My first knitting post

I had been looking at too much knitting blogs recently. They had energised me to knit faster and go for more complicated patterns. At the same time, they inspired me to create a blog for my knitting projects. Now that I have done that, I seemed to be at a loss on how to begin.

Now that I have started, I seemed to be rambling on over nothing. =P So here it goes, my very first awkward attempt to translate my love for knitting into words.

I had been knitting for about a year now. I taught myself to knit through Debbie Stoller's Stitch & Bitch. And my very first knitting project is the Garter Stitch scarf in her book. I was so surprised at how much yarn cost when I try to purchase the required yarn for that first project! Now that I am more experienced and wise (I hope so), I understand better that it's not such a nightmare to try to replace a cheaper yarn than what the pattern calls for.

Over the one year, I had finished quite a bit of stuffs. Since they are too many to list, I will just start with the few that I completed recently.

I just completed this 2 bags about 2 weeks ago. They are to be birthday presents for 2 very dear friends of mine. However, I was lazy and slow with my knitting and only completed them 2 months after their birthday. So now I am stuck with passing them off as Christmas presents. Hopefully they won't mind. =P

These 2 projects also mark my first attempt at cabling. Here are 2 close up photos of the cables. Cabling wasn't as tough as I thought it would be.

Besides that, I had also completed 2 more projects. Both are presents. One is a bag and the other a scarf.
This is 'Fancy' from Emma King's 25 Bags to Knit. I swear this project was cursed for me. First I use one strand of the yarn instead of 2 as described in the book. I had to rib it after making half of one side. Then the instructions was faulty. Then I read the instructions wrongly. Finally, it's completed. I just completed it on Tuesday. All it lack is a lining for the bag which would be challenging since it's not a angular shaped bag. I hope my friend will like this cute little bag that I made for her.

And this scarf, I just completed it tonight. As I am using a cheap yarn that piles easily, I decided to double it and knit using a size 17 needles. I don't want to waste too much effort on a scarf that probably won't see next winter. Now it gives me an excuse to look for more yarn to make another scarf for my friend.
I am glad that I finished this scarf tonight. However, I am not sure what projects I should start on next. I was looking forward to receiving the yarn for my Rebecca Apricot jacket but no luck. Hopefully I will get it next week. In the mean time, maybe another scarf that I planned to make as a Christmas present...