I Think I Made Winter Go Away...

...by finishing my Penelope Poncho. This super-bulky poncho (or as my son commented, "You're knitting a Snuggie!") was meant to be a stand-in for the blanket that I've been "wearing" in my drafty home office. I finished it today, just as the temperature skyrocketed to nearly 50 degrees--which feels like 80 degrees in comparison to the past 6 weeks or so.

The poncho was fun, easy and I think it looks nice. I think I'll still have some drafty days to wear it inside, but soon I may also be able to use it as outerwear in that transitional period between coat and light jacket.

I've also been making nice progress on my Manos Autumn Throw, with the discipline that I work on it every Saturday at Knitting Group and continue with a few extra rows during the rest of the weekend. I hope to have it finished by next winter!

Now that the poncho is done, I'll cast on my second GAP-tastic Cowl to use up the yarn I had left from the Shalom Cardi. I still need to determine, based on where I am on that, what project I will take on our forthcoming trip to California. Two long flights with ample knitting time!

In foodie news, we had a wonderful dinner at Quality Italian in NYC this weekend while my son was home for spring break. Just as delicious the second time.

Tomorrow I will try my next crockpot recipe, a Creole Shrimp dish from The Southern Bite. Will report back on how it turns out!

2014 - A Transitional Year in Review

Well, my assumption that my new job would give me more time to knit and to blog has not exactly panned out, but I feel the tide beginning to turn now, as we reach the end of the year.

In my annual knitting recap, according to Ravelry I've completed 15 projects this year, and that doesn't count the pretty hefty amount of contract knitting I did all summer and through the fall, ending at the beginning of December. It also leaves out all of the knitted accessories I made for a craft show where I sold (or tried to sell!) items from my Etsy shop.



My 15 finished objects include: 3 scarves or cowls, 3 hats, 2 shawls, 2 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of fingerless gloves, 1 poncho, 1 tank top, and 1 Valentine's Day washcloth. I may finish another item--the Never-ending Story Cowl, which I just started last night with yarn I bought two years ago (from two LYS's that have since gone out of business), and from one of my favorite go-to knitting books, Cowlgirls.

In early December I also completed the Craft Yarn Council's Certified Knitting Instructor program over a weekend at the Fashion Institute of Technology in New York. It was a fabulous experience--I met great people and learned a lot, and I'm probably going to start teaching at my local public library after the New Year and see where we go from there. That motivated me to find a local knitting group, and I have been enjoying my Saturday mornings with the Union County Crafters in NJ. I would like to try to attend meetings of the Big Apple Knitting Guild in NYC with my CYC class friends; I think I'll be able to make that happen in 2015.

I will also pick up the contract knitting again, but need a bit more time to luxuriate in my own projects from deep stash that I love so much!

Wishing all of you a productive year filled with gratifying and relaxing knitting and crafting!

I Love My Poncho!

I bought the yarn for the Easy Folded Poncho back in November, but several projects for kids, my Etsy shop, etc. got ahead of this in line. Since it's a warm garment made from luscious 100% Alpaca from Juniper Moon Farms, AND it has a generous cowl neck, I wanted to finish it while the weather was still cold so I could appreciate its warmth. Well, Mother Nature has cooperated and it's still below freezing here in NJ. I finished the poncho, including knitting and blocking the cowl, earlier this week, and am now ready to wear it into NYC for dinner and a show tonight!

Since this project included 50 inches of stockinette, I thought I'd use it as an opportunity to try a bunch of different needles. Here is a quick synopsis of my thoughts on each (all were size 6 and none seemed to change the gauge of my work):

• Signature Needles--I ordered the 5" stiletto tips. These were my absolute favorite (and the most expensive!). I love them so much that I ordered another pair in size 7 and hope to start collecting them in different sizes. These are truly the Rolls Royce of knitting needles!
• HiyaHiya Sharps--Love these as well. Nice, sharp tips, very light and flexible cord that would be amazing for Magic Looping. As these are at a much better price point than the Signatures, I may think about getting a full set.
• KnitPicks Caspians--I have three KnitPicks Interchangeable sets already, but I fell in love with these green wood tips and green cord when I saw them online. The tips are sharp and work as well if not better than my other KnitPicks needles. Again, I might ponder a full set, just because!
• Knitter's Pride Karbonz--While these are great needles--perhaps a lower-priced version of Signatures--they didn't seem worth the price for me vs. any of the others I tried. I will try them on another project and see if I change my mind and want to add these to my collection in greater quantity. The one plus of these over Signatures is that the cords work for any Knitter's Pride needles, as well as for KnitPicks needles, so you get a very nice, high quality needle without having to invest in separate cords like you do with the Signatures.

Finally, I ordered one set of DyakCraft Darn Pretty wood needles, but alas, after several weeks, they still have not arrived. If I like them when they eventually get here, I think my best bet is to buy a set from someone on Ravelry, rather than wait the year for my own set. But then again, I have so many needles that I COULD wait....will decide when my sample arrives--hopefully within the next few weeks.

Now that I've worn the poncho, I'm ready for spring!

Activity!

Have been working hard on many fronts--my "day job," my personal knitting (I'm participating in the 2 KnitLit Chicks Poncho Comeback KAL; I'm making the Easy Folded Poncho pattern with the  that I bought a few weeks ago. Using luscious Juniper Moon Farm Herriott (100% alpaca). I've had several "false starts" until I think I arrived at the dimensions that will fit my small frame and the seed stitch edging that will keep me from going crazy with severely rolling edges.

Then, just got several new orders in my Etsy shop from a dear friend. I'm hoping this will be the start of a busy holiday season and maybe my "new direction" will be able to begin. Stay tuned.