WIP Dancing As Fast As I Can

Yesterday marked the start of the 2014 Ravellenic Games.  The Ravellenic Games are a very large* international KAL occurring every couple of years with absolutely no affiliation with a certain other large international event that occurs every couple of years.**  Unlike that other event, the Ravellenic Games are not a competition, but rather are an opportunity to challenge yourself while enjoying the online companionship of other like-minded fiber enthusiasts.  We participate in teams (I am a proud member of Team Stashdown 2014) and can enter any of a number of events based on a specific activity or theme.  Everyone who completes an event receives a "medal," i.e., a badge to place on their Ravelry project page.

This year, my main event is "WIP Dancing."  WIP Dancing encompasses any project that was started prior to the beginning of the Games that is finished during the Games.  My plan is to finish all five of the cardigans mentioned in my January 24, 2014 post before the Games end on February 23rd.  If that does not sound ambitious enough, I also have two other Events on my list: 

1.  Aerial Unwind

The goal of the Aerial Unwind is to frog an abandoned project.  Sometimes when a project is not working out and is not salvageable, we knitters go into denial and leave the project on the needles indefinitely rather than frogging it and reclaiming the yarn for a more noble (or at least more successful) purpose.   Those of us in that boat find motivation and encouragement in the Aerial Unwind.

Here is my Aerial Unwind entry:

It was my first attempt at making a Swirl.  Much like the story about the Precious, I was using handspun, kept running out of yarn and having to spin more, and then found out after trying on Swirls that I was making an unflattering shape for me.  My hesitation in frogging it is that it is made from three different yarns that were alternated, so the potential for tangling is rather great.  In fact, when I announced it as an Aerial Unwind entry on Ravelry, I received multiple messages of sympathy for the daunting task ahead.  Regardless, it must be done as the particular handspun yarn I used is very special to me and absolutely must be used for something else.

2.  Flying Camel Spin

The Flying Camel Spin is simply the event for spinners.  Any spun yarn started and completed during the Games qualifies.  While my original intention was to simply focus on my knitting for the Games, when I saw the name of the event, I couldn't resist.  Why?  Because I have the perfect fiber for it (which will serve as my featured stash item):

How could someone with a pound of 50% baby camel/50% silk in their stash not enter this event?  I mean really.  I don't have to spin the whole pound to medal, just one skein.  So, depending on how things go with the WIP Dancing, I think it is doable. 

While I'm not ready to report on my WIP Dancing progress, let us just say for now that things are looking good.  Loyal readers who have expressed a strong desire to see more finished projects may find themselves a little happier with me over the next week or so ;).  With that, back to knitting!





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*At last count, there were 7,232 participants
**Here is some background in this article and this one.