This week, I finished up the Stillness Shawl I was working on. (You can pop over to Friday’s post here to see more details.) Happy to have that larger project done and off the needles so I’m now working on….
A new spin. This is the last of the mixed sweater lot spin I’ve been chipping away on. I have 8 oz of a 75/25 BFL wool/silk blend, dyed by Funky Carolina in the Sirius colorway (part of her Harry Potter series from eons ago). One of the braids is a bit more gray than teal, so I decided to spin singles of each and ply these together. Here’s the first ounce of the “grayer” braid spun up and the next 1 oz of the “teal-er” braid I’ll be working on spinning this week.
Not quite on the needles yet, but today I plan to start on a pair of socks for Socktober. I’ll be using Suburban Stitcher’s Sock in the colorway Maple which is a rich, autumn-y red, and using This Handmade Life’s Cozy Autumn Socks.
That it for this week for projects – but a bit of a ramble here. When I put together my yarn/pattern list for the year, I was looking at stash and thinking of ways to get through a lot of yardage. I wound up pairing several single skeins that came up on my randomly generated list with others from stash and then found larger multiskein shawl patterns to use up more yarn. But you know what? I don’t WEAR large shawls very much. Occasionally, but if I do, they tend to be rectangular stoles and not triangles or crescents. So I’ve come to the conclusion that while it doesn’t eat up very much stash, I should be knitting mostly things I will use and wear or at least things that I know will be good charity projects like pairs of warm socks (including larger men’s sizes) and things like unisex scarves. Not to say that I won’t knit a few larger shawls in the next year, but I am going to have another look at my proposed project list and adjust a few of the items I had chosen to replace them with more “me” patterns. If that means I have 24 pairs of socks at the end of a year, I’m completely fine with that.
The Socktober socks are a perfect example. I chose a lace triangular shawl pattern for this yarn and after thinking about it, I’d really get a lot more wear out of a pair of socks – so socks it is!
Hoping everyone is having a wonderful craft-filled weekend with some relaxation and enjoyment of the season. Until next week!
Knit One, Spin Too 
Oh your Funky Carolina is spinning up lovely! Yummy colorway for your Cozy Autumn socks too. I love that pattern and need to make another pair!
Carrie really had some amazing colors! This one is 110% me with the gray and moody vibe. 🙂
Totally can relate to not wear shawls, cowls, scarves. I have a few shawls and I really don’t plan to knit any more since I rarely wear them. I’m actually planning to knit a few shrugs because I think I’ll be more likely to wear them. I do have one lacy shrug that I wear and get lots of compliments on. It’s perfect even for Florida weather. That Maple yarn is gorgeous!! Those will be beautiful socks.
I think it’s hard with super warm weather like Florida. There’s only so much you can put on before it’s really too hot (and humid – the humidity gets me). Great idea for shrugs to add to your wardrobe for that climate!
Your shawl turned out beautiful. Those colors look so good together. The fiber you are spinning is pretty too. Do you have a pattern picked for it? Your softcover yarn is also pretty. Gosh….all your fiber is gorgeous! I prefer crescent or rectangular shawls. They just seem easier to wear. Good thought on only making items you will use. A drawer of socks is a blessing.
Thanks, Marsha! I do, in fact, have a pattern picked – the Weekender Light. I think it’ll be a good match for the handspun since it’s not got a lot of other surface detail. Warm woolen socks are some of the best things in the world. 🙂
I totally understand where you are coming from. I think I’m a product knitter not a process knitter, I want to knit things I will wear and get use of. I knit a huge shawl with some advent minis and I haven’t worn it since the day it came off the blocking mats and I don’t know how or where to wear it. Small triangle ones I do wear as scarves but I won’t knit another mahoosive one. Your fibre looks lovely and has a nice sheen.
It’s a struggle for me. I love supporting independent yarn producers and I love yarn in general but at some point, what do you do with it all? Charity knitting has been a good thing but it’s hard to be sure what one is knitting will work for what the charity needs, you know?
That’s a great point: unless you’re specifically knitting for gifts or charity, knit items that you will actually use! The singles are looking great. I look forward to seeing what it looks like when the two are plied together!
I’m doing a little 2 oz sample skein first. I think it’ll look just fine but I’d rather know upfront than after all 8 oz of singles are spun. How’s your spinning progressing? 😀
That’s probably a good idea. Better to know for sure that you’ll like the result. I haven’t started my spinning yet, but plan to work on it starting this week after work—maybe even starting today! I’m really looking forward to it.
Stillness is gorgeous!!! Wow, what a beautiful finish. I am like you…I love these shawls and the patterns and yarns but I just don’t wear them much. I could eat that Maple yarn…so pretty! Your yarn that you are spinning is lovely too. Handspun yarn is always the most beautiful. I wish I could spin…maybe someday. Enjoy your week!
Thank you so much, Sandra! I do love the look of handspun – and it always works up into something completely unique!
Your shawl is beautiful. Love those purples. The spinning is great, can’t wait to see the yarn spun up. I love blues and grays. Do you have a plan for the yarn once it’s spun up?
Thanks, Jen. I love all those colors too. I do, in fact, have a plan for it – I want to knit The Weekender Light out of it. Kind of a rarity for me to have earmarked a project first and then spun the yarn since I usually just spin to spin. 🙂
Your shawl is lovely, but I totally relate to the knitting items you will use. I love the look of shawls but rarely wear them. The red yarn is absolutely beautiful.
They are such great projects to use up fingering yarn, but yeah…. I just really don’t wear the ones I’ve knit much!
That looks like such a lovely spinning project. I know exactly what you mean about projects, I’ve pretty much arrived at the same conclusion. I see so many lovely projects but I will never wear them. I was eyeing a Fade shawl this week but had to talk myself out of it! I think socks, scarves, gloves, and sweaters are my thing. If I can get a bit quicker I’d like to do a bit of charity knitting too.
Yes – that’s it exactly! It’s so hard to not want to cast on things like that tho as there are so many beautiful designs out there!