Stuff everywhere

In case you haven't guessed, I've been busy browsing Ravelry and now am on a blitz of what I own - books, yarn, UFO's, needles so that I can update my stash.

In doing so, let me just say - WOW! I have a lot more yarn and "stuff" than I thought. I wondering what I was thinking with some of the yarn; complete impulse buys. Some, is just plain ugly and others, I think I bought them just to fondle.

I'm hoping to have a couple pics of some finished objects later this week.

BTW, check out the schoolhouse press website (bottom right of the home page) and follow along with Meg as she knits a Christmas stocking for her grandson, Eli.

1,648 balls of yarn on the wall....

I'm on a self imposed work of UFO's week while waiting for Ravelry to finally accept me (I feel like I'm in high school) and then those pesky UFO's can bugger off and leave me alone to browse and find a few thousand more projects to cast on.

I was watching Grey's Anatomy the other day and they were talking about Dr. Mark Sloan and that his name was Man Whore. It popped into my mind that my title should be "Yarn Whore" because I promiscuously cast aside my projects for the sleek lines of a new project or the full and juicy balls of yarn. I've also been known to simply be disloyal to a project simply because I want to play with some new sticks. (Okay, now I'm getting carried away). I apparently was not in line for the Fidelity Gene when it came to yarn.

It bothers me that I'm not more loyal and devout in my fiber relationships. And so, I am working on this character flaw. Well, at least for the next couple of days.

You are #34362 on the list.

Ahhh! Patience is not a virtue I possess. There are 5790 people ahead of me on Ravelry. Which is good progress considering three weeks ago, there were over 13,000 people ahead of me. The only twisted pleasure I get from the antsy checker is that there are 9693 people behind me.

Meanwhile, I finished a hat for my son, have completed 1/3 of my quilt piecing and have stitched a pillow for Christmas decorations.

Maybe if I keep busy enough the time will pass faster.

Maybe I shouldn't check the Antsy checker on Ravelry every five minutes.

You decide.

Oh know, I'm doing it again!

The other day I got very frustrated with my knitting - I think I've talked about his before (but am too lazy to read my previous posts and check). Sometimes, I get too caught up in thinking my knitting should be perfect and literally shut down. This is how it starts..

I'm sat in my favorite chair happily knitting away thinking what a beautiful fall day it is and how I love the colors of the yarns I'm knitting and how they reflect the pretty fall colors. Then I glance a little closer at my work to admire the colors .. uh oh.. Doesn't the stitches look a little uneven? Do my stitches slant slightly to one side? Why do I always have to push the yarn and stitches so much around the needles? Is it me or does my knitting always lean forward on the circulars and will this create an uneven tension? What if I knit this whole hat and not like it? Not even enough to give to someone else? Did I swatch enough? Should I go up a needle? Should I go down a needle size? Maybe, I'm using circular needles that are too short in length? Maybe I should rip this out and start again?

And so it continues until I have worked myself up into quite a tizzy (?sp). Then I shut down on my knitting and mope around - wondering what non-knitters do with their hands when they watch TV?

Then I start to miss watching my hands knit and the feel of the yarn sliding through my fingers (of course, I only stopped knitting a couple of hours before I feel homesick for knitting). Next thing I know, I'm knitting away happily on a newly cast on hat, swearing to myself that I will just enjoy the knitting process because it's the process that I love. I am back in knitting heaven.

Wait a minute, does that stitch look twisted?