I’ll try to keep this short.

First up, my grandma got out of the hospital last week and she’s doing fine, still very tired and weak and she has some problems with her left arm and leg, from the stroke, but she’s better and glad to be home. 

I’m still furiously knitting on my KnitPicks project and nothing else, but it is just about finished so I’ll get back to regular posting soonish.

That said, here’s my 2009 in crafting.

1. Tank & Swatches, 2. Whisper Cardigan, 3. Wonder Cardigan, 4. Sweater In Progress, 5. Herringbone Sweater, 6. My Coat, 7. Blocking

Looking back at the year I honestly haven’t made as much as I thought.  Here are the sweaters I’ve made, the first was a KnitPicks project and there is another project for them that isn’t included (I can’t remember if it’s been in a catalog yet so I don’t want to post it).  I think my favorite thing I’ve made, as far as the process of making it was the Herringbone Sweater, the color work was  fun to do and I love the finished item.  My favorite to wear is the Wonder Cardigan, which surprises me since I’m not a huge fan of the yarn.  The cardigan is warm and soft comfortable, it was perfect this fall over jeans and a t shirt.  I still haven’t finished sewing the Alpaka Tunic but I’m counting it since I finished all the knitting this year.

1. My mom’s scarf, 2. Scarf from Victorian Lace Today, 3. Alpine Knit Scarf, 4. Vilai Socks, 5. Cold Mountain, 6. Beret, 7. Garter Stitch Blanket, 8. Mitten

I really thought I had made more scarves, shawls, and socks this year.  My list is feeling sparse.  I really love everything I’ve made here, all of it.  My favorite is probably my mom’s scarf since I put so much work into it, from spinning the three-ply yarn to the knitting and finishing, I’m very proud of how good it looks.  The scarves are great but I don’t use them much, I’m not really a lace person, I just like to make it.  I did wear the Alpine Knit Scarf to my aunt’s funeral last month and got a ton of compliments on it.  And my mittens are just adorable, love them.

1. Scarf, 2. Woven Bag, 3. Weaving, 4. Handwoven Bag, 5. Card Weaving, 6. Another bookmark, 7. Band, 8. Finished Scarf, 9. Sock Yarn Scarf, 10. Another Woven Scarf

I know I didn’t do as much weaving this year as I wanted, there just hasn’t been time, I’m pretty happy with what I did make, though.  I know I’ve left off a few little card woven bands, but I can’t find pictures of them and can’t find the bands themselves so they won’t count.  I have to say that my favorite, most used thing I’ve ever woven is my shibori scarf.  It was worth all the time and effort I spend making it.

1. Hand Spun Yarn, 2. Handspun Ingeo, 3. Today’s Yarn, 4. This weeks spinning, 5. This weeks spinning, 6. This weeks spinning, 7. Laceweight Yarn, 8. Handspun, 9. Tour de Fleece Day 4, 10. Weekend Spinning, 11. Handspun

I haven’t done any spinning since July or August and I miss it so much, there just hasn’t been time.  The yarn I’m happiest with is the very first I spun this year, in the top row.  This is the Rambouillet/Llama blend that I used to knit my mom’s scarf.  It is probably the most consistent yarn I’ve ever spun and it was my first real three-ply.  Looking at these pictures I realize that I’ve left a couple out, I probably didn’t get pictures of them when I did the spinning and I’m just not going to mess with it now.

So in 2010 I want to spin more, use up of my stash fiber, weave more, and finally knit that fair isle that I’ve been saying I’m going to make for about five years (I actually have the yarn for it!).  I have some money saved up for a loom and I know what I’m looking for (a 24-26 inch table loom with at least four harnesses) and I have my price range set (up to $300 but I’m willing to pay a little over that for shipping) and I know I want a used one and if it needs a little work, that’s okay.  I’ve been scouring Craislist and Ebay and I’ve missed out on a few but I figure I’ll know when I find the right one.

And that has been my year.  Here’s hoping that next year is even better!