#knitblrs

[unexpectedyarns]

Have you heard of the “Lots of Socks” initiative? People with Down Syndrome have a 3rd copy of chromosome 21, so on 3/21 the world celebrates World Down Syndrome Day. The idea behind #lotsofsocks is that everyone wears two different colorful socks to highlight the uniqueness of these individuals and show their support for the Down Syndrome community. 

Right now, Ravelers are coming together to make socks, have fun together, and raise money for Down Syndrome International with the Lots of Socks KAL in the Paper Daisy Creations group on Ravelry!  The Paper Daisy Creations group has a KAL with prizes, reductions on patterns and offers from sponsors, mostly during February. 

Adrienne Fong, who is bellybuttonknits on Ravelry, is one of the featured designers in this group. She is donating $2.50 from each pattern sale in February. She also has a code for a discount on her Ravelry download patterns in the sponsor thread on Paper Daisy Creations group, too. (please don’t repeat the code here unless Adrienne gives permission to do so).

[unexpectedyarns]

Knitblrs: So how are ya doing with your knitting?

I had a total failure sock year. I started the year with 7 ancient hall of shame sock UFOs on the needles. I started a new pair almost every month of this year for a monthly challenge for a Ravelry group and only finished one pair of those. They had a 2-month UFO KAL and I only finished one of my original Ancient 7.

This year has been crazy busy, including buying a house and moving, but having to do the packing, unpacking, and painting inside of the entire new house by myself bc my husbeast is a trucker who is gone all but 34 hours a week.

Right now I’m trying desperately to finish a pair of regular socks and a hat in DK weight to be mailed by Monday. I’m 3 rows from doing the heel on the 2nd sock (toe-up, 3” tall socks).

Then before the 23rd I have to finish a pair of double-strand socks and start to finish a pair of fingerless mitts. By Christmas Day I have to finish a cowl that is half done.

No deadline, but while the weather is still cold I need to finish a slipper and a pair of slippers in bulky weight, and a scarf.

Argh I just want to go to bed and sleep until January.

[unexpectedyarns]

I have one thick sock done and blocked but my Mystery sock seems to be taking SOOO long this month. I don’t understand bc it’s the same needles I used last month and the feet are just 3x1 rib but I only have about 2.5” of sock done.

Yesterday I took the day off knitting socks and made a little sweater for Betsy’s bear. Betsy will be 12 tomorrow. She’s leaving this evening for a weekend youth retreat and wants to take her bear (a birth present), but it was looking a little worse for wear. Now it’s stylin’!

Yarn is Yarn Bee Whimsy Bulky on size US10 (6mm) needles. Pattern is Wee Speed, a free pattern by @taigahilliard, altered slightly to fit the shape of bear.

[unexpectedyarns]

Yesterday a lady at our church gave me an entire kitchen-sized trash bag full of beautiful new yarns.  Now I’m just about the opposite of a yarn snob.  I think a person should knit with what they have available or what they can afford, and knitted things to be gifted or given to charity or babies should probably be done in acrylic, so it can be chucked in the washing machine.

Clockwise from Top left: 4 pink/peach/apricot sweet rolls. Then 4 white/blue/turquoise Sweet Rolls. A yellow Pound of Love and about a 6-oz ball. 2 and about a half mint/cyan/teal Sweet Rolls, 3 Lion Brand Landscapes, an I Love This Yarn overdye in white/Lavender/blue/green; 2, 7-oz skeins plus about a 4oz ball of hot pink I Love This Yarn, and 4, 5-oz skeins of I Love This Yarn Print in hot pink/light pink/tan/blue/orange/green

I’ve been active for about a year and a half in a group on Ravelry whose main focus is knitting socks, from stashed yarn, and I’ve enjoyed the comaraderie on this group. As a matter of fact in 11 years on Ravelry it’s the only one that I’ve felt like I fit in. And I love the chain swap that they have every year. Last year I even managed to do 4 of the challenges, and I sure enjoyed knitting all those double-strand scrappy socks for last Christmas, because they go so fast. Though most of us in my family don’t need more than 1 pair of those because it’s only THAT cold a few days each winter.

And regular handknit socks are important and warm, but this year I’ve only finished ONE pair. Mostly I’m just creating UFOs to add to my already stellar Hall of Shame.

And I’ve been looking at these lovely new yarns that Lynette gave me yesterday, and also my bin of beautiful bright worsted to bulky yarns, that I got to begin with because I wanted to knit something quick and pretty. I’ve been thinking, you know, I could make a bunch of hats or mitts for the homeless and I can do one of those projects in a day or two, whereas lately I can’t even get a pair of socks done in a whole month.

So I think I’m gonna probably do the “finish UFOs” challenge in August & September because I need to, and keep my eye on the chain swap, but I think I’m going to maybe knit up some instant gratification things for charity or gifting or even for my shop and take a break from trying to force myself to get socks done by a deadline.  Knitting is supposed to be a relaxation, an enjoyment, and a stress relief, not a guilt trip.

[unexpectedyarns]

Knitters!  I need testers!

I've written a very simple stocking hat pattern. 

It's a quick knit in worsted/aran yarn. The pattern works with busy yarns, self-striping, hand dyed, or to use up many scraps. Available in Child’s S, M, L, Adult OSFM,  (the Child’s L and Adult OSFM take an as-yet-to-be-determined amount of yarn)  it will make a quick Christmas knit! 

If you’re interested in testing the Londyn Longstocking Hat, click through. 

Ravelry link 

[unexpectedyarns]

[unexpectedyarns]

Knitblr, what's on YOUR needles? And where are you going to knit today?

[unexpectedyarns]