My mother once told me that, like her, I make my hobbies my obsession. At the time I may or may not have agreed (it's so long ago now that she said it), but this past week I have certainly been convinced of its truth and have had to give myself permission to not push myself so hard. Recreational activities are meant to be, well, relaxing, and pressuring myself to accomplish a certain amount in a given time span is exhausting. Not to mention, that two of my favourite hobbies - quilting and knitting - have been causing painful lumps to emerge on the knuckles of my left hand. Since I'm right-handed, this is a little surprising, but there you have it.
A baby and an engagement in the family within weeks of each other were two good reasons to make quilts - I'm not disputing that - add to that the self-imposed desire to knit socks for every adult female in my family as well as my father this year - well, let's just say I sometimes let these plans get out of hand.
Sadly, I've had to put aside some other plans - although I haven't totally dismissed them - such as knitting socks for all of The Most Adorable Granddaughters and making Christmas stockings for colleagues (don't worry Son#3 and DIL#3, I am still planning to make one for The Most Charming Grandson) - but I have decided that there are some other things that need to take first priority.
Such as a wedding quilt.
But even here, I have had to give myself permission to take it easy and to enjoy the process rather than feel pressured to get it done NOW! I'm hoping that after Christmas, with summer holidays, that I'll be able to get stuck into the quilt and have it finished in time for the wedding but, if not … well, I haven't thought that far ahead or given myself permission not to get it done in time. Not yet, anyway.
All this talk about knitting and quilting has reminded me that a week or two ago I popped into my local quilting shop (the one and only shop truly dedicated to handicrafts in our town) only to find it appeared to be closing down. I wasn't even able to find the marking pen that I prefer but did find a suitable substitute - at least I hope it is. (It's always a bit scary trying out a new pen: what if the marks don't come out of the fabric or, worse still, eats away at the fabric? I've heard of it happening.)
I came home and did some snooping and discovered that the owners are retiring, and, while it's for happy reasons, I know they will be sorely missed. While I'm happy to order batting and other notions online, I'd prefer to choose colours in person.
Talking about colours, I've had fun these past few months working on so-called scappy socks. I love scrappy quilts so it only stands to reason that I love scrappy socks too. I have really enjoyed making some of my favourite slip stitch patterns using scraps or two multi-coloured yarns.
I've made Sock Feat in the past with a solid colour and a multi but never with two multi-coloured yarns. I love the effect (and the inside of the sock is as pretty as the outside):
Prism is another pattern that I have knitted multiple times but always with a solid and a multi. Here it is with two multi-coloured yarns (the same as those used above). Knitting this sock has reminded me why I hate top-down socks. Even the pretty edging at the top is not worth it for the agony of knitting top down. If I ever finish this pair it will be my last pair of top-down.
This sock is loosely based on the Slippery Slope sock pattern that I purchased but when I came to adapt it for toe up I somehow messed up reading the charts - due, no doubt, to my impatience to start knitting. I used a solid and a multi but also incorporated a few scraps from other projects to extend the colour palette but it's easy to see how this pattern could work if you had a lot of solid scraps to use up.
I have a feeling - that just as with quilts - I'm going to be making more scrappy socks. Meanwhile, here's a preview of another pastime I hope to blog about soon:
A baby and an engagement in the family within weeks of each other were two good reasons to make quilts - I'm not disputing that - add to that the self-imposed desire to knit socks for every adult female in my family as well as my father this year - well, let's just say I sometimes let these plans get out of hand.
Sadly, I've had to put aside some other plans - although I haven't totally dismissed them - such as knitting socks for all of The Most Adorable Granddaughters and making Christmas stockings for colleagues (don't worry Son#3 and DIL#3, I am still planning to make one for The Most Charming Grandson) - but I have decided that there are some other things that need to take first priority.
Such as a wedding quilt.
But even here, I have had to give myself permission to take it easy and to enjoy the process rather than feel pressured to get it done NOW! I'm hoping that after Christmas, with summer holidays, that I'll be able to get stuck into the quilt and have it finished in time for the wedding but, if not … well, I haven't thought that far ahead or given myself permission not to get it done in time. Not yet, anyway.
All this talk about knitting and quilting has reminded me that a week or two ago I popped into my local quilting shop (the one and only shop truly dedicated to handicrafts in our town) only to find it appeared to be closing down. I wasn't even able to find the marking pen that I prefer but did find a suitable substitute - at least I hope it is. (It's always a bit scary trying out a new pen: what if the marks don't come out of the fabric or, worse still, eats away at the fabric? I've heard of it happening.)
I came home and did some snooping and discovered that the owners are retiring, and, while it's for happy reasons, I know they will be sorely missed. While I'm happy to order batting and other notions online, I'd prefer to choose colours in person.
Talking about colours, I've had fun these past few months working on so-called scappy socks. I love scrappy quilts so it only stands to reason that I love scrappy socks too. I have really enjoyed making some of my favourite slip stitch patterns using scraps or two multi-coloured yarns.
I've made Sock Feat in the past with a solid colour and a multi but never with two multi-coloured yarns. I love the effect (and the inside of the sock is as pretty as the outside):
Prism is another pattern that I have knitted multiple times but always with a solid and a multi. Here it is with two multi-coloured yarns (the same as those used above). Knitting this sock has reminded me why I hate top-down socks. Even the pretty edging at the top is not worth it for the agony of knitting top down. If I ever finish this pair it will be my last pair of top-down.
I have a feeling - that just as with quilts - I'm going to be making more scrappy socks. Meanwhile, here's a preview of another pastime I hope to blog about soon:
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