more socks ....

... because i cannot reveal the "secret project" for christmas. so, we'll just have to look at socks, and maybe pretend they're christmas stockings.

today is thanksgiving day, and i'm thinking about christmas. go figure. i am always looking ahead. and maybe that's why it takes me so long to knit socken mates, because after the first sock, i'm looking to see what else i can knit on.

though i should be knitting the mate of my montgolfiere sock, i've had the bug to knit socken mates. making mates for orphans should never be dismissed. the poor orphans have been orphans long enough, and there are others much older ... waiting.

but, i have finished two pairs of socks, by merely knitting 2 socks. i like that.

first up, i finished the lovely green goblin socks (sometimes known as 'rick' from _sock innovation_).


they were fun to knit, and it's even more fun when you don't have to think, because you can just look at socken #1 and know what to do next (other than following the chart). and i feel they're rather season appropriate as they're very "christmas green" with the diagonals of candy canes. they'd make a great gift for someone, but i am way to selfish to give these up.

as soon as i kitchner stitched the toe on the green socks, i cast on the mate of my old "pillars" socks. these are from the summer of '08. i finished the first sock on a trip to mexico, and never bothered to cast on the mate. why, ... who knows !


they are crazy pretty ... i LOVE the yarn ... it's colinette's jitterbug in colorway vincent's apron (i think). anyways, the yarn has a great twist, and amazing stitch definition, not to mention the fabulous semi-solid variegation. i love semi-solids.

i've been waiting a long time for a day like today ... a day with no commitments, and some sunshine.

ps ...

... i finished these too.


this is "jules" by kate blackburn. the yarn is knitpicks stroll handpainted in colorway tea party. these will be a christmas gift.

blogging in my head

sometimes, i do all the things i should do for the blog, such as knit the project, take pictures, download/upload, move on to the next project, post pictures to flickr, update ravelry, and then i forget to actually post the information on my blog. oops.

i was talking with mom this morning and telling her about my green socks, and i said, "they're on the blog" ... then it occurred to me that maybe they weren't on the blog yet. yeah, another "oops".

that said, there has been progress! i finished the first montgolfiere sock.


when i finish the pair, i will be blocking these. they need to settle down a bit. there is a gauge difference from the sole stich pattern and the instep, and the instep is rather lumpy. but, it will be fine with a good blocking.

i am very pleased with how this sock looks. i'm just not quite ready to jump into knitting the mate yet. i am thinking i will save that event for the weekend.

in the meantime, i sort of needed a small project to carry around in my purse. i actually picked up an orphan from the summer, and cast on the mate to my green goblin socks (otherwise known as "rick" from cookie a's _sock innovation_). i knitted the first sock in the summer for a kal on ravelry. once the kal was finished, i never went back to knit the mate. but i decided it would be good to knit on it as a mindless knitting project.


i started the mate on the 11th, and finished yesterday. but, i will have to wait until the weekend to take proper finished pair photos.

i might actually be enjoying this single sock knitting. i have quite the stash of orphan socks, so just knitting one gives me a pair. that i like!

since i finished the green socks, i did pick up another orphan ... pillars. this lovely sock had its first birthday back in august. i figured this one would be rather painless to knit, and mindless as well. and i have already decided on my next rescue ... hedera from 2007!

sock challenge

each month in ska (sock knitter's anonymous)(ravelry link), there is a challenge. this month's challenge includes a technique (mosaic or slipstitch knitting), a mystery sock (which includes the technique challenge) or a designer (this month is chrissy gardiner). i had planned on doing a sock by the designer, chrissy gardiner, since i really wanted to try one of her socks from her _toe up_ book (and use the work sheets to get a great fitting reverse engineered heelflap sock).

and then i started looking at mosaic patterns. that's when i found this pattern, montgolfiere, by stephanie van der linden. this pattern had been in my queue for a bit, and i had forgotten about it.


i went digging in the stash, and found some rowan true 4ply botany. this yarn has been discontinued for some time. sometimes when a yarn is discontinued, it seems a bit more *precious* as it's highly unlikely i'll come across it again.


i am enjoying the knitting, though i do not look forward to the mate. this sock is not mindless, and requires constant attention to the chart. even with all this chart chasing, i still have made mistakes. so far, i've corrected the ones i've discovered.

this sock is going to be quite cushy, as the bottom of the foot is quite thick. i even turned the heel with two strands held together so it would be as beefy as the rest of the sole.

and the not so challenging ...


(unless we count mere finishing!) i pulled these out the other day, and it seemed all i had left was a bit of foot and a toe. it amazes me how long such a simple task is left unfinished for months, or years.

this yarn is a favorite of mine. it's paton's kroy sock yarn. you can find it in craft stores. it's inexpensive. and it's a work horse yarn. it's a bit heavier than most fingering yarns i've knitted, but it still makes a great socks.

this pair is going to be a gift.

want to wear the wool!

it's slowly coming along ... this cardigan (scroll down). i started it a couple of weeks ago, and like most projects, progressed nicely. of course, there's always a point where i have to stop and think (is it long enough before the armhole shaping ?). plus, there's not much knitting time anyways.

nevertheless, i am committed to this project. i keep thinking how nice it will be to wear when finished. the yarn is cascade's ecological wool. it comes in giant hanks. this might only take 2 hanks, possibly some of the third. i am still on my first hank of yarn (wound into a fat cake) and am part way through the armholes.

the yarn is very soft, but doesn't like to be ripped and reknit. the twist isn't very tight, so it gets kinda fluffy when overworked. guess i'll have to work harder to pay attention to my knitting.

i started with the back, and am still on the back. i will likely knit the fronts before the sleeves, though i wouldn't mind some mindless stockinette sleeves.

a project like this could inspire some button shopping too ....

proof

... that i have been knitting. i typically carry a small project (ie: socks) with me in my purse, just incase .... you never know when you'll have a spare moment, or stuck waiting in a line, or traffic. and just when you don't have such a project in the purse is exactly when those moments strike.

yesterday, at saff, such a moment occurred. i was waiting in a longish line at a booth to pay for my new sock book, _the enchanted sole_. mom was off watching a felting demo. i unzipped my bag, stuck my book into the bag and pulled out my sock knitting. i actually made some progress without making any mistakes. and, i chatted with the couple standing in line before me.


i was knitting on the mate of this sock. i am getting close to the heel too. and this is my mindless project for now. i'm doing a pretty good job of project monogamy. with the hours i am working, the only way i will ever have finished projects is to not have too many wip's.

though, i am awfully tempted to cast on something new with the new stuff i got yesterday!

edit:

whoops! i just realized in never even posted this when i originally cast on ...


the sock is jules by kate blackburn, and the yarn is knitpicks stroll handpainted in colorway 'tea party'. i am using 2.25mm dpns, and knitting the smaller size with the 60st cast on. to fit me better, i probably should had added 4 more stitches. that said, these might end up in mom's sock drawer.

SAFF

wow ... 20 days since my last post. what have i been doing? ... barely knitting, and working lots of overtime.

i have been feeling deprived of yarn and knitting time, needless to say. but this weekend, i made up for that and traveled across the state to SAFF. this was my third year attending, and i will certainly go again next year, and the next year ....

i'm gonna cut to the chase and just present the loot.


this was purchased before lunch. if you click on the picture you can access the notes with all the yarn information.

i did have a budget. i had taken a small wad of cash. i was doing pretty good in the beginning, but then got kinda anxious that i might blow my cash, so i started to swipe the credit card instead. i'm not going to add up the purchases though, because i got all that i wanted (well, except for a really pretty hank of $56 creatively dyed yarn).


after lunch (sitting in the back of mom's minivan with the hatch up ...) mom and i headed back for more.


while making this purchase, i ran into one of my favorite bloggers, cristi. she was hanging out in the knit witch booth. mom and i were admiring a beautiful sock (rav link)(and i happened to have the very same yarn in hand) that cristi had knitted. and as if this yummy sock yarn wasn't enough, i also got the pretty blue lace yarn.


there were also some non-yarn purchases. i've been wanting some shawl pins, as i am wearing my shawls a lot more (since the office is cold). i found this wee 1.25" x 1" enameled black sheep by gita maria. it's light weight and the dark color will make it more incognito on some of my shawls.

the other shawl pin is a pretty walnut stick pin which i found in the knitting notions booth ...



and then there was the book!


i have her first sock book, _the ecletic sole_, which i've yet to knit from. BUT, i will. and now i have this one, with some really pretty patterns.

and lastly, there was art. i saw this artwork last year, and wanted the actual paintings, and passed on the prints. but this year, i decided to get a few prints, as they make me laugh.


these are printed reproductions of the paintings by artist conni togel. definitely visit her website to see more of her fabulous art.

all in all, saff was great. the weather was perfect, and for the morning part of the the day, the crowd was light. it would be nice to go back tomorrow, but i might be out of money anyways .....

socks for the fall

it's not officially fall yet, but i've experienced some mornings that have been on the cooler side of brrr !

in my sock knitting (ravelry) kal's, it's getting harder to consider knitting a sock with a lace pattern. my most recent cast on is solid, but still with a textural interest ....


i love this combination! this yarn was bought by my buddy corbett a couple years ago at rhinebeck. the yarn came without labels, so who knows what the fiber content is (i'm guessing superwash wool)(though, i will handwash, because guessing is not good enough) ... yardage, or anything !

what i do know, ... i have 2 50 gram hanks, and it's pretty. so, i am knitting toe up, as to not worry about running out of yarn. i am knitting jeannie cartmel's starflower socks. her pattern is rather "loose", so i'm essentially using her chart, and will decide soon about the heel construction. she uses a shortrow heel ... but i don't like for my socks to feel tight across the instep, so i'll be using some form of a gusset heel w/flap construction.

the stitch pattern isn't very elastic. it fits fine now on my skinny foot, but i might have to go up a needle size when i begin my gusset increases.