SSS Wrap-Up

I finished a few more projects this week to top off my Single Skein September Stash-A-Thon. Here's the final three projects:


Pattern: Fetching, Knitty Summer 2006
Yarn: Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran, 2 skeins
Mods: I skipped the picot bind-off to preserve yarn, and still needed to buy a second ball. Argh! Luckily, a little stash diving turned up another ball of CA in cream, so I have a colorwork hat planned. Just in case you needed another reason to freakin' love your stash.

Sorry the pic is so blurry. My mom is not much of a photographer.

Pattern: simple 2x2 rib scarves, improvised
Yarn: Crystal Palace Labrador, about three skeins. I bought a bag of this yarn three or four years ago, when I still lived in Richmond, and after having many lives and several uses, I was tired of looking at it every time I opened the "wool" drawer of my stash dresser. I had enough for two of these scarves, so I made one for me and my sister.

better shot of the scarf

Story: My sister, an all-around awesome gal, nascent knitter, and guest blogger at XRK, has had a pretty shitty week after having her apartment ripped off. While she was there, asleep in the next room. She deserved something special and new, after losing all her photos, her masters degree work, her carefully mapped out "life plan," and her wallet, not to mention her overall sense of security in her home. I am just so incredibly relieved that whatever asshole that took her stuff did not want to do harm to her. Because I could not live in a world without my sister.

I finished 10 projects during Single Skein September, and used up about 18 skeins of stash yarn. I am glad to have returned to some of these great yarns in my stash, but mostly, I am so happy to have finally knit some of these projects that have long been in the queue. I have a very peaceful relationship with my stash, and know that the longer that I knit, I will find a use for most of the yarn that's there. However SSS was a great exercise in focusing my energies on actively finding uses for those small quantities of yarn that lurk in the stash, rather than continue to be distracted by socks.

Of course, the sock distraction is returning with a vengeance in Socktober!

Single Skein Update

I have a friend with Raynaud's disease, so despite our 90 degree temperatures today, it will soon be getting cold, and once her hands get cold, they just don't warm up. She mentioned this to me last winter, and like any reasonable knitter, I knew she was the perfect candidate for some arm warmers.

Pattern: Dashing, Knitty, Spring 2007
Yarn and Needles: 2 balls Mission Falls 1824 Wool, US 7
Mods: I knitted a few fewer rows for the hand and thumb. I love MF yarn, but the yardage is sucky (85 yds) and I was concerned I'd run out of yarn.

I didn't run out of yarn for the Dashings, but I was left with just a few yards left. I didn't have such luck with my Fetchings.

It really frosts me to have to buy another ball of DB Cashmerino Aran to finish just a few rows and knit the thumbs, because I'll have a bunch left over. Perhaps I'll buy a coordinating ball and make a Center Square Hat or something to go with it. Sort of defeats the whole Single Skein September idea, doesn't it?

It hasn't been all Single Skein September knitting, though. I'm just about finished my Molly Ringwald corset-vest-top. I'm making the little cap sleeves now, and should have an FO by the weekend. If only it would get cool enough for wear a wool vest.

Practicality's Triumph

When I was a kid, I had to catch the bus to Catholic school at a truly ungodly (sorry) hour of 7 am. Those miserable mornings on the corner came with with freezing knees (we wore knee socks, tights not allowed), and burning ears because I would not wear a hat. I was too cool to wear hat. All hats looked stupid on me, I said. And hats would crush the fluffy perm. We were a skiing family, and I didn't even wear hats on the slopes, for fear my hair would look flattened and staticky in the ski lodge. You know, like everyone else's hair in a ski lodge. I was too vain to be practical, too young and dumb to realize that no one was looking at me or my hair. Or that my perm sucked, and could use a little flattening. Like most adolescents, I feared the judgment of others, which, was usually arbitrary and often cruel.

While I fight the designation of being grown-up, I have evolved past this painfully stupid and self-conscious stage. Now with a child in elementary school, I am anticipating many cold mornings on the corner, waiting for the school bus. And being all grown up, practicality and warmth trumps vanity, but being a knitter means that you can have warm ears and still be darn cute, too. Inspired by fellow funky hat Mom Alison, I present my two latest Single Skein Septemer FOs:


Pattern: le Slouch by Wendy Bernard link to pdf
Yarn and Needles: Artful Yarns Jazz, US 10.5 (ribbing on US 9)
Mods: I chose the stockinette version, mainly because I wanted to crank this sucker out, and seed stitch slows me down.

And for the inevitable ponytail mornings:

Pattern: Calorimetry by Kathryn Schoendorf
Yarn and Needles: Noro Big Kureyon, US 9
Pattern Mods: Using a bulky yarn, I cast on 80 stitches, and only did the short row repeat 10 times. I actually knit this headband multiple times to get it just right, and each time, it only look about two hours to make. And yes, that is my yarn tail hanging down. I have not yet sewed on a button, so I tied it shut.

I often bristle at being a grown-up, but if being grown-up means I have cute hats and warm ears at the bus stop, then that's a good thing. It means that I no longer care what anyone else thinks of me, my hair or my hats, which is even better. Best, it means that no one else cares either, and if they do, well, then they are just so immature!

Single Skein Update

I have a few takers for Single Skein September, my little KAL for people looking to make some quick single-skein projects. I set up a Flickr group here and a Ravelry group here. Come and join me there, and feel free to invite your friends! Post about your projects, ideas, and even pics of your single skeins.

For my first Single Skein project, I am using a leftover ball of Cascade 220 from my CPH to make the Unisex Gloves from One Skein. As they are for a gift, I am making them tipless gloves so they are sure to fit the recipient. I think this is only the first of many mittens and gloves you'll be seeing from me this month.


It might be a stretch to call this next one a Single Skein project, since it takes multiple balls of brand spankin' new yarn, but I've begun a bit of a design project for Rosebud. She picked out a lone skein of pink Louisa Harding Kashmir DK last fall for a hat, but the hat never materialized. She doesn't really need a new hat, but she does need a couple of new sweaters. Her fall wardrobe consists mostly of purple clothes (thank you, H&M Kids), so I am working on a purple cropped cardigan for her, and will use the lone, stashed skein of pink as a contrast edge. Doesn't that count?

I've had more than a few false starts this week, trying various shapes, from top down raglan, to bottom-up raglan, to set in sleeves and shrug-styled, but I think I have settled on a plan for a little round-edged bolero. This yarn has really stood up well to repeated froggings, and I am quite enjoying this cashmere/merino/microfiber blend.

Single Skein September

I'm a big fan of Stash & Burn, the podcast hosted by Jenny and Nicole. While the original premise of the podcast was all things stash-related, they have branched out into interviews and really useful content about knitting, while stash remains a unifying motif. I listen to quite a few knitting podcasts, and I think theirs is among the most substantive, while still not taking themselves too seriously. Their episode about modifying patterns, for example, is a must-listen for all sweater knitters. Jenny and Nicole have a wonderful rapport, and listening to them is like having two passionate, knowledgeable knitters joining your knitting group. And really, any podcast that uses Sleater-Kinney for their theme song is for me.

Recently, they have announced a stash burning contest, encouraging listeners to knit up those single skeins in their stash. While I am not much for entering contests, I have been inspired to make dub next month Single Skein September. There are a bunch of single-skein projects ready in the stash, and because my sock-knitting keeps bumping them from the top of the to-knit list, I'll be taking a month-long hiatus from knitting socks and making my small, portable projects things like hats, mittens, scarves, etc. As I have said before, I am not overly stressed about my stash and its size or content, but sometimes, I like giving myself a framework with which to choose projects. I've wanted to knit a beret and a pair of Fetchings for quite some time, and that time is now!

Luckily, I finished this pair of socks just in time!


Pattern: Roza's Socks by Grumperina, IK Spring 2007
Yarn & Needles: Fleece Artist Sea Wool (Thanks, Ann!), US2
Mods: None
Notes: While I don't think this was the perfect pairing of yarn and pattern, I am pleased with these socks. The brioche rib is super-stretchy, and combined with the thicker yarn and larger needle, I ended up with socks that are a little too loose. I do, however, love this yarn and love this pattern. The pattern is super-speedy and simple, and the yarn is just smashingly squishy and soft. The colors are intense and luscious, all deep roses and light browns. You'll see me using both this yarn and pattern again, just likely not in this combination.

That's the last pair of socks you're likely to see around here for a little while, except maybe a one-skein leftover pair for the Rosebud. Care to join me for Single Skein September? Care to share your favorite single skein projects? Leave a comment!