Hiding In The Bins

Last night while blog hopping I noticed a trend for pulling out old, unfinished knitting projects, blogging about them, and giving them a thumbs up or thumbs down for the future.

Today, since I'm really short on interesting knitting content - or even boring knitting content - I thought a bin dive for abandoned projects would be fun and educational.

Before admitting to the three unfinished items I dug out of the bins today, I have to confess that these weren't the only ones. Last year I cleaned out my bins and got rid of several partly finished projects that I didn't like and was never going to finish.

Endless Cables
This is the back of a sweater I started knitting about five years ago, before I learned the beauty of knitting with natural fibers and before I learned how bored I can get knitting cables. The pattern is Endless Beginnings from the Summer 99 Knitter's. The yarn is Encore DK.

I have a partially knit - about six inches - front to go with this back. It was set aside because I was very tired of doing cables and wanted to work on something else - anything else.

Though buried in my bins, it's never been forgotten. Every time I'm tempted to start a new project with lots of cables, the memory of this partial sweater serves as a reality check.

The verdict: It survived the last purge because I use it as a reminder of my fickleness. It isn't going to survive this purge.

The yarn might make a good baby blanket - or a great donation to the thrift store.

Just Because
Here's another project from five years ago. I had fun knitting this vest without a pattern using whatever lace stitches caught my eye in the Barbara Walker Stitch Treasuries.

It's a beautiful piece of knitting and I even short rowed the shoulders. All it needs is to be sewn together and the ends woven in.

Granddaughter Kimmy's school has navy and white uniforms and this vest was originally intended for her to wear to kindergarten. She's in fourth grade now. It isn't going to fit. It isn't Kimmy's style, so I don't feel as if I cheated her out of something she would have loved.

The verdict: Sew it up and save it for the perfect recipient. Until then, I will occasionally find it and enjoy looking at it.

I Know Better
This crumpled sweater body is only a year old. I wanted to try knitting top down set in sleeves with picked up stitches, so I bought some inexpensive Lion Brand Cotton Ease, made up a simple stitch design for the front and the back, and started knitting a sweater without a pattern.

I dislike knitting with cotton. It hurts my hands, arms, and shoulders. I was barely started on the ribbing before I regretted this yarn purchase. Stubbornly I continued knitting a few rows every day until I hit the underarms. By then I had completely lost interest in the project and set it aside until I had time to figure out the armhole and neck shaping.

That hasn't happened yet. But it might.

Verdict: This sweater is going to survive the March, 2005 purge.

I still would like to experiment with top down set in sleeves. If they're short sleeves, the sweater is almost done. It will never be my favorite garment, but I'll find someplace to wear it.

If it's still in the bins next time I do bin purging, it will be a goner.