2009 in Review

This year, I knitted (I mean, I finished) 56 things! 56!

Here's a breakdown

• 2 scarves (one Peaks Island Hood!)
• 2 cowls
• 15 hats
• 1 pair of baby booties
• 15 pairs of socks (hey, I won the employee division of the Summer of Socks and Lace!)
• 1 blanket
• 7 baby or child sweaters
• 4 dishcloths (2 ended up as blankies for The Preschooler's baby dolls)
  
• 3 sweaters FOR ME
• 1 felted bag
• 1 pair of mittens

And so the question becomes, how did I do with the Year of Selfish Knitting? In 2008, I knit only two things for myself. Just two! In 2009, most of the items listed above were for me, most noteably 14 of the 15 pairs of socks, all the shawls, and 3 sweaters.

So what are my goals for 2010? It's hard to plan for an entire year; looking back on 2009, the sweaters I outlined at the beginning of the year clearly did not go the way I intended, for example. In my case, to be brutally honest, a rapid and unexpected weight gain derailed a lot of my garment intentions. I also got bitten by the new trend in small shawls and wraps that hit in 2009. Who knows what trends will evolve this year? However, I just finished an article for the shop newsletter about resolutions for the year, and a common theme emerged: Expand Your Fiber Comfort Zone. And so, I'd like to do the following:

• Learn new colorwork techniques and make at least one pair of colorwork mittens (you know, instead of just clicking "Buy It Now" on the Ravelry sidebar and having good intentions about them).
• Complete one pair of toe-up socks, perhaps my Discovery Sock from Cat Bordhi's Personal Footprints. 
• Learn once and for all to do a picot hem on a sock or a knitted hem on a sweater without turning to a coworker for help (Hi Yvonne! Hi Melissa!). 

Happy New Year!