; solid or semi-solid)
2. Nottingham (for Little Man - worsted; solid or semi-solid)
3. Nottingham (for Stormageddon - worsted; solid or semi-solid)
4. Alvin (for Little Man - worsted; solid or semi-solid)
5. Alvin (for Stormageddon - worsted; solid or semi-solid)
6. Harry Potter Blanket (for The Family - worsted; solid) - from various Harry Potter inspired square blocks
7. Albert the Absent-Minded (for Stormageddon - any weight; self-stripe, variegated, solid, or semi-solid)  *need pattern*
8. Mirkwood (for Stormageddon - bulky; solid or semi-solid)
9. Smaug (for Little Man - worsted; solid or semi-solid)
10. Dandy Sir Cephalopod (for Little Man - any weight; self-stripe, variegated, solid, or semi-solid)  *need pattern*
11. Moe the Mustache Monster (for...someone - worsted; self-stripe, variegated, solid, or semi-solid)
12. Another Goat (for Little Man - worsted in white/cream, and brown)

Items for Me (Selfish Knitting, FTW!)
1. Vanilla Socks (using one of my Harry Potter yarns)
2. Drip Drip Drop Socks (using either a solid or semi-solid sock yarn that I haven't decided on yet)
3. Hermione Hearts Ron (sport; solid or semi-solid)
4. Ginny's Cardigan (DK; solid or semi-solid)

Secret Sock Club Bags (Pick a bag at "random")
1. Scotch and Soda Scarf (using Briar Rose Fibers Wistful - leftover from my Icarus Shawl)
2. CashSilk Fern Scarf (using a skein of Online Supersocke 100)
3. Jabberwonky (using KP Felici in Abracadabra)
4. If You Know Where To Go (in KP Felici in Green Veggies)
5. Gardener's Socks (using Malabrigo Sock)
6. Paradiddle Socks - my own design (using Malabrigo Sock)

Because I love Husband
1. The Dude

New Techniques (one of the following stranded/multi-yarn kits)
1. University of Wisconsin Ski Hat
2. University of Wisconsin Christmas Stocking
3. University of Wisconsin Button Beanie

Christmas Presents
I have absolutely no idea what's going to end up here, if anything. I suspect something will end up here and I might pull it from other lists but we shall see. Maybe I won't do any Christmas knitting. Maybe all I'll wind up doing is Christmas knitting. I suppose this is a wait-and-see section :)

Designs
1. Susan's Hat
2. Traveling Vines Socks
3. Little Man's Baby Blanket
4. Paradiddle Socks (see Secret Sock Club Bag section)
5. Paradiddle Collection of Hats



In "real life" events, not a whole lot has been happening. Little Man had soccer yesterday. He loves it, which is extremely helpful. There's one little boy that I've seen the last two weeks that just does not want to be more than ten feet from mom and/or dad. Last week, he was in tears almost the entire time. But, Little Man can see me, waves occasionally, and is fine....thank God.

I also took him to swimming lessons on Thursday. He was working on swimming underwater (not entirely under water - face-down in the pool). He loves swimming lessons.

Really, he loves most anything we have him do.......so I'm really hoping that when we go on our New Year's cruise, he is willing to go to Camp Carnival with the other kids.

Um.....what else, what else.....it's been rather warm around here so we've had the little air conditioners running. They're not great but they keep the house from becoming totally unbearable. And it's not like it's super crazy hot here but it's too much for us.

Yeah, I've got nothing else going on around here right now. Perhaps next week exciting things will have happened....or maybe just the same things over and over :) Whatever, progress is progress.

I hope you're all having a lovely weekend and that your week was fabulous :)