So I decided to do a mosaic as in past years to show off all the knitting I managed (Cough!) Although to be honest, it was more than I thought.

1. Pink texas, 2. Watermelon drift, 3. Manayunk, 4. Jewelled Cowl, 5. Lau, 6. David’s Green Socks, 7. Eve, 8. Pink Pinwheel, 9. Northallerton, 10. Lusekofte-sque, 11. Little Kina, 12. zuzu’s petals, 13. Vivienne, 14. Cheer, 15. Odessa, 16. Shedir, 17. evie, 18. IMG_6539 

I put the house in – it took up a lot of my time and energy in 2014!

So, 17 knitted projects. But lets get honest. Texas was finished on January1, 2014, so it barely counts. The Lau socks and the Eve scarf were projects that had been in hibernation since 2013 and 2012 respectively, so calling them 2014 projects isn’t entirely honest. And of the fourteen remaining, nine are accessories.

I’m trying not to beat myself up about it. It was a big year, and lots of stuff fell by the wayside. This year I’m aiming for balance and trying to ease up on myself a little. More time for relaxing. I hope(!)

I made a new skirt to bring in the New Year.

It’s the Deer and Doe Chardon skirt. Very happy with this one! Made almost exactly to the pattern, I just omitted the bow at the back, because the last thing I need is anything that draws attention to my butt. I did have to get a little creative with the cutting out, as I purchased the last metre available at Spotlight of the fabric. It was tight, but I managed. If I hadn’t had enough, I was going to make the pockets in the pink.

Yes, pockets. Are you listening, fashion designers, pattern designers and fashion retailers? POCKETS. We need them!

I also did some knitting. In fact, I cast on on Christmas Eve and finished the first sock on December 29. Amazing what I can manage when I’m not spending time at work or studying!!

So, 2014.

It was kind of big for us. Lots of big things happened. The house that was about to be started a few posts back? It’s finished, we’ve been living here for three and a half months!

We’re happy with it! That pic was taken just yesterday. It’s taken that long to get the gardens done. And the turf will apparently be finished tomorrow. The landscapers are under all sorts of implied threats to have it done in time for Christmas. Both families are landing on us, so grass would be nice. As would fences, but that looks like happening late January.

It’s taken eleven months, but we finally put Twinkie to rest yesterday.

We had her cremated, and she’s been resting in the kitchen, awaiting a more permanent spot.  This little garden is directly under my craft room window, and I think she would’ve liked that. Mind you, she wouldn’t have complained about being in the kitchen, close to the food either!

My craft room was one of the first rooms complete. (Naturally!)

The other big news was that in July I started a new job. I’m still at the same place, but I jumped a few grades and am now full time. The end result? Much more job satisfaction, but now I have this lovely, lovely craft room and no time to use it.

I’ve managed a few hats for a coworker who has recently been diagnosed with cancer.

Shedir

Odessa

Cheer

I’ve finished a cardi and a jumper, but haven’t taken any pictures – I started both in winter and it’s summer now, so they’ve seen little, if any use yet.

But I’m still here, always hopeful that I’ll find a way to fit more in. 28 hour days? 10 day weeks?

Seriously, December? Already??

Hooray, I finished something!

I really should buy a whole lot more worsted weight yarn, it’s so much quicker to work with.

I’ve had this cardi in the queue for Em since I first saw it, so for oh… two years? A month or so ago, I decided I needed something that was going to be accomplished reasonably quickly, so I pulled this out and started it. It was the thickest yarn I have.

Details:
Pattern: Manayunk Cardigan by Kate Gilbert from Knitscene Spring 2012.
Yarn: Stonehedge Fiber Mill Shepherd Worsted in Granite and Raspberry (Leftovers from my Ella coat)
Needles: Dyakcraft Darn Pretty interchangeables in 3.75mm & 4.5mm
Mods: Did ribbing for the bands instead of garter.

I’m happy with it, she’s happy with it, it’s all good! I really like the pink buttons. I went into Spotlight, intending to get grey ones, but the pink ones jumped out at me, and the Twitterverse agreed. Good choice, everyone! I really like this yarn, too. It’s super soft for a pure wool. I’m not 100% on how it will stand up to repeated wearing and washing. I’m pretty sure it will felt if you look at it the wrong way on a humid day, but we’ll see.

I especially like the little pockets!

I don’t think they’re very useful, but they’re cute!!

I don’t know where the time goes. I have all good intentions, but I get overwhelmed and it all gets away from me.

My mojo has fled.

Fled. I feel no love for any of my current projects, and am sorely tempted to dump it all. WIPS, stash, queue, the lot. Toss it all and start over. I’ve been working a little bit on lots of things, but it often feels like a chore, not something I’m itching to get at the way it used to feel. Overwhelmed. Too many things stealing my thoughts and it all gets too much to deal with, so I tune it all out.

Corfu has been set aside. I got a fair bit of it done, the back is almost complete, but I’m not feeling the love anymore. It doesn’t look much different to my last post. The lacy cardi I was working on, Cecelia, is done. Well, the body is done. So I tried it on, and I’ve gained weight and it’s too small. I did a beautiful tubular cast off, and it’s too tight. I’m not sure if it could be saved if I undid the ribbing and used a bigger needle. It all felt too hard so I shoved it into the bottom of the too-hard basket.

So I started a Manayunk cardi for Em. That’s in worsted, so it went really quickly. I should really work more with thicker yarns, it’s so much quicker. Pity that the majority of my stash is fingering or laceweight, with just a spattering of DK.

And I went back and worked a little on my sock yarn blankie. The one that’s been in progress for oh, five years. At this rate, it’ll be finished somewhere around 2030.

And I started a Jewelled Cowl with some Swans Island fingering from Suzyhausfrau. This yarn is divine. Seriously, it’s so soft and lush!

In other news, I got my results for my most recent unit at Uni. A High Distinction. That’s a pretty big deal, I guess. I’m not feeling the love for University. It’s a necessary evil, that’s all. I’m doing well so far (touch wood), but I’m not enjoying it at all. Studying online is hard and solitary, particularly when the lecturer/tutor isn’t interested and just sets a bunch of readings and more or less expects you to teach yourself.

The house continues, slowly. We  had nought but a slab for five weeks. We’ve got the frame up now, and the plumbing done. The bricks have been delivered, but no idea when the bricking will actually start. The only indication we have is “Hopefully soon”. The same builder started another build around the corner from ours a month after ours, and they’re nearly caught up to us. I have a feeling that we were held up to let them catch up to make it easier for the builder/tradies. Hopefully things will progress more quickly now. We’ve also had some drama from the broker that is yet to be resolved.

So, I’m tired and whiny. That’s why I’ve not bothered to post much lately. Hopefully all my mojo is out there somewhere, looking for me, too!

I’ve renamed my knitting, now I’m just knotting.

26 strands of yarn attached to that most recent row. I do two rows, then I weave in the ends. Weaving in the ends takes almost as long as knitting two rows. It’s slow going, and very, very frustrating.

But it’s beautiful!