Do you ever feel like you’re cranking out knitting projects? Like the yarn is flying through your fingers and magically turning into a garment? I’m not sure what it is about 2020, but I feel like I knitting machine. Projects are taking shape between my eyes, and I’ve been taking advantage of this sudden burst in speed.

Ok ok, I admit it, I’m a fast knitter. I’m not sure when it happened, but I will say around the same time I got faster people started telling me that I knit funny. Now, if you remember my post On Deadlines, you’ll remember that I’m not typically a fan of them. So what has me signing up for test knits and enthusiastically cranking them out?

I think part of my inspiration is coming from feeling a little bit like a knitting machine. As fun as it is to crank projects out, sometimes the speed that I’m cranking them out doesn’t match the speed in which I pick a new project. Both of these test knits came at a time where I wasn’t sure what to knit next, taking the pressure off to find something that I really wanted to work on. That and they both looked fun.

The first project I knit was Colsie. Within one repeat of the texture pattern, I had it memorized and found it easy to determine which row I was on. It also gave me the opportunity to practice knitting cables without a cable needle. Actually, I think this pattern has the potential to make really cool sleeves. (Note to self, consider making a sweater with textured sleeves)

The second project was Bulky Abate, which is the child’s version of the Ease sweaters that I’ve made previously. This knit worked up in a strange combination of slow (shouldn’t bulky yarn knit faster than this?) and fast at the same time (I knit it in three days?!). Personally, I love this pattern and was thrilled to test knit it in a smaller size/different weight than I would normally knit it.

Two projects in two weeks, not too shabby. I think it’s going to be a little bit before I sign up to crank out another test knit, specifically because I’m thinking about knitting Trevor in black and gold. Sometimes you just have to let creativity hit you and then go where it takes you. That being said, I will probably regret knitting in black the bulk of this sweater in black, but can’t stop thinking about how awesome it will look. Hopefully, that will be enough motivation as I struggle to double-check what row I’m on…