Frustration

No pictures to show you, just a laundry list of complaints, about me mostly. I have several projects in the works, but can't seem to make any progress on them. Or when I do manage one step forward, I end up two steps back.

First complaint goes to the pair of baby cable socks I am trying to knit for my SO, but I can't seem to get past the toe. I like to knit both socks at the same time, trading off between them, to avoid the dreaded Second Sock Syndrome. Since these are in a solid color, I am working from both ends of the skein. This has bitten me in the butt, as I found an error in sock #2, but later when I tried to fix it, the error was gone... because I was looking at sock #1. I only discovered this problem because I had been working the cable stitch all the way around the TOE UP sock, which meant there were cables on the sole of the sock. Ripping back is what revealed the sock #1 and sock #2 confusion. Now I feel like starting over from scratch, just for the psychological relief of feeling like it's a new project, not a bunged up old one.

Second complaint is for the windowpane dishtowels I decided to weave on my 24" rigid heddle. Half the warp is not tight enough, for one thing. For another, I can't seem to beat the cotton/linen blend yarn hard enough to get squares instead of rectangles. Fortunately, I stopped after about two inches of weaving, so I can unweave, then retie the warp better. I just don't want to.

Clamped to my diningroom table is my inkle loom. I warped it quite a while ago, to practice some techniques, but can't seem to get going on them. I whipped out several inkle projects when I first started weaving on this loom, but now that I am trying something new, it feels awkward and is not going well. Also, pick up - my eyes may be too old for this skill.

Also squatting on the diningroom table is my SampleIt loom. I have been practicing some tapestry techniques on it, things I need to know before I start the next tapestry weaving project I have halfway designed (mostly in my head). The SampleIt is not the best loom for this task, so I am struggling a bit, especially (AND AGAIN) with the warp tension. More awkwardness.

One big and long overdue knitting project is a poncho I started several years ago. I think my notes are good enough that I can pick up where I left off, but I never do. If I don't get going, poncho season will be over.

At least the spinning is going okay. I took some handspun to a recent spin-in to be evaluated by the woman who serves as my spinning enabler. I feel better about my skill level (good but not perfect). I also received a good tip from another spinner, which immediately improved the yarn I was working on there.

Winter is coming, gardening season is drawing to a close, so I must, must, MUST put aside resistance and fear of failure, and forge ahead with needles and looms. Any advice?