Knitting -- using up yarn

So I have yarn from a project to make myself some fine-gauge cotton sweaters for warm weather, and turtlenecks to wear under them in cool weather. And I had leftovers from the ones I already made, so I did this:

Yes, the patterns are identical. Both of them work pretty well, but the one with the tan background (the seller calls it parchment) shows all the subordinate colors better IMHO. (p,s, it's a sweater, I photo'd the back to make clear that the patterns are the same.) The black, brown, navy and dark green don't show well against the hollyberry background. On the other hand, I was going to use a sort of pale lilac for one of the light colors and it was invisible with the tan so I used something else.

The star motif is my creation; the other motif is from Mary McGregor's publication of the Robert Williamson 1920s Fair Isle motifs that he collected from the women he sold yarn and things to.

I used the tan sweater to practice Continental hold. You need it in Fair Isle designs to hold one of the colors, usually the non-background color. But when I tried to purl in only one color using Continental, my left hand always cramped up. I'm much better at it now.

I wore the red jumper to go to and from the auto shop on a day when it was 40s and strong breezes. I often use the tan sweater to warm my feet if I decide not to wear socks. I want to unravel the neck rib and add some rows to it that the jumper has. But I have other leftovers to use up.