New Year New Challenge

I have found a new project to play with over the coming year. The UK Sock Knitters group on Ravelry are having a Year Long A-Z KAL. Starting on the 1st of January we're going to be casting on a sock that starts with the letter A,then 2 weeks later it'll be a sock that starts with B and so on and so on until all of the alphabet is completed.

I went through my queue on Ravelry and deleted all of the projects that had been languishing there never being looked at and now in their place is a list of 25 fabulous sock patterns. The only letter I couldn't find was X but I'm sure that someone will design one in time or we can always play one of our two wildcards.

Luckily the socks don't have to be finished in the 2 week period,just cast on. As long as they are finished by Saturday 12th January 2012 then all will be well. Just as well really as I have selected some completed ones, some knee length ones, some easy ones, 4 ply ones, double knit ones, aran weight ones and some I have no idea what they'll be like as they have only had a few projects completed.

This is also a cunning way to get rid of my stash as I'm on a yarn diet until I get rid of most of my existing stash. In the future I want a stash that is full of beautiful yarns with which I actually make amazing things, not random balls of bits that could, if I scrabbled enough of the bits together could, if you squinted in the right light, look okay.

If you'd like to join us in this astonishing challenge then check out the UK Sock Knitters group on Ravelry. If you're not up to the entire year long adventure then it's quite all right to dip in and out as the weeks come up.

Knit It Frog it

I have made a shocking decision - I am going to frog many of my ongoing knitting projects because they are not going anywhere. I keep meaning to get them finished off but somehow other patterns catch my eye and I cast on and the oldies are forgotten.

Part of this stems from my stash which whilst not growing too much now is also not shrinking at any rate either.I have loads of lovely yarns (mainly sock wool) but seem to not be using it at all so for the next year I shall not be buying any yarn until I have got rid of most of my current stash.

See I did a clever thing there though because I didn't say I was going to knit with it all, just get rid of it. I shall try to sort everything out and tag it so I know what I have, how much of it and how long it is (thank the small gods for Ravelry) and then decide what I can make from those patterns that I have queued or favourited. Any thing that I know I will never use will either be sold on ebay, ravelry or etsy and then the rest given to anyone who wants it.

Is that a crime for a knitter to say she has too much yarn?

I have too much yarn.

Far too much. I was sorting bits of it out yesterday, well trying to find something completely different but thought it might have jumped into one of the yarn bags, and I have realised that I have far more than I want. Is that a crime for a knitter to say she has too much yarn?

I think that I have, or more likely I have too much junk stuff that I don't really want. I want a stash that is gorgeous and lovely and a joy to look at and use. I want to be able to knit an entire garment from the same type rather then cobble it from bits that I have laying around. I want to be able to see it all, in one place, so I make the right choice about what I want to knit rather than dredge through bags trying to get all of one kind together. I want to be more organised.

If I can get the living room sorted and tidying before the weekend I might start the grand sort through of the yarn on Sunday. If the weather is nice I shall take bits of the stash out into the garden to photograph them nicely and then list them properly on Ravelry and then put them in clear bags and then but the bags of 4 ply, double knit, Aran and chunky separately and then they can get stored in the cupboard.

So there that's the plan.

It won't last of course, I shall get distracted, or bored, or start knitting random things, or reading things but it's a plan.

And a good one at that.

My Stash and UFOs

I am almost embarrassed about my yarn stash. I have listed on Ravelry over 100 entries but I have more to add. I am equally embarrassed about my unfinished projects that are scattered about the place too. I need to get a bit more organised and actually start using up the stuff that I do have and the project that I have started. So I have a plan . . . (I always have a plan)

From now on I will do a maximum of 4 projects at a time.

A small thing that I can take on the bus and do to and fro work. This would probably count as something like socks, mittens/gloves things in that general category. Basically anything portable and not too complicated.

Then I shall have a garment on the go. This can be an adult or child thing - anything like a sweater, skirt, dress. You catch me drift. This will be knitted at home so can involve complicated instructions or loads of colours.

Then there will be the long, long term project - the blankets or afghans, bedcovers, carpets. huge things that can get pretty boring if you are only knitting them and only them day in, day out.

And my final project group will be the frippery stuff, the things that I see and go "Oohhh" then pick up yarn and pins and start straight away.

The stuff to start with will be stash busted - but it might produce some interesting colour ways as mostly I don't have enough of a single yarn to knit an entire garment. But I have enough to be able to jig things around a bit.

First though I'm going to start with the project I have hidden around the house. Hence starting the BFF socks again (small thing for the bus). This afternoon I dragged out my Lizard Ridge knitted from JC Brett Chunky Marble (long, long term project), I'll hunt down the Topsecret sweater I start last year and almost finished but didn't quite (garment) but until I get rid of all my WIP I shall not start a frippery.