Check-In Post - February 4th 2025

[badly_knitted]

Hello to all members, passers-by, curious onlookers, and shy lurkers, and welcome to our regular daily check-in post. Just leave a comment below to let us know how your current projects are progressing, or even if they're not.

Checking in is NOT compulsory, check in as often or as seldom as you want, this community isn't about pressure it's about encouragement, motivation, and support. Crafting is meant to be fun, and what's more fun than sharing achievements and seeing the wonderful things everyone else is creating?

There may also occasionally be questions, but again you don't have to answer them, they're just a way of getting to know each other a bit better.


This Week's Question: Have you ever made a Valentine gift or card?


If anyone has any questions of their own about the community, or suggestions for tags, questions to be asked on the check-in posts, or if anyone is interested in playing check-in host for a week here on the community, which would entail putting up the daily check-in posts and responding to comments, go to the Questions & Suggestions post and leave a comment.

I now declare this Check-In OPEN!

Comments

[badly_knitted]

I have knitted the first two pattern rows on the back of my Aran jacket! It's not much, but the pattern is now set and once I knit a few more rows it should be a lot easier because I'll be able to see what I'm doing =)

[wiseheart]

That is great! Good luck!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! I'm already enjoying this pattern much more than the other.

[yarnofariadne]

Hooray! Wonderful news :D

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! Now if I can just find the time to do a bit each day...

[althea_valara]

Yay! love when the pattern gets set, have fun with it!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! I really think I will with this one, the cables are much more to my liking that the one I was going to do originally.

[nagi_schwarz]

An Aran jacket sounds lovely. Happy knitting!

[badly_knitted]

Thank you! I started this one months ago, but hated the pattern I was using, the cables were maddeningly fiddly, so I had to search for a pattern I liked better, found one, ordered it, and it never arrived. Got a refund, found another copy, ordered that... Finally I can make my jacket!

[yarnandglue]

Hurray! I hope you enjoy the pattern!

[badly_knitted]

I am, it's a good one =)

My growing herd

[wiseheart]

Behold the handsome elephant ladies!

Here is Fanny:



Following her Fleur:



And last but not least Ellie:



The funny thing is, I made all three using the same pattern, and they've still turned out slightly different. I'll definitely return to the first version of the ears; they hold their shape better that way.

Re: My growing herd

[yarnofariadne]

Oh I adore them!

Re: My growing herd

[wiseheart]

Thank you so much! :)

Re: My growing herd

[badly_knitted]

They're all so adorable! Different fabrics do change the look of things though.

Re: My growing herd

[wiseheart]

Yeah. And the fact that I'm simple incapable of making identical things. *g*

Re: My growing herd

[badly_knitted]

Who would want them to be identical anyway? They have their own personalities.

Re: My growing herd

[nagi_schwarz]

They’re all so adorable! Thank you for sharing photos!

Re: My growing herd

[wiseheart]

You are welcome. I love showing my stuff to people who can appreciate it.

Re: My growing herd

[yarnandglue]

How cute!! I love them!

Re: My growing herd

[wiseheart]

Mum has already claimed the grey one as her 93rd birthday gift. So that one will stay with us. The rest is going to friends and family with small children.

Re: My growing herd

[spiralicious]

Such a cute little herd

[yarnofariadne]

Finished row 112 on the blanket!

[badly_knitted]

Wow! You're really motoring!

[nagi_schwarz]

Wow! Way to go!

[althea_valara]

December: ONE HUNDRED! HOURS! OF! CRAFTING!

January: lol crafting what's that?

Today, Feb 2nd: 2.5 hours on 4 different projects, one of which is an Emotional Support Chicken.

...am I back? I think I might be back!

— Althea Valara (posting on Bluesky)(altheavalara) February 2, 2025 at 9:04 PM

I've been alternating projects since I posted that. Status:

* Mosaic Cardi: lower back done, about to chain for sleeves
* ES Chicken: on last point of first half of tail
* Sweetheart Soiree doily: on round 9
* Legwarmers: nope, were coming out too big; cast on a smaller amount of stitches but haven't knit the round yet

My goals for this month are ambitious. I don't expect to finish the cardi, it's too big of a project. But I'd like to finish the chicken and doily, and get one legwarmer done. That feels like a lot given that work started up again plus it's a shorter month, but I'll do my best!

The legwarmers are a direct result of going to a Final Fantasy concert; I wore a skirt and took public transportation on a colder day, and my legs got cold. I'm getting more partial to long skirts as I get older, but they do leave me with cold legs! And of course, why buy tights when I can KNIT SOMETHING instead?!?!

[badly_knitted]

That's great progress, even if the leg warmers are giving you some trouble. I'm sure you'll figure it out.

Having a variety of projects to work on is always a good idea.

[nagi_schwarz]

Welcome back to crafting!

Also I totally feel that on your leg warmers. Every time my arms get cold I think to myself that I should finish my sweater scarf…

[wiseheart]

Goodness me, you don't do things by halves, do you?

[nagi_schwarz]

Started work on a new tatted bookmark, and also measured out a template for a puzzle purse made out of letter-sized paper. I’ll try and make a fancy one later this week!

[badly_knitted]

Yay for bookmarks! (I have a tatted one on my collection somewhere). I'll be curious to see how the puzzle purse goes. I don't think I've ever seen one.

[wiseheart]

Errr... sorry to be so ignorant but what is a tatted bookmark?
That puzzle purse sounds interesting, will there be a photo when you're done?

[nagi_schwarz]

Tatting is a type of lace-making technique using either a shuttle (or multiple shuttles) and a needle (I can do both but these days prefer shuttles).

Here’s the bookmark in question: https://www.instagram.com/p/DFtI4YVSic1/?igsh=Njl2ZjAwejlpcWtv

I will definitely share photos of the puzzle purse when it’s done!

[badly_knitted]

It's really pretty!

[nagi_schwarz]

Thank you!

[wiseheart]

Oh, I see! Thanks for enlightening me. That bookmark is really beautiful.

[nagi_schwarz]

Thank you! I am always glad to share about tatting.