Today marks the second anniversary of that first day I picked up knitting needles and, with my friend Amanda’s help, started down this path that has all but taken over my life. (In a good way.)
During my first year of knitting, I completed a whopping 87 projects, the vast majority of them being pussyhats. I accumulated an absurd amount of yarn, mostly from Goodwill, and mostly (it turns out) acrylic and not very good. I learned a great deal by trial and error – not knowing what I “shouldn’t” know was enormously helpful in not holding me back from trying new things – and found an incredible local (and virtual) community of knitters and yarnophiles.
I still often wish I’d learned to do this sooner, but I also think things tend to come into our lives when we’re ready for them. And, boy howdy, was I ready for knitting in January of 2017.
This past year, I participated in my first FibreShare (definitely not my last). I bought yarn directly from dyers in Cape Town and knit a shawl while on safari. A light bulb finally went off about what in the heck short rows are for and I modified a sweater pattern to fit my body perfectly using bust darts. I crocheted for the first time (a dishcloth that still gets regular use). I was introduced to the Fish Lips Kiss Heel, which changed my attitude toward sock knitting completely.
Perhaps the first I’m most proud of is that I added two of my own designs to Ravelry. They’re only colorwork charts, not complete garments, and I had zero expectation that anyone would see them (let alone use them), so the fact that one of them ended up as high as third on Rav’s “hot right now” pattern page left me gobsmacked. This year, I have more ambitious pattern plans… But that’ll have to wait for next year’s post.
So, here’s the “by the numbers” for my second year of knitting. The number of projects is way down, but the complexity and size of each project is, on average, up. I am having such great fun learning something with almost every project.
Hours spent knitting per day: maybe 4-5 hours per day, on average
Bins of yarn under my desk: 5, each with cedar in the bottom and locking lids; yarn separated by color, and entirely natural fibers
2018 Ravelry Challenge number: 40
2018 projects completed: 46*
- sweaters – 5, including one baby sweater & one I frogged
- socks – 4 pairs
- slippers – 1 pair
- neckwear – 4 cowls, 2 scarves, 4 shawls, 1 shawlette
- hats – 12, including 2 pussyhats and 1 baby hat
- blankets – 1 Welcome Blanket, plus 3 squares for a community-made blanket for the Hooker family post-Camp Fire
- dishcloths – 7, including one crocheted
- mitts – 5 pairs
- wee sock tree ornament – 1
- tea cozies – 1
- leg warmers for dogs – 1 pair
*Don’t do the math. It doesn’t add up, and I can’t figure out why. And clearly, it’s not important enough to me to get to the bottom of it when there’s knitting to be done.