Clue #1, Done

I realized that while I can get three more projects done this month, they will only add up to about 1900 of the 2260 yards needed. No other WIPs are close enough to finish, and I don't think I have any quick yard-eating projects ready to go. So I did the first clue of the mystery cross stitch:

What do you think it will be? At this point, my money's on Jules from Pulp Fiction.

Mystery Cross Stitch

Of course I can't pass up a mystery cross stitch! Steotch is doing this for free. I love their designs, I just hope that the pop culture reference they use is something I'm familiar with. I learned about it a couple of hours after I went to Jo-Ann Fabrics and had to find time to make another trip over there. I hate it when that happens! I went through my old project stash and found some of the needed colors and got the rest and the fabric:

I'm ready to go, the first clue will be out tomorrow, and I just have to control my excitement for a few more days to see if I can finish some more yarn-things for May. ADD crafting, that is my style!

One Mile Down!

I've finished a pair of socks and met my first goal of finishing one mile of yarn this month:



I've also got 2327 yards of yarn to add. 2327 is more than a mile. It is 1.322 miles. My secondary goal was to finish over a mile of yarn total, counting the yarn I knew I'd be purchasing. That goal seems...difficult...to say the least. As long as I focus on my projects one by one rather than haphazardly jumping from one to another, I have enough mostly-finished high-yardage projects to make it. Updated chart, with yarn added:



I should probably change my blog information to something like "watch me continually set unrealistic goals for myself and fail miserably!" I'm using some qualitative analysis software for work and was considering putting my blog into it to see what themes emerge, but I'm pretty sure that would be the main theme. Goals, lists, and not finishing what I set out to do. Maybe this month I'll meet a self-set goal, for once!

Kleks

I started this simple shawl last year. At 56 grams of laceweight but no listed yardage, I hoped to get a nice, quick shawlette out of the mystery purple yarn that's been in my stash for years. I got to the end of the pattern, but still had about half of the yarn cake left! This is one of two skeins of yarn in my stash without yardage. The other one is this much smaller bit of fire-colored laceweight:

These two skeins sans yardage annoy me, but not enough for me to break out my niddy noddy to see how many yards per gram they have. Since they're laceweight, I think it'd be pretty easy to screw that number up anyway. So, they're clogging up my stash space and my stash spreadsheet, but won't count for much of anything when I use them up. Dilemma!

Packing for my week-long research trip, I wanted to take mostly projects that were already in-progress, mostly good travel projects, and ones that didn't take up much space or weight so I could easily pack them in a carry-on and personal item (along with the rest of my necessities). Kleks meets all of the criteria set forth, and just fails on one somewhat important aspect: it doesn't count towards my May yardage goals. It is finishing a WIP. It's an easy pattern I already have memorized and fits in my purse for traveling to and from research sites and waiting around. Based on my internal contrariness and self-defeating subconscious, taking that project will probably mean that's the one I end up working on, missing my goal by a few hundred yards. But what if I run out of yarn in my other projects - this one doesn't take up much space! If I make my goal, I can finish it with a clear conscience! But will I wait to make my goal before picking up the needles for Kleks?

Sigh. I shall take it, since no other WIPs fit the bill so nicely as an emergency I-finished-it-all travel project. I'd say it's 20 to 1 in favor of working on this one before actually making my May goals. Any takers?

Thujas of 2013

The year is not yet half over, but I don't anticipate knitting any more of these in 2013! Longtime readers will know that my preferred gift pattern is Thuja, a simple worsted-weight sock with an excellent ribbed pattern that fits any foot and is very comfortable and warm. I had some people write me some very important letters of recommendation recently, so of course they all got socks:

Pattern: Thuja from Knitty (Ravelry)

Yarn: Purples: Dark Horse Fantasy in 82/purple

Brown: Lion Brand Wool-Ease in Mushroom

Blues: Lion Brand Wool-Ease in Denim Twist

Needles: US6/4.0mm

Timeframe: Four done in April, one in May, varying timespans

Mods: None.

Problems: None. Love this pattern so, so, so much!

They were all wrapped like this to be gifted

I was also very pleased to note that I only needed one skein of the Denim Twist Wool-Ease for a pair of socks. I originally purchased it to make an estimated Men's size US 12 pair of socks and assumed I'd need more than one skein. I ended up using 87 grams; luckily the first skein was 89 grams instead of the labeled 85. That let me get away with using yarn I already owned without considering some kind of striping or contrasting cuff/toe scheme for the fourth pair. Already have the yarn for a new project when I thought I'd need to go shopping? Major win in my book!

Getting Close

I am up one pair of socks and one sweater, and down nearly that mile that I'm going for!



Down to 79,062.5 yards, 44.92 miles. Only 223 more yards to go to hit the one mile mark and one stockinette sock that will do it! I'm hoping to finish that or another top that's in progress before I leave on a business trip on Sunday. I'd cross my fingers for luck, but then I couldn't knit.

Also, one skein of sock yarn from The Loopy Ewe ordered (437 yards, Skein Merino Cashmere Fingering in Element). I couldn't participate in Camp Loopy last summer due to hiking, so I just can't skip it this summer! The Brandywine Shawl is calling to me for June's prompt: knit something with a single skein of laceweight or fingering weight yarn that is at least 375 yards. Better knit faster, I hope to have a total of one mile of yarn gone even after such purchases and the sweater yarn I'm eyeing may be my downfall.