WIP Week | Shallows.

...I finally counted my WIPs. There are eight.

I guess that explains why I keep forgetting how many there are (I'm not a monogamous knitter by any stretch, but eight!!??)

And why I haven't finished a project since July 25th (remember Katie did the bind-off on the lap robe I posted about last week!). My Ravelry pages are dreadfully out of date - I hadn't even shared photos of that last July project. It's Carthamus, that I knit for the Summer Shawl KAL in Kirsten's group using yarn I bought in Madison (that cute little yarn shop across the street from Sara's apartment). Here's a peek (there are more photos and notes on Ravelry).

And now I'm tackling the rest. I figure I can update one project a day with photos, notes, etc. I want to have time to knit, too, so I'm going to spread all these updates into a whole week of blog posts. Wish me luck on that - I don't think I've posted eight days in a row...ever!

First up is Shallows. This is the shop's summer knit-along. The pattern calls for about 340 yards of fingering weight on a size 4 needle to make a finished piece 7" wide and 52" long.

I wanted something a little heavier and bigger, so I treated myself to a Shibui Mix - Cima (laceweight alpaca/merino blend) and Silk Cloud (laceweight silk/mohair blend - similar to Rowan's Kidsilk Haze, but IMHO, much nicer). Holding them together makes a sport or light DK weight...that is a dream to knit.

I went up to a size 6 needle and cast on 14 extra stitches to make the garter stitch edges one stitch wider and the lace panels one repeat wider. I've just started the 4th (of four...so the last one!) vertical repeats and think my finished piece is going to be about 10" wide and 60" long. Hopefully it works!

I've just joined the second skein of Cima. So I'm going to have a good bit of yarn leftover. My plan is to add a skein of Pebble (in the same color way) to get a light worsted fabric and knit mittens to match. The lace pattern seems like it would be perfect for a pretty little cuff and the Pebble would add silk, cashmere and a little more merino...nice for warm hands, no?

Have you ever gotten so far behind on something it seems daunting to catch up? Do you have any tricks for staying on track?