WIPing Time of Year

The annual finish your WIPs KAL started on 23 September and, as usual, I have a number of projects to finish. I have ten projects in progress (plus mitred squares) which is too many but the funny thing is that that is the number I had this time last year. So maybe ten is my lucky number? Three of my current projects were on the needles this time last year, although one is very close to being finished. One is the crochet project which was intended as a long term project, the third one is my Palm Springs project which should have been finished by now, except our trip earlier this year was cancelled. We do have a trip to Palm Springs coming up and the project will be worked on then.

This leaves seven projects that have been around for less than a year. Although the oldest one of those was started at the end of November. It is a complicated lace shawl designed for Advent last year. I really would like to get it finished by the end of the year which is just possible if I can knit 1 or 2 rows each day. I started a cardigan in March and that has been set to one side. It is not a well written pattern and I will pick it up again when I have finished this batch of WIPs. This leaves eight projects to finish in just over three months. The good news is that I have already finished two of them and, as mentioned, one is nearly finished. And another is a hat which is at the decreases, so another project not far from being finished. Four projects remaining. Two of these are the aforementioned Palm Springs shawl and complicated lace. The other two are a simple shawl which has become my go to project when supervising children and the squares I knit when the virus first really hit. I just need to make a decision as to what to do with them. I know I want them to become a blanket and that I want it to be bigger than just the squares so do I sew the squares together and then add borders or do I border each square and then sew them together. I had thought about a hybrid – sewing the squares together in rows  and then adding borders between each row and a final border around the whole thing. Actually writing it out clarifies my thoughts because what I think the problem is is that I do not have yarn in stash in a colour I want to use. Hmm, looks like I might have to buy yarn.

Of course, finishing any WIP depends on me not starting any new projects and I have already started a pair of socks on 1 October and there is a Christmas gift I want to make and a small advent project. But I have decided not to cast on any new projects with sale yarn until the new year.

In summary: - 10 projects. 2 are longer term; 2 already finished; 2 close to being finished; 3 likely to finish by the end of year; 1 that could be finished if I make a decision. Can I finish 8 projects in just under 14 weeks?