Road Trip Projects

 I have fine tuned the projects I take on road trips. Part of it depends on what type of road trip it is. For example, when we make the drive to my Mom's, I can work on something more complicated but I have to be mindful if we're coming home in daylight or darkness. For travel road trips, I used to take way too many projects, many were way too complicated for the trip, especially back when it was all paper maps! Charts, multiple colours, etc. For years, I kept doing this! I was so afraid of finishing everything and having nothing to work on, but that NEVER happened.

I finally clued in and changed. I started buying the huge balls of Handicrafter Cotton, and worked on corner to corner dishcloths (don't even cut after each one!). I'd choose a colour that reflected the trip. I'd also usually take something else, not too complicated. However, I now have a backlog of dishcloths that I haven't even used! 

I wrote earlier about how I chose the patterns/yarn for this summer's road trips. This last trip was supposed to be to Labrador and Newfoundland, but we couldn't get ferry spots. It was still an appropriate yarn for the trip--Quebec, New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and PEI. It's Woodsie, Paton's "Kroy". 

I didn't get these finished, but I did get some little hats finished!

I think one of these I started before we left. These are such great projects to use up yarn. All 5 hats weigh in at 93gr. So if you had a 100gr ball, you could easily make five little hats to donate. I've shared before the pattern I use (think of it as a recipe). 

I also took a crochet tank top I was designing but once it got to the armholes, it wasn't easy to work on. I even took some red yarn for another scarf but didn't even get started. I feel bad about how few red scarves I've made this year! I remind myself that I'm not obligated to make any though. Really, I'm not obligated to make anything for charity, but I feel as a decent human with a few skills, I am obligated to use those skills in ways to help others. 

I did actually visit two yarn shops on this trip! I'll make another post about that.

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:  10331gr + 93gr = 10,424gr

Balance:  6954gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78

Sold off Some Yarn!

 You never know when you post things to Facebook Marketplace if they'll sell. I went through my bin of cotton yarns and pulled out a bunch to list. I had a lot of responses to some of it, and one woman took a bunch of it, weighing it at 1050gr.

Then my SIL saw the post and asked if any would be good for dishcloths. Not really, but I have another bag of Handicrafter! My cotton bin is practically empty now. I don't have more to put in. I'm thinking I could put some cones in that I have on top of my shelves, I'm worried I'll forget I have them...even though I rarely use them (I used the white for my recent All About That Drape top but the other colours are pastels). 

I can't easily weigh all the cotton I'm giving to my SIL, but I weighed what I could, and it's about 1100gr.

So this has really upped my Yarn Out totals!! Ohhh, if I sell yarn, I should get to deduct it from what I've spent! LOL!!

Wow, just had another inquiry into some that's still posted!! Update, she's taking it! 140gr x 5 = 700gr.

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:  2850gr + 7481gr = 10331gr

Balance:  6861gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78

 I just finished a simple ribbed red scarf for World AIDS Day. 24sts, 5mm. 89gr.

I think this was the sweater I unravelled. I have 8 scarves ready to go. Lower than my goal, but actually, on track for previous years.

The other finished item is another ribbed chunky hat. One strand Sirdar Country Style DK...or Snuggly DK? And one strand Pingouin "Poudreuse". Is Pingouin still in business? This yarn is 80% acrylic, 10% wool and 10% mohair. The hat weighs 70grams. 

I got all the hats out just to see how many I have. There's 27 in this pile. I should go back and see if I have already donated ribbed hats. I did take in the ones I made on the LK150, but I'm not sure if I took in any of the ribbed ones. 

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:  159gr + 7322gr = 7481gr

Balance:  4011gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78

Two More Ribbed Hats

 This first ribbed hat, I had planned to use another yarn with it, but the suggested gauge was with 8mm needles, so I just did it alone. I did 56st, or maybe 52st because I assume it'll be for a younger person. It's Morocco Fashion, by Loops & Threads. I only had one ball, which also contributed to my decision to make it smaller. I did end up with 24 grams left, so I probably could have made it a row or two longer.  It weighs 61gr.

This next one went super quick. I used two balls of Sirdar Country Style DK. One in a dark heather blue, one in a solid lighter blue, sort of a mid tone, along with two strands of Patons' "Lace".

The "Lace" gives it a nice fluffiness without being too crazy. I ran out of the lighter blue part way through, but with the brim up, you can't tell.

With the brim down, you can sort of tell that the top of the hat is darker (I added a second end of the heathery blue after the lighter blue ran out).  The "Lace" really helps with the illusion, because it ranges from white to dark blue, and having two strands meant there was lots of colour changes.

It weighs in at 102 gr. It's a hefty one!

I think I might start making newborn hats for our roadtrip next week. I don't have a complicated pattern to work on in the evenings, but I'll have a red scarf (maybe that should be the complicated one), and a new pair of plain socks. I like to have a variety, but also, don't want to over pack LOL. There is a crochet tank top pattern I want to work on... (No, not the "All About That Drape" one, a totally new one!).

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:  7159gr + 163gr = 7322gr

Balance:  3852gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78

Crochet V Stitch Red Scarf

 For some reason, I suddenly started seeing videos and patterns for items made with the crochet V stitch. There's a few variations on the V stitch (adding two chains between the double crochets, adding a chain between Vs, skipping more stitches), but this scarf is the most basic form. 

However, I think that makes it harder to see that it's actually V stitches. 

It's even hard to see which way is up. Are they Vs, or ^ ?

Doesn't matter. It's a red scarf, used 85gr of yarn. I'm not doing very well on making more red scarves than last year!

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:  7074gr + 85gr = 7159gr

Balance:  3689gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78

Ribbed Hat with a Unique Feature

 I'm still knitting ribbed chunky hats for charity. Getting low on worsted weight yarns I can double, so I went for the chunky yarns. The main yarn for this is Loops & Threads "Charisma" in Electric Blue. The reflective yarn is Red Heart, I believe. 

I wanted to make the fold up brim have more of the reflective yarn, but it's hard to know exactly how high someone will turn back the brim. 

The reflective yarn is slightly thinner, but overall, it doesn't really show. I wasn't holding them double. I used 56st and 9mm needles. 92 grams total.

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:   6982gr + 92gr = 7074gr

Balance:  3604gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78

A Top So Nice, I Made it Twice!

 I love the first version of the "All About That Drape" top I made, so I got started on a second one. Well, I got swatching right away.

First, I tried Snuggly DK, because I liked the colour. It didn't want to drape.

Then I tried a cone of cream wool, thinking the natural fiber would help. Still no drape.

Then I thought I had found it. An abandoned short row shawl in bamboo, which I didn't have enough yarn for. It would be gorgeous for a tank top, but I need about twice what I have. 

To see these attempts, check out my videos and shorts on YouTube!

I finally reached for these two cones on my shelf. I wanted a brighter white, but that's fine.

I got a good gauge and drape, and dove in. Just like before, I started with the numbers for the medium, but when it was time to split for the front and back, I used the large numbers for the front, which left the exact needed in size small for the back.

I'm making a funny face because it's a screenshot from the video below. I forgot to take actual photos.

Sorry for the unedited video, I can't seem to edit in Google on my laptop.

I'm making a video with more details on how to make a garment fit YOU. It's not (usually) hard. If you haven't checked out my revamped YouTube channel, the link is above. 

Something I did differently this time, was switch to a larger crochet hook for the back, starting with the first V stitch row after the split (or the row before). Just made it a bit more open.

I'm finally liking crochet garments!!

Yarn In:  3470gr

Yarn Out:   6782gr +200gr = 6982gr

Balance:  3512gr more OUT than in

Costs: $243.78