not toys

So here are a few of my personal knitting projects. As many people know, making a hobby into a job leaves you little or no time for any hobby-type projects. I find an hour or two to knit in the evening, maybe twice a week, depending on how tired/hot/lazy/into a good book I am.

These socks have certainly been on the needles the longest (since sometime last year)! The yarn is bamboo/merino, specially dyed for me by Zen Yarn Garden. I started these to try learning the magic-loop method, only to find the circular needle left me with horrible hand cramps after a few rows. This one is ready for a heel, if I can only find the time and motivation.

Second longest on my needles is this Endpaper mitt, which I started in March. I wanted them for Spring (ha ha!) but then lost the chart I was working from. I was soon too busy to think about them, and it was too warm to wear them anyway. I might take these on our holiday, and try finishing them while the weather is still right. They should look pretty with my scarf.

A project I started recently is this shawl. The yarn is Malabrigo lace (so yummy!) in the pearl colourway. This yarn was originally intended for one sweater, then tried with a second sweater pattern, only to discover halfway through the back that I wouldn't have enough for the whole sweater. Lately I decided it would be nice to have a pretty shawl for nursing, which would be a great use for this yarn. The pattern is one I modified slightly from a chart I found in a stitch book. I even tried a provisional cast-on, so I can make both ends the same.

The fourth project I have on the go right now is a quilt/rug thing, made from a bunch of "fresh from the sheep" yarn a couple different people gave me. It's essentially just variously sized square swatches, which I'll sew together at the end. It's my mindless-knitting-during-movies project. I didn't take photos, because it just looks like a stack of squares right now.

If you add in all the random toys I knit from day to day, it's certainly enough variety to keep things interesting. It's not surprising I find no time for painting any more.