2017 Knitting Goals

So this list of knitting goals is certain to change and I also hope that it will grow longer as I move through the year. I have a couple new designs I’ll be working on this year and I also have a list of some patterns that I’m so excited to try. The first is a sweater pattern that I still need to buy the yarn for, Rowe by Michele Wang. I’m hoping it will replace a sweater in my closet with a similar silhouette that’s made of acrylic yarn (ie. it’s not very warm!).

I also want to knit from my stash as much as possible, and two types of yarn I have a lot of are Wool and the Gang’s Jersey Be Good and Wool and the Gang’s Crazy Sexy Wool. With the Jersey Be Good I want to make a Mini Jackson Backpack, just as soon as they release it as a standalone pattern rather then a kit (my fingers are crossed that this happens soon!). And with the Crazy Sexy Wool I’m thinking of whipping up some sort of cabled throw pillow.

Another knit I’ve been wanting to try for some time is the Beach Tank by Jess Schreibstein. I got a sample of Billie Jean yarn which is made from recycled denim and I think it would work well for it, so I asked for a couple more balls of it for Christmas and I’m all ready to cast on now.

Along with these projects I’m still finishing up one from last year! I started an improvised top down sweater in August for the Fringe and Friends KAL put on by Karen Templer, and I have no idea how I still haven’t finished it. It just kept getting pushed to the side, so this year it is top priority.

And that’s it for now. I don’t like to have too long of a queue so I’m going to stop perusing Ravelry and get started on this list. What are some of the knits on your list this year?

Links:

Rowe: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/rowe

Jackson Mini: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/jackson-backpack-mini

Beach Tank: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/beach-tank

FO: Moonlight Garden Shawl

The name of this shawl alone is pretty magical. Pair that with the dreamy yarn I chose and the delicate lacework and border pattern and it wouldn’t be enough to say I’m happy with the first shawl I’ve ever knit.

It’s taken me too long to find a shawl pattern that I really wanted to knit. I knew I was looking for a shawl I could wear the way that I would wear a scarf, wrapped up tight around my neck with the option to wear spread out like a shawl. This worsted weight shawl is warm enough to wear in the winter like a scarf, but I also see myself on a cool summer night, wearing this shawl draped over my shoulders to hinder the breeze.

The yarn I chose was Maxima by Manos Del Uruguay, which is a single-ply worsted weight yarn made up of 100% Merino wool. I went with the colour Sand. It was wonderfully soft to work with and the pinkish beige colour complimented the pattern perfectly.

This pattern comes from Melody Hoffman of bmandarines. The pattern is beautifully formatted and I found it was pretty clear to knit from. It was my first lacework project so there were a couple of times that I had to look up stitches, but I took it slow and it all came together in the end. There wasn’t a huge amount of lacework either so I think it was the perfect first project to introduce me to this new skill.

Moonlight Garden Shawl Pattern: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/moonlight-garden

5 Shawls, 5 Days Experience

Francoise Denoy of Aroha Knits put on a challenge last week called 5 Shawls, 5 Days. I think this is her second time running the challenge, but it was the first time I’ve heard of it and I was so excited to participate. It taught me so much about shawl construction techniques, but these techniques help to build the general construction techniques that every designer needs. The more you practice with different types of stitches like yarn overs, k2tog, and variations of these the more you learn how to transform yarn as you knit.

Over the next couple months I’ll be starting, designing, and knitting a lace project, so this extra practice with yarn overs was definitely helpful. If you’re interested in the challenge, here is the link to the web page for it:

http://www.arohaknits.com/5-shawls-5-days/

Take Me to the Mountains

These small mountain-inspired ornaments can be used to make pins, brooches, and necklaces. The set includes instructions for a mountain, a pine tree, and a big horned sheep. My favourite way to use these is to attach a safety pin onto the back of each one and decorate my project bags with them.

You can find this pattern on Ravelry: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/take-me-to-the-mountains

Laiya Peak

I published my very first pattern in January 2014, named Chevron Cowl. I originally knit the cowl in bright colours and lately I find myself wearing neutrals and less saturated colours so I wanted to re-knit the cowl in yarn that I would wear more. 

I chose Knitpick’s Chroma worsted weight yarn in the colour Sandpiper for one of my chevron colours and then I went with white and black yarn for the other two colours to keep it neutral.

I’ve also decided to rename the pattern. After reading a very good article on the Love Knitting blog by Kate Atherly (linked below) about naming patterns I decided that I want to switch to more unique pattern names. Laila Peak is a beautiful mountain in Pakistan that the peaks of the chevron design remind me of.

Laila Peak on Ravelry: http://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/laila-peak

Choosing a name for your pattern by Kate Atherly: http://blog.loveknitting.com/choosing-a-name-for-your-pattern-by-kate-atherley/?blog_page=/