Creative Recap/ Annual Goal List 2018

Every year I've posted a creative recap separate from the the annual goal list. This year I'll be combining them.

This year I knitted a lot of socks. Up until December, it was only socks, but then I made a secret Christmas gift for Connor.

Connor and I visited Japan. It was amazing and exhausting.

Connor and I joined a comic drawing group and I drew a comic for their yearly anthology.

It was San Francisco themed. It can be found at potofsoup.storenvy.com

Goals for 2018:
1. Even though I'm making good progress, the United States quilt is a big job. I'd like to make a goal of having the embroidery in it finished this year. I'll consider it a bonus if I can get the patches on too.
Status: In progress. I did finish embroidering the lower 48 states and started embroidering the rest of the quilt. It's a big job. I'll get there, it just wasn't going to be this year.
2. Connor and I would like to buy a house this year. I'm not sure where that house will end up being, but hopefully the real estate classes I'm taking will help us in making that decision.
Status: In progress. We cannot afford a house where we live, but Connor's job is too good to leave. We are looking into buying rental property somewhere else instead.
3. I've realized that I find most of my validation in the praise I get for what I do. It's become clear how unhealthy that is for me. I'd like to be able to find healthier ways to feel validated that aren't so heavily based in comments and "likes." (I don't know what that will look like yet)
Status: In progress. While intellectually I've understood that real value comes from the relationships you have in your life, this is the first year I think I've really felt it. I still would like people to enjoy my work, but focusing on the relationships I have is also filling that need.
4. Visit a new-to-me state. There's a chance I might be seeing Louisiana, Virginia, and/or Texas this year. I hope at least one works out.
Status: Complete. Louisiana and Virginia didn't work out, but we saw Texas and Arkansas. I really liked Hot Springs Arkansas. I wouldn't mind visiting again one day.
5. Submit the Audry Without An E comic for an Ignatz award. I think it could be eligible for the Outstanding Online Comic Award. I don't think there is a chance I'd win, but it's hard to win at anything if you don't put yourself in the race.
Status: Complete. I did submit the comic. I didn't even make the nomination list. I'm proud I put my name in the hat anyways.

Goals for 2019:
I will always have goals, but they are less specific this year. Most of my goals have to do with different comics I would like to draw. I'm going to keep working away at them until they are done.

As the year has been coming to a close, I've been reflecting on what I want for the future. Some people choose to assign a word for the upcoming year and I've done that occasionally in the past. This year I've settled on the word "Joy." I want to do projects and see people that fill me with joy rather than with dread. That being said, I don't mean that I need to feel joy 24/7; there is sadness in life. But I also don't want to hang onto things that I really would be better off letting go. One of the things that I want to let go of is this blog. I've written it for nine years. It was a good nine years, but I no longer look forward to posting. It seems like this is a good time to end. However, I still will have a presence on the internet. I intend to continue posting on audrywithoutane.com. I still plan on posting the occasional thing on instagram on both @bear_ears (knitting content) and @audrynicklin (drawing content). I will also continue maintaining and providing pattern support for my knitting patterns.

In the coming year I plan to create a new website that connects all my different interests. When that happens, I'll leave a post here so you all can find me. In the least, I plan to leave the blog up for posterity. It was a good run. Thanks for joining me.

2017 Creative Recap

Welcome to this year's creative recap. This might be the most projects I've finished in a year. The totals came out to 12 pairs of socks, 10 woven scarves, 3 sweaters, 1 hat, and 1 cowl.

My project total was boosted because I took up weaving and decided to weave a bunch of gifts. I really enjoyed trying out all sorts of different color combinations and ideas in each scarf.

I also took a watercolor class this year and got to learn how to do all sorts of techniques. 

This was the final for the class. We had to do an animal with lots of colors. I did a manatee with a Florida theme.

Connor and I got the daily comic site up and running. It can be seen at audrywithoutane.com

I also took up embroidery. Most of what I embroidered was practice for the USA quilt, of which I have made fantastic progress. I just have part of the Southwest and the South left to go.

I think the theme of this creative year was diversity. I had my hand in a lot of different areas and at times I got overwhelmed and had difficulty deciding which project I should work on next. I'm hoping that with some of these projects wrapping up I'll feel less scattered when it comes to my creative output.

2016 Creative Recap

This year was surprising productive considering how unwell I was for most of it. I did notice that it took me far longer to finish a pair of socks than it has in the past, but I still got a few pairs knit up.

I knit 5 pairs of socks (one which was knee-high), 5 hats, 2 cowls, and 1 shawl. 5 of those knits were gifts, 2 were shop samples, 1 was a design sample, and all 5 pairs of socks were for meeeeeeee. Looking at all my new pairs of socks, it seems that my love for self-striping yarn isn't going to end any time soon. Also, it looks like I spread the love around: each self striped pair was from a different dyer.

I put out five designs this year: two pairs of socks: Whiskey and Rye and Prance Past The Poppies; a mini collection called A Midsummer's Night Knit that had the Oberon Mitts and Titania Cowl; a shawl called Kelp Forest, which had been in development for over two years before I called it perfect.

Whiskey And Rye

I also started to paint again. At the beginning of the year I was obsessed with gouache.

By the end of the year I much preferred to play with watercolors. 

I also drew my daily comic, well, daily.

This year has been a tough one, but I learned that just doing little bits of art each day, or even weekly, add up to a large body of work by the end. I might have felt like I wasn't doing anything artistic all year, but clearly that wasn't the case. I'm proud of what I was able to accomplish. I hope that I can remember that feeling as I move into the new year.

Annual Goal List 2015-2016 Edition

2015 was the year of becoming an adult. After marrying Connor, we worked to separate all our finances from our parents (or the financial umbilical cord as my Dad likes to call it). We even got our own Netflix account, the true mark of adulthood in our day and age. We did things like book our own vacations and cringe as we spent our own money. I also got to visit places I didn't ever expect to, including the San Juan Islands (thanks Cat and Jim!), the Florida Keys, Salvation Mountain, the Hoover Dam, and Valley of Fire.

Now to this year's highlights.

I got married! It's been great. Connor and I have faced some tough stuff this year, but I wouldn't rather face life with anyone else.

Thanks to Gabriel Harber for taking such grand photos

Learning to snorkel. I didn't ever expect to even try snorkeling, but it is definitely a new favorite thing. It was even more fun because Connor taught me at the Dry Tortugas, which we arrived at via float plane. We will have to go back.

Connor was copilot on the float plane on the way back. We have absolutely no images of us snorkeling because we were having such a good time.

I taught Connor how to knit. At first he told me he was just happy to be a knitting connoisseur. Eventually his curiosity got the better of him. He's already saying things like, "That's my yarn!" and "Maybe we can go to bed after this row." I'm proud of him.

Connor with his boyfriend, Scooter

And now for the assessment of last year's goals:

Goals for 2015:

1. Develop stronger cooking skills. Specifically, I'd like to develop a menu of different meals that spans at least a week. This year I had to go gluten free, which means I have to be much more mindful about food. All my guilty pleasures had gluten. It's been interesting discovering foods that feel like a treat and adhere to my new diet.
Status: Indirectly Achieved. I taught Connor to cook. This was smart because while I'll cook if I need to, it turns out he likes to cook. I don't cook much anymore.

2. Put together a wedding. This is a bit of a challenge because I didn't grow up designing a dream wedding in my head. Connor and I are now working on what we would like the day to look like. Connor is a champ and is supporting me while I'm busy discovering that I have more opinions than I thought I did.
Status: Complete! We are awesome, our families and friends are awesome, so our wedding was also awesome. We have made it 10 months. Go us.

3. Declutter my life. I have so many things! I don't need all those things. I can feel the weight of owning more than I truly need. I also have a large amount of paper records/things that need to be sorted. We all have that large box of paper that you ought to have organized years ago, but now it's sat in that container for a decade and you still aren't motivated to go through it. This is the year for that.
Status: Ongoing. When we moved, we got rid of things. But we moved to a bigger place and found we needed things like a rug to be more comfortable. Mostly we just traded things. Our place its pretty clutter-free, though.
4. Write a comic book. Over the years I'd often think about putting out a comic book. The topic has changed over time, but the desire to make one has remained. I'm not sure if I want to complete a project of this magnitude in just a year, but I think I'd like to just start working on it.
Status: Morphing. I started writing my daily comic again, and have been at it for over 5 months now. Connor and I were working on a website to put it up. I keep going back and forth on whether or not to put it online. I could happen.... maybe.

5. Knit Connor a sweater. I haven't started yet because I believe in the sweater curse. I'm not even swatching. But I have the yarn and a good idea of what I want to knit. Super bonus: we are such a similar size that I can make a sweater that we will both fit into. I'll just have to roll up the cuffs.
Status: Still a goal. I knit him a cowl this year. I have yarn and plans to knit him a sweater. I've settled on designing the sweater. It could be a while yet.

Things on the list got done in one way or another. I'm most pleased with learning that Connor likes to cook. Even he didn't know. We both get to benefit.

Goals for 2016:
1. Work on a menswear pattern collection. Ideally it will have two garments and three accessories. I've been interested in developing a menswear collection for awhile now, but before Connor entered into my life, it was hard to motivate myself to knit garments for someone who wasn't me.
2. Put up a daily comic site. This was a goal in 2011, which changed in 2012 because I stopped doing the comic. But I'm drawing the comic again... so it's a goal again.
3. Learn to weave. I've alternated between being really interested in trying out weaving and having no interest at all. At the moment, I know I have yarns that would look far better woven, so I'm interested again. And I have a buddy who is going to loan me a small loom so I can see if I like it.
4. Design a sweater with set in sleeves. I think doing the math for different set in sleeve sizes is rather intimidating, which is precisely why I must try.
5. Go somewhere I haven't been before. This year, our current vacation plans are to places I've been to, but want to share with Connor. I hope that we can throw in one that I haven't done yet.
6. I'm adding a bonus goal this year: Work on the Knitting Photography Series again. I worked on it in 2013, but stopped when I put my energies towards finishing writing Lit Knits instead. I've wanted to work on it, but just didn't put time aside. I think I'd like to give it a go again.

And so concludes the annual goal list.
When I was writing this year's list up, I looked at some past years for inspiration and realized that I've done a list for 7 years now! I know.... it surprised me too. Here's links to the past posts: 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015.

2015 Creative Recap

Welcome to the annual recap, where I learn that I was more productive than I thought I was.

According to ravelry, this year I knit 7 pairs of socks (3 of which had extensive stranded color work), 2 shawls, 2 cowls, 1 scarf, 1 pair of fingerless mitts, and at the very end of December, 1 hat. Not a bad showing. I feel like I knit more, but I think that is because I ripped many of my socks back multiple times.

This year I also got my blanket back from the weaver. I'm in love with it. It has become a kind of comfort blanket. Lucky for Connor, it is big enough to share with him.

The glorious blanket with me in Lassen Volcanic National Park

There were fewer pattern releases this year than previous years. I did manage to put out the Septet scarf and Fern Canyon socks. More were designed, but are still going through the process of being tested and photographed. I have high hopes for next year's output. I have 2 pairs of socks, 1 pair of fingerless mitts, and 1 cowl that will be released. And I have plans for sweaters. Lots of sketching has been taking place in the last two weeks.

The Fern Canyon socks taking a hike

This year I also had the opportunity to work with Carol Buchholz of Still Stranding. I've started with formatting her new patterns. We also spent a day together not too long ago doing a photo shoot for many of her upcoming patterns. You should check out her Hand Gussets and Offset Cubits Cowl in particular. We worked together to get both out. She's one to keep an eye on.

Offset Cubits Cowl

I'm hoping that this year I'll have continued opportunities to work with more designers to help them get their patterns out and businesses streamlined. It's a joy for me to see designers get their work out there.

Annual Goal List 2014-2015 Edition

2014 was the year of travel and plot twists. Every year I think to myself that I could never know how the next year will be. I had no idea at the beginning of 2014 that I would get to see Morro Bay, have an Epic Road Trip with my Mum, live in New Zealand for 2.5 months, visit Kentucky twice, set foot in a few other States in between, get engaged, work on horse farm as well as a vineyard, hike up/across many streams and fall into a few.

This year I chose to say yes to everything that terrified me and it has paid off. A year ago I don't know if I would have been willing to learn to drive a tractor or climb a rock wall. Actually, I know I wouldn't have. I was invited to go rock climbing in the past, but I couldn't get the nerve up to do it. This year I practiced saying to myself, "No fear!" before doing scary things. I proved to myself that I am as brave as I hoped I could be. What I learned is that everything is still as scary as it was before, but I'm just not going to let that stop me.

Onwards to this year's highlights:

Hiking Clouds Rest in Yosemite. I wanted to test my limits and see if I could hike 14 miles. Turns out I can. I felt really accomplished and more confident with my abilities. (This turned out to be well timed since I did so many crazy hikes in New Zealand later in the year.)

Clouds Rest in Yosemite, June 2014

Meeting Connor. He had just moved to California just as I had made plans to leave California. We ended up doing a bunch of things together because he wanted to see parts of California for the first time just as I was doing everything for the last time, or so I thought. I'm excited to see what the future will hold for us.

All the travel. I got to see and do so many things and meet and spend time with so many people. I'm glad I blog, because it would be so easy to forget how many opportunities I had been given this year. I hope to continue to keep my eyes open and my spirit willing in the upcoming year.

The Green Dragon is still my most favorite place on this Earth

Goals for 2014:
1. Knit up more of the yarn kiwipurler has gifted me.
Status: 1/3 done. I had hoped to knit up 300 grams. I only knitted 100g. I'll just continue plugging away. I do plan on knitting up a sweater with the Mythral she gifted me.
2. Borrowing from the 2011 goal list, I'm putting the spin for a large project back on the list.
Status: Complete. I did finish spinning the yarn and it is with the weaver. There isn't a timeline for when I'll get the blanket, but I've done as much as I can for now.
3. Knit Justin his socks that I promised him several years ago. It needs to happen.
Status: Complete. The socks haven't been displayed on the blog just yet because it is an unreleased pattern. I'll show them off at some point.
4. Find a community outside of knitting to spend time with.
Status: Ongoing. I've joined more communities, but it has become clear that as I grow and learn, so will the communities of people I spend time with. The knitting community seems to be a constant in my life though, which I am pleased about.
5. Choose a new job and do it.
Status: In flux. I had applied to jobs before deciding to move to New Zealand. I applied to jobs in New Zealand before being proposed to and coming back. So I'm looking for a job again. But I had an interview and remain with high hopes.
6. Sew myself a dress. Or in lieu of that, sew a project bag.
Status: Complete, but not by me. I cheated. I paid Maria of A Needle Runs Through It to sew up project bags for me. I suppose the goal really should have been, "Have project bags made out of that fabric I'd been hoarding." I'll still give myself points for taking a class on pattern drafting even if I didn't make a dress afterwards.

I think I did pretty well on my goal list this year. I feel like I achieved beyond this list. The amount of travel I got to do was significant and unexpected.

Goals for 2015:

1. Develop stronger cooking skills. Specifically, I'd like to develop a menu of different meals that spans at least a week. This year I had to go gluten free, which means I have to be much more mindful about food. All my guilty pleasures had gluten. It's been interesting discovering foods that feel like a treat and adhere to my new diet. 

2. Put together a wedding. This is a bit of a challenge because I didn't grow up designing a dream wedding in my head. Connor and I are now working on what we would like the day to look like. Connor is a champ and is supporting me while I'm busy discovering that I have more opinions than I thought I did. 

3. Declutter my life. I have so many things! I don't need all those things. I can feel the weight of owning more than I truly need. I also have a large amount of paper records/things that need to be sorted. We all have that large box of paper that you ought to have organized years ago, but now it's sat in that container for a decade and you still aren't motivated to go through it. This is the year for that.
4. Write a comic book. Over the years I'd often think about putting out a comic book. The topic has changed over time, but the desire to make one has remained. I'm not sure if I want to complete a project of this magnitude in just a year, but I think I'd like to just start working on it.

5. Knit Connor a sweater. I haven't started yet because I believe in the sweater curse. I'm not even swatching. But I have the yarn and a good idea of what I want to knit. Super bonus: we are such a similar size that I can make a sweater that we will both fit into. I'll just have to roll up the cuffs.

2014 Creative Recap

It's time for the annual creative recap. I don't know why, but this year I was convinced I hadn't knit or designed all that much. I was wrong. When I looked at my ravelry projects from 2014, I was impressed to see that I had knit up 7 samples for designs, two of which are not yet released. Overall, I'd knit up 11 pairs of socks, 4 hats, 2 sweaters (one sport weight and one fingering), 2 pairs of fingerless mitts, 1 shawl, and 1 infinity scarf. I'm most impressed with the number of socks that were knit. I know many people like to challenge themselves to knit 12 pairs of socks in 12 months. I almost did it on accident. 

I also finally finished spinning the yarn for my blanket project. For the last 4 years, I've been working on spinning all the brown colored mill scraps I had collected while working at the Yolo Wool Mill into yarn. Before I left for New Zealand, I mailed all of the yarn off to a weaver. I'm not sure how the blanket will turn out or what size it will finally end up being. But there is enough yarn for about a Queen sized blanket. I'm looking forward to snuggling under it at some point.

This year proved to me that I have no idea what the future will hold, creatively or otherwise. What I do know is that I will continue to learn as much as I can about fiber and yarn. It still is a passion. But what form that will continually evolve.

Annual Goal List: 2013-2014 Edition

2013 was a year of completing big goals and getting well. I had pushed myself so long and hard that I was chronically exhausted. The second half of the year was dedicated to treating myself well, eating better, and addressing issues that had been pushed to the wayside. Apparently cookies are not the way to improve energy levels. Green drinks are.

Moving on.... here are a few of this year's highlights. (Finishing Lit Knits is a given and won't be on the list.)

Actually, this might be a life highlight: I got to have a pint at the Green Dragon in Hobbiton. It is as cool as you think it is.

Me and Miss Pickles at the Green Dragon

I met Rachael, who is my new adventure buddy. We have gone hiking and biking to all sorts of places that I've wanted to go but wouldn't have without someone. Such trips include biking over the Golden Gate to Sausalito and taking the ferry back, seeing the Monterey Bay Aquarium, hiking to the top of Angel Island, hiking the Pinnacles, biking from Fort Ord to Monterey and back.

Biking by Fort Ord

I got to visit my brother in LA. The whole family went to the La Brea Tar Pits. My brother and I went to Disneyland the next day. He lost his sunglasses on the Matterhorn and my jeans got soaking wet in Splash Mountain and stayed wet for hours. It was awesome.

At the tar pits

Here's a recap of last years goals.

Goals for 2013:
1. Finish knitting the last knit.
Status: Complete. All the knitting got done in time to do the remaining photo shoots.
2. Finish the last 5 photo shoots.
Status: Complete. The last pictures to be taken were Down The Rabbit Hole. I was concerned that I wouldn't be able to get flowers in the background. I was wrong. Thank goodness!
3. Hire a tech editor. Edit The Book.
Status: Complete. I ended up hiring a tech editor and copy editor. The Book was better for it.
4. Layout The Book.
Status: Complete. I thought I would have a couple months to work on the layout. I ended up having closer to a week. Nothing like a deadline to get things moving.
5. Get test knitters lined up. Test the knits.
Status: Complete. Most of my Friday night knit group tested out the book. There were others like kiwipurler who were kind enough to test as well. You guys made the instructions so much more clear. I'm grateful to all of you.
6. Knit a sister shawl to Celestarium. This one will have the constellations of the southern hemisphere.
Status: Complete. Not only did I finish the shawl, I was able to photograph it in the southern hemisphere. And the ever lovely kiwipurler modeled for me. (We visited yarn shops afterwards, which was tons of fun.)
I had also mentioned that I wanted The Book in my hand by August if possible. I did reach that goal in a way. I did complete the book by August. But then I decided to do a print run instead of print on demand. So I got the books in my hand by November. The digital copy of the book was available in August.

To sum it up, even though I completed everything, I feel like I cheated with this goal list. They were all things that had to get done and although they were difficult, I don't feel like it was a diverse enough list. Mind you, I didn't have time to do anything else. Anyways, I've been thinking about this year's goal list all week. (I know... usually I post a little closer to the New Year. My official excuse is computer trouble. The unofficial excuse is that I was also having fun doing other things.)

Goals for 2014:
1. Knit up more of the yarn kiwipurler has gifted me. I love the yarn. But every time I get close to knitting some of it, some other deadline gets in the way. Not this year. I will knit up at least 300 grams of the fingering weight.
2. Borrowing from the 2011 goal list, I'm putting the spin for a large project back on the list. Specifically, I've been spinning for a blanket since 2011. I have about a pound of wool left before I meet the 7 pounds of yarn required for the blanket size I'm hoping for. Then I plan to take the yarn to a weaver and have the blanket woven.
3. Knit Justin his socks that I promised him several years ago. It needs to happen.
4. Find a community outside of knitting to spend time with. Don't get me wrong, I love knit nights and yarn. But I think my life would be more balanced if it included non-knitters in it at times.
5. Choose a new job and do it. This is the first year in quite some time where I don't have a big goal to keep me occupied. It's a bit frightening. I just need to choose a new thing and go for it. This is much more difficult than it seems like it should be.
6. Sew myself a dress. Or in lieu of that, sew a project bag. I want to make a little something this year.

I'm horribly behind on blog reading at the moment. I was bereft of computer for the beginning of this year and it looks like I won't have a good solid time to catch up for another week. But I'm looking forward to reading everyone's goals for the year. Feel free to link up a blog post in the comments. I'd love to see it.

2013 Creative Recap

And now it's time for the annual creative recap. This year I knit a lot. I didn't realize how much until I took this screencap of my ravelry project page. I posted up 20 projects. And as with every year, not every project made it up. This year I made 9 pairs of socks, 4 sweaters (which included a Dad sized sweater and a fingering weight sweater), 2 shawls, 2 infinity scarves, 1 regular scarf, 1 hat, and 1 ornament. There is a pretty good chance that I knit a half million stitches this year. (Actually, I know that I did. Most of what I knit gets partially ripped multiple times before it is completed.)

As for design work, I put out the companion shawl to Celestarium, the Southern Skies. And then I released Lit Knits. I still can't believe that the book is finished.

So what will this next year hold? Well, I had a look at my stash today, and it looks like I need to knit up a lot more socks. I'm definitely not keeping up with my sock yarn acquisitions. I also have a few designs in the works. But after finishing the book, I think this year will be more about selfish knitting.

What are your guys' knitting plans for the upcoming year? And do you have a particular weight of yarn that you can't keep up with?

New Zealand Recap

Those of you who have followed the blog for the last two weeks don't need to be told this: I had a great time in New Zealand. I got to hike all over the place.

 

Taranaki Falls

I saw some interesting sights. This wasn't the only car I saw with gumboots on the back bumper.

Somewhere not far from Upper Hutt

I even fit in a jumping photo. (Here you go Wei Siew. This one was for you.)

Makara Beach Walkway near the wind farm. Photo credit to Dad.

And I came away with some neat finds. The yarn was covered on the Yarn Day post. But most of these books were found while I was near Auckland. The books, left to right, are as follows: Tribulations of a Chinaman, King Lear, Chronicles of Avonlea, King Solomon's Mines, Further Chronicles of Avonlea, Pilgrim's Progress, Wuthering Heights, Myths and Legends of the Australian Aboriginals, Romance & Legend of Chivalry, Ancient Legends of Ireland, Gulliver's Travels (with Rackham illustrations!), and Picture of Dorian Gray.

All in all it was a great, albeit not restful, trip. I hope I can go back soon. But until then, I'll be pressing my nose upon the grindstone to get The Book finished. 

2012 Creative Recap

It's that time of year again. Time for the annual creative recap. I knit quite a bit again this year. My design list isn't as impressive in quantity, but I certainly knit more stitches this year. Not all my projects made it onto my ravelry page, but here are the ones that did.

I knit 5 shawls, 9 pairs of socks, 2 pairs of mitts/mittens, 5 hats, 2 sweaters (one human, one dog), 1 vest, 1 cowl, and 1 brain slug. There were more scarves and hats than that, but not everything got photographed before it was gifted.

I also knit 5 more designs for The Book. Pictured here is the entire collection that has been knit so far.

And here is the last design for The Book. I've got quite a bit of knitting to go, but it is a good start.

I'd say that the biggest accomplishment this year was finishing Celestarium. Having it included in the 2012 Winter issue of Twist Collective is a huge honor. And it seems to have taken off on ravelry. There are several knit alongs scheduled for 2013. I'm looking forward to seeing everyone's project.

Well, that was my year in knits. I'm quite pleased with what got accomplished. And I'm looking forward to seeing what next year holds. 

And thanks to everyone who reads this blog. It wouldn't be the same without you guys!

2011 Creative Recap

I'd been wondering if it was in good taste to have a recap, but then I decided that this is for me. I have a hard time remembering what I've been up to, so seeing it all in one place makes me feel like I was productive. This year I've decided to separate the knitting into two categories: my designs and other people's designs. I've knit more than what will be shown, but I didn't take pictures of everything and I'm certain I've accidentally left some knits out.

First off are all my designs. The bottom left corner has four designs that are going into the book.
Row 1: Bear hat, Sheep hat, Fox hat,
Row 2: Giraffe hat, Bear hat, Bear hat
Row 3: Giraffe hat, Fox hat, Lion hat
Row 4: Lion hat, Appalachia, Blue footed boobie hat,
Row 5: Blue footed boobie hat, Sprig, Bear hat (with panda colors)
Row 6: Sprig hat, Free bees, Elven hero
Row 7: Silent snow, Scooter's blanket, The Book designs x4

This year I finished knitting my first ever sweater. I didn't stop there, though. I ended up knitting three adult sweaters and one child's sweater.
Row 1: Fireside sweater, Leyburns, Koolhaas
Row 2: Moose, Emilien sweater, Mitered mittens
Row 3: Mini socks, Gnarled oak cardigan

I also started to read more regularly in July. I finally finished the rest of the Anne of Green Gables series (#4-8), the Bible from cover to cover, Treasure Island, Tom Sawyer, Hans Brinker, Secret Garden, and Black Beauty.

I do have a few things in progress. My Rocky Coast Cardigan, a pair of Boromir socks, another secret design for The Book, and I'm reading 20,000 Leagues Under The Sea.

Whew! 

Appalachia KAL Recap

The May KAL for Appalachia is finished. I am so happy and proud to have so many people knit one of my designs. And I was impressed to see that every color combination that was chosen looked amazing. The overall feedback the pattern was that Appalachia was fun to knit. It is a fairly easy introduction to stranded color work. Here are a few hats in no particular order that came out of the KAL (used with permission of course)

Amy Herner did this with Crystal Palace's Mini Mochi and Plymouth Yarn's Happy Feet. I am impressed with how bright the black is with the pastel colors. It is a really snazzy hat.

ememknits did this version with Mini Mochi and Patons Kroy Socks 4ply. I love the subtle purple and green that shows up in the sea of blue.

Hooknneedler did her hat with Bernat Softee Baby Solids & Marls. Although I didn't mention it anywhere, I was secretly hoping someone would choose a yarn with short color repeats. I'm so happy Hookneedler did. I think it looks wonderful!

Jessica Myers did this version with knit Picks Wool of The Andes and Noro Silk Garden. I can honestly say that I would have never thought of pairing the warm orange with the cool grey. But both colors really play off of each other well. (Jessica also said, "It was a really fun knit and the decreases on the crown are really cleverly done." on her blog, which really made my day. I spent a lot of time making sure the decreases were well incorporated into the pattern)

Lily Giddings did her version in Mini Mochi and Malabrigo Sock, which were the recommended yarns in the pattern. Although I love that she chose completely different colors than I chose.

LizzieHelen did this version with hand dyed Red Heart Ltd. Heart & Sole. I wouldn't have thought about hand dying the yarn for this hat. I'm so impressed with the colors that LizzieHelen was able to get!

Donna Kinkead did this version with Knit Picks Chroma and Knit Picks Bare. Even though I recommended that the variegated yarn be the counter color, I think I might like it as the main color even better! (Donna was the first to finish the KAL. I was so stoked to see this hat pop up in the KAL thread)

Sandyham did this version with Lana Gatto Wool Gatto and Noro Silk Garden Sock. She ended up using three different noro balls in the hat to get the colors she was looking for. I think that was a clever idea.

This version of Appalachia was also done with Online Supersocke 100 and Zitron Trekking (XXL). I liked seeing another hat with a short color repeat variegated yarn. And that color combination is stunning.

Some hats did turn out a little small, which probably happened because some people do their stranding a bit tighter than I do. But the pattern is flexible enough to allow for extra repeats of the triangle to be put in the hat without affecting the shaping at the crown of the hat.