Fresh Snow!

We're just on the outer edge of the band of snow, but it's been so long since we've had any fresh snow.

Don't you love it when the snow sticks to the window?

January was NaKniMitMo (National Knit Mittens Month).  I finished two more pair, for a total of three pair of mittens in January.

Mittens for My Mom

Picea

And I'm starting a February KnitAlong for an Advent Calendar of Mittens.  I've got my yarn ready!

Facebook and Ravelry ate my blog

Has it eaten yours?  With the time I spend on Facebook and Ravelry, I just haven't had the ambition to update my blog.

Let's see if I can improve in 2015.

I've got one mitten project finished.  These are a gift for Paul's cousin.  She sits with our dogs when we can't take them on trips.  But her real loves are feline.

Pattern is Moggies by Barbara Gregory.  

Raveled here.

We had an amazing trip over the Christmas holiday.  For many years, we've been going to Grand Targhee with our children and this year we were joined by Paul's brother and wife.  It was our turn to have Ben and Bekky for the holiday, too.  We skied downhill and cross country.  We snowshoed.  We took an incredible flight over the Tetons, in a small plane.

Ben, Bekky and Claire

Our family

Don't look, Claire!

The views on this flight were unbelievable.  We flew over the Driggs valley, Jackson Hole, the Grand Teton, Teton National park and back over the Tetons to view Grand Targhee's ski area.  It was just us and the pilot, who gave a terrific informative tour.  I highly recommend Teton Aviation.

Oops

I'm knitting a second pair of mittens for NaKniMitMo.  I was so excited, all I needed was the thumb.

Then I noticed this:

Do you see it?  I entirely missed one of the chevrons on the bottom.

Rip, rip, rip.

Process, not product, right?

First mittens started in 2014

I don't want to shock anyone, but I've started another pair of mittens.

Torirot January Mystery mittens

It is NaKniMitMo, you know!

(National Knit Mittens Month)

Quaternity

Let's see, now what was I saying about startitis?

Mitten pair number thirteen for the year:  Quaternity.  They are the mystery mitten of the month for October by Rose Hiver.  Pattern will be released in sections, beginning October 1.   It's a free pattern, and I think it's promising to be quite lovely.

I couldn't help myself...

Can you see it?

Left mitten.  

Can you see it?  The star that's supposed to be there to match the left mitten?

Yeah, me neither.   

Time to frog.  Apparently I need to be more attentive.   It never works when I think I'll just quickly finish a long abandoned project.  

July Mittens

July Mystery Knitalong Mittens

New clues every five days.  

I'm lagging behind.

Mittens #11 in 2013

Soccer games that are an hour and a half from home offer plenty of simple knitting time in the car.  I actually got these finished.

Knitting these mittens reminded me that with my handspun, when I think I made a worsted weight, it's really a bulky yarn.   These are only 37 stitches around.

This is a great pattern for handspun, as you knit from the tip of the mitten and get a personalized fit.  Sizing on the fly, regardless of yarn weight.

Summer soccer?

55 degrees and a light mist. 

I'm wearing fingerless mitts and my down puffy. 

What perfect June weather for GotH's soccer game!???

Although the new mittens almost match my puffy!  

Mittens and shawls

Mittens and shawls

Mittens and shawls

I'm gonna get me some mittens and shawls.

Apparently I have no control.

Tip Down Mittens from my own yarn, spindlespun last summer and plied in January.

Squirrel!

Apparently I have the attention span of Doug the dog from the movie "Up".

I'm off on another mitten chase.  This pair will be a graduation gift for a girl that will be off to college in far northern Michigan.  Damn near to Canada.  

Seriously.  

She was there last weekend to register and it snowed.  

Sounds like mittens are definitely in order...

The robins have bodies

Finished! 

I didn’t care much for the large amount of duplicate stitch (I really stink at it). If I were to knit it from the complete pattern, I’d just knit it with the colors as they came up. I really LOVE the mittens, though, and am very happy with them. I didn’t reach the 11 stitches per inch gauge, I ended up at 8.5 per inch. My hands are bigger, and they’re just a tiny bit roomy. I will get a lot of use out of these, as I’m keeping them for ME!

I need a better daylight picture.  And, as luck has it, we may get snow in Minnesota tomorrow!

One mitten done

Embroidery and duplicate stitch is finished on one mitten and begun on the second.

I don't care for all the duplicate stitch.  Time consuming, putzy work.  If I were to knit these again, I'd knit all the colors as I went.  That wasn't an option with the mystery knit along, as only a few items were revealed with each clue.

I'll bite the bullet and finish that second mitten.

But I don't think I'll enjoy it any more than the first...

I'd get it myself if I only had thumbs...

All that's left of clue #3 is the thumbs.

I think there must be quite a bit of embroidery to come for this bird's back, don't you?

Mitten Clue #3

AHA!

I think it's a robin, don't you?

I know there is embroidery in the next clue.  

Oooh, interesting.

Clue #2

Clue #2 is complete!

Next clue on Tuesday.

Think that big red blob is going to be a bird?

That's my guess...

Inch by inch

Another big winter storm coming in tonight.

April in Minnesota.

Mitten knitting continues slowly.

A very little progress

I am reminded that exercising really cuts into knitting time.

This is all I knitted today.

A bit past the infernal cuff.

But I did spend time on the dreaded treadmill!

Hah!

Take that, dastardly mitten cuff!

You can't beat me!

I guess that'll do

The mitten cuff on the left fits better.  It's still only 9.5 stitches per inches. It takes longer to knit at this gauge too.  I could have done two more cuffs with the larger needles in the time it took me to knit one on these toothpicks.  I have no idea how someone would knit 11 stitches per inch.

Luckily, I have big hands, so I don't have to achieve the impossible.