Manic Monday: Or Why I Haven’t Done Any Macramé In a Week

If you’ve read this blog for any length of time, you know that I like to get ambitious from time to time—you may remember 2015 and “All my friends are having babies so clearly they all need baby blankets” plan (yeah, I’m still working on that). And let’s not forget the Loki Scarf (and the subsequent, no, I will not knit you a Loki Scarf). Or that time way back when that I knit a shawl for a friend having never a) knit a shawl, b) knit with mohair, or c) knit with beads.

Depending on how you look at it, this entire blog is neatly packaged evidence for why I am either AWESOME or need to be under constant supervision.

Or both. It can totally be both.

SO. ANYWAY. I’ve been babbling off and on about this plan that I have leading up to the Iceland trip, where I was going to finish knitting one Lopi sweater and then knit another one. I’ve been knitting like the wind to make this plan happen and it’s paying off so far.

Here’s the first one, knit in Álafosslopi (so, bulky weight Icelandic yarn). Yesterday I did the tubular neck bind off and gave it a bath, after wrestling it away from the cat—I still need to seam the underarms but I wanted to try to stretch out the body just a bit in the bath before I did that. This pattern is almost as bananas as I am, so stay tuned for that blog post.

And here’s the first sleeve of the second sweater. Since snapping this photo, I’ve finished the second sleeve and knit about 5″ of the body. This one will also have a fun story—I’m using the Riddari numbers, except my gauge is a smidgen tight for the Léttlopi (I knowingly went down a needle size and I like the fabric that I’m getting, so I had to up the numbers for the body significantly), with the Birki chart, and it will be my Mardi Gras sweater (main body is purple heather, contrast colors are green, gold, and off-white). This sweater is entirely Kiyomi Burgin’s fault, because I saw her lovely Birki and had to have one.

And while we’re blaming Kiyomi for things, let’s add the extra level of insanity, which is that I am WELL AND TRULY CONVINCED that I can finish my Birki by the end of this upcoming weekend (to be fair to myself, it’s a three-day weekend for me) and then KNIT ONE MORE SWEATER before September 1. And that one other sweater I want to knit? Kiyomi’s Little Norway.

I am fully cognizant and accepting of the fact that I may be finishing Lopi sweater on the plane to Iceland and blocking it in the hotel bathroom. Pardon the language but I’m pretty sure this gif sums up me, at the moment.

And of course I already have colors chosen for my Little Norway—Lapis Blue Heather for the body, and Spring Green Heather and Royal Fuchsia for the contrast colors.

Oh and it turns out my insanity is contagious—I’m joined in Crazed Knitting Mode by my friend Erin, who is going to Iceland with me, because her mother suggested that she knit something for the trip (hi Mrs G!).

So there’s a good chance I won’t be doing any macramé for a few weeks, or much in the way of housework, so no one come over to my house any time soon and we’ll be fine.