Year End Yarns

Do you believe that 2009 is done?!? Me neither. Where did it go? When I look back at the year all I see is a blur. I am pleased to see the long list of Finished 2009 items over there on the left. I didn't finish all the projects that were OTN (on the needles) at the start of the year but enough of them got done that I feel a tiny glow of satisfaction somewhere deep inside. I'm hoping (see? not really definitely committing; always like to have an out) to stop buying yarn in 2010, no matter how good a deal it is, until I get a bunch of the stash knitted/crocheted into usable items. No more buying those 2 skeins of clearance yarn just in case I want to knit a hat out of it. No more getting hooked by pretty colors or soft fibers with no place to go with them. The sky won't fall if I let the JoAnn's and Michael's coupons that come in the Sunday paper expire unredeemed. Really. I have at least one of every size of needle--straight, double-points, and circular--and a whole row of crochet hooks; there's no need to buy any of those. I'm resourceful, I can make do.



I was sorting through a basket and ran across a Brangelina Hat that I started a month or so back. It was the perfect no-thought-needed project to work on while all the kids were home, so that's done, and yesterday I cast on (and knit the cuff twice) the coordinating gloves and almost have the first one done. I'm using one strand each of Patons Classic Wool in Mercury and Bernat Alpaca in Stone for them and I'm loving the color and feel. This is a great glove pattern. It's free (always good) and it uses bulky yarn and 10.5 needles for a warm and fast knit.




I also finished (I think) my extemporaneous hexagon scarf yesterday. I might put more fringe on it, in fact, I definitely will, but I like it. It's warm and soft and doesn't look like anyone else's scarf.





And I spent a couple hours knitting at Dusty's on Tuesday (I invited myself over because she said on Facebook that she had baked pumpkin bread) and turned the heel of Reef Sock 2. I'll be working down the gusset later tonight and then I'll be zooming down the foot to the toe. Okay, maybe zooming is a bit optimistic given my usual knitting speed, but it won't take as long as the leg; I'm sure of that.