I finished the second MAPLE LEAF shawl during the last few days of May. Knitting this shawl as written results in 52 ends to be woven in after knitting is complete. I prefer to avoid weaving in that many ends if I can. In the Ravelry pattern notes, the designer said you could crochet slip stitch from the cast on point to where you need to start knitting next. When I knit MAPLE LEAF the First, I discovered that if I wanted to crochet slip stitch, I could not knit the pattern in the order it was written because I would have to slip stitch across live stitches. So I modified the pattern by rearranging the order of knitting so that I would not be slip stitching across live stitches. Unfortunately, I did not take notes while knitting MAPLE LEAF the First, mostly because I was knitting off my iPad rather than a printed pattern. For MAPLE LEAF the Second, I took notes as I went along. This post will include all my modifications, by reference to the original pattern. It’s taken this long for me to write up this post because I knew it would take a while to write it and I did not have enough time during the first couple weeks of June.
Ravenclaw
Stashdown
In December 2013, I looked at my shelves of yarn and noticed how they runneth over. My craft supplies, including most of my yarn, are stored on two bookshelves in my bedroom. I originally designated three shelves for animal fiber yarns, one shelf for cotton yarns, one shelf for my knitting books, and one shelf for finished projects waiting to be gifted and UFOs. Here’s what the shelves looked like when I first put my yarn on them:
By the end of 2013, 6 shelves were stuffed with yarn, and I had more yarn that I needed to put away but did not have space. I updated my Rav stash to current, and discovered that I had 93,835 yards (that’s 53.32 miles) of yarn. That is too much. Something needed to change.
HPKCHC Spring 2014 Term
The Harry Potter Knitting / Crocheting House Cup (HPKCHC) Spring 2014 Term started on May 1. Before term starts, I usually plan out my projects. I did some of my usual planning for this term, but did not finish or get a chance to write a blog post about it because of getting ready for and attending Maryland Sheep and Wool. Today, I am finishing my planning. I did talk about this topic in the one podcast episode I published, but in case you haven’t seen that episode, I will explain in detail how the game works and how I plan for a new term.
First Ever Granny Square
I’ve known how to knit for more than 20 years, but I only learned to crochet last year. I tried to teach myself crochet at the same time I taught myself to knit, but never quite got it right. So last year, my friend Stacy taught me how to crochet. In that year, I’ve crocheted dishcloths. That’s all. I wanted to expand my crochet skills, but just hadn’t gotten around to it. Then I discovered that the Ravenclaws are planning a Blanket Square Term for the Harry Potter Knitting / Crochet House Cup (HPKCHC). I decided to jump on the bandwagon.