Splash Socks

WIP Wednesday: April 29, 2015

I’m home from India, but continuing to work on the same two projects! I’m also starting to work on the TKGA Master Hand Knitting Level 1.

Super Secret Shawl

I’ve now completed 3 repeats of the pattern.

I hoped to finish these while traveling, but while in India I spent most of my knitting time on the shawl, leaving these socks for the flights. The trip home involved 20+ hours actually on planes, with little to no time on layovers. I dozed off and on throughout the trip home, leaving less time for knitting than I had planned. Still, I got 5 stripes done on the trip home. Since I hadn’t brought appropriate waste yarn to mark the heels, I just kept knitting. I’m going to steek for heels — the first time I’ve ever done that!

TKGA Master Hand Knitting Level 1

I purchased the Master Hand Knitting Level 1 at the end of February and blogged about it in mid-March. When I discovered that we were going to India, I decided I wouldn’t work on the program until I returned. However, before we left, I did make myself a detailed checklist, breaking down each step of the project. Now that I’m back from the trip, I want to focus on finishing Level 1. I have an extremely ambitious goal: mail off the Level 1 binder by the first week of June. The reason for this ambitious goal is that I will be attending the TKGA Conference in San Diego July 21-26. If I can get Level 1 mailed off by the first week in June, it’s possible (though tight) that I might get the reviewed binder back before I go to the conference. Since I’m attending the Master’s Day program on July 21 and taking a workshop with Arenda Holladay, I’ll have the opportunity to ask any questions I have regarding necessary corrections for Level 1.

My personal approach to Level 1 is to research all the questions relevant to a swatch and write draft answers prior to knitting the swatch. Then I knit and block the swatch and edit the answer based on the experience of knitting and blocking. Yesterday, I did the research for the blocking report and wrote a draft that includes all the information other than how I blocked the swatches. Today I did the research for the first question and wrote a draft answer. As I write, I am compiling the References sheet that is one component of the binder. Every time I use a new source, I add it to the References section immediately. I expect to take significant time to edit the written work after all the swatching is complete. Proceeding in the manner I described makes that easier because I won’t have to switch back and forth between writing and editing. Switching back and forth slows me down considerably!

My single biggest worry about the swatches is that there will be cat hair all over them. The directions specifically say that the swatches should be free of pet hair. This seems like an impossible standard in my house. We’ve got three very cuddly cats in varying colors that mean no matter what you are wearing, the cat hair stands out from a mile away. Since we got back from India, they are even more cuddly than usual. They were well cared for while we were away, but they obviously missed us!

WIP Wednesday: April 22, 2015

I’ve continued working on both of the projects that I posted last week.

Super Secret Shawl

This project is my focus when I’m stationary and have excellent lighting conditions. I haven’t had much time this week that met both of these conditions! I’ve finished 1.65 pattern repeats and the full shawl will have 20 repeats, so I’m not quite 10% done with it!

Splash Socks

I only worked on this project while I was on the move. It’s super portable and it’s at the point where I just have to knit, knit, knit for miles. I’ve finished 4 stripes this week.

WIP Wednesday: April 15, 2015

Seems like just yesterday that I wrote a WIP Wednesday post! I’ve been working on two projects and making decent progress on both of them.

Splash Socks

Since last week, I finished the toes and I’ve knit about half of the foot.

Super Secret Shawl

I finished the swatch, and love how it looks!

I did a little math to figure out the best shawl dimensions for the amount of yarn I have and cast on. I knit a 5 row garter stitch edge, then started the pattern repeat. There’s 26 rows in a repeat. I’ve knit 17 rows of the first repeat. It’s not a difficult knit, but I have to have excellent lighting when knitting. The yarn is not very dark — the color on my screen seems like an accurate representation — but in low light conditions, the yarn reads as a darker, navy color and it is difficult to see.

WIP Wednesday: April 8, 2015

I’ve been super busy getting things done before we leave for India, but I’ve still managed to get some knitting done this week!

Clapotis

I’m just about finished with this project! I’ve finished the straight section and am now in the decrease section. I might finish this before we leave!

Super Secret Shawl

Last fall, a friend brought a shawl pattern to my attention. I liked it, so I bought the pattern. After I bought the pattern, I realized why there’s no completed projects in Ravelry. It’s an unusual size, unusual construction, and unsuitable yarn (more than a pound of light worsted weight cotton!). But I like the stitch pattern a lot. I’m swatching with some Knit Picks Gloss Lace and will do the math to work out a shawl with this lace weight yarn. I finished knitting the swatch at Knit Night tonight; I still have to block it. I’d like to cast on for the actual shawl before we leave for India, so I can bring it as one of my travel knitting projects.

Socks!

In addition to the shawl, I plan to bring yarn for two pairs of socks. I cast on the first pair. I’m not quite done with the toes, but will finish those up before we get on the plane. Once I’m on the plane, I can just knit, knit, knit, knit — even in the dark. (Aren’t sock toes cute!!)