Spreading the love (or why I have too many WIPs)

I've been told I knit fast. If that is true, tell me please, why my WIP list seems to keep growing and nothing ever gets finished. I do suffer from a terrible case of startitis. I know this. It's something I've learned to live with (and so has Paul). But, my friends, you would think that the newly cast on project would gain quite a bit of progress before something new catches my attention. Not so! I have several WIPs that only made it to the 10 row or less point, and most were cast on at least 6 months ago.

Startitis isn't my only problem however. Very few of my WIPs really lose my interest. My problem is that I want to work on all of my WIPs. I rarely start something new and work on it exclusively. So, what happens is I get to do less on each WIP as new ones get added to the pile.

To combat this issue, I've tried putting all the WIPs in the craftroom and only allowing myself a few next to the bed to be worked on each evening. That will work fine for a day or so, then I find myself searching for something in the craftroom and spy one of those WIPs down there. The urge to spread the love to that WIP is strong and I think that adding it to what I already am working on couldn't possibly slow down progress on anything, so I haul it upstairs. Next thing you know, I can barely get into bed and poor Doppler gives me sad looks because I've taken up all his space and he can't lie next to me on the floor.

Lest you think I'm exaggerating:



This is the state of my bedroom. Mind you, I spied this as I was carrying yet another project bag up to be added to the pile. I immediately grabbed several of the bags already there that contained projects that could wait, all of the books and magazines squished between bags that didn't have patterns I was working on, and anything else that was just cluttering up the space, and hauled them all back to the craftroom. Hopefully, they will all stay down there until something in the bags left upstairs is finished.

This:



is what is left next to the bed. There are 4 WIPs and one project that is finished save for the weaving in of ends and sewing on of a button.

Now let's hope that I can resist starting the crocheted dress that I purchased this for yesterday. I was laughing with the owner of my LYS yesterday as I paid for this haul. I told her that I had no intention of starting a project with this in the near future, but I couldn't resist buying the yarn because it just made me feel better knowing it was downstairs waiting for its turn to be loved.



As for those projects left in the bedroom? I decided to keep track of how many rows, etc. I have completed on each of them since my last post to see if I only give the impression of knitting fast because I have so many things being worked on, or if I do really knit fast and give myself the impression that I don't because I spread the love too widely.

Since my last post I have:

Roped Shell

• finished the last 6 repeats of the cabled hem
• knit 17 rows of the pattern

Eerie

• knit 51 rows finishing the back and casting on the front

Moorish Stripe Socks

• knit 31 rounds finishing the leg of sock 1

Granite

• knit 37 rows completing the second sleeve
• knit the collar
• sewed the 3 final seams

Feather & Fan Throw

• knit 16 rows

All told that is a grand total of 152 rows , 1 collar, 3 seams, and 84 rows of cabled hem in 3 days. I guess I do knit fast. An average of 51 rows per day, considering I work full time, like to eat, need to clean house, and recently pulled out my sewing again, isn't too shabby!