Another year over...

Whilst I re-learned how to knit in 2008 and knit my first pair of socks in 2009 it wasn’t really until 2010 that I was utterly bitten by the bug. This is the first year when I’ve had a good number of finished objects and can really look back and think wow I did quite a bit of knitting. Not much by the standards of some but rather a lot by my own!

I calculated today that in 2010 I knit approximately 8907 metres of yarn, that’s 8.9km or 5.5 miles of knitting. That sounds like an awful lotv I don’t even want to calculate how many miles of yarn are in my stash, I dread to think.

In my first blog post I wrote:

Part of this blog will be updating progress on my knitting 12 pairs of socks (for myself at least, I've also promised my mum some for her birthday which wont count to my total) and it will also be keeping track of my knitting generally. My other knitting goal for 2010 is to knit my first adult sized garment, a cardigan for myself. I have cardigan/jumper sized quantities of two different yarns in my stash and I want to at least knit one cardigan.

It is also a goal to keep up with my blog, I do have a habit of getting excited about things and being really in to them for a couple of weeks then just giving up, I will not allow my blog to be one of those things.

Well I didn’t quite manage on either of the knitting goals but this is my 83rd blog post in 12 months which isn’t bad going. I can't believe that I even have people "following" my blog and I really appreciate every comment I get, it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside that people read and might even be interested in my knitting!

In 2010 I knit (and finished)

10 pairs of socks (including 1 pair for my husband, 1 pair for my mum and 1 pair for my friend’s daughter so really failing on my 12 pairs for myself target!)
2 baby cardigans
2 baby hats
2 Ishbels
1 lace shawl
1 lace scarf
1 shawlette
1 neckwarmer
2 hats
1 pair of mittens
1 washcloth
1 phone sock
1 ipod sock
1 egg cosy
Smoothie hats
2 mini Christmas stockings

That’s 30 FOs (counting the smoothie hats as one), not bad going considering my Ravelry Projects page only shows 8 projects for 2008/9.

I do have three projects still on the needles which include a pair of socks knit up to the gusset decreases (knitting both at the same time), 1 sock ready to start the heel flap and 2 sleeves, a back and a front of a cardigan. Yes that’s THE cardigan also known around these parts as “cardigan of doom”.

This was supposed to be the first adult sized garment part of my 2010 knitting goals and I started it on 25th January 2010 but other projects kept coming along and demanding my attention…then the cable error happened and I tossed it in the naughty corner and didn’t look at it again until yesterday.

Yesterday morning I had this:



Note terrible cable error that left me so frustrated and the needle through that row ready to pull back. We currently have my mum staying with us (due to an unfortunate burst pipe situation at her house, oh dear!) and I showed her the cardigan in my sulk…well she only went and ripped it back, put the stitches onto the needle at the row before the cable error and threw it at me and told me to get on with it!! I now have a back, 2 sleeves and a left front and intend to finish the right front BEFORE 25th January 2011.

The projects I have been most pleased with in 2010 have probably been the lace scarf for my MiL (even if she wasn’t as pleased as me!), my mum’s Ishbel (which she was VERY pleased with to my delight! If you were wondering the yarn is YarnAddict’s Organic Merino sock yarn and it’s lovely stuff, check out her shop, I used her yarn for my MiL’s scarf as well and it is fabulous) and probably my lime green cabled socks.







What have your favourite projects of 2010 been?

My most knit with colours have been various shades of green (well it is my favourite), blue and pink (that was mostly gift knitting) and I have without a doubt purchased more yarn than I have knit, very naughty!

So here’s to the end of another year, I can’t say 2010 has been one of my favourites generally but knitting wise it has been very good. I wish everyone a healthy, safe and very happy 2011 and I’ll see you next year with some new knitting goals to work on!