But recently I've been taken in by one of the most appealing traits of knitting. Knitting is a process, where projects go through stages, as a headband, mitten, sock or sweater evolves from a ball of yarn into a stylish, wearable garment. You can knit exactly what the pattern says, or you can modify to your heart's content- change yarn weight, needle size, pattern, or even make it up as you go. Once a project has been bound off, I still don't consider it done. Once it's blocked, photographed, and posted to Ravelry, then it's truly finished.
So, all of a sudden, I've discovered that I've reached various phases with a number of projects, with various levels of "involvement". Let's take a tour (Warning: lots of links for your perusing pleasure):
1.) (Front right): Just started: My umpteenth Whimsy headband, knit from String Theory Yarn Merino DK in color potluck. The original pattern is for a hat knit in two pieces; a headband and then an attached crown. I skip the crown and just knit the headband.
2.) (Large ball of yellow yarn and middle scarf): Chugging along: My Brioche scarf, which I already blogged about. I'm trying to maintain fealty to this project as my solely train-knitting project, but a couple rows seem to sneak in whenever I'm not looking... I took the pattern as it was- not messing with brioche!
3.) (Purple triangle): Finished forever: An Unwoven shawl that has been off the needles for months. I even took it to Sweden on vacation in May, but it's been hiding off-Rav all this time. Now that it's posted, it's finally, really done.
4.) (Purple wavy thing in the back): Almost there: Still unblocked and un-Raved, this was my second train knitting project that been off the needles since October. Knit from Fiber Optic in Grape Jelly; I'll admit to basically buying out her shop every time I see her at Rhinebeck :)
5.) (Mitt on the blocking mat): Heart and soul: My most involved project right now. The yarn my first hand-dye, so this is the second experiment with the yarn to see how it knits up. And the pattern is one I cobbled together from a couple stitch dictionaries and another wristlet pattern. It's involved lots of tweaking, obsessive trying on, and critiquing. But Mitt #1 is off and blocking to check for fit, and #2 is already on the needles.
... And then, just for fun, I also whipped out some more hand-dye this weekend! This isn't the greatest photo, since it's balanced precariously in the utility closet, drying. These are based off a Mark Rothko painting,
No. 12, 1951. I'm working on an artist series of yarns, inspired by an October trip to the Institute of Contemporary Art in Chicago.
It's been a while since I've been inspired to dye, design, and knit, on lots of different projects, all at once. I'm trying to keep to a rhythm, so I don't get bored or overwhelmed. And there are always the projects that need to be picked back up, finished, blocked, photographed, and posted.
But the beauty of knitting as a hobby is that it's all about what I'd like to do, my pace, and my interests. So there's no harm in doing what I'd like to and enjoying the ride. It's not often that happens in life, even with hobbies, so I'll enjoy it while it lasts.
