A Mini WIP Along

 

Mini because it is just me and just for one month.

At the beginning of the year I said that I wanted to minimize the number of projects I have in progress at any one time. I have kept to this, except I conveniently ignored the two projects that were already on the needles at the the start of the year,  I created four year-long projects and along the way I had a couple of cheeky cast ons.

At the end of this month we will be half-way through the year, and it will be nice to have a few of these projects completed or well on their way to completion.

As I like to do, I lined up all the project bags in order of start date and took a photo. I will photograph each project as I start to work on it.

There are nine containers, although one has more than one project in it, so it is a little bit scary that despite my best intentions I have 12 projects. Although to be fair, I have included all my projects including the long term ones which I do not usually include in the annual WIP finishes. It could have been worse but I did finish a pair of socks this week.

 

From left to right:

1.      Mitred Square Blanket: - I wanted to get all the squares knit by the end of June so I could spend the rest of the year putting them together. I am not going to achieve that as I still have 1½ squares to knit. (OK, I could finish all the squares but I wouldn’t get anything else finished.)

2.      Scrappy Crochet Blanket – this is an on-going project as I add fingering weight yarn to it when I have finished a project. I have colours to add, so I will work on this throughout the month,

3.      Advent Shawl – I started this in January 2023 with the aim of working two clues each month to have it finished. Except, getting close to the end of the first ball of yarn, I realized I wouldn’t have enough to finish the shawl. I could not find more yarn. So the project was left. I just need to frog the thing to get it off my mind.

4.      Dress – I started this just before last year’s WIP along as I needed an easy project; I wasn’t concerned about finishing it before the end of the year. I should have just finished it so I could wear it. Although it is thick yarn, I am going to finish it so it is off the needles.

5.      Car Project – this is a simple crochet hat that stays in the car. I expected to finish it on a recent trip but that didn’t work out. I don’t have to finish this but it would be nice to complete all my 2023 projects.

6.      Year-Long Socks – with the minis set I get last December I decided to use a colour a month to create a year-long project. (Due to unknown forces, my yarn did not arrive until January so I was not able to use it every day in December.) I am behind on this as I have not started the fifth color. Although this was started before the hat I am working the hat before the socks.

7.      Year-Long Cable Blanket – a new pattern is released each month, so, obviously, this will not be a finished project but I should finish June’s square.

8.      Year-Long Hat – as for the socks but I have started the fifth colour.. As this was a mini Advent set I thought it would be fun to work a colour a month and have finished item(s) for Christmas. When I started the year-long projects I did not realize how much I would hate the stopping and starting. I plan to just work through all the colours as I feel like it and not wait a month to start the next colour.

9.      Year-Long Lace Blanket – I am behind on this as I have not finished May’s square. I will try to catch up.

10.   Crochet Toy – a pattern I started because I had finished my other crochet projects. I am about 1/3 of the way through but it is slow going because it is tight gauge with cotton yarn. I was working a little each day and I will go back to that when older projects are finished.

11.   Socks – another cheeky cast on. I ought to finish these by the end of the month as part of Sock Knitters Anonymous challenge. I doubt that will happen as I have not completed one sock and I want to work on the older projects.

12.   Cardigan – another extra but necessary cast on. I needed an easy project for vacation knitting. I could have taken the dress but didn’t because, it is heavy so not good for by the pool knitting and would take up a lot of luggage space plus I did not want to finish it and have nothing easy to work on, so this project was born. I will work on this after I finish the dress and need easy knitting but it will not be a priority. (Apart from one row out of 12, the hat is also easy knitting.)

So there you have it all my WIPs. If you exclude the two year-long blankets whose patterns are released on a monthly basis, the two scrappy projects and the car project, I still have seven projects in progress.

At the start of the year I said my projects had to fit five categories, so where am I doubling up? Actually, it is not that bad. There are two year-long projects (which I allowed myself) and two easy projects, one of which I will finish this month.