Knitting Resolutions 2012

Sadly, in 2012 I will be working on many of the same resolutions as last year.  Here they are, about the same as they were.

1. Knit during classier TV shows.  As I said last year, I'm going to knit during Masterpiece Theatre and Inside the Actor's Studio. (And pretty much any adult programming on PBS.) This will add an air of class and sophistication to my work, not to mention a pretentious accent.  If I'm going to knit in front of the TV, I should make it more educational. Right now it's still Law and Order reruns and Top Chef.  Old habits die hard.

2. Knit with more color. Also familiar from last year - The intrepid Colleen is still reminding me I need to brighten up.  I knit with subtle, muted colors now, and nature has shown us that this is a losing strategy in evolution. Otherwise, life wouldn't be full of colorful flowers and rocks and animals.  Adaptability and bright plumage are what have allowed the peacock to make it this far. I'm not ready to go "full peacock", but I will take my palate in new directions.  Maybe pastels this year.  (Baby steps.)

3. Knit every day. I've gotten pretty good about knitting in public, but I can't say I knit every day.  There are days I don't knit a stitch.  I would like to have the discipline to knit every single day, forgiving abstinence only in the cases of physical disability.  It's not a religion, I know, but it is a skill as well as a hobby, and I want to continue to improve every day.  Practice makes perfect, or at least makes a lot of scarves...

4. Knit with water or white wine. White wine doesn't stain. Need I say more? And yet, I still find myself knitting with coffee and red wine.  I will learn.

5. Knit with more recycled materials. Reclaimed yarn and t-shirt yarn, and so on.  Right now I knit with my grandmother's WWII era needles as much as I can, and seam up with her tapestry needles.  I've made a little t-shirt yarn, but haven't knitted it yet.  I've been buying my knitting books secondhand. That's a good start.  I will do more.

6.  Waste not beautiful yarns. I've gone for most of two years without buying any yarn.  I've been using up stash, of which I have an embarrassing amount. As a designer I receive a lot of yarns sent from yarn manufacturers to make specific designs, making drawing down the stash a real challenge.  It's brutal to not buy all the beautiful yarns I see, but I'm irked by the waste factor of having so much stash yarn sitting in wait. Others will make brand new yarns into beautiful projects.  I will work from stash even more than this year, if at all possible.  It's good for the soul, the planet, and the state of my closet space.

7.  Knit more for charity.  This was not a good year for getting much charity knitting done.  I want to get out at least 10 charity projects this year.  I used to make hats and mittens for charity regularly, carrying only charity projects in my to-go bag, and working on everything else at home.  I need to return to that.  With oomph. 

That's it. This changes everything (a little)! It's going to be a wonderful year.