Last Finished Objects for 2008

This week I finished two final projects for 2008.
Yesterday morning I finished the crochet edges around my vest from the "Quiviut Twinset" by Linda Romens, from The Natural Knitter. I loved knitting this sweater. It was so much fun, in a knitterly kind of way. It took me a little while to figure out the short rows to create the scalloping effect at the bottom, but it was worth it.

The yarn is Louet KidLin Lace Weight, which used to be called Kidlin Pixie. (No Quiviut in it at all, despite the pattern name. That's a bit beyond my budget right now.) The color is called "Smokey Grape", though the purple in it is very subtle & doesn't show much. I used somewhat less than 3 skeins, which were purchased at Kirkwood Knittery in Kirkwood, Missouri. The leftovers might be enough to make a lace cowl at some point.

I also have 6 skeins of this yarn in another dyelot, purchased at a big discount when a different Kirkwood LYS decided to sell off their yarn inventory & focus exclusively on wool rug-hooking. I cast on the matching "Quiviut Twinset" cardigan from that batch of skeins this past week, after finishing the knitting part of the vest. I wanted to finish the scallop part on the cardigan while I was still on vacation, with plenty of time to focus on it.


Yesterday afternoon was glorious & unseasonably warm, so I got unexpected knitting time in while taking the kids to the park. Because of that, I also finished the January socks this morning. Those are the socks which hadn't quite gotten done for Socktoberfest. I'm wearing the socks already, & will be wearing the vest to a New Years Party later on this evening as well.

2008 Wrap Up

I haven't been as good about keeping up with my blog this year as I have in the past. I blame Ravelry, since putting my projects there gives me less incentive to be sure they are documented here.

As much as Ravelry takes away from my blogging, though, it also helps me come up with information far more rapidly. One (of many) handy feature in Ravelry is the ability to sort projects by date completed, which makes figuring out what was completed in 2008 a whole lot easier.

2008 was the Year of the Hat & the Year of the UFO for me. I have to say that working on UFO's & knitting small things on big yarn can have an amazing effect on the number of completed items in a year. (Though the last two items I finished this year were neither pre-2008 UFO's or on bulky yarn.)

My final totals for 2008 are:

20 pairs of socks -- 14 of which were UFO's from prior years.
8 sweaters -- 1 child, 4 vest/sleeveless, & 3 with sleeves.
14 hats -- 12 of which were on bulky yarn.
5 neckwarmers
1 set fingerless mitts
1 scarf
1 shawl
& 7 squares for Warm Up America.
(8 charity items, since 1 hat was for charity.)

The 3 sweaters involving the most knitting were also UFO's from prior years.

According to Ravelry, I also have a lot fewer UFO projects on the needles right now, which was one of my big goals for 2008. I also managed to make it to more Knitting In Public events this year, though I wasn't able to participate in any classes. All in all, I have to say it was a good year, knitting-wise.

My only knitting-related regret for the year is that I haven't been able to keep up with posting on other knitter's blogs very well this year. Doing better with blogging is one of my goals for 2009, both keeping up with my own blog, & also keeping up with reading/commenting in a timely fashion.

The Sun Has Risen

Have a glorious day, Everyone!

(Sunrise viewed from my backyard, December 25th, 2008)

It's December the What?!?

I hope everyone is safe, healthy & happy this Holiday Season!

Disappearing December

Where did two-thirds of December disappear to? Or, for that matter, the year 2008?

I don't have much in the way of finished objects to show for the past two months. The small items I did finish are Christmas presents, & thus aren't going on the blog yet.

My KIP/carry-around project for the month has been these socks. They are the "Christmas is Coming" colorway from Dyeabolical Yarns. I cast them on Thanksgiving afternoon, while waiting for the turkey to settle enough to have pumpkin pie.


The one finished item I can show is a hat that I knit for the Caps for Kids charity & handed in at the St. Louis Knitter's Guild luncheon.


I have finished both sleeves on my February Lady Sweater, but it remains to be seen whether or not I'll finish the body before the remainder of 2008 disappears.


I've barely touched my Susie Hoodie at all this month, & still have a little bit left to go on my lace vest. I'm hoping to finish the vest next weekend, in time to wear it to a New Years Eve party. That might very well end up the last Finised Object of 2008.

Where did November Go?

Last month went by in a big rush. There is no way I'll be able to sign up for anything like NaBloPoMo or NaNoWriMo until my kids are all grown & gone, that's for sure. (Well, maybe if I win the lottery & retire early -- unlikely since I never buy tickets.)

I didn't participate in the official NaKniSweMo, because I already have plenty of sweaters on the needles. Stash & Burn had a set-your-own-goal Sweater Contest for the month of November though, so I joined that & spent the month focusing on sweater knitting whenever possible. I didn't manage to finish any sweaters in November, though I did finish some Super-Secret-Gift-Knitting.

However, I made a lot more sweater progress than I would have without the contest. Here is the proof: