2AKACBW Day 2 - Skill + 1UP

I just briefly went back through my blog from this time last year to review what I was doing at that time ... saw a lot of dyeing yarn, LOL!

I don't think that I learned a particular skill since then, but I do think that I knit faster. I know I learned what is accomplishable in a period of time (like gifting). I also know that when I really don't like knitting something ... there's no law that says I have to finish it ... I can reclaim the yarn or throw it in the closet to never see the light of day again.

I know I don't think I'll ever knit a full size blanket. I don't like to knit scarves (unless they are lace or have some interesting construction). I know I love kitting baby surprise jackets. Socks are always a good go to project. I recently learned that I love knitting shawls ... just don't know if they fit in my wardrobe.

Over the last year I did learn how to better read my knitting, I can catch mistakes quickly and find where I am if I get lost in a pattern - like if my sticky note falls off or I have left something sitting for a long time. Or how to drop stitches to fix something without have to rip or knit back - like cables.

I feel like I've become a better, more experienced knitter in general over the last year.

2AKACBW - Day 3 - Tidy Mind, Tidy Stitches

I would say my yarn is fairly organized. I guess its more of necessity than anything. I have a craft room in my house that is the smallest room in the house, so anything I have to fit in here, needs to be organized or I wouldn't be able to move about the room. I have two bookcases that showcase my most beloved yarns. They serve as eye candy and inspiration to my craft.


On the bottom right of this bookcase in the plastic zip lock bags are yarns matching with patterns and ready to be knit.


New acquisitions usually sit in a bag for a little while until I figure out where I am going to fit them.

There is a drawer in my purple desk that is 22"Wx8.5"Dx2"H ... what else is better for storing circular and DPNs? Really what else could you fit in this drawer besides pens and pencils?


There are typically two places my WIPs reside, one is in a ottoman that doubles as storage space (its a cube and the top comes off) but things get forgotten when they are hidden in there. The other is my fuzzy, purple chair ... where things can also get fogotten when they get buried like this.


It might only look like I have two tote bags and a grocery bag on there ... but there's actually the Icarus Shawl, my nugatory socks and my hummingbird cross stitch buried under there. The blue tote is empty. My Knitters' Guild tote is storing Saroyan. There's also the yarn for the baby surprise jacket I'm working on (practically falling off the chair) and the yarn for the baby blanket I am working on in that pile.

I also have yarn stored in the closet in my craft room ... pretty much anything that doesn't fit in the bookcase or isn't exactly "pretty" for showcasing (like kits or random skeins or sweater quantities). Don't ask about the red crayon on the wall ... it was here when I moved in. Also not sure why this closet is covered in linoleum.


The other place that I store yarn is a room in the basement ... actually its right below my craft room. I store yarn in plastic totes down here, every few months I check and make sure nothing is getting damaged from moisture or bugs. Typically all of this yarn is less expensive and some is even acrylic ... mostly baby stuff. There is some sock yarn in here, but most of it resides upstairs in the bookcases. If I use some up from a bookcase, I usually go "shopping" down here to replenish the space left on the shelf.

The large shopping bag and the box of yarn were things people gave me because they or someone they knew didn't use it anymore ... its all acrylic. I should really donate it or get rid of it. I don't think I am ever going to use it and its just sitting down here taking up space.



And that's really the only places that I store yarn ... sometimes there's a random skein in the coffee table drawer, but that's it ... because of the nasty little yarn stealing monster that lives here, all yarn must be under lock and key ... or at least in a drawer or behind a door ... she hasn't figured out how to open the door yet and hopefully her older brother doesn't teach her ...

2AKACBW - Day 4

Where are they now?

I just poked back through my blog at a few random things and thought about their fates.

Grumpy the Lump of Coal
Grumpy was intended as a deterrent for the horrible, little cat in my house that eats yarn. Why I thought, I'll knit her something that can be all hers and she'll leave my yarn alone, was a good idea, I'll never know! It only fed her desire to tear more yarn to shreds. After that she actually sniffed out yarn! I saw her once sitting on the bathtub edge, sniffing the air under my drying, hand washed socks!

Grumpy was eviscerated ... it was an ugly, gruesome death ... RIP Grumpy.


Quidditch Sweater
This is one of my most prized posessions. It fits perfectly, its super warm. It was a pain to knit all the ribbing, but, oh so worth it! The color is perfect, the fit is perfect, its the BEST SWEATER EVER and its the first one I made!


Fetching Mitts
My MIL taught me how to knit. And at the time, I wasn't even interested. My mom wanted to learn, so I said, hey, show me and I'll show her. I was enthralled. She was enthralled at how quickly I picked it up. I never stopped since that day. She and FIL deliver mail part-time ... way up in New Hampshire. I thought that fingerless mitts would be nice for this task. She loved them. I know she takes good care of them. She loved them so much, she asked me to make him a pair, which I did ... about a year later, but better late then never right?!?!

KACBW - Day 5

And now for something completely different ...

A trip to the yarn store.

Whenever I go to the yarn store, I go straight to the sock yarn. If I don't have anything in particular in mind, or a paticular pattern, sock yarn is something that I know I will always find a use for. For the yardage its inexpensive, you typically only need one skein for a project. I see what's new since I've been there last. I pick up skeins, touch them and pet them. I check out the colors. I stop and think ... well I like this color, but how will it knit up? Sometimes I grab something and walk around the store with it while I check out all the other yarns. If I still want it when I'm ready to leave, well then, its coming home.

I walk throughout the store and peruse everything. I think about all the patterns I've seen lately and what yarns I am seeing in the store that might work with them. Sometimes I take a slip of paper with pattern names and weights and yardage requirements, and if I find something that works, great!

If I walk around the store and come back to something more than three times ... well it should probably come home with me. I think, if I come back in a few weeks and this is gone, will I remember it and will I be upset that I didn't get it when I had the chance? That is a good measure if I should buy something or not. If its expensive, I think, well if its still here when I come again (and I remember it), then it means I should definitely buy it then (I actually did this once with some Malabrigo sock yarn).

Once I've gone through the store and have some skeins in my arms, I stop and look at them again. Think hard ... are you really going to knit this? Is there enough yardage for a project. Do you really like this color? Do you need this (usually the answer to this one is no, LOL). Sometimes things get put back ... but usually not ...

2AKACBW - Day 6

Something to Aspire to

A technique that I've wanted to try for the last few years is knitting with beads. I am currently knitting the In Dreams Mystery Shawl, but the bead count of 5,000 made my stomach turn. I decided to postpone trying this technique for another project(like a much smaller one) and I'm knitting the shawl with the no beads option.

Speaking of shawls. The designer of In Dreams designed the Evenstar Shawl. I am awed by the beautiful design of this shawl. But entirely intimidated by the massive stitch count.

I really don't have a use for shawls, my jeans and t-shirt wardrobe don't lend well to shawls as an accessory. I do wear my Ishbel shawl with a nice top and jeans and sneakers and I think it looks quite nice and not too out of place.

So, while I don't think I'll ever have a use for Evenstar ... can't even display it in my house (see previous post), I would like to make it someday.

2AKACBW - Day 7

I saw that this was coming, and when it was time, I completely blanked on it and wasn't keeping up with blog reading so I didn't realize it had started. I'm going to go backwards here since this is the last day, LOL! Most of my crafting time is limited to my crafting room in my house. Typically I watch episodes of tv shows on my computer while I knit. Sometimes I listen to Pandora radio or a book on my MP3 payer.

My knitting and spinning is confined to this room, not by choice, but by necessity. We live with three cats. While for the most part they are well behaved, one we lovingly refer to as "awful cat", "horrible cat" and "worst cat ever". When she is misbehaving, which is pretty much any time she's awake, she responds to the previous references with a kitty smile, and tilt of the head making that "I'm so cute and you know you love me face." Oh, did I mention she tears yarn to shreds? She tries desperately to get in my craft room any chance she can get and the first thing she does is run right to any accessible yarn and grabs it and holds on tight. I've wrestled her for a skein a few times.

Who would've thought this cute little thing would turn out to be such a horrible, evil cat??? No, all kidding aside, she's super sweet and has a lot of personality ... but sometimes that personality decides to do naughty things ...

Usually I don't snack while knitting, but I found that Cheezits in a cup are great to snack on while knitting ... the cup is so that I don't get greasy, crumby fingers and can keep on knitting while snacking. I think any small cracker type food would work great for this. Or you know M&Ms.

I don't really like to knit in groups. I feel distracted by the conversation and only bring very simple projects or socks. I like visiting with other knitters though, so I'll go, but I don't knit much.