Weekend Knitting Tally

Pattern:  Kid's Fruit Hat by Ann Norling (minus the leafy top)

Yarn:  Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino, white

Needles:  size 6

You read last week about my deep search for the white baby hat that was on the needles. And you saw that in my search,  I pulled out every bag I could find that held some kind of knitting. Well, you know that I finally located that missing little hat. But in the process of searching, I had to face all of those unfinished projects. Most were just bits of simple knitting that I'm sure I started when I needed some "social knitting." That's the kind you can do while you're talking to other knitters.

Well, that digging deep and finding these abandoned projects was a good thing. I tossed a few of them in a bigger bag and took them with me to the lake for our weekend.  I finished the little hat right as the weekend began. It's ready and waiting for the October baby. Yahoo! I'm ahead of the curve, for once.

Pattern:  Waffle Knit Dish Cloth from Homespun Living 

Yarn:  Cotton yarn, but I can't remember the brand

Needles:  size 7

One can never have enough dishcloths. So when I need a quick-to-start easy project, I'll begin another one. Usually I make the Grandmother's Favorite. It's my favorite, too. You only cast on 4 stitches, so it's the very quickest to begin. And I never need to look at a pattern for that one.

But the waffle knit dishcloth is a great (and free) pattern, too. I've made it before. It was one of the first "I know how to knit something beyond a straight scarf" project. It's a four row pattern that does require a little focus. I knitted 12 repeats of that 4-row pattern for a good size cloth. The actual pattern has a contrast stripe in the center that I chose to leave out.

Now I can scratch this one off my "unfinished" list. Remember, that just because it's simple doesn't mean you can't learn something. I used a new-to-me technique for weaving in the ends this time. Check out this video from Very Pink Knits.

Pattern: Sock Recipe:  A Good, Plain Sock from Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Yarn:  Knit Picks Felici, Countess colorway

Needles:  size 1.5

This is the project that I was happiest to finish. The second sock—the SECOND sock, mind you—was only about three inches from the end. And I had just set it aside for ages. No clue why. But it is done now, just in time for cooler weather when I can wear them.

Yes. I know my stripes don't line up. They are supposed to be that way because I like them a little funky. This yarn comes in a small ball, so it takes one ball of yarn for each sock. I started one sock from the outside of the ball. The other sock was started with yarn pulled from the inside of the ball. The stripe sequence is reversed. Just for fun.

And I tried a variation on the Kitchener stitch at the toe. I happened across this video. She leaves out the set-up stitches. So the first sock that I made months ago was closed with my usual way. And the second sock uses this "new" method. It was fun to compare them on a single pair of socks. They both work. Nice to have options.

There are a few more bags for me to empty, but I feel really good to have these done. This is when I'm a little envious of the monogamous knitters. Those who never start a new project until they have completely finished the current one. Obviously, I'm not made that way. But on the plus side, I didn't find 20+ bags of partially knitted projects. I know some of those knitters, too!

Pattern:  Easy Folded Poncho from Churchmouse Yarns & Teas

Yarn:  Rowan Tweed, Keld colorway

Needles:  size 6 

While this poncho was not part of the "neglected" knitting, it was part of my weekend knitting. It did not travel to the lake, though. I finished knitting this mile-and-a-half of plain stockinette (it was really only 50 inches) and soaked it and pinned it out just before we walked out the door. Leaving it in the floor to dry was perfect. I didn't have to look at it for three days. And yesterday when we got home, it was ready to unpin and stitch up. There is only a single shoulder seam. So before Labor Day was over, this was finished and ready to wear. Now I'm just waiting on fall weather to get here.