By the time the calendar blows over to January, I’ll have completed 19 knitting projects, which is a lot for me, but almost half of them were Log Cabin Mitts! When I came up with this pattern back in January — my contribution to last winter’s Fringe and Friends Logalong — it was one of those magical manifestations where you wonder where on earth it came from. I said at the time that they felt like the only truly creative thing I’d ever done, and I’m still so amazed at how beautifully the pattern worked out — and how fun it is to play with — that I have no intention of ceasing to knit them, even having finished 7 pairs this year: the originals (free pattern here), grey, black-and-white, toffee, black-and-blue, verb kit and indigo. (Grey and black-and-blue have been given to friends but will likely be replicated for the collection, which still feels like an art project in process.) The toffee pair live in my jacket pocket and are worn on the regular, but the black-and-white ones are my favorite rendition so far.
Overall, it was a year of accessories knitting for me. In addition to the mitts, I made four hats for my sister’s family, for their spring break ski trip: grey Lancet, blue 1898 Hat, ivory Første, yellow ScandinAndean Earflap.
Then there’s another hat that’s never been blogged because it’s a pattern I’m supposed to be writing, plus my Hozkwoz hat from the Fringe Marlisle Knitalong. So a total of 6 hats. And of course the cable dickey I haven’t been able to shut up about either before or since knitting it.
And then there are the sweaters. Four ostensibly for me: the Sweatshirt vest, ivory aran-gansey, plum Anna Vest and blue Bellows Cardigan, which I don’t think I’m keeping. And the fifth, the final BO of the year, will be Bob’s vest. I’m just finishing up the bands and will write it up as soon as I’m done!
The dickey and matching toffee mitts are easily my most-worn, best-loved wardrobe additions this year, and the ivory Første hat is one of the most stunning things I’ve ever knitted. And in addition to the Log Cabin Mitts, I also designed a second mitts pattern this year: Cascara Mitts for Tolt’s anniversary collection. I can’t add them to my tally because I have only knitted 1 mitt for the sake of writing the pattern (plus two more partials for teaching purposes), but I love those mitts and will be making myself a completed pair in the future.
Log cabin and marlisle were both new techniques for me this year, as were the clever construction on the 1898 Hat and mosaic knitting, which was used for the unseen pattern-to-come hat. (Oh wait, there’s one more secret hat — a sample for someone else’s pattern that also involved a way-new technique!! Tell you more about that when I can. So that’s 7 hats, and 20 finished projects in total.) I also got to knit quite a few cables and did some experimenting with the earflap hat and the sweatshirt vest. And published two patterns I’m proud of. Not to mention finally getting the Anna Vest published as an individual download. Phew!
All in all, a pretty good knitting year!
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PREVIOUSLY: 2017 Knitting year in review
A productive year! Everything looks so pretty and cozy.
Thanks — I love seeing the mitts all together like this!
You’re making me take a second look at the sweatshirt vest … I can see how useful that might be.
So far, I’ve worn it a lot less than I expected, but I’m sure its time will come!
Also looking again at the vest which I have always loved. Would you share how much yarn you used…and the bust measurement? Many thanks!
It’s 39″ (about 4.5″ of ease on me) and 21.5″ long, but remember I have a long torso, so that’s more cropped than it would be on someone else.
I don’t know about the yardage, since it’s two yarns held together. Had I weighed the stash ahead of time and then weighed the leftovers, I’d be able to pinpoint it, but alas I did not. The finished sweater weighs 280g, and that weight is probably 95% Balance, since the Pebble is as close to weightless as a thing can be. So maybe about 5.5 skeins of Balance and 3 of Pebble? Something like that.
Thanks—that helps!
The first thing that went through my mind? You are such a gorgeous knitter! What an amazing knitting year with projects and creations and blog posts! I’m getting those Cascara mitts. I’m realized this season that the reason I’m not knitting mitts (as much as I love them), is that I’m avoiding little tube knitting at the moment (including socks.) But knitting mitts flat and seaming at the end. Just the thing.
Yeah, same here! You know, they used to be my favorite thing to make, but I’ve just lost my taste for small-circumference in the round apparently (probably not forever) and especially for something like a mixed stitch pattern. So I was working on both of these at the same time, initially, and was really into how quick and simple it is to make a mitt if you’re really just making a big swatch and then seaming it up. But then they’re so different from each other, in looks and method, and they take two completely different approaches to how the thumb is created. The Cascara is a pretty typical peasant thumb, whereas the Log Cabin thumb is unlike anything I’ve ever encountered, and figuring it out felt like an act of pure magic.
I was considering knitting Bellows, so I’m curious why you think you won’t keep it. Making me hesitant now.
When I went to the link detailing the completion I found a reminder that in person the yarn is hard to match, maybe that’s got something to do with it?
Oh, I LOVE Bellows — this is my second one. If you click through the post about it, you’ll see it’s just a yarn choice & climate thing. It’ll be a fantastic sweater for one of my nieces or something, and I’ll very likely knit myself a third one!
Pretty awesome knitting year with nearly two projects per month! And cabled hats are such a treat, all the satisfaction of a complex project without being too long. I still have to finish my Log Cabin (by finish, I mean sew the twelve finished squares, not mentioning the ends to weave in). And to order my yarn for the Steekealong….
Do you know what colors you’re using? I’m still undecided!
Yours is the blog I read consistently and I’m still so in awe of the logcabinmitts pattern (trying to finish up pair 7). Thank you for the gift of yourself!
I can’t do a year wrap up yet, I’m still knitting. LOL I’m hoping to finish a vest for my husband while he’s been home with me this week.
I have two more things on the needles, in addition to Bob’s vest, but it’s the only one that has a chance of being done in 2018.
I am looking forward to that vest PDF. Loved it since you first blogged about it. I’d say with all those sweaters you have had a very productive year. Looking forward to 2019
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