A whole squadron of UFO’s
OK, ok I admit it - I am NOT a completer!
For some time now I have been thinking that I really need to sort through my stash of yarn and bags of UFO’s. There are loads. I know that. I am not a finisher. I love to start things - I love the idea of learning a new skill or technique, trying a new material or a new idea - but when I near the end of a project and all the new challenges have been met I lose interest and start looking for the next challenge.
Often this means the current project gets left in a bag as I move on to try the next new thing - I fully intend to complete the original project but I get sucked in and before I know it the new project is no longer new and…yes I look for something else.
These abandoned, unfinished projects sit in a bag in the lounge until I need to tidy up for visitors or something at which point they get cleared away into a cupboard “just for now” and then they really get forgotten.
When we moved into this house, 6 years ago, I had a couple of boxes of yarn and UFO’s and since then things have only got worse. So, SOMETHING had to be done.
As a sort of New Year Resolution I decided that THIS year I would finish these UFO’s…I thought that as a discipline I would make myself complete one UFO before I started each new project. I was pondering this when I became aware of the UFO Resurrection Challenge on Kat with a K’s blog. Perfect! So I signed up.
And today I dug out all the hidden bags and boxes and sorted through them (although I think there are probably one or two proving elusive and not wanting to be found so I’ll add them when they resurface) and made a list - very scary!
Some of these were started so long ago I had forgotten all about them, some I don’t know where the pattern or the yarn came from. You will notice that many are fully knitted and only need blocking and sewing. The problem here is that I love knitting but hate sewing up..
Those of a nervous disposition may not want to look but those who do I’ve added a UFO page
I will update this with my progress throughout the year but to start with here are two of the UFO’s I have made progress on this month -
Patons Symphony Sweater
A completed UFO already!!! This was unforgivable to be sitting in a bag as a UFO. It was knit, blocked and every seam sewn except one sleeve! So I sewed that seam this evening and - voila!
This is really soft yarn and a lovely comfy sweater. Just in time for the cold weather which is about to hit England!
I bought the yarn in Trago Mills in Cornwall years ago and knit most of it quite quickly.
Finished it about a year ago and sewed most of it up - don’t know why I didn’t sew all of it!
Someone once told me that when you write a to-do list you should always put at least one item on it which you have either already finished or are about to finish, that way you can cross it off and that motivates you more than having a long list of items with nothing crossed off! So now I have one UFO ticked off!
Binary Scarf
Not so much a UFO as a current project that gets picked up and put down a lot. Started before Christmas and intended as a present for J but other Christmas knitting got in the way….now hope to complete before winter is over.
Pattern: knitty.com - Binary
Yarn: Stylecraft DK
Needles: 5.5mm dpn’s
Started: late December 2006
Hot-Socks Sockret-Pal Monkey
Finally, an update on these socks. One sock completed and I’m really pleased with it:
January 21st, 2007 at 3:03 am
Your pullover is beautiful - looks so warm and comfy too! (It would have been perfect for Feb/March project spectrum being gray, white and blue)
Very cool sock!!
January 21st, 2007 at 1:05 pm
I can confirm to everybody that Wendy does indeed have about seventy thousand unfinished objects around the house. She doesn’t even know what patterns some of them were…
January 21st, 2007 at 3:49 pm
Lol.. I like the bit where you said about clearing away everything for visitors.. hehehehe.. I`m exactly the same! Although with me it`s not knitting projects it`s clothes and toys!
I saw the binary scarf pattern on the knitting website to sent to me, I thought it was great as well! I wish I was an accomplised knitter like yourself. I love to knit, as it`s theraputic, but I havn`t really tried any complicated patterns as yet.
Oh yes and Trago Mills is brilliant for wool (it`s about a 10 minute drive from here!) and they have quite a few patterns up there now as well. So next time you are down you must go and visit again.