I used an online stop watch to keep track of my knitting progress. I only timed the time I actually spent knitting, I would pause to take breaks, massage my hands, eat etc.
Time Log (HH:MM:SS)
- 00:15:50 - 3.5 rows into the project. The piece is ~23 inches wide, as best as I can tell, and about 3 inches high.
- 00:30:35 - 8 rows in, 6 inches. Since what i'm working on will be 1 of 2 or 3 lengths stitched together, it is doubtful that this will be completed in 6 hours.
- 00:45:58 - 13 rows, 9 inches
- 01:24:23 - 30 rows, 22 inches long.
- 02:02:24 - My shoulder is getting a little sore... this project is heavy! 42 rows, 31 inches. The lengths are very approximate because this blanket has so much stretch to it! I'm also beginning to worry about running out of wool, since I am only about 1/4 done with what I want. I discovered another 2 balls of the fisherman color in another stash bag, so at least I'm not going to run out of cream any time soon! I also have some yarn given to me when I was doing the knit-a-thon that I can put into this project. Maybe I was naive to think that I would be able to construct a reasonable sized blanket with only 17 balls of yarn...
- 02:38:23 - 52.5 rows, ~35 inches (measured on wood floor so I wouldn't be stretching it). This is the row when I used up one complete ball of yarn, which means that this is when I've used up 8 balls of yarn. Since I will be doubling the width (knitting two separate panels), I cannot just work until the blanket is complete, I have to plan this out a bit better. If I want to do 100 rows (times 2), then I will need about 32 balls of yarn. Meaning that I need to order more yarn. But how much more yarn? The whole POINT of a stashbuster is to clear out my stash, I do not want to have a lot of extra remaining. I will finish these 100 rows, decide how much I will need, and then likely order a bunch more fisherman's so I can dye my own colors for the rest of the replacements. (It is more fun if I know the story behind the yarns in this project.)
- 04:07:50 - 47 inches (measured on the floor), 79 rows.
- 05:15:13 - Finished the first rectangle! I'm half done with the blanket. 100 rows, and the unstretched dimensions are (drumroll please), 28x60" (which is a good thing since my tape measure only goes to 60 inches!) Still have not finished the second set of 8 skeins, but we're pretty close.
- 05:29:20 - 3 rows into the second panel I finish the second complete skein, so this project has now consumed 16 skeins of yarn. I now have to decide how much I am going to order. As I've said, I do not want to have too much extra yarn at the end of this project since this is my stashbuster. Going beyond Lion Brand Wool Ease (to other wool/acrylic blends), I have equivalent to 10 balls in my stash. I will buy 4 balls of fisherman, 1 Clove and 1 Autumn Print for $20 (including shipping). So I can start knitting as soon as it arrives, I'm going to start dyeing yarn now.
- 06:06:34 - 16 rows on the part 2 done.
- 06:43:51 - 34 rows completed. I'm trying to plan the colors so when I get to the end it won't be boring. I would hate to get to the end, and only have 2 colors left. I would then loose the pretty color gradients I have been creating.
- 07:17:47- 50 rows complete. I'm now 3/4 done with the blanket! I'm not quite done with the 3rd set of 8 skeins, but it is getting pretty close. I should have some extra yarn at the end.
- 7:37:00- 58.5 rows complete, finshed the 3rd set of 8 skeins, 24 balls used total at this point.
- 08:25:50 - 80 rows complete. I'm in the home stretch. All hand dyed balls are now attached... hopefully they'll last long enough to make the end have the same color change variability as the rest of the blanket. My right hand is a little sore, as I've done 77 rows of this section today. It is helpful that I had to wait for more yarn to get delivered, because this is hard work!
- 08:52:47 - I am getting creative with scraps of yarn now. I'm starting to run out of all balls, so I'm doubling up certain colors. The end of this rectangle will be very blue... 92 rows done.
- 09:09:48 - I FINISHED THE SECOND SQUARE!!!!! WAHOO! I can now put down these huge knitting needles and take a bit of a breather. These things are huge!
- 09:23:03 - I just finished stitching the two rectangles together. I made sure to stitch loosely so I would not loose stretchiness over the seam.
- 09:32:46 - Finished cutting and "weaving in" remaining ends. For me, this is trimming them since when I tried to weave them in they didn't really stay. (A bit of the end would always stick out after stretching, so I gave up and just trimmed them short.) You may keep finding other ends to snip for a while.
I'm sitting on the couch enjoying my new blanket. It is warm, cuddly, and breathable so I don't overheat. I am so happy I finished this project in under 10 hours! I keep finding other loose ends to trim as I move the blanket around and ends pop out, but I had expected that. I cannot think of a more fun stashbuster. As I sit here, I think of the gifts I've made, and the fun I've had in my kitchen dyeing yarn.
Go to the Pattern Page of my 10 Hour Remnant Afghan
