After Project Ennui

First off, thank you all so very very much for all your lovely comments on the mystery stole.  I really enjoyed reading each and every one of them, thank you!!

There is a sort of post-project listlessness that always settles in when I finish a big project.  It's part of a what to knit next that sort of grips me and I dig through my UFO bin to see what's there and what I want to knit. 

The first thing I pulled out was my Frostrosen Mittens.  I finished the first in April of this year through a random method of stranding both colors through my right hand and dropping and picking up the yarn constantly.  It was messy and uneven and my very first try.  I decided to pick it up again and finish the pair, I'm on a bit of a chart kick right now.  I knit and knit all weekend long and finished up the cuff.  That's when I realized I had a very big problem - gauge.  Now that' I'm trying this two-handed double stranded thing my gauge tightened up significantly.  It looks great, but now I have one mitten that's too big and the other mitten too small....sounds like the 3 little bears doesn't it?  I didn't have enough yarn to knit 3 and it seemed too sticky to rip the old, so, into the random knits bin it goes.  I ordered some palette yarn from knitpicks to do another pattern but sadly, these mittens will never be finished, *SIGH* 

Oh, and I placed a order through knitpicks for some lace yarn, options needles and adamas pattern and their chart holder.  The one thing I wish they told you about the chart holder (you can see it inthe mitten pic) is that it requires you to use their very specific thicker magnets.  I can't use the magnets I already have from other magnet charts because with the fabric they won't stick.  Bummer!
In the meantime I swatched for some lovely lace "Artist's Gloves" fingerless mits, I picked up the pattern at stitches a few years ago.  It calls for Mongolian cashmere however I was able to sub Blue Sky Alpacas, DK alpaca for it.  I got gauge with US 5 and I'm knitting happily on my options needles, magic looped.  They are sooo soft!  I bought an extra skein (better to be safe than sorry) so I think it may turn into a matching cowl.  I did chart out the lace pattern, so if anyone who owns this booklet is interested in the excel file I'll be happy to send it to you.
Other than that, miter mania has bitten, again.  I took stock of my squares this weekend and figured out I need to make 9 more to finish up the blanket.  I dug through my mission falls cotton so see if I can glean that many out of what's left.  We'll see if I make it.   Here's a few more I made this past week (not necessarily being sewn in these color patterns.)

Last but certainly not least, I have been so lucky lately.  I won a copy of Summer 2006 Interweave (the one with icarus in it!) from the lovely Vanessa of Butterfly Knitter.  It just arrived in the mail yesterday, thank you so very much Vanessa I really appreciate it!

Comments

[Erica]

That's a shame about the mittens because they're very nice.

[al]

i always have too many projects going to really get that listlessness; instead i just get UFO guilt. the mittens look great! very cool design. i want to do more 2-color stuff but it always looks so wonky because i don't know how to do it right.

[kristin r]

Oh, that is too bad about the mittens. There has got to be something you can do with them. I really like the yarn that you bought and those artist's fingerless mittens look really nice. My boyfriend is making a Rambling Rows afghan right now that is all miter squares. He tends to go on kicks too. He will knit on it every day for a week and then sit it down for a month and knit on it like crazy again... go figure. Neat projects you have going on right now lady, and there is no such thing as too many projects, just remember that.

[catherine]

you have such great taste in projects... I know you will always have the finest knits right here on KGT! ;) i know you've been swampped but did you get my email?

[Erin]

It's too bad those mittens will never be a pair, they're great!

I love those squares, they look like they're going to make an awesome blanket.