January 31, 2012

February is for Finishing

So lately my knitting situation has looked like this:




Yeah I have alot of unfinished projects.  Or UFO's as they are known in the knitting world.  I'm pretty much buried in them.  Check it out:

photo.JPG
This would be 4 unfinished knitting projects that I was able to assemble for this photograph without getting up off of my spot on the couch.  SHAME.

I'm surrounded by ziploc baggies filled with good intentions. I'm in this awful cycle where I start something super excited about it.  Find time to work on it a few times.  And then get derailed and am too tired/distracted/overwhelmed to even think about it.  By the time I have a chance to go back to whatever it was I'm over it and on to the next shiny.

Pintrest does not help this problem.

And the worst part is that because I have so many unfinished things I just feel guilty about all of it.  I feel guilty for starting something new b/c I really should finish something I already have going.  Then I feel guilty for working on something I'm not enjoying because I have so little free time why am I spending it on something that's not completely awesome.  And what ends up happening is that I just don't knit at all anymore.  And that's just fucking awful.

So!  I've declared February as Finishing month.  I am going to get a handle on this.  I am not going to start anything new.  The month is only 29 days long so I should be able to handle it.  Right?

February is for Finishing Rules:

1.)  I will not start any new knitting or sewing projects for the entire month of February.


2.)  I will only work on unfinished projects that I have already started.  No cheating - it has to be something I've actually worked on.  Not just thought about working on.

3.)  There is no shame in frogging.  If I don't like something I'm working on I can just frog it.  I'm not sure why I feel bad about that.  But I always do.  So this month I won't.  If I'm not interested I will rip with abandon and put the yarn back in my stash where it can find a new and happier purpose.

4.)  There is no guilt in February.  I will not feel bad about myself when I uncover projects that have been abandoned for embarassing amounts of time.  Or ones that I forgot about completely.  Or ones that only have one stupid little thing to do on them before they are done.  I will only feel happy that I am finishing them not guilty that it took so long.

And I"m throwing in two very specific to me rules:

5.)  I will not let the child distract me.  She's as a bad as I am with the crafting ADD.  I will not listen to her siren song when she says things like "I think maybe we could make this into a dress."

Trying to occupy the same space on top of the couch

6.)  Dye doesn't count.  I have tons of really cool things coming up with Destination Yarn so I"m going to be dying like a madwoman for most of Feb.  I'm allowed to be as ADD with that as I want to because usually my random let's see what happens colorways are the most fun:

Underneath the Christmas Tree

That's it.  If anyone out there wants to play along with me shout out in the comments.  I may try to do some sortof contest or something depending on how ambitious I am.  There might be yarn involved.

Yay February!

15 comments:

  1. hrm... i would love to be in, but i have a bunch of things i need to be starting and that i have planned for travel knitting for an upcoming work trip. can i be in for just trying to finish those things? if i can list them ahead of time? ;)

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  2. I neeeeeed to do this. And it's going to start with cleaning up my tiny sewing/craft room (AKA the post holiday dumping grounds). I have a quilt need to, well, quilt and bind and a 1/3 finished feather and fan knit blanket that needs to be completed. I'm in.

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  3. I'm in, sort of. I have prior plans to cast on a pair of Christmas socks on Sunday, and a February Lady sweater on the 29th. But I'll put the socks away after the Super Bowl, and the 29th is practically March, anyway. :)

    Good thing I'm craft ADD, too. Lots of options, including the sweater I started last night.

    Can't wait to see the new yarn!

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  4. I am in! I have way too many items on the needles! And since one of them is the Mod Cables Hat that brought me to your blog, that will be the first one I finish!

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  5. Ooooh! I want to be in, because I have more than I am comfortable with OTN right now...buuuut I am gonna cast on a bunch of new stuff tonight, you know, in preparation. That's ok, right?

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  6. I need to be on this in the worst way. I have unfinished projects so old that I'm sure that my knitting gauge has changed. I currently won't start anything new because I know I *should* just stitch this or put the last bit of rib on that.

    I declare this Finish it Feburary!

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  7. HMM I've mostly done that in January! I want to try to continue in Feb. as well! Because if you've seen my Rav page you will know that I still have TONS of UFOS left!

    And super YAY for crazy dyeing..I can't wait to see what you come up with!

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  8. February is for finishing. This sounds like something I need to do!

    I have so many unfinished paintings/projects/crafts/books started.... I think the idea of starting nothing new and focusing on what I have in an excellent way to narrow down my list of things to do!

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  9. Leslie9:03 PM

    My favorite line "I think maybe we could make this into a dress." Priceless.

    Definitely in, especially with the no-guilt allowed.

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  10. Frog them all and start something new!!!!...just another enabler:)

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  11. YAY for finishing! This is a bandwagon I am jumping on toot de suite!

    Also YAY for dying! I am hoping that some Pittsburgh (the city not the black and gold!) and some Believeland might end up in the shop!

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  12. I LOVE this idea!! I am totally in and really glad I started the scarf for my mom last night. :)

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