2014

Well, I wrote all of six posts in 2014.  At the beginning of the year I stopped writing posts for this blog, but I also stopped knitting for a while.  I really hadn't noticed this until I went searching through Ravelry for the projects I worked on in 2014.  I'm not quite sure why this is.  I don't remember feeling too off.

But, to get back on the bandwagon, I thought I'd write a little recap of what I happened in 2014.

Probably the most "news worthy" thing was that Don and I tied the knot in May.  It was a very small ceremony with just our immediate families attending.  Neither of us were interested in a fairy tale wedding, so this is what we chose.  I of course made my own "something blue."  (Though I didn't bother to find a "something borrowed," so it was just an excuse to knit a pretty blue thing.)  The pattern I used was Beth King's Henslowe, a pattern I've admired for quite a while.  You can find my scanty notes on the project here on Ravelry.

I frogged an entire sweater!  I finished AND decided I hated the Cocoa sweater I mentioned here, way back in October 2013.  I detailed a few reasons why on my Ravelry page for the project.  Now, with the same yarn, I'm working on the Beach House Pullover from the Summer 2010 edition of Interweave Knits.  I'm knitting it in the round, and all is well so far.  I'll dedicate a post to it some time soon.

Maybe you recognize these beauties?  They're a pair of Spatterdash Wristwarmers that I knit as a wedding present for my sister, and I finally added buttons to them!  It was so, so easy to put the buttons on, and I waited so, so long to do it!  Now they're done and gone, and I don't have to look at them all sad and buttonless any more!

 Look!  Not knitting!  I probably hadn't crocheted anything more than a stabilizing neckline since I was nineteen, but I picked it back up again this year.  I'm quite unimpressed with modern crochet patterns, but feel inspired to make up my own.

When I started knitting again at the end of the year, I knit eight holiday presents.  You can see all of them here on Ravelry.  I'm most proud of the two cabled hats, this Antler Hat and a Ribs 'n Cables Beanie.  I didn't intend to knit two cabled hats back to back, but the Antler Hat came out too small for my boss, so I had to quickly come up with another present.

It's been a pretty decent year!  I've knit exclusively stashed or thrifted yarn.  I fell off the bandwagon of not buying new yarn recently, and then again this past week (which I've yet to photograph).  If I'm being honest I probably have two years worth of yarn stashed away.  Which is fine, because I looooove yarn.

What's to come this year?  Hopefully more blogging.  Definitely more knitting!  And I've tentatively started a 365 photo challenge.  So stay tuned!  You might see more of me here!

mermaid's necklace

Mermaid's Necklace on Ravelry

Hello, just stopping in here quickly today to tie up a loose end: the crochet necklace I started in May!  This poor necklace had to be crocheted twice since I didn't like the first iteration, shown below.  The length was wrong and the pearls were too evenly spaced.  So with the necklace's rebirth I decided to also give it a new name: the Mermaid's Necklace!

Since I didn't buy the faux-pearls specifically for this project (I pulled apart a vintage necklace that was far past it's prime, though I kept the clasp and used it to finish this new necklace) I ended up with quite a few left over pearls.  As you can see I've already made some matching earrings, but I still have so many left and no idea what to do with them!

My favorite part is the three closely spaced pearls to the right in this picture!

wip wednesday: pearlescent

Pearlescent on Ravelry

Since it's a little hot to be knitting sweater these days (though that doesn't stop me, we have an air conditioner that I can sit in front of), I've moved into jewelry making.  This will actually be my second attempt at this necklace because I didn't like how it turned out the first time.

full sleeve

Jars are quite possibly the best travel mugs. They seal completely so they don't spill. They fit the perfect amount of water for a cup of tea. They're designed to withstand hot temperatures. You probably have a million of them in your recycle bin. The only problem is that the glass gets hot! So without further ado, I introduce to you the jar sleeve!


One of my friends (and future housemate!) bikes everywhere and almost always has a jar of tea with her. However, she just wraps a bandanna around her jar and ties it off, which leads to slippage and her not being able to tie her hair back with the bandanna. So for her birthday I wanted to make a jar sleeve. Even if her birthday was almost a month ago.

Birthday present recieved!

I wanted to crochet an elastic into the final round to keep the sleeve tight on the jar, but the only elastic I had was far too thick and stiff. This is fine, I made a drawstring instead and it breaks up the monotony on the back.


This crochet pattern was my inspiration for making the jar sleeve in the first place and where I got the motif. I made everything so much more complicated by only following the pattern for the motif and making the rest up as I went along. I think it turned out great, so this is a success in my book!

More info on how to make your own here.