Winding Down the Woolly Year

I'm about 80% done with Christmas knitting. The projects that have to be mailed are done, though not yet in the mail as they should be. The other projects are well underway and if not perfectly finished on 12/25, that's okay. The week after Christmas is an acceptable delivery time for those.  

As I sat here again today, trying to sort out my final Loopy Academy Sophomore 1st Semester project (cables), I found myself thinking that this year hasn't been the most satisfactory for me in terms of knitting. It's been fairly productive--16 projects done so far plus a big pile of grocery bags, and I'm on track to finish another 6 projects over the next couple of weeks (4 of those are >70% done). 

Yarn has been used up at Chez Hedgehog. I haven't been able to get ahead of myself--the overall stash is bigger than it was at the beginning of the year. A chunk of that has been Loopy Academy--6 projects that required non-stash yarn adds up. The cotton marathon of the summer took a dent out, certainly, but the Loopy Ewe orders and Stitches Midwest and such more than balances.  

I am surprised to find that while I always self-describe as a process knitter, this year I find that finishing projects without an immediate plan for who will receive said product seriously frustrates me. I have two large shawls and several smaller projects without a final destination. They sit in a box of finished objects and while I can see the work I put into them and recognize that they are well executed and interesting projects.... I'm annoyed that they haven't been wrapped up and given to someone.

That one is a Loopy Academy project may come as little surprise. The prompts, while certainly wide enough to not make me feel totally hampered, have also meant I've spent time on things I wasn't especially interested in (felting anyone? pillows?). I'm considering ripping out at least one of the Sophomore semester projects after we get through the end of the semester. I like the yarn too well to leave it in a project I'll never use. 

Behold the indignities of Gypsy's life. 

Anyway, tonight I finally did decide on my 3rd project: a pair of socks with two cables running down the leg. I'm modifying the pattern I almost always use, my 1x1 vanilla ribbed socks. I mocked up what I need in Excel so I know what stitch count I'm working with. And, as you can see in the first picture, I have started. 

These will be simple enough to be knit on the train this week and I'm hoping that this will mean that by the week's end I'll be the better part done with a sock. 

Next year, there are a couple of knit-for babies coming, so I hope to get to use up some yarn on them. Or maybe target my Loopy projects at them once I get the Sophomore 2nd semester prompts. And, maybe do everything for that out of sport weight or thicker yarn. This whole 11th hour, no really I'm knitting on size 0 (2.0 mm) needles and I'm going to knit a full pair of socks on these in 2 weeks plus several other projects is not my best move.  

If you're on holiday deadlines, may your needles be speedy, your remaining skein more than you need to finish, and your glass of wine never splash on white wool.