Saturday, January 3, 2009

Where I've Been & Where I'm Going:

2008 was the year I really branched out in my knitting skills.

Partly (well, mostly) due to becoming friends with Suzanne. That woman is a knitting phenom! Not only is she inspirational, she's also a great motivator as well. One time, she off-handedly mentioned using the duplicate stitch to weave in ends. She kinda-sorta showed me and it has made a HUGE difference in my finishing.

Other big influences were: Hanging out with the Bakersfield knit bunch and the Visalia knit bunch, having CJ and SisterDi as good friends, finally discovering all the fabulous fiber podcasts out there, definitely getting to attend Stitches West with Suzanne and SisterDi, participating in the 2008 Ravelympics and HELLO! Ravelry in general. What a great knitting year it has been.

So, in '08 I worked on stranded-knit socks, finished a child's size sweater (albeit just a circle with sleeves, but still. . . ), understood and executed chart knitting, and really comprehended patterns for real and not just faked my way through. I got a lot of stuff knitted up last year and it's only made me more interested in expanding my experiences from here on out.

Here's where I'm headed during 2009:

Knit one entire ADULT-sized sweater from start to finish. I lean towards Hey Teach but that could change by the time I cast on.

Knit one large lace project. Lord knows, I have enough lace yarn stashed to knit 8 large projects at least! I started the Fiber Trends Seascape Shawl but put it down when The Mike started working less and being home more. It's too hard to concentrate with him around.

Learn to knit a patterned sock. That is all.

Learn to knit a toe-up sock. That is all.

Enter something in the fair in 2009, although this one scares me a bit, given some of the horror stories I've read about during 2008's fair season across the U.S.

Finish: these socks and these gloves and this pair of socks.

Keep on knitting: Socks for ME! Hats for ME! Stranded/colorwork knitting - it's my new knit addiction, LOL.

In all of this upcoming knitting activity, there is no doubt in my mind I'll be learning new techniques and skills, not just filling up time knitting stuff I already know how to do - lots and lots of learning, I'm sure, and I can't WAIT to get going on it all!

2 comments:

Lupie said...

I am so glad to see you did join The Lesser Known Skeins. You will enjoy reading all the blogs from all over over the. I will visit and comment on your blog often.

Suzanne said...

It has been a good year for knitting hasn't it? I'm still waiting to see your finished stranded socks. They are going to be wonderful.

Here's to a great 2009 too!