ravellenics

The start of another Olympics can only mean one thing to an obsessive knitter: it's time for Ravellenics. In case you are not a knitter and unfamiliar with the event, it is a personal knitting challenge, to be chosen by the knitter according to skill and time, and completed during the Olympic games.

Spotted at a Walmart, made entirely out of cases of soda.

Coke gets mad props for this.

Now, lest you think that this is silly and who could possibly participate, at last count there were over 7,000 people signed up on Ravelry to take part. The "event" is so big that use of its former name, which I cannot mention here (except to say that it was a combination of the words Ravelry and Olympics), was banned as a result of a cease and desist letter from the IOC. That's right. A little knitting fun and games became the target of legal action by the International Olympic Committee.

So onto my personal Ravellenics. It is my own version of the triple axel, focused exclusively on finishing three works in progress: one very old (over two years), one somewhat aged (over six months) and one of recent vintage.

The first project is my color work mittens. Right now, it is only one mitten, without the thumb. If I had finished them several months ago as hoped, they would have been crazy warm during the polar vortex we "enjoyed" the past four weeks. Heck, if I had finished them two years ago I could have had two good years of use out of them by now! Never mind. I'll have them done for next winter.

Second project is my little brown vest. I don't know why I am knitting cotton sweaters back to back in the winter, when I should be all about the wool, but that's how the projects roll around here, all impulse and no practicality. It is halfway knitted at this point. I hope to have it completely finished by the end of the games. This is probably the easiest of three, because there are no seams and very little finishing required.

The last project, of course, is the mystery knit-a-long shawl. I still haven't started clue four. As a matter of fact, this week has been so crazy, that I haven't knitted one stitch on any project this week. Still, I hope to finish all five clues and bind off the shawl by Sunday February 23.

The suggested time to start your Ravellenics project is while watching the Opening Ceremonies. I was nowhere near a television at any point during this day. However, I did manage to knit will sitting on bleachers and observing a sporting event.

Iphone couldn't capture fast runners in relatively low light.

It could somewhat capture knitting on my lap.

I think this counts in the general spirit of the games.