Staying focused and getting the gift knitting done

The holiday season is upon us. Well if you pay any attention to the store displays, ads, and TV commercials, the holiday season was upon us over a month ago in early October. It amazed me that stores were setting up for the holiday before we even made it to Halloween. But I digress, this post isn't about how the holidays creep up faster and faster every year, its about, how do you stop yourself from getting knitting sidetracked during this time of year.

For me, I find myself surfing Ravelry and AllFreeKnitting.com for patterns to knit for gifts or for myself. I get so excited about all the patterns that I want to try that I can't stay focused on knitting the actual gifts. Every year I struggle with this dilemma. This year I took time off from product knitting because I got really burned out trying to keep up with shows, farmer's markets, and trying to figure out what will sell and what people will buy (this is an on-going process, I still haven't figured out). It was also to give me time to get back to making gifts for my family and friends, which I've neglected over the past few years because I have been focused on product/custom knitting.

How do you keep your knitting on track? What tips and tricks can you share that help you to stay focused and get the gift knitting done and not end up sending Christmas gifts after the new year (which has been my trend for the last few years, which usually are not handmade - which is frustrating and disappointing).

Some ideas I've been using this year to keep me on track are:

1. Once I'm home for the night, fed and taken out the dog, and I've had my dinner, I turn on my DVR'd shows and watch them back to back, which for me could be anywhere from 3 to 6 hours of shows, depending on when I decide to watch them. I totally unplug, I stay away from my phone which is a total distraction with apps like Pinterest, Facebook, email, etc. I totally engross myself in the shows that I'm watching and the needles just fly and before I know it I have a fingerless mitt done, or I'm able to get quite a few rows done of a cowl. I find this to be very rewarding and it keeps me motivated to go to the next project and get it done.
2. At work when I'm on my lunch break, instead of browsing Ravelry like I normally do, I plug in some ear buds and listen to some music while I knit away, tuning out all that is going on in the office around me.
3. I made a list of the items I want to give as gifts this year, I prioritized the list by difficulty and time it will take to complete. Once I've completed the item on the list I cross it off, this gives me a sense of accomplishment.
4. And of course I reward myself when I complete an item on my list, by giving myself permission to browse patterns, check my Facebook or Pinterest page, or just giving myself my favorite piece of chocolate.

I'm finding that sticking to these simple little tricks have made it possible for me to get more done this year than I have in previous years. I'm also not feeling so overwhelmed with how much I have to get done.

For me one of the hardest parts of staying focused  and completing the tasks I set out to do, whether it's knitting, work, studying, etc. is keeping myself motivated. But I found that if I remind myself why its important to complete the task it helps me to stay motivated and focused on getting the task done, which for me the importance of completing my gift knitting is to give handmade gifts to my friends and family as well as get my Christmas gifts out on time this year.

While I was thinking about what I do to stay focused and motivated I did a search on the web to find some others tips and tricks to help stay focused and motivated and this what I found:

From How to Stay Focused at WikiHow.com:  

Make a to-do list. Making a to-do list at the beginning of every day or week can make you feel more focused and motivated to continue your work. If you make a list of all the things you have to do, no matter how small, you will feel more accomplished when you check those items off your list and move on to the next task. This will also keep you focused on one task at a time.   

Find your purpose. Having a purpose to finish your work will keep you motivated and will therefore keep you focused.Part of the reason we lose focus is because we can't see the point of whatever task we have to get done and would rather be doing something else. Once you find your purpose, write it down, or repeat it to yourself to keep your energies in the right place. Your purpose can be the key that unlocks the door to your focus. 

Pinpoint your goal. What is your goal for completing your task? The goal can be the carrot at the end of the stick that makes the task worth doing. 

Repeat your "focus mantra." When you know exactly what your purpose and goal are, you can create a focus mantra that you repeat to yourself whenever you get distracted. It can be just a simple phrase that you repeat when you're getting sidetracked that helps get you back in order.

Don't procrastinate. Procrastination is the thief of time. Avoid delaying any of your activities by leaving things to be done for tomorrow, next week, or next month. Rather have them done now and move on to the next project. 

From How to Stay Motivated at WikiHow.com

Remind yourself of your goals. Usually before devoting time to any specific endeavor, we tend to make short and long term goals. If you start to lose sight of your goals, then you may be less motivated than if you were always checking to see how much closer you are getting throughout the whole process. Keeping track of your goals and checking your progress can help keep you motivated day in and day out. 

Make weekly checkpoints to track your progress. Everyone needs to see how they are keeping up with their goals if they want to stay motivated. If you see that you are on track or even excelling every time you check your progress, you will be motivated and happy that you are getting there. If you see that you are lagging on your goals, it may be the kick start you need to help get you back on track.  

Make sure to reward yourself every time you achieve your weekly goals. This could be as simple as a bowl of ice cream after a long, hard week of working out. Or as rewarding as a trip to the spa for all your hard work. Whatever rewards will keep you going are the ones you should be giving yourself.

Give yourself breaks. Sometimes even the most determined people get overwhelmed. You may be burning yourself out, and a much needed break might be just what you need.

Don't be too hard on yourself. Everyone falls short sometimes. If you fail to meet your goals for the week, don't get too emotional. Let yourself take it as a lesson. It's not always how hard you hit, but how hard you can get hit and keep moving. Don't dwell on failure, just accept it as a human occurrence, and continue working towards your goals. 


I hope some of these tips and tricks are helpful to you as well and they can be used for any task you set out to do. But if you have tips and tricks that help motivate you and keep you focused that weren't mentioned here, I'd like to hear from you. Tell me what keeps you focused and how you stay motivated when you have 10 more pairs of fingerless mitts to finish before Christmas!!!


Happy Knitting!

It's that time again...back to school!!!

Summer is coming to a close and school will be back in session in just a few days!  I'm so glad school is starting back up - I won't have to hear about how bored my son is anymore.  He'll have plenty to keep him busy once those assignments start coming due. I can't believe my son is already a junior in high school - one more year and then its college time.  There is so much for him to do before then, PSAT's, SAT's, college applications, Senior project, and the list goes on and on. I think I need to make him some fun back-to-school items, maybe a hat in his school colors.  I need some ideas so I'm hitting the web to see what I can find.

Have you noticed probably about a month ago, that the summer supplies were being replaced with school supplies? Where did summer go? It seems that summer was here for only a couple of days, here in the Puget Sound - we barely had any real summer days to speak of and we are already getting ready for school. I am a little behind on my back-to-school shopping this year, but luckily Aiden can wear quite a bit of his clothes from last year and we will go shopping in a couple of weeks. What I've found over the last few years is that when I shop for school supplies before school, I always have to do it again after school starts, because of course, the teachers want their students to have very specific items and what I already bought won't do. 

The other thing I've noticed in my LYS are the lovely fall colors that are gracing the shelves. Yep, back to school also means fall knitting and after hitting the web, I found some cool ideas for some back-to-school projects, like from this article on Knitting Daily by Kathleen Cubley on Back-to-School Knitting where she talks about a couple of great patterns for the kids going back to school and I really liked the Isobel Skirt (Rav link) by Cia Abbott Bullemer (Rav link).


Photo courtesy of Knitting Daily - Back-to-School Knitting

Wouldn't your daugher look fabulous in this adorable skirt?  Its such a great looking pattern, I might just give it a try for one of my nieces.

Some more back-to-school ideas I found are from Sarah E. White at About.com Guide. Her Knit Pencil Bag is easy to knit accessory for kids of all ages, and on Lion Brand's website there are some cute ideas for your favorite teacher at 4 Back to School Teacher Gifts to Craft, Knit, and Crochet. These four gifts are a great way to say thank you to your favorite teacher or a nice welcome back to your new teacher in the coming year. Or how about the giant pencil pencil-case shown here, which the pattern can be bought on Ravelry or as part of an e-book purchase with 13 other great knitting projects at Duo Fiberworks:

Photo courtesy of Ravelry
Pencil case (Rav link) by Katie Startzman

Or how about a new machine washable Yummy Lunch (Rav link) bag, designed by Nora J. Bellows (Rav link) ...designed with the environment in mind and are the perfect solution to unworkable lunch bags that are hard to clean and way too small for a complete lunch with a full-sized drink.

Its still a little warm for sweaters, but its not too warm for a nice short-sleeved sweater for him and her in their school colors. Maybe a v-neck vest for him and a pull-over for her.  There are plenty of patterns out there to choose from, so go out there and get knitting.

Here are some links to some more Back-to-School knitting project ideas:
The Schoolkid Jacket by Amy Polcyn
Robot Backpacks by Brenda Anderson
Adjustable Strap Backpack by Yvonne Boucher
Crochet Laptop Cover by Sarah Blalock
Back-to-School Pouch by Barbara Venishnick
School Colors Hat from Lion Brand
School Colors Felted Laptop Sleeve from Lion Brand
Back to School Pullover by Melissa Leapman

All of the above are really great back-to-school knitting projects, so why not make a run to your favorite LYS and check out all the wonderful fall colors that have come in already and get started on those fall projects you've been thinking about or maybe a back-to-school project for your returning to school student.

P.S. Some projects I finished this weekend:

Knitted Baby Onesie (Rav link) with lion applique along with Stay-on booties (Rav link)
Made with Frog Tree Pima Cotton/Silk

Little Sister's Dress with red apple buttons
Made with Cascade Pima Cotton

Close-up of apple buttons

Close-up of Stay-on Booties

Only 157 more days until Christmas!

Are you counting down the days?  I don't like to but as a knitter who likes to give handmade items to family and friends during the holidays, I have to, I gotta set deadlines so I get all my handmade gifts done! Because, of course I'm thinking in my head I have plenty of time to get all done, but when October starts creeping closer, I realize I haven't started any of my holiday knitting and I'm in a state of panic, thinking "oh no, I'm so behind!"

So this year, like Santa, I'm making my list, checking it twice, trying to figure out which projects to start and which to put off til later! My goal this year is to try to finish at least one gift item between after every summer item I complete.  And this goal actually kills two birds with one stone, because I can dig into my WIP bag and finish gift items I didn't get done last year and give them as gifts this year.

This year's list includes: 

For my brother, I'd like to make him this really cool hat that I found on Debbie Stoller's Stitch Nation website of free patterns called New York State of Mind, its so appropriate for him, since he lives in upstate New York.  He is one of the only members of my family who has not been a recipient of my handmade items and I think I need to remedy that this year.  

Photo courtesy of Debbie Stoller's
Stitch Nation Free Patterns

For my nieces, the slouchy hats seem to be very popular. So I've chosen two different patterns and they include, another free pattern from Debbie Stoller's Stitch Nation website, the All-Day Beret and from the Knitty, Spring 2009 edition, the Reverie beret by Amy Swenson. For which I have already completed two, see my previous post Thinking about my holiday knitting already or my hats page for pictures of my finished objects.

For my five nephews I'm leaning toward hat and scarf sets, but haven't found any that have caught my eye yet.  I really should finish the Basketcase Jacket by Tara Jon Manning I started last November for the NaKniSweMo [National Knit a Sweater in a Month]  that was supposed to go to one of them last year for Christmas. But it is still in WIP bag. I think it may be time to pull it back out and finally finish it.



Photo courtesy of my November 2010 post:
NaKniSweMo - Knit a Sweater in a Month! 

Or I could finish the crew neck pullover that I also started last November for my littlest nephew who was turning four at that time. I am already at the separation for the sleeves and working the back of the sweater back and forth and then do the same for the front. But I'm thinking this might be too small for my almost five year old nephew. I had already modified the design to make it smaller for a child size but now I'm not sure. And I would really hate to frog this and have to start all over.

Men's Crew Kneck Pullover (Rav Link) by Kris Percival
published in Speed Knitting: 24 Quick and Easy Projects (Rav link)

In my queue, on Ravelry, I have Buddy Bear by Lion Brand a softie toy that I want to make for my grandniece. It is a crochet pattern, sometimes its nice to change up in my fiber crafting, just so I don't get too bored.  And this guy looks like he will be fun to make.

Photo courtesy of Lion Brand
Buddy Bear crochet pattern

Isn't he just adorable? I think he will be cherished and loved for a very long time and hopefully saved to pass on to her little one some day.

For my four sisters, I think I may make them one of my market bags. I know they really liked them when I posted them on Facebook. Or I could make them spa sets, I know two of my sisters really enjoyed receiving these as birthday gifts last year.

Whew, so many projects and so little time to do them all! When do you start making your list for your handmade gift items?  Love to hear from all you fiber artists out there, come on over and leave me a comment.

A Story About a Shawl continued...

As you know from my post in April - A Story About a Shawl, and more recently in June, I was working on a shawl for my sister and an afghan for my newphew.  Well I'm happy to report that I finished them both and sent them off right before I left on vacation with blessings of healing from my girlfriend's prayer circle.

While on vacation, I called to verify that my sister received the package and I was given wonderful news, my nephew completed his treatment and is cancer free!  He will have to be monitored and go in for testing every month for the next year, but the doctors are optimistic. Children are a blessing and so resilient, I'm happy he's made it through this obstacle and pray that he never has to go through it again.  And my sister loved her shawl and the afghan and thanked me for sending them to her. I was just happy I was able to do something, even this small thing to bring a little hope and healing to my sister and her family.

Finished Sidewalk Shawl by Kimberly K. McAlindin

Finished Popcorn Granny Squares Afghan

After the success of my first shawl, I decided I wanted to try my hand at a knitted shawl and reading charts.  So I searched and searched, hoping to find a shawl that had a simple chart to follow.  Well, I can tell you, there really aren't any, at least none that I found.  The charts all looked so intimidating, but I wasn't giving up.

After much searching, I finally found one on Ravelry, that I thought would be easy to manage, called the Calais Shawl by Judy Marples.  Well here is the results:

Beginning stages of shawl

Close-up of beginning of shawl

Here it is after blocking. I used Cascade Ultra Pima Cotton
in a beautiful deep wine color

Looks slightly pinkish against my blue couch, but it is the same shawl!

A closer look!

Once I read completely through Judy's instructions and started, I completely immersed myself into the rhythm of the pattern and before long I had myself a stunning shawl!  It was much easier than I thought and I am excited about trying my hand at another shawl, now that I understand the charts better.

Hope everyone had a safe and wonderful 4th of July.  I also hope everyone is enjoying their summer so far! I know I am!

Let the Holiday Knitting Begin - Have you started yours yet?

Now that Thanksgiving is over, time to get in gear for all those holiday handmade gifts you committed yourself to make for your Uncle who lives on the Eastcoast, all your nephew and nieces scattered across the country, your best friend who you know will look good in one of those many great hat and scarf patterns you've been hoarding for just this time of year.

You only have 25 days before Christmas, how far have you gotten in your holiday gift making?  Me, I've been knitting non-stop for about 4 weeks and still going.  I'm one of those people who just can't say "no".  I volunteered myself to make socks for our office annual adopt-a-family, fortunately there is only three children - two girls and a boy.  The two little girls (2 and 6 years old) are getting a matching - what I call my Pippi Longstocking socks! I found this really great sock yarn that reminded me so much of the character and when I was a kid I really loved reading the stories of her many adventures - I really loved the movie version The New Adventures of Pippi Longstocking. I may be dating myself here, but it's a classic that just doesn't go out of style. Huh, I think I found another gift for my younger nieces - I bet they would get a kick out the of the movie - I hope I can find a copy of it somewhere!

Here are my version of a pair of socks I could see Pippi wearing in one of her adventures... I certainly hope the little girl that I made them for have just as many adventures while wearing them.

My Pippi Longstocking socks! Made for our office
adopt-a-family 6 year old - her 2 year old sister
will get a matching pair

I've committed myself to making socks for the kids this year (3 nieces, 4 nephews) and my one adult nephew will be getting a hat and scarf. Since learning the two-at-a-time toe up socks, I found that I enjoy making socks now. I'm even passing along my knowledge by teaching a couple of friends the method too.  I've already started a new pair for one of my nieces - I picked up this pretty sock yarn about a year ago with the idea of making socks with it of course and now that I've started them using the two-at-a-time toe-up method the kooky pattern on the yarn doesn't seem to allow me to make matching socks!  So, the pair actually will look completely different from each other - how funny is that?  Well my niece Joi, will definitely have a pair of socks that Pippi would adore - she never seemed to wear matching socks!

So how far have you gotten with your holiday gift-making?  I read this really great article on Fiber Arts - Let the sleep deprivation begin - about scouring thrift stores for knitted items to give as gifts - not a bad idea if you find yourself not able to finish your long list. Is this cheating?  Not at all, at least I don't think so, if you're lucky you can find some really unique items, including some vintage handmade knits!

This time of year is great for all those cowl, hat, scarf, mitten, glove, and sweater patterns you've been collecting to try out and give as gifts.  Some really beautiful patterns can be found on Ravelry or check out Knitting Pattern Central for those sought after cowls you've always wanted to make - not a knitter, there are patterns for the crocheter in you too at Crochet Pattern Central.  You can always visit your Local Yarn Store, they will have plenty of designs by local designers and yarn in all the wonderful colors of the season for you to choose from. 

One of the LYS - Renaissance Yarns holds classes for those new to knitting or advanced knitters who are looking to learn something new - and on their website they have some free patterns for the season like:

The Green Gable scarf by Michelle Maurer:

The Evergreen Mitts by Nancy Skorupa:

The Easy Neck Warmer by Jessica Richey:

Can also double as a headband!

Or the Cozy Slipper Socks also by Nancy, just to name a few.

So, if you haven't already started you better get going...there isn't much time left!  Well get knitting or crocheting!!!

On a side note: I finally got my new knitting motto t-shirt that a friend's boyfriend designed for me and I absolutely love it!  I think it came out really great. I wore it at work yesterday...my co-workers seemed to get a kick out of it!

So you CAN teach an old knitter new tricks!

So I was on Ravelry yesterday trying to scope out a new knitting circle to join.  Because I live in between Seattle and Tacoma a lot of the groups are located either in the South end or the North end and poor me is stuck in between with no place to go.  So I happened across a forum that has a knitting group "The Renton Knitters" that meets locally (well Renton local) once a week and I figured that was going to be as close as I was gonna get.  So I joined the forum and asked if I could join their knitting circle. 

I'm happy to report that they were very welcoming and it just so happened that they were meeting tonight (last night) in Kent!  Well I was exstatic to be joining a new knitting group - they were even showing a few new techniques that I just so happened to want to learn - knitting two socks at the same time, toe-up socks (two at a time no less), and the magic cast-on - being a self-taught knitter some techniques are not so easy to learn by reading instructions and looking at pictures. 

I prepared my knitting bag with what I thought I would need and made my way to the designated location.  It was a small group - a few people had already left by the time I made it there at 8:40 p.m.  But those that were still there welcomed me and I'm sorry to say that I never did get to learn everyone's name - but hopefully next Wednesday I will get introduced to everyone and will be happy to remember their names.

So the lesson was quick and seemed to be easy, well anything is easy when you have someone standing right there instructing you on what to do.  But I've been wanting to learn how to knit two socks for a while and I was eager to learn this technique, I only hoped that I would remember what I learned when I got home.  I so didn't want to go back to knitting one sock at a time on double pointed needles (dpns) or even circular if I could help it, because everyone knows that knitting one sock at a time (even on circular needles) is very time consuming and from my own experience they take so long that I end up not even doing the second sock - I have at least two different socks still on dpns that have not seen the light of day for a very long time and forget about starting a second one!

So I listened diligently and followed the magic cast-on instructions from Knitty and with guidance from the instructor, I had two toe-up socks started on my needles - how cool is that?  I couldn't wait to try this new technique out on this really cool yarn [Rowan - Calmer 75% cotton, 25% acrylic/microfibre 50g/175yds] I bought about a year ago intending to make a pair of socks for my nephew - at that time was two years old - but never got around to it, well now he's three and I still intend to make him his socks and now I can make them both at the same time.

I went home excited to put my new knowledge to work and after much trial and error, because of course I couldn't remember all the instruction and I kept having to pull my work apart I finally got the toes started and at 12:59 a.m. I finally put my work down and called it a night. Here is what I've got so far:
 


Yep those two triangular shapes are the beginning of
a pair of toe-up socks!

 

NaKniSweMo - Knit a Sweater in a Month!

Have you heard of NaNoWriMo [National Novel Writing Month] where you write a 50,000 word novel in the month of November? Well Ravelry is hosting a NaKniSweMo [Knit a Sweater in a Month] where you knit a 50,000 stitch sweater in the month of November.


Basketcase Jacket - Men in
Knits by Tara Jon Manning

Well I've signed on to particpate and I just started last night.  Only one day late, but hopefully that won't deter me from getting it done by the end of the month.  I've chosen a men's sweater Basketcase Jacket for my project from Men in Knits by Tara Jon Manning.  Here is a picture from the book and below is how far I've gotten. I'm using Lion Brand Wool Ease Chunky in Walnut and sizes 13 & 15-29" circular needles.

Of course the basketweave pattern has to be in a chart.  Charts and me just don't mix.  I'm still learning how to read charts, and even though this one is pretty simple, I've found that it's easy for me to make mistakes, which of course I've already done.  Hopefully it's not too noticeable.  I'm such a perfectionist though so I'm debating on whether I want to pull it apart to where I made the mistake and restart from there.

 

How far I've gotten last night (November 2, 2010)

I just picked up my yarn last night at JoAnn Fabric and Craft Store.  I love going to the craft/yarn stores.  I'm a tactile person so I like to feel the yarn before I buy and even though as a child I hated the feel of wool, now there are so many wool blends that takes the itchiness out of the traditional wool I remember as a child and I enjoy feeling the fibers and making my decision based on how it feels against my skin. Because let's face it, you can spend a lot of energy creating a really wonderful piece and find that the person you made it for doesn't like wearing it because they don't like the way it feels.  I know I'm always looking for comfort and why wear something that makes you feel uncomfortable? 

And on that note, to all the knitters out there participating in the NaKniSweMo good luck and happy knitting!