January 2013: Wrap-Up

Yardage Totals 2013:

January: 869yds

Year To Date: 869yds or .49 miles

As has been my tradition for quite some time, I'll be continuing to track my yardage knit over the course of 2013.  I find comparing yardage knit vs. yardage out vs. yardage in quite interesting.

I think January had a pretty strong start.  My yardage is just slightly higher than January of 2O12, which gives me hope that maybe this year, I'll knock out a few larger projects and not just small ones.  Yardage from socks is so hard earned.  In January I knit almost exclusively worsted weight toys and accessories--much quicker, but lower yardage.  This year I would like to finish a few sweaters and long term projects like my son's blanket.  So we'll see how it goes.

Knot A Podcast: Episode 16

Knot A Podcast: Episode 16 from SewKnitpicky on Vimeo.

Oh, Vimeo.  You slay me with your flattering portrayals of my face and personality.

Kittens.  I believe I forgot to say the episode number in the beginning.  And I do need to apologize for where I was looking; I was convinced that if I looked at the camera, that it would look like I was looking at you.  My mistake and now I know better.  I promise to work out all of the goofy kinks in the coming future.

Onto the show notes!

Introduction:

♥  The podcast name has changed very slightly to give it a more crafty feel.  Not A Podcast is now Knot A Podcast.  My denial is as firmly cemented as ever. ;)
♥ I made a Ravelry group, say whut?  I'm still working on getting it set up and was surprised to see 9 members as of this morning.  Half are people I do not already know.  So, um, Hi there! *Waves*


FOs:

♥ 600 Monsters
♥ Pashmina Cowl - This could have used a couple more stitches on each side.  I linked to the mods I followed when making mine.
♥ Pashmina Graham -  This pattern is pretty good as-is, but I feel the last bit of shaping is too conical.  Could use a little reworking to round it out more.
♥ Looking to make some Pashmina mitts, maybe unembellished Knucks?

WIPs:

♥ Very little progress made on Goodale and the Blanket O' Doom.  They were on the back burner the last three weeks.
♥ Commission monster is almost finished.  Been trying out Morning Glory Cluster Stuff and pretty impressed so far.  It's so much less messy than the other poly stuffings I've tried!
♥ Socks for the Mister are just barely started.  I keep feeling uneasy about them.  I'm not sure if I should listen to the nagging voice or keep going.

Next On Deck:

♥ The name of the game is focusing on WIPs.  I want to cast on ALL THE THINGS right now, but I need to finish other things up first.

Not A Podcast: Episode 15

Not A Podcast: Episode 15 from SewKnitpicky on Vimeo.

Kittens.  Once again I find myself so very happy that I do not have to worry about my public image.  Vimeo has taken me from a rage monster to a sad panda.  It is amazing what kind of faces one makes when speaking.

I apologize for the length this time around.  Pushing 40 minutes may be a bit too long to listen to me ramble.  Enjoy!  And onto the show notes...


♥  Twice a month vs. 3 times a month...any thoughts, kittens?

FOs:

♥ It's On Like Donkey Kong!-- Eeep. I know I took pictures, but can not find them anywhere...to be continued, I guess?!
♥ Kitchy Keen-- These were well-received.  I'm hoping the yarn wears well and justifies my positive first impressions of the yarn.


WIPs:

♥ Monsters for Conneticut--2 done so far, nearing the end on a third.  Might get to a fourth?
- Monster #1 had size 9mm safety eyes, while #2 has 12mm safety eyes. I forgot to mention that second part while recording.

♥ Blanket of Doooom--started in January 2010, still truckin' on it.  I'm nearing the 50% mark!

♥ Goodale--minimal progress made, but at least it's moving.  I have so many other projects going on that it's hard to find time for this one.

Next On Deck:

♥ Monster Commission
♥ Socks for The Husband

Stash Flash:

♥ None, really.  Just a few skeins to finish off some pre-existing sweater lots

Let's Chat:

♥ Chatting about the nature of my stash, where I want it to go, and an upcoming post about getting a picture of it all.

2012 Stashdown: Final Post

Kittens.  Oh my.  Ahem.

I had originally believed that I did pretty well this year in terms of Stashdown, but the numbers do not lie: 2012 was apparently a very rough year for me.  Even though it seems hard to believe, I stashed a lot of yarn.  I'm not sure where it's all living; my stash almost completely lives in the designated containers.  BUT.  I did stash a lot of fingering weight yarn this year, and that does not take up much space compared to more traditional sweater weight yarns.  And the new containers that contain the stash *do* seem to have similar properties to Mary Poppins' carpet bag.  And had I not binged in Q3, I actually would have done ever-so-slightly better than I did in 2011.  But I digress....

2013 will finally be my year to see a stash reduction: I'm sure of it.

Crafty Goals for 2013

Well, kittens, it's that time again: the end of one year and the welcoming of the next.  Which means resolutions/goals/whatever-you-want-to-call-them.  I know many do not like them, but I really enjoy reflecting on my year and then choosing things I'd like to focus on and improve upon the next.  I may not always do them, but I'm not an all-or-nothing personality.  I'm more about the journey than the destination.  I like the process of self-evaluation.

2012 wasn't the best for goals so I did not make to many.  But now things have settled...even if they're far from ideal.  I've been giving a lot of thought to what I'd like to accomplish goals-wise in 2013, and I think I've come up with a pretty doable list.  (Stashdown hasn't been going the greatest--you'll see more in a few days when I get home and can complete my 2012 analysis--but I've been improving over time and I hope next year will finally be The Year when all of this work finally starts to pay off.)

Crafting Goals for 2013:

♥ Work on Giftmas crafts throughout the year, preferably one every other month.
   - 2 pairs of adult socks
   - 1 pair of socks for each of my children
   - a custom designed "wolfie" doll for The Girl
   - a Batman doll for The Boy
   - small ornaments for family and teacher gifts
   * I have most of the yarn on-hand already for these projects.

♥ Knit 4 pairs of socks for myself out of existing stash.  At least 2 should be self-striping.

♥ Knit my winter coat. (This will be a 30 point project due to the amount of work and complexity. Point system to be detailed later in this post.)

♥ Knit The Husband's socks before he leaves on his business trip. He has US size 13 feet: hold me, kittens.

♥ Design a Shiba Inu toy and write up pattern.

♥ Finish Goodale sweater plus at least 2 others from stash.

♥ Finish The Boy's wide stripes blanket.

♥ Finish the queen sized bed quilt.

♥ Start new king sized bed quilt.

♥ Cross stitch 2012's Dessert of the Month sampler and start on 2013's Woodland Sampler.

♥ Only purchase yarn that has been earned with the "points system" to help keep stash in numbers low this year.  The system is a little rough, but I think it could work.

   - 1 finished pair of socks = 5 pts
   - 1 finished sweater = 10 pts
   - 1 finished knit toy = 3 pts
   - 1 small finished project = 2 pts

    -To earn a skein of sock yarn, I need to knit 25 pts worth of projects. (This number is high due to the fact that I stashed so many random skeins of sock yarn in 2012.)
   - To earn an under $100 sweater quantity, I need to knit 20 pts worth of projects. Roughly a 2 for 1 ratio.
   - To earn an over $100 sweater quantity, I need to knit 30 pts worth of projects. Roughly a 3 for 1 ratio.
   - To earn an over $150 sweater quantity, I need to knit 40 pts worth of projects.  Roughly a 4 for 1 ratio. (Added 06 January 2013 after assessing types of sweater quantities in stash.)
   - Gift project yarn is free, if an immediate cast on.  Exception will be made for sale yarn (ie-Knit Picks Swish Tonal which I use all the time for gift knits).




And I think that's it.  How about you, kittens?  Do you have any plans or strategies for 2013?  Did you finish what you wanted to in 2012?  Happy 2013!