This month has been full of knitting firsts for me. It has been almost a year since I started knitting. I am gaining confidence now, patterns no longer scare me, and my knitting is faster as I become more proficient – this newfound speed is very handy as I was painfully slow when I first started. I have come a long way from the garter stitch scarves I knitted for Christmas gifts. I am getting brave enough to try new things. That is not so say that I haven’t gotten in over my head on a couple of projects. To the contrary, I think I have spent more time “unknitting” than knitting. Fortunately, each trip to Frog Pond taught me something new and important – lessons that hopefully will not be repeated often.

This month, I completed my first sweater – details in the post A Plague of Frogs. I know summer is not the best season to complete sweaters but it will be ready when it does cool off a bit. Truthfully, there are a couple of places that keep their thermostats set so low that I would gladly don a sweater even if it is 96 ^o outside.

I am about half way finished with my first knitted skirt – Indigo Ripples from Interweave Knits. I think it will actually look nice on me once it is finished though I had my doubts since I am a lot curvier than the pencil-thin model in the photos. I think it is hilarious that the skirt isn’t even finished and it is already wrinkled. You gotta love cotton!!

I have swatched for my first “real” lace shawl – Mystery Shawl 3 from PinkLemonTwist – there is a link in the side bar if you are interested in participating. I still haven’t made up my mind on the size of the needles to use. I want it to be delicate and airy but I don’t want it to be so loose that it provides no warmth. The yarn is so fine and delicate that I have my doubts about whether I am up to the challenge. I only thought sock yarn was small – after playing with the lace weight yarn for a week sock yarn feels practically HUGE.

I knitted my first picot edged sock – more precisely I have knit the picot edging but not completed the sock. The looks great but I am a bit concerned how that hem will feel against the leg. Hopefully, the baby that they are being knit for will not mind.

I have successfully completed my first short row heel. I will probably reknit it now that I actually know what I am doing a bit as I think the decreases could look neater. I still like my heel flaps but this will be a handy technique for toe up socks and plain vanilla sock in self striping yarns.

Here is the whole sock – or at least the whole leg. Still have to add the little foot and toe.

And I have actually started my first pair of toe up socks. I am not really impressed with the toe of the pattern I was using but I am convinced that with a different cast on I will like the technique much better. Just so you don’t think the surface in the photo is my dining room table, that is a badly stained outdoor utility table. It really is cleaner than it looks.

And I learned all this in a month were I didn’t knit for a week because of Vacation Bible School. Can’t wait to see what I accomplish in July!!