reflections

Thank you for all of your well wishes. Happy to report that my back is slowly getting better. I ended up taking all of last week off from work after not being able to get out of bed the day after New Year's Day. I overdid it the week before and ended up with a ruptured disc in my lower back which was pressing down on a nerve. It had gotten so painful that I couldn't sit up and could barely walk. So the first week of 2017 ended up being a pretty dull affair with no knitting accomplished. On the bright side, I managed to get a head start on my reading goals. 4 books in one week!

Now that my back is truly on the mend, I'm excited to cast on some new projects. But before looking ahead to what this year will bring, I wanted to briefly reflect on some things that I learned in 2016:

15 pairs of socks, 3 cowls, 2 sweaters, 1 shawl, 1 ornament

Socks Socks and more Socks: I will fondly remember 2016 as the year that I got bit with the sock knitting bug. It has been so much fun learning a couple of different heel techniques (Afterthought & Strong heels) besides the traditional heel flap. Plus I gave toe-up socks a try. Designing a pair of tabi socks was also a highlight. But the number one most satisfying thing that I learned from a year of sock knitting is being able to do the Kitchener stitch without having to refer to written instructions or diagrams ever again.

Improvising a top-down sweater: This was a huge accomplishment for me. Still can't believe that I managed to pull it off. I learned so much in the process, such as the importance of planning but also being flexible when certain parts of the plan didn't work or needed to be changed.

Thank you for all of your support and kindness! Even though my blogging has been sporadic at best this past year, I still treasure all of the wonderful connections that I have made here. Looking forward to what this new year will bring for all of us! Hopefully lots of love, good health, beautiful yarn and shiny new projects :)