Archive for the 'Socks' Category
I love clogs.
And Damian loves my clogs. Don’t ask me why. He’s just that way.
Here he is with my Hanna Andersson flower clogs.
I also just bought this great pair of orange boiled wool clogs from Keen. My feet are very, very happy.
When the rains start up, I slip into my leather and rubber clogs from Lands’ End. They have thinsulate linings that really keep the tootsies toasty.
One of my sock heroes is Stacey of On and Off the Needles. Check out Turkish Delight. She also designs her own patterns—look at Nomi’s Socks and Heart Crook Socks, for two glorious examples. Her pieces just take my breath away. With only two pairs of socks to my own credit, neither in colorwork, I’m a long ways off from this, but I look at what she’s done and think, “someday…”
Now that the weather’s cooling off, maybe it’s time to pull out my copy of Socks for Sandals and Clogs. It will take a bit of courage, but I expect the results will be worth it.
November 08 2007 | Cats and Damian and Socks | 3 Comments »
And by auto-blocking, I don’t mean that my knits shape themselves automatically—I mean that I block them on my car.
If there is one thing Sparky the Stash Weasel loves more than wool, it’s wet wool, which means that blocking chez moi is out. Indoors—Sparky will be all over it. Outdoors—Sparky will be all over it. Indoors at Melissa’s home—also too much feline assistance. But outdoors at Melissa’s home—that can work. She lives in a tough neighborhood, but the parking’s in a central courtyard, so she doesn’t get foot traffic beyond her immediate neighbors. And my car, small and practical as it is, provides a big enough surface for most knit objects.
So I drape a couple of sheets across the top of it (suhtting their edges into the doors if the day is windy) and get to work.
Using a step-stool helps.
This won’t do for items that need truly aggressive blocking—there’s just not enough traction, nowhere to pin—but for cooperative knits, my wonky system works.
And here’s a look at the finished project…
… my version of Clementine worked up in three skeins of Malabrigo. Mmmmm. Soft and big and cozy and bright.
Meanwhile, sock the first has been joined by sock the second.
(If my legs look a little funny, it’s because I made Melissa photoshop them to hide my nubs.) Now that I have socks that fit, I’m afraid to wear them—I don’t want to wear them out.
October 13 2007 | Clementine Shawl and FOs and Socks | 7 Comments »
Melissa calls this shot “and the lion shall sit on the bookcase with the lamb.”
Yes, it’s one of those rare moments when a household’s worth of cats find themselves able to all just get along.
* * *
Now, by “why I am insane” I do not mean “this particular thing has just driven me over the edge.” I mean “here’s proof if you still feel you need it.” I finished my second sock yesterday. So what did I do? I cast on a shawl.
But I’m not completely insane. It’s not an elaborate, lace-weight shawl. It’s a sport-weight shawl from Alison Jeppson Hyde’s Wrapped in Comfort. If you want to see the pattern I’m using, click the “view more images” button on the link—my shawl is the off-white one in the upper right corner. Because I am apparently incapable of reading and following directions, I’m not knitting mine in sport-weight, but in Noro Transitions color 1 (go Little Knits!), which is a bulky yarn. I started out on U.S. 10.5 needles and have been moving up every ten or so rows, so I’m now to the largest lace pattern and am going to switch to size 15. The entire shawl as written is worked in less than 50 rows—I finished row 28 last night—so even if I decide to lengthen it, I should be done before the weekend.
And then I must get back to the Origami Cardi—but I needed something new to help me build up my stamina for more of the same.
October 02 2007 | Archy and Cats and Damian and Maggie and Origami Cardi and Socks and WIPs | 5 Comments »
Hooray! By ignoring the suggested measurements and working things up a good inch shorter than recommended on the leg and foot, I have produced a sock that fits me comfortably.
(Check out the boho-chic, paint-spattered artist’s-loft-floor we used for the photo shoot.)
If this sock looks familiar, that may be because it’s worked from the same yarn as my last (and first) pair of socks, which came out lovely, but not the right size. That pair is now with my mother, whose feet they do fit.
I used Sensational Knitted Socks to work up this pair, going with one of the simple, four-stitch repeats for the pattern.
While I am quite pleased with the results, Archy appears nonplussed. “Why,” he asks, “all this fuss over something a kitty cannot eat?”
I have survived the adminsitration and scoring of the first writing placement test under my watch. Once the results are transfered over into students’ records, I’ll be in the clear until November, when we’ll give the test again to a much bigger group of students. (We had just under 500 students take the September exam; we expect about three times that in November.) I keep waiting for something to spontaneously burst into flames or to discover that I’ve completely bollixed things up in some mysterious fashion that I should have anticipated, but didn’t. When I make it through a few more days with no puff of smoke or sirens or SWAT teams or whatever, I’ll feel much calmer.
The sweet kitty by my office stopped by to say “hello” this morning and was very glad of some treats and a drink of water. She didn’t mind at all when I slipped a collar around her neck, just kept munching away. I hope, I hope, I hope that she has a home and people who love her and that I’ll get a call today or tomorrow, saying “Thanks for your concern, but this kitty is no waif.” Please keep sending good kitty vibes my way.
September 24 2007 | Socks | 2 Comments »
I hope so, because we have more to drool over. Check out this lovely piece from Crystal Palace Yarns (via Knitting Pattern Central, which means the pattern is free, free, free!):
I’m not sure it would flatter me, but I have a tall, skinny sister it would look great on. I love the way it mixes the classic (cables) with the more fashion-forward (shrug shaping, cables running horizontally instead of vertically). The yardage isn’t bad, either: 845 yards total of bulky-weight (U.S. 10.5 needles) yarn for the medium size.
I am delighted to report some actual completed knitting. I finished the first sock of the pair I started on Monday and am delighted with the fit. I like my socks snug, so instead of following the recommended dimensions for my foot size, I just measured a pair of comfortable store-bought socks and used those numbers. In theory, it’s a good inch shorter both in the foot and the leg than it should be, but in practice it’s just right. (Can you hear me? I’m saying that in my very best Goldilocks voice.)
Kitchenering that sock also gave me the confidence to pull out my poor, neglected Clementine Shawl as well. The two halves are now joined, ready for blocking, then a photo shoot.
By the way, for those of you who want to know, naughty Sparky was quite sensible in his choice of a sock yarn to wrap the neighborhood with: he choose a skein of KnitPicks Essential. Cost? Only $3.29.
September 13 2007 | Cats and Clementine Shawl and Socks and Spartacus and WIPs | 2 Comments »
Here’s my latest on-line pattern find, Debbie Bliss’ Lace and Bobble Jacket (a shout-out to Knitting Pattern Central for leading me to it!).
It hasn’t bumped Jade Empire or Silver Belle from their places in the queue, but it is schooched in there right behind them. I’m thinking that if/when I knit it, I’ll omit the bobbles on the body, which look a bit lumpy, and just work the ones along the edging.
Here’s the one on-line picture of it knit up that I found at Yarn Crawl. Does anyone else have experience with this pattern?
Meanwhile, I’m making progress once again on the Origami Cardi now that we’ve hit the start-of-school-year meeting glut. Once one gets past the “Berries-in-a-Box” border stitch, there are long stretches of straightforward knitting—perfect meeting fodder. I finished about six inches during a three-hour meeting yesterday.
I’ve also cast on a new pair of socks, working from Sensational Knitted Socks and using my all-time favorite, Skacel Trampoline Stretch. I worked the first leg on Monday, the heel flap, turn, pick-ups, and gusset decreases yesterday. The very first pair of socks I knit became a gift for my mother, since they didn’t fit me. I’m hoping this pair will be a keeper. (Now I just need to remember how to post on the SKS KAL page, so I can share the fun.)
September 12 2007 | Origami Cardi and Socks and WIPs | 5 Comments »
Two! Count ‘em—two!
I am so chuffed.
April 11 2007 | FOs and Retro Rib Socks and Socks | 3 Comments »
Driving up to Melissa’s this afternoon, I passed a small, parking-lot style carnival at the local community college. It brought back all sorts of memories: going to the county fair with my family when I was a kid; my first time on various rides; the time I wanted to ride the ferris wheel and stood in line by myself only to be told I was too short when I got to the front, and the young couple on a date who invited me to sit between them so I could go; the evening at the high school carnival with a boy I had a crush on who offered to let me choose a ride, and I was too shy and too afraid of making the wrong choice and couldn’t pick anything, leaving him bewildered and with a handful of unused tickets.
I mentioned the carnival to Melissa, and she responded, “I saw it too the other night. The lights were on, and the freeway traffic was slowing down while people drove past it. Want to go?” Having long ago recovered from my high school shyness (the worst of it, at least), I was all for going.
We paid $3 each to get in the gate, then strolled the little bit of a midway and checked out the rides. I suggested we go on the Yo-Yo. Melissa countered with the Himalaya, noting that we’d be able to sit together. That convinced me.
(Note that this is not the Himalaya we rode on. We downloaded this picture from a web site that features used carnival rides for sale. Now that’s something interesting one could do with a few extra hundred grand.)
We had a lovely wild ride. We sat in a pink car and squealed and shouted “Himalaya!” over and over again, as if that explained everything. Melissa had been gallant and took the outside seat, so I was smashed up against her the whole while—I won’t be surprised if her hip is bruised in the morning.
After that, Melissa treated me to pink popcorn from the “Big Bopper” food trailer.
We did take it home with us to save for after dinner, but I confess I ended my Lenten no-desserts vow a day early in order to indulge.
Afterwards, we contented ourselve with walking another, slower lap, watching the little kids and families.
I’ve finished sock number two, and I’m working on a shawl now, while I wait for the additiomal sock yarn I’ve ordered to arrive. (The Trampoline Stretch is so nice to work with, given its bounce, that I want to do another pair or two in it before I try anything else.) The shawl pattern is from Lion Brand Yarns and was recommended by CatBookMom as a pattern she’s used multiple times.
I’m knitting mine in my favorite acrylic—Soft Delight Extremes. I’m using size 9 needles, so will have to work more repeats than called for in the pattern, but that’s no problem, since my wonderful sister sent me (at my request) a whole box of that yarn this past winter. (I know, I know… it’s cheap acrylic, but I love the colors, and it is wonderfully soft. This is going to be a very cozy shawl.) This is a great pattern for self-striping yarns with long runs of colors, the pattern is simple to follow, and working it is giving me a solid, practical understanding of how shawls knit out from the top-center work. Once this shawl is done, I’ll be able to go to my stitch dictionaries and develop my own, more elaborate patterns.
April 07 2007 | Socks and Soft Delight Extremes | 2 Comments »
Thanks to all of you for your kind words about Woody. It still doesn’t quite feel real, and it certainly doesn’t make sense. Sparky has been sticking close by, and we are comforting each other. I think he’s a little uncertain what to do without his sidekick.
Here’s a photo of my first sock.
Number two is on the sticks. I’ve finished the leg and need to get going on the heel. I love the amount of texture in this pattern (Retro Rib Socks from Favorite Knitted Socks)—and, wow!, is that rib ever elastic. I could fit Sparky in that sock with room to spare, if he were willing to sit still through the indignity of it all.
As I’ve noted before, I’m just wild about this particular yarn and this particular colorway. Skacel is discontinuing it, and Little Knits is selling it for half price. So, I went all knitter-looney and ordered a dozen skeins (but at least I’m paying directly for it and not charging).
April 03 2007 | Cats and Socks and Spartacus and Trampoline Stretch and Woodrow | 3 Comments »
As I work on my first pair of socks and go back to playing with some children’s knits I started quite a while ago, I’m simultaneously nursing the washcloth addiction, squeezing in four rows here, eight rows there. The results…
These ones are mostly for Melissa, whose bathroom features a sparkley-blue-and-cement decor. (When you’re living in an artist’s loft, pretty much every room has a something-or-other-and-cement decor.) Pattern info, left to right: “Windowpane Stripes,” found on p. 58 of Barbara Walker, vol. 1; “Yvonne’s Double Flower” from page 3 of the Washcloth Botique (I worked the last two rounds in solid blue to give it a border); “Bramble Stitch 1″ worked in two colors, from The Harmony Guide, vol. 2, p. 32; “Three-and-One Tweed,” found on p. 53 of Barbara Walker, vol. 1; and S. Turner’s “Diamond Edge Circular Facecloth” from page 1 of the Dishcloth Botique—although the cloth knit up doesn’t match the picture posted with the pattern (the cloth has rounded tips with a sort of “donut” motif inside each curve, not points).
And here’s one more washcloth that’s my favorite of the circular patterns I’ve tried.
This is the “Lacy Round Cloth” by Rhonda K. White, whose web site is KnittingKnonsense. She’s the author of Spa and Bath Sets to Knit.
I’m planning to cast on sock number two this afternoon, once I take care of taxes and a couple letters of recommendation. I’m quite pleased with number one. I wasn’t sure whether I had quite enough yarn, so I switched to a plain grey wool for the toe, which looks nice with the variegated yarn the rest of the sock is done in. I made the foot one-half inch shorter than the pattern calls for because I like snug-fitting socks, but the sock is still a bit loose. Once number two is done, I’ll carefully play with washing and blocking to see if I can tighten them up a bit. (If you have advice on this process, now would be an excellent time to offer it.) After that, I’m thinking I’ll try knitting up the same pattern on size 1 needles to see how that affects the fit. I’ve got a lovely ball of Trekking XXL in color 101 lined up for that.
This Sunday, I’ll be going to monthly yarn tasting number four at Article Pract. On the menu—Prism Hand-Dyes. Check out their coloways! I’m going to try to remember to take Melissa’s digital camera this time so I can share the fun with all of you.
On the non-knitting front, I’m trying to get an exercise routine established before spring quarter starts next week. Now that the weather’s warming up, my friend Ellen and I are going to a deep-water running class twice a week. If you’ve never tried this form of exercise, you should give it a go—it’s both a great workout and silly fun, sort of cardiovascular fitness designed by otters. You “stand” vertically in deep water with the help of a flotation belt, then jog/sprint around the pool using a variety of hand and leg motions. Since you keep your body upright, you work against significant water resistance, using your full body. You can also add underwater presses with foam “barbells” to increase the workout.
And… not only are my “boys” good at taking off their collars, they also have a real case of the wanderlust. This past week I’ve had two collars returned to me by not-so-near neighbors: one from across the street and around the corner, the other from around the block (I’m hoping Sparky and Woody got there via back yards).
March 29 2007 | Cats and FOs and Socks and Spartacus and Washcloths and Woodrow | 4 Comments »
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