It’s not that I haven’t been doing anything, I just haven’t had internet at home! But I hopefully do now, so tonight will see pictures posted!

I have successfully turned the heel on my first Jaywalker. This is the third time I’ve turned a heel, and it looks much better than my first pair. I loved Grumperina’s instructions; the first pattern I used (from the ball band of the yarn) was very general, and didn’t have the needle-by-needle instructions, nor did the socks have any sort of pattern to help me figure out which way to go. I think my mistake on the first pair of socks was that after I did the heel flap, I picked up stitches going the wrong way round the sock. I knitted a few rows and realised the sock was inside out. Turned it right way out, and the yarn was on the wrong side of the needles to contunue, I’d have to turn, like doing a short row. I pondered this puzzle for quite a while on both socks, before just turning and resigning myself to the hole that formed.

But the needle-by needle instructions eliminated this problem! Yay fool-proof pattern.
I’ve tried it on, such as it is, and it fits quite well.
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There’s a couple ‘movements’ happening right now, Village Knittiot’s Summer of Knitting Naturally, and that I want to take part in. Well, Use What You Have was April, but I was slow to find it.

I’m doing this for a few reasons.
1. I am trying to save money. Yes. This is about money. By using what I already have, and not buying more, I will save money. I’m living somewhere fairly cheap right now ($12.10/day) which is good, as I’m earning intern wages. Come August, I’m moving to the big city, and I want to have as much of a financial cushion as I can.
2. Using what I have will reduce the stash, thus making it easier for my two-fold move*
3. I think using what I have also falls into knitting naturally, as I’m not ordering/buying more yarn, creating more garbage with shopping bags/boxes/more yarn labels than I already have. Sure, yarn labels may not seem like much in the grand scheme of things, and yes, they can be recycled, but if everyone refrained from throwing out the equivalent of one yarn label per day for a year, that’s a lot of stuff.
4. I am concerned about my impact on the environment, I recycle, I print stuff double-sided (and may I just say that I’m the only one in this office who does! There’s 12 people here, you’d think there’d be more of us), I’m trying to be more aware. I find that doing things like this in steps makes it easier to get into the habit. I’m going to try to buy more yarn locally (when I let myself buy yarn again), bring my own bag, etc. This does go against #1, as ordering off the internet is generally cheaper, but I’m hoping to find a good balance.
5. I’m concerned because I am a consumer. Among other things, I buy books, lots of books. That’s a lot of paper. I sometimes buy used, but mostly new. I need to do something to offset that. Although the reassuring thing is that my books don’t end up in the landfill. Sure, my book collection will fill my entire car to the brim, but parting with them is such a wrench. I buy stuff. I consume. I know I need to cut down on the unecessary stuff, and I’m trying. I did buy something in April that will help with leftover yarn bits which are always a quandrary. I bought a Handheld Loom. I plan to save all my yarn spaghetti bits, and use them to weave squares. Eventually, I’ll have a new and interesting blanket, and I won’t have thrown away any yarnaghetti.

For Me, Knitting Naturally is going to mean using only the stash, buying locally (if I must buy) so I don’t end up with boxes and bubble wrap, reclaiming yarn from old sweaters, making sure to recycle ball bands, bringing my own bag to the LYS, selling stash I’ll never use (and using recycled boxes to ship it)

For Me, Using What I Have is going to mean not buying yarn until after I’ve moved (if I feel the need to buy it even then), using up the yarnaghetti on the loom, knitting for other people if I won’t wear the yarn myself, picking up other crafting projects I’ve dropped partway, knitting things I (or others) need and will actually use, re-evaluating yarn I’ve used in projects I’ve never worn

*the move is two-fold because I have a lot of my stuff here with me, 1.5 hours away from where I’m moving, and an equal amount of stuff at my parent’s house, 14 hours away from where I’m moving, and it all has to end up in the place where I have nothing yet.