Pay it Forward '11 Reflection

In January of last year, Facebook had a Pay It Forward Project meme going around.I'm a bit late in getting this done, but better late than never. I wanted to write up something on the five Pay it Forward projects that I finished in the last year.

The idea was simple:

Pay it forward 2011: I promise to send something handmade to the first 5 people who leave a comment. They must in turn post this and send something they made to the first 5 people who comment on their status. The rules are that....it must be handmade by you and it must be delivered sometime in 2011.In the midst of completing and gifting the projects I started to think about it all.

And I wanted to collect the links for all the projects into one place.
MP1: 11's Sonic Screwdriver (completed: June 15, 2011 ; gifted: June 18, 2011)
MP2: Anti-Possession Mitts (complete: July14, 2011 ; gifted: August 1, 2011 )
MP3: Gates of Greyhaven (completed: June 26, 2011 ; gifted: July 23, 2011 )
MP4: Grape Wurm (completed December 25, 2011: ; gifted: January 2-5, 2012 )
MP5: Blueschief (completed: July 1, 2011 ; gifted: August 21, 2011)

All posts related to Pay it Forward '11.

It was fun picking patterns and yarn to go with the patterns that I felt reflected the recipient. I put thought into the pattern choice. I also put thought into the yarn choice be it color or fiber.

Overall, the project helped me get a lot of knitting done. It also helped me delve deeper into the fiber world. I ended up visiting a proper knitting store for the first time. That was a fun experience. It made me wish that there was a knitting store closer to home. Also, it would be nice if there were little cozy cafes near by that I could sit in to knit, read, or write from time to time. The main stream never has the same feel that the little independent stores did when I was at college. Though I didn't get around to visiting them too often.

Speaking of reading, I was inspired by a fellow tumblrite, Airiz, in her post about the gathering of her top books of the year. (Her blog is fantastic btw.) It was something that made me realize that I had stopped keeping track of the books I'd read, what I felt about them, how long it had taken me to read, and other such things. I miss making my list and seeing what I read and how it coincides with my life. I read a lot in high school and through college, but the habit fell by the wayside before I graduated. This year, I would like to start it up again and keep track of everything. Hopefully I'll be able to post about some of the books here and encourage reading.

So this year, I'd like to complete a few knitting projects that have been languishing on my needles. I would like to put a dent in my stash of yearn before buying anymore *crosses fingers* I have enough projects and yarn pairings to get my through for a bit. And I'd like to read. Be it from a physical book, on either of my Kindles, or an audiobook while knitting away. I want to get back to doing more things that will relax me and help to keep the stress levels low.

Of course, I hopefully will put a major dent in my MBA course load as well. But like I said, taking the time to read for pleasure is something I haven't been really consistent on in the last few years. I'd also like to try and read things outside of my usual fantasy novels. I want to read more classics, maybe some non-fiction, or other authors that had previously caught my eye but I'd never gotten around to picking up their books.

Let this be a year of knitting comforting projects and reading.

Hassan Chop!

Watch out for the Knitja! Or at least that's what I call my version of Kate Boyette's Ninja pattern. This took way longer to knit than I thought. Mostly because I sometimes have the attention span of a goldfish.

There was also a delay in finishing due to the disappearance of my felt for the features. Needless to say, I ventured to the craft store for more and ended up buying a bunch of other crafting items. There will be more crafts besides knitting in the near future. :D

I had fun with this, and would likely make it again. I didn't stuff this one a whole lot, but made it a little flat plushie that is still squeezably soft. It might be entertaining to make a really plump ninja in the future. In black. *nods*

The sewing is a pain. I definitely don't appear to be a seamstress. *shakes head* I'm rather passable at this point, but hopefully down the line I can work on that and get better. At least this time the shapes and placement were easy. In the past the assembly of plushie objects hasn't gone well. This time went considerably better.

I hope my co-worker who asked for it is pleased. We decided on the pink for extra fun (and cause the purple was being knit into mystery project 4).

Also, THIS IS THE FIRST COMPLETED JOB OF THE YEAR!!!!

Mystery Project 4...COMPLETE!

I have finally completed my last mystery project to gift. I actually finished knitting it up while watching Dr. Who: A Christmas Carol Christmas Special. I was knitting away while the parentals snoozed on Christmas Day. :)

It was a nice pattern in its simplicity but still challenging enough to maintain my interest. The brim was a practice in the skill of folding the pieces and knitting them together. I've done three such "hems" and two without provisionally casting on the first edge (such as this one). I do prefer doing without the special cast on. It makes for an ultra warm brim.

The yarn was surprisingly easy to knit with. I wanted something bright and soft. Especially as it is intended as a running hat for my BFF. She complained a while back about being cold when running. I asked if she wore a hat, to which she replied that no she didn't have one. So this was my solution. It's also bright so she can be seen.

I liked the pattern itself for the quality of the purl-knit pattern repeats that made it scrunched and warm. I think it will hold heat well so she stays warm even when wearing tight running gear. :)

I know the pattern, wurm by katushika, is meant to emulate a worm and be a play on words; which makes me giggle and think of the blue and white worm from the David Bowie 80s movie Labyrinth. But in this obnoxious purple it really reminds me of a cupcake.