Mikknit

Yes, I’ve actually knit something with my handspun yarn! Don’t all fall over from the shock, okay? I had this skein of sparkly red yarn sitting in the closet for about a year, and due to the motivation provided by a knitting stash game (we get points for the amount of yarn knit up over the course of the game, and there are prizes!) I pulled it out and knit it up. Plus there’s the whole Minnesota winter thing - I really did need a scarf.

I thought Argosy would be a neat pattern to try out, and it was - very fun. I knit the scarf up over the course of 2 days or so, so it was a great quick knit. I think I might’ve liked the scarf wider than it turned out, but since I wasn’t sure exactly how much yarn I had I just knit the pattern as written. I ended up running out of yarn about 3 rows from the end, so that last little square is a little less than square, but hey - I used up the entire skein and didn’t even have to trim the ends after they were woven in! Now *that* is efficiency.

Wool, mohair, and sparkly stuff, knit up on a US 5 needle

The picture that convinced me of the immediate need for a haircut - it’s much better now!

Thanks to the lovely (ha!) weather we’re having, I’ve gotten lots of use out of the scarf. It is nice and warm, certainly, but the mohair is scratchier than I’d prefer. I did put some conditioner in the rinse water when I washed it, but that didn’t completely take care of it. Any suggestions?

Oh, and only 5 more edging repeats on the blanket! I hope to have an FO report tomorrow, but of course the kids’ behavior will determine whether I get it done today.

You know it’s bad when I’m plotting all the projects I could do to avoid working on my current project. All the other non-knitting projects, that is.

The current WIP? A gigantic baby blanket* - the Pinwheel Baby Blanket, with the heart lace edging from the second Barbara Walker treasury. Sure, doesn’t seem *that* bad, but I knit the blanket to a circumference of 600 stitches, approximately 120″, then picked a lace edging that only eats up 8 edge stitches per repeat. So that’s 75 repeats of a 16-row pattern. Yeah, I must be nuts. Or else not clearly thinking out the progression of events…

I just finished repeat #50 out of 75, so I could have it done in a few more days at this rate. But what I’m thinking about it going upstairs and moving yarn into the empty dresser in my sewing room and doing tons of laundry. Because, after all, that will somehow get this blanket done and out of my hair more quickly. Right?

So I am going to reward myself with cleaning up upstairs once I finish this. I’m sure a non-knitting is reading this and thinking “Man, that chick’s priorities are messed up!” And they more certainly are, how else did my house get into such a state? Besides from the kids, that is.

*No, not for me.