:: yarn along ::
Joining Ginny at small things once again this week—
On the needles…
I’ve let my baskets get very full of works-in-progress lately. I’m trying to focus on the process rather than the product—and, you know, remember that I actually enjoy creating things, rather than feeling like I’m racing to finish a million projects at once—by downshifting a gear (or twelve), and to that end, yesterday I…cast on a new project. That might not sound much like downshifting, but I’m completely ignoring two projects I started ages ago, which results in a net decrease of one project. (Why, yes, I can rationalize just about anything.)
This new project is something I’ve been wanting to make forever, and I promised myself I would get started on it over the summer, but I didn’t because I wanted to make sure I had the sizing right. Last winter I saw a little girl—probably about Asher’s age—wearing the most adorable woolen pants underneath her dress. They were finely knit, but definitely handmade. I wanted a pair for Julia. Badly.
So I went home that afternoon & scoured my Ravelry Favorites for something I could use to make a similar pair of pants, and what I discovered was that the Sheepy Pants pattern is fully customizable for any gauge—exactly what I wanted, since I was planning to knit these out of sport-weight yarn and most patterns are written for a heavier weight. I thought Julia would be out of diapers by this fall, which would mean I could knit the pants a little slimmer, but I waited to get started until I was sure.
And here we are—Julia hasn’t worn a diaper in a month now, so I am finally able to cast these on. I’m using the Sheepy Pants pattern, with my own gauge and measurements to fit Julia. The yarn is Brown Sheep’s Nature Spun sport weight in Aran. I’m making them with an elastic waist, because that just seems more suitable than a ribbed or drawstring waist for what amounts to a pair of (pretty) long underwear!
In other projects this week…
- I had to re-wash my washed-and-blocked Beyond Puerperium. This, my friends, is what happens when you leave a cup of tea within reach of a toddler on a table with your knitting basket beneath it. And also when you leave a finished (except the buttons…still…) sweater in your knitting basket instead of putting it away so your toddler doesn’t accidentally spill something on it…
- I started the sleeves on Asher’s fall pullover. I don’t know what I did when I separated the sleeves but I ended up with oddly large gaps at the sides. I’m going to just knit it as it is & fix it as well as I can when I’m done, and I’ll have to pay better attention when I do Julia’s to figure out what I did wrong & how to avoid it.
- I ripped back Julia’s sweater dress pretty much to the beginning. I didn’t like how the binding-off for the armholes/pinafore front & back looked, and honestly I wasn’t entirely happy with how the skirt shaped up, so I decided the best course of action was to just start over. Hopefully it will be worth it in the end.
- I knit exactly two rows on my secret Shalom.
On the nightstand…
Wherever You Go, There You Are.
Again. I wrote yesterday about being in that place where I need to remember to slow down and breathe, and this book is always helpful when I’m trying to re-center myself.
What are you working on and/or reading this week?
going straight off to ravelry to find out about sheepy pants – you had me with the name alone. I’ll need to take a leaf out of your book though and try to stop rushing against my own self-imposed deadlines with knitting. I start projects full of enthusiasm and then get frustrated towards the end when I can’t finish them quickly enough to start the next thing I’ve spotted (such as sheepy pants!). But I only have a very small collection of needles, so I often physically can’t cast on more than one project at a time. I could say it means self-imposed discipline (but actually I think I’m just too mean to spend more on needles!)
My you have been a busy little knitting bee! All of the projects look great! Thanks for the book link, I am going to look for it at the library.
Sadly that is why my knitting basket lives on top of the bookcase. That and little hands who like to pull.
I work at having only one or so projects going at a time too, from the sake of simplicity. Sometimes it works, sometimes it doesnt. But it does help me focus and accomplish without too much rushing. Mostly
The Sheepy Pants sound great.
…”and, you know, remember that I actually enjoy creating things, rather than feeling like I’m racing to finish a million projects at once”
I couldn’t agree with you more.
It’s all about process. Knitting has really helped teach me that