Finishing Frenzy

"Winning isn't always finishing first. Sometimes winning is just finishing."

~Manuel Diotte

This turned out to be a weekend for finishing, and boy do I feel like a winner! I made some great progress toward my goals, and, most importantly, I still have a great level of motivation to continue.

First of all, I finished my yarn inventory. (I'm going to write a separate post on the results, so stay tuned!) I also added finishing touches (like buttons) to some gifts, including these:

Front of toddler vest {Ravelry link} made from the Aidan pattern by Holli Yeoh.

Back view of vest. This one only used about half as much yarn as I had anticipated, so I should be able to make another one to gift at some point.

This is a smaller version of a pattern called Girls Cap Sleeve Cardigan Vest from Knitting Pure and Simple. I used some cute pink flower buttons that I've had in my button stash for quite a while, too! {Ravelry link}

This little vest is a perfect example of the quote at the top of this post. It's a project I started and nearly finished (ahem) a couple of years ago, and finally finished this weekend! I had it all completed except for the arm and neck bands--I couldn't find an edge treatment that looked right to me. After letting it hibernate for (ahem) a couple of years, I was inspired with a simple and elegant solution: pick up stitches, one round stockinette, then bind off. I think it turned out perfectly! It was inspired by a pattern in a book called Vogue Knitting on the Go: Baby Knits, but I made several modifications to the original. {Ravelry link}

My daughter specifically asked me to make her some slippers for her approaching birthday, and I remembered this cute crochet pattern from Hook Candy I had purchased a while back. They were extremely quick to work up, I used up some stash yarn, and I made my girl happy--what's not to like? I'm going to have to make some for my toddler and myself now, too. {Ravelry link}

I also resurrected a long-ago finished sweater that I hadn't worn in a couple of years at least. One of the buttons had fallen off, so I planned to replace it. Then I decided that I didn't like the original buttons anymore, so I replaced them. It was also looking quite pilly, so I used my handy fabric shaver to give it a new lease on life. Here it is:

I wore it today and got several compliments. It's based on a pattern from one of the Yarn Girls books, but I made lots of modifications. My favorite is the cabled button band with the buttonholes built into the cables! (Yes, I realize I am a knitting nerd.)

So, that's my update for now. Hope to be back soon with the details of my yarn inventory.