Knitterly news

This post is a recap of the "dreaded" UFO (un-finished object). If you're like me you have one or two...or fourteen. Some are projects that aren't going to work out and rather than face this fact you stuff the annoying mess...and the discouragement...into a bag and shove it to the back of a closet or drawer. Out of sight, out of mind. Other projects are just stalled due to lack of interest or finish-itis. I suffer from the latter in a big way. For example, I love the act of knitting and sometimes the end result is not what I'm after. I have a few things that are just an hour's worth of work, if that, away from being finished and for some reason I just don't sit down and do it. The lure of a new project is sometimes just too great, especially if it's with yarn or fabric I just purchased.

About a year ago I took inventory of my knitting UFOs, so I thought I'd bring back the list of eleven items and see where I am with it and what new items I've added to the UFO list or actually finished.

1. White cotton sweater from Stitches magazine.  FROGGED! It was my oldest. unfinished project and when I finally did finish the knitting I found that my gauge varied too much and couldn't be fixed with blocking. I didn't really like how it turned out anyway.

2. Liv - this was an Elsebeth Lavold pattern, knitted in Rowan cashsoft. It was going to come out too small. FROGGED!

3. Clapotis shawl - I blocked it sometime last year but still needed to weave in the ends, which I finally did last night. It only took me about 15 months to get around to it.

4. Felted bag out of Noro. I felted it at least but it still needs a lining and closure. NOT DONE

5. Cat bed that I knit and never felted. DONE!

6. Socks for my husband. These were my first attempt at toe-up socks. I almost made it to the heel but it's looking a bit narrow and I need to decide if it should be frogged or finished. UNCHANGED

7. Jaywalker socks. I ran out of yarn during the second sock so I frogged the toe of the first one, reknit it using a different but complementary yarn and used the frogged-yarn to finish the second sock up to its toe. The yarn I bought for the toes was a little thin so I doubled it, which made it a little too thick but better to have the toe too thick than too thin, I think. But the thicker yarn made the decreases really hard to work. I'm at the toe of the second sock and not looking forward to fighting with those decreases so the sock sits...unfinished. UNCHANGED

8. Blue t-shirt. This was a store pattern for a short sleeve sweater using two different Rowan yarns. I really liked the store display and it was a quick knit. I only have a few more rows to go and then the dreaded seaming to do. I stopped knitting it because summer ended...that would be summer of 2007...and because I'm afraid the sweater will look dumpy on me. UNCHANGED

9. Fingerless gloves. I had alpaca yarn left over from the Clapotis and thought it would make lovely and soft fingerless gloves. I started knitting some but the pattern didn't have a thumb, only a hole for the thumb, and I didn't know how to make one. So the gloves sat and my hands remained cold. UNCHANGED  - but I knit and finished a different pair of fingerless gloves so my hands aren't cold now.

10. Capri sweater from Rowan magazine, knit in lime green Rowan Calmer yarn. I knit this in June 2008 while sitting on console monitoring a satellite that was just launched. I need to block it before I can pick up stitches for the front band. UNCHANGED

11. Lara - was a UFO on that list last year, but now it is FINISHED

Now for the new stuff:

12. Blue twisty top - I think I finished knitting all the pieces and it just needs to be blocked and seamed. And of course the ends need to be woven in.

13. Brown stripey socks - need the ends woven in. This goes into the category of may not work out so I'll just never finish it and put it aside instead. The socks are narrow and a bit snug. I know what you're thinking - frog them or finish them already!

14. Gray socks - I have a sock and a half completed. I put it aside so I could start a new project on the long flight to Japan. This has been my current knitting project but I messed up at the very end of the short row heel and think I need to frog the entire heel because I can't make the stitches work without leaving a hole where there isn't supposed to be one.

15. Multi-colored hat - the Japan project. I stopped it so I could start a new project on the long flight to France. Hmmm, there's a theme there. But I did finally finish it. It had a gazillion ends to weave in and I forced myself to stick with it and get 'em done. Yay.

16. The France project. Fingerless mitts in Rowan RYC Baby Alpaca. Soooooo soft. When I finished the first mitt, per the pattern instructions (Endpaper Mitts by Eunny Jang), I didn't like that the mitt went way up my arm. I wanted shorter mitts that were more at my wrist, so I ripped it almost all the way back and reknit it. This was after already ripping it back once because I didn't read the instructions correctly and made a mess of the pattern. But now they are done.

Of course I hope to finish the UFOs but in the meantime I have another 11 hour flight to France, which means another new project. I'm thinking of making an infinity scarf, which is just a scarf that is joined at the end and worn twisted around the neck. It should be pretty easy, no two-color knitting or intricate lace patterns.