Small pleasures

Having always been a sweater knitter, of necessity, I have lately been churning out smaller items – washcloths. Baby mittens. Headbands. (Well, one headband.) The necessity part comes from having so little knitting time, as well as having an actual need for these items. And you know? I’m finding it enormously satisfying. (I rather think I’d find finishing an actual me-sized layering-type garment even more satisfying, but eh. I’ll take what I can get.) There’s really something to be said for lining up a whole bunch of completed projects, even if they are only titchy, and even if they each seemed to take at least six times as long as one might consider reasonable.

Proudly arrayed on my Rav page – right after the four WIPs,* and we won’t talk about those hibernating or recently frogged – are six FOs that feel recent (completed since around November): the aforesaid headband (cute! functional!) and baby mittens (ditto!), plus a baby scarf (mostly ditto!), a baby vest (super colourful fun!), a cowl (great Christmas present!), and… a gi-huge, ridiculously misshapen babywearing poncho of which We Do Not Speak. Guess which took the most time (and was really bloody boring to make)? Guess which is offering me the least satisfaction? Right. So there’s clearly something to be said for small projects.

Interesting to note, though, that as documented by Ravelry, my own assessment of my productivity for the past couple of years is a bit off-kilter. In my head, apart from this recent flurry, I’ve done practically nothing since falling pregnant and collapsing under unexpected exhaustion. (Tired, okay, I knew that was coming, but too tired to knit?!) However. Completed in 2010, in chronological order: one scarf, one wrap, one self-designed tunic, one self-designed baby dress, one pair slippers, one washcloth, plus the aforementioned baby scarf, mittens, cowl and sack poncho. That’s not a lot, by any means, but it’s more than it felt like. And then consider 2009 – a year in which I felt like I did literally nothing but panic and flail: one self-designed shrug, two washcloths, two baby jackets, one lace shawl, one baby blanket, one pair socks and part of a self-designed baby hat and stockings set. (The hat/stockings set is completed, but my mother did most of the actual knitting and calculations.) Again, not a lot. But more than I thought.

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* One baby dress (almost done now), one pair of socks (barely even cast on, but at least I have something to take to playgroup), and, er, two blankets. Not so small, those. Well, I guess one has to stay ambitious.