Last week, I mentioned that it feels like my unfinished projects were weighty. The looming uncertainty holding back my creativity to start something new.

Since that post, I’ve finished piecing 2 former unfinished projects together, creating a FRANKENTOP! I need to weave in the ends, but for all intents and purposes, the project is complete. How I feel about the finished project is more complicated.

Besides clearing away the vestiges of creative endeavors, creating from my stash is another sell imposed challenge. Its not as if my stash is huge, not including partial balls, my guess is that I have less than 200 balls of yarn at my disposal. Regardless of actual stash size, it is at a tipping point to overwhelm the space I have allotted. Its easy to be inspired by new material; every skein in my stash once inspired me. The challenge lies in rediscovering the spark and creating something new and beautiful without spending additional money.

Back to my new project. When I design, I don’t usually have a complete idea of what I want my final project to look like. This project, started similarly. I love mitered squares. I love that they are semi-modular, that I can complete a section within a project and feel accomplished. In mid-2019 I taught a mitered square class. There wasn’t really a project to complete. I was thinking about modifying the current progress from my classes into something closely aligned to my vision. But that would require extensive ripping out of perfectly good work, and I will just make something different (likely a blanket). Fortunately, a quick peek into my sock weight bin was all I needed to be inspired!

While working this prototype, I’m not sure how much yarn I require. I chose only full balls, regardless of the amount of partial balls I have floating around in this weight. Once I know how much yarn is required, I may play around with new combinations.
I swatched a couple color combinations on different size needles. My first combination of yarn and needles was abysmal. The size 2s had little drape. And the yarn wasn’t right. I don’t know what it is about this yarn. It was so pretty on the hank! But the repeats are so short that everything just makes it look “busy”. My second combination on size 4s blends really great. The yarns are Rabbit Ridge Designs in Limited Edition for FNYC (Far North Yarn Company in Anchorage, AK) and Knit Picks Stroll Bare that I dyed myself 10 years ago (give or take). The working name for the project is the “Spring Sprang Sprung Cowl”.

I’ve been working on quite a few bulky weight projects (mainly teaching samples), so the size 4s feel slow and my hands aren’t really used to the smaller needle size. I usually stick to 6-10 for most personal projects; these seem to be most comfortable for me. I’m switching back and forth between english and continental style to see if speed or strain improves. So far, no. I am already feeling inspired to whip up a graphic edition of this design in a chunky weight.

Stay tuned for both projects!