New Year, New Knitting

I have noted that my knitting has really slowed down the last several months. I notice this because I also notice that I miss it. Quiet evenings with my records or a podcast, knitting away, used to be common. Those solitary peaceful evenings are much more seldom these days for several reasons. I work mostly evening shifts at my current job and when I am home, it's rarely quiet. Not to be complainey (well a little complainey), the fact is I share a teeny living space with a person who likes to watch a lot of loud TV. He finds it relaxing. I find it jangly. In warm weather I sit on the balcony and pretend I am not dangling in the sky by keeping my eyes locked on my project. In winter, it's more difficult.

There is a solution. We have a few common spaces in our condo that people rarely use. I have sometimes packed up my tea, mp3 player and knitting and taken myself off to one of them for an hour or so.  It's a bit of trouble but I think I need to do it more often in the new year to preserve my sanity.

I finally started the sleeves on my Bombus!

Knitting can always be a learning experience. That's one of the best things about it. Notice the awesome tidy edge on the ribbing? It's because I learned a new cast-off. It's not a fancy or difficult technique. You just do a yarn over before the purl stitch, then pass over both that yarn over and the previous knit stitch. It creates more stretch and that beautiful straight edge. Even as I was doing it, I was excited about the result. It's so great when it all feels fresh again, isn't it?

Laundered my socks yesterday. See?
Continuous knitting results in warm knitwear.