Kninja Knitter

I lost a month-plus there, apparently . But I’m back on track. The first quarter of YOP ended and the next one began. Here’s what I’ve got to share:

Stitched or Still-in-Progress

I snapped my Mark It Monday photos this morning (plus a couple yesterday afternoon that I was setting aside for the night). Note that I shared in my podcast Episode 2 post all of the projects that I finished in the past few weeks.

This is my tenth pair of socks for the Tenth Annual Desert Vista Dyeworks monthly sock club. The dyer has recently announced that she changed her mind and will continue the sock club after this year, so it might be worth learning more about it if you knit socks (or fingering weight mittens or hats)! So far this year I’ve earned two 30%-off coupon codes plus a free skein of my choosing.

This pair of socks is earning a bunch of bonus points in the Pigskin Party hosted by the Down Cellar Studio podcast, as I’m using sponsor yarn, stitch markers, progress keeper, pattern and project bag, and the football-themed yarn cozy is good for a few more points! This project has been one of my go-tos for movie theater knitting.

I mentioned last week that I started this cardigan on US 7 (4.5mm) needles but then discovered in my notes that I had swatched on size US 6 (4.0mm). So I frogged what I had done and restarted the project. I got further than when I’d stopped previously, so it’s a big plus. This is the back of the sweater. I need to start looking for button options, and I’m leaning towards wooden toggles.

This last item is a pseudo-secret project since I’m knitting it as a gift. On Ravelry, I participate in a pool of folks picking NFL games each week. The “price” to participate is a dishcloth (knit or crochet) to be sent to the winner of your assigned week of the season. There are some additional prizes awarded in the post-season, and the more participants we have, the more bonus prizes there are. I haven’t won yet this year (some lucky pickers in the group!), but it’s still fun. And I can earn points for the Pigskin Party, too.

Cast-on Conversations

When I recorded my podcast, I mentioned a few projects in my queue that I want to start, but I forgot about a few others (including the dishcloth I already started). And then I came across a box full of yarn in my kitchen as I was cleaning this weekend!

I’m so glad I found this box! It has my last full skein of DVD yarn, so I can complete the club for the year without buying more at this time. I can’t also put another couple skeins from this box to use in a Mystery Knitalong (MKAL) that started recently to knit a shawl. It’s good for more Pigskin Party bonus points! The pattern is the Better Than Fiction shawl (Ravelry link), and calls for three different colors of yarn.

The last two patterns in my queue are also geared to earn (bonus) points in the Pigskin Party. The Twisted Tea Shorts design by Briana Luppino would be something new for me, knitting shorts… and lastly, the Sidelines Scarf by Shaina Scott should be a quick knit!

Grandson Glimpses

I’ll share more when I podcast, but I had my first FaceTime experience with my grandson over the weekend. Gosh, I miss him! He was very excited to see me and giggled for the first fifteen minutes of the call. Later on, he did a whole dance for me. I sang a couple of his favorite songs from Miss Rachel, and he did the motions along with me. He did have a toddler meltdown in the middle of the call because he wanted to hold the phone and mama wouldn’t let him. But he got over it, lol.

Environmental Evolution

New segment title – since I have a lot of work planned in this area, it makes sense to give it an official name! I did a bunch of work over the weekend. I dropped off a bunch of cardboard and styrofoam at the recycling center. I’ll have another big load to deliver next week, now that I know how accessible it is. And I cleared a bunch of things out of the kitchen. I moved my space heater and portable A/C unit upstairs along with my kitchen chairs. The table was too heavy to maneuver up the stairs, but after some thought, I think I’ll set it back up in the kitchen after I make some other adjustments there.

Lastly, today a team of guys cut down a couple trees on my property. One died last year and proceeded to shed all of its bark. The other has been drying out and declining throughout this year. Can you spot the dead tree?

I will share more photos soon as I get the house in order and update the bathroom.

Knit on. 🧶