The Rule of Four

My Damson shawlette is underway and I've completed 32 rows.  The Madeline Tosh Merino Light yarn feels really nice and is a joy to knit with.  I'm on the garter stitch section and the pattern is easy to remember.  The number of stitches is increasing quickly with 8 stitches added every two rows. 

The pin attached to the middle lets me know which is the right side of the shawl.

I'm limiting myself to working on no more than four projects.  The Damson shawlette is one.  Two, the S & S socks:  I've heading down the foot towards the toe of the first sock.  Three, the Paul Smith cardigan:  the back and both front pieces are finished.  I'm undecided at the moment about number four.  I've ordered the yarn for my daughter's Effortless cardigan so that will likely be it, or maybe I'll complete another pair of socks first.

My friends will remember "The Rule of Four".  You could only have four projects on the needles at any time.  If you wanted to start, or work on, something new you had to complete one of the four projects to create an opening for the new one.  The only way to open up a spot is to finish something, you can't just exchange one unfinished project for another.  This gives added incentive to finish.

You have to be careful when you choose your four projects.  If you pick four sweaters, or four projects requiring a lot of attention to the pattern for example, what would you do for a carry along, or group knitting, project?  If you need to make a gift, you have to plan to have enough time to make it so that it fits into the queue.  If you have four long term projects, will you be able to knit the gift in time?

I wonder how many of my knitting friends are still adhering to the Rule of Four?  I strayed from it for quite a while but now I'm back on track.

To change the subject:  if you are interested in writing a guest blog post, drop me an email and tell me a bit about your idea.  Perhaps you have something going on that you want to share, or maybe you don't have a blog but would like to say hi to the knitting world or just see what it's like to post.  Whatever the reason, I welcome your email.   joanne @ jconklin . com