wise men say only fools rush in

On Thursday, Ember showed me Jeanie. What happened next is a bit of a blur. Fastforward to today... 3 skeins of Dream in Colour Smooshy--Pansy Golightly--arrived from the Loopy Ewe. My planned weekend update will have to come later. No time to blog further. Must... go... cast... on...

Saggy, baggy heels

The Rivulet Socks had a very busy day yesterday. After their involvement with making muffins, they rushed off to drop off at a Boy Scouts' bake sale. They tried to go to Sunday Services, but instead wound up at the children's class. There was much 80s joy at the children's class, and the socks danced about on hard wood floors til they were weary. Then there was some Rock Lobster , and the socks danced about some more. While all the adults there, with their socks, were flopping about on the ground, "Down, down, down!" the children seemed highly alarmed. Seriously, I don't know what to think of a generation that is unmoved by Rock Lobster !

The socks went on for a busy day running errands, going out for tea, and a joyful trip to the snowy, sunny park to enjoy near-springlike weather.

I love the socks. They look fabulous. The yarn is stunning. Sadly, the heels are abominable. I will still wear them, but any further attempts at socks from New Pathways will need some serious tweaking to fit properly.

if it ain't broke...

I am making steady progress on my Rushing Rivulet socks. I will be starting the cuff after just a few more inches. I'm still pondering the picot hem as recommended in the pattern.
Naturally, I haven't worn these socks yet, though I have tried them on. They seem like they will fit, but the real proof will come in the wearing. At this point in time, I'm not completely sold on the Bordhi architectures for my socks. It worked really well for my son's socks, however I'm not convinced I need this custom shaping. These socks include increases through two-thirds of the foot! First of all, it uses a whole lotta yarn. Secondly, do I really need those generous increases? My actual foot is still getting smaller while the sock is getting larger. It makes one seriously chunky heel! I have been comparing these socks to my other socks. In the photograph below, you can see a pair of socks with a short-row heel layered atop a pair of socks with a "traditional" heel, on top of the Bordhi socks. Do I really need that much heel? My socks made with much smaller heel acreage all fit me quite nicely.

As I said above, the proof will be in the wearing, so all this pondering is purely academic at this point. In the meantime, I continue to wonder... if it ain't broke, why are we fixing it?

Rushing along with Rivulets

It just so happens that I have a lot of things I need/want to knit. Things for my kids, gifts, stuff I fancy, stuff I imagine, a couple unfinished objects, etc. I'm longing to knit up my Sweet Sheep yarn and the Lark yarn; it's just sitting by my bed tormenting me, all of it. So I don't have a good explanation why I started on these Rushing Rivulet socks. They are pictured in the New Pathways for Sock Knitters, with a chart, but knitters have to utilize the Riverbed Architecture and figure it out for themselves. The Riverbed Architecture is supposed to be nice because you can fill the socks with a pattern, right to the sides of the heels. I have never before in my sock-knitting days longed to fill the sides of the heels with pattern. So naturally I tried it. Ever since seeing the pic of the Rivulet socks, the pattern has been telling me it would be perfect with my Rio del Plata yarn. And admittedly, this sock yarn has been waiting a lot longer than the Sweet Sheep yarn.

In this pic above, you can hopefully see the V-shape that creates the increases on the sole. It also shows my markers. The book recommends letter markers. On these socks I'm using embroidery floss tied into loops. I don't need letters on my markers to keep track, and most of my markers were too chunky to work nicely with such thin yarn. But my skull markers were just perfect for keeping track of the 3 row repeats.


This second picture above shows the rivulet pattern, a basic pattern of k2tog followed by a yo.


I turned one heel today. I had high expectations of turning two, but I did a lot of Homework Mom duties, which involved many interruptions. One of the tricks I had with this sock was deciding how to carry the rivulet pattern down the sides of the socks as the increases in the sole moved stitches from the sole to the sides. I wound up tracking the increase rows in groups of four. On the third of four increase rows, I would add the rivulet pattern on only one side, on the side where the k2tog occurred within 2 stitches of the existing pattern. On the fourth increase row, I finished adding the four-stitch rivulet pattern on both sides of the sock. This is because every four increase rows meant eight stitches added to the centre of the sole, which meant I could add two four-stitch repeats on the sides. Clear as mud?


What a funky shaped sock this is!

Dashing Done!

I actually finished these last weekend, but didn't get a picture until today. I'm kinda disappointed in the finished product. They're absurdly long, both over the fingers and up the arm. They seem more like outdoor-useful than work-useful. I'm pondering making a pair of fetching for my friend, instead. On the other hand, both my children adore these and each want their own.
Pattern: Dashing
Needle: Size 8 circular
Yarn: Cascade 220 Quatro
Notes: As I mentioned in previous posts, knitting at gauge made these too tight. I had to go up a needle size and make the larger size.
Started and Finished in January, 2008.

refrogged

I'm not having much success with the Dashing pattern. This is my second attempt that has been too small. Being as it's a pattern for a man, I made the mistaken assumption that a size small would fit a woman. Knitting it at gauge was uncomfortably tight, and then going up a needle size was also uncomfortably tight. I have frogged and started over using the large. All it really adds is four purl stitches, so I'm hoping that's enough to allow these to fit comfortably. As these are for a friend who's far away, I can't try them on her and see if they'd fit. My coworker tried them on and she says they fit fine. However, I'm going with the theory that if they're tight on me, it's possible they'd be tight on the recipient, and I want these to be useful.

ahoy!

The pirate feet are complete!
It's already a blur, I can't recap all the modifications. I used the ridgeline architecture from New Pathways for Sock Knitters, with a little cable twisting up the centre panel. The charts were modified to fit my stitch count. The heel was adjusted to fit my son.

He loves hand-knit socks almost as much as I do, and because of his unique feet coupled with the facts that A) he outgrows socks at an amazing speed and B) unless I make reinforced toes and heels, he wears out the socks before he can even outgrow them, he hasn't had a pair of mama-made socks that fit for a year now. It's about time!

Live from the sledding hill

Pirate mittens, action shot.

alas!

Would you believe I ran out of yarn? When my #1Son requested pirate socks to match the mittens, I said, "I have just the yarn!" and pulled out my shepherd sock yarn bought on clearance last June. I had 2 balls of black and one of white. My decision on how to make the sock was based on the amount of yarn I had. Clearly I couldn't make the socks completely out of colour work, because I didn't have enough white. I didn't expect to run out of black. Obviously I have a very skewed sense of yarn requirements because I ran out (toe up) just before the colourwork cuff began. This precipitated an emergency run to the yarn store. "Hi, I know you sold this yarn off on clearance six months ago, but do you have anything to substitute?" The substitute looked good, but really, it was thicker. I didn't have much choice so I plugged on with the thicker black. I carried white ahead to compensate for the fact that it was a slightly thinner yarn.

Notes to self: I knit the leg in 3x1 ribbing until the point where his leg started to widen up again. I knit in stockinette stitch once around, and then started with the white stripe. When I got to the first 2-colour row, I switched to a size 6 needle, which persisted through the rest of the sock. When I started the pirate row, I added 2 stitches at the back of the sock to go to 54 stitches, allowing me to add 2 stitches to each repeat of the 16-stitch-repeat pattern. When I got to the row of white fleur-de-lis, I increased again by 2 stitches, getting the total back to a multiple of four. After the final white row, I knit one row in black, purled one row in black, and then cast off with a double strand of black.

Sock 2 needs its colourwork, and then I'll be done.

A little springtime

Thanks to springer.com, we have a little burst of colour in our office. This promotional gift arrived a few months ago and has been my job to tend. Johnny jump-ups are great in salads, but these are just for visual enjoyment

salt and pepper heel

Quick progress update... with notes that are probably meaningful only to me. I've completed the heels on both pirate socks. I'm not as wowed by the results as I'd planned to be, but I've come to accept them. At the top of the heels, the socks still fit the recipient, another fitting will be needed tonight.

To accommodate his slender foot and broad heel, I cast on and knitted up according to the midfoot measurement, 23 stitches per needle, 46 total. I started the increases early, which allowed me to increase to 74 stitches total, instead of the recommended 68. Before starting the heel, I adjusted the heel needle to 27 stitches, and then worked the heel for a target of 54 stitches around the ankle, 27 per needle. At that point, it still fit. Then I decided that to accommodate the ribbing pattern I want, I would change it to 52 stitches, so I did one more decrease in line with the heel decreases, and have knit about another inch. Tonight's fitting will determine if I can get away with 52. If so, I will continue with the 3x1 ribbing until it seems appropriate to start the colourwork again.

before and after

I have had snow bonnets on my mind, of late. I saw a college girl wearing a vintage styled snow bonnet, the big fluffy white kind with big pompoms on the tassels. Woosh! A flood of memories came with the sight of that snow bonnet! When I saw the snow bonnet in the Golden Compass, it was the perfect opportunity to create a snow bonnet that satisfied my interest in this vintage style and was something that my daughter would get excited about.
Yesterday, my coworker and I made a lunch-time trip to a nearby yarn store. I was seeking out a good worsted yarn in tan or fawn to combine with the Cascade 220 and Naturespun I already have to make the perfect colour combination. It is turning out more elusive than I expected. I spotted some Lang Naima in a satisfactory colour, 30% off. It's an alpaca/merino blend, making it deliciously soft. I held the two strands together, and swatched with the largest needles I have, a mere size 17. The pattern is written for 6 stitches to 4 inches, but unfortunately, with such tiny needles, I could only get 9 stitches to 4 inches, so I had to recalculate. I started with 45 stitches, and knit the entire yarn up, concluding that the product was too wide and not deep enough. I ripped it out and started over with 40 stitches but by that time, my arms were all sore from wrestling with these broomsticks needles and gave it a rest. Today, at work on break and again at home, I finished up. It took all the yarn I had to make the hat deep enough, and I used the tails left to make a narrow braid for tassels. I almost went out to buy another ball, just for tassels, but we're trying it as is, for now. I only had 15 inches of yarn left!

(she's also wearing a homemade dress in that photo)

Acquisitions

I made a quick trip to the yarn store, in need of one particular ball of yarn. I wanted something in the weight of Cascade 220 or Naturespun in a tan or fawn, and would you believe they didn't have anything at all close to the colour I needed? However, I made a haul in the bargain bin, 3 colours of limbo at 45% off, plus a Sarasuperwash similarly discounted. And I tossed in some baby twist for more mitten action.

Icelandic Wool!

Lookee! I won!
Priscilla ran a blog contest. And while I didn't guess accurately the number of charity items she would make in December, I had the luck of being her random winner. She sent me this delicious skein of Icelandic Wool she picked up at a fiber fest. Oh goodness, the colours are so ME! The yarn is gorgeous, but now I'm fretting. What, oh what, should I knit with this colourful delight? Thanks Priscilla!!

Me and my frogs

My goodness it was a frogolicious weekend. I started out with a pair of Dashing from Cascade Quatro. Let me tell you, I swatched very patiently, and finally concluded that I got gauge with the recommended needles, size 7. This is an odd occurrence, I usually need to knit at least one needle size larger. I selected the smaller pattern size, assuming that as the pattern is designed for a man, the large would be man's size, and the small would be woman's size. I knit quite a ways on the pair, making it past the second cable, but I finally had to admit that they were uncomfortably tight. Ribbit.

The picture shows the next effort, started today on size 8 needles. I so far think these will fit fine, but I will know for sure after some cabling happens.



On Sunday, discouraged from my Dashing failure, I worked on the pirate socks I've been struggling with. These are for my son, who has difficult-to-fit feet. I know this from several sock failures. I measured carefully, and compared to Cat Bordhi's sock size tables in New Pathways. Turns out that his heel size is appropriate for his foot length, but his foot width and ankle width are slim. So socks designed to fit his ankle and foot width come up too small around the heel. I started using the recommended numbers for his midfoot, hoping that if I made nice and stretchy ribbing, it would fit. I knit 10 rows of 1x1 ribbing, and then had him try it on. It went over his heel, but just barely, and obviously no colourwork would fit. Ribbit.

After a great deal of thought, I decided to try a toe-up variation, allowing me to make sure the foot fits, and then play with the leg size. I followed her directions for what she calls the "standard toe". She uses this toe with the 2-colour socks in her book. The formula called for starting with 7 stitches per needle. However, after knitting 3 inches, I tried it on him, and discovered that the toe was way too pointed, and not flexible enough at all. He would have a sticky-outy-flap of toe scrunched up in the end of his shoe. Not good at all. Ribbit.



Next up, I started with 13 stitches per needle. I was so happy with the first toe that I started a second one. When they match, I'll knit both socks together. Although in the picture, the smaller toe is incorrect and it has now been picked back a row.

Swatch, Bordhi Style

 
This picture shows a swatch done as recommended by Cat Bordhi in New Pathways. She suggests casting on the stitches on two needles using Judy's Magic Caston and knit from there, making a little pouch. If you need to change needle sizes, you knit a purl row and then keep knitting on the new needles. For reasons I can't properly articulate, this caston works best for me. Casting on a circular tube or doing that trick where you leave a huge strand in back so it's like you're knitting in the round but you only knit one direction, both those swatches leave me terribly impatient before I have satisfactory results. Somehow knitting a little pouch allows me to measure the gauge before I get too impatient to continue.

I would also like to point out the needles in the photo. That circular needle is built from my brand new Knit Picks Options needle set. Woohoo! So far I'm very pleased with the needle set. The cables are great, just like the fixed circulars I have from knitpicks, and the joins are perfectly smooth. The needle shown is actually assembled with one size 6 point and one size 7 point. I was at first concerned that one set of each size might not be enough, and soon devised a method to have two needles of the same size. I put the required size point on the active needle, and a smaller point on the passive needle, and it works just fine. In the case of this photo, I'd been too lazy to change both tips when I moved up a size.

New Year's Eve Knitting

 

I'm close to completing mitten #2. However, notice in the picture, the two mitten tips? They don't quite match, do they? When reading the pattern, I read to knit until 14 stitches remained. I interpreted this as 14 stitches per needle, although that seemed like too many stitches per needle. I actually closed it at 11 stitches per needle, but it didn't close very nicely. Later I realized I was supposed to close it at 14 stitches total. Oops! In my defense, I looked at other patterns, and they instruct until 7 stitches remain per needle. So it is confusing, I say! After closing mitten #2, I redid mitten #1 to close the same way.

Oh yeah. Happy new year! Happy 2008!

A letter to a witch

Dear Bellatrix,

Yes, you are the Dark Lord's most fervent supporter. And yes, you tortured Alice and Frank Longbottom into insanity. I should have known you would do the same to me.

It started with such infatuation. From the very moment I saw your pattern, I knew I had to have you. I sought out yarn with high and demanding expectations, and when I finally found the perfect duets, I wasted no time in bringing you to me. And of course, I wasted no time in casting on. From the moment the yarn arrived, it was pure infatuation. Just you and me.

But you know that infatuation never lasts. First I found you snuggling with my cat. My cat, Bella! And then I discovered how difficult it is to love a crazed Death Eater. You could not allow the knitting to be easy, could you? Was it so important to be your disruptive self that you would interrupt your own creation?

Then we had the cooling off period. I know you hated to be set aside, but I needed to breathe, Bella! I needed some space away from your insanity. A month apart, and I thought I could face you again.

But then when I returned, Bella, you were not forgiving. So vengeful are you! Even after you were completed, you were nasty to me. You came after me by trying to strangulate my legs! You forced me to undo the bindoff, and redo it, looser, less dangerous. And even that, you thwarted. The new, looser bindoff took the last of the yarn alloted that sock. Even after I unravelled a row! And thus another month passed by.


Have we finally reached an agreement, Bella? A truce? An understanding? Dare I hope, a rekindling, even? You are as beautiful as ever, and your dark energy brings a new flavour to life. Will I be wearing you, Bella, all the way to St. Mungos?

Yours always,
Knitika

Little Socks Dos

How very complient of me, I knitted both the learning socks as instructed in New Pathways. These are knitted from Happy Trails sock yarn in Raspberry Jam, knit on size 6 circular needles.

Meet NanC

At last! phanC has a new twin. Her name is, of course, NanC.
Her braids were added around 4pm on Christmas Eve.

After the braids, I started on her dress. I wanted to use the green Fearless Fibers, but I didn't feel like I had enough time to knit with size one needles and complete a dress. So I started swatching with 2 strands held together. I had no idea how that would affect gauge, so started with size 3 needles, which was way too small. By the time I was up to size 5 needles, I was impatient to get started, so I just went ahead with that, but I could have surely knitted it on larger needles, especially the skirt part.

The dress was what I was knitting on until 1am, Christmas Eve/morning. There is a reason why the dress is not longer.

NanC's Dragonskin Dress
Yarn: 2 strands Fearless Fibers held together
Needles: Addi Turbo Circular Size 5
Gauge: 6 stitches per inch
Pattern: Cast on 39 stitches, join in round
Row 1 bodice: k2,p1,k2,p28,k2,p1,k2,p1. place marker. This indicates start of round, and centre back of dress.
Row 2 bodice: k2,p1,k2,p1,k26,p1,k2,p1,k2,p1.
Repeat row 2 until bodice measures one inch.
Row 1 skirt: k2,p1,k2,p1, (k2, make 1 purl in bar between stitches) repeat until you arrive at the purl stitch. p1,k2,p1,k2,p1.
Row 2&3 skirt: (k2,p1) repeat around skirt
Row 4 skirt: (k1,y0,k1,yo,k1, make 1 purl in bar between stitches, p1) repeat around skirt
Row 5&6 skirt: k5, p2, repeat around skirt
Row 7 skirt: (k1, yo, k3tog, yo, k1, p2) repeat around skirt
Row 8&9 skirt: repeat row 5
Continue to do row 7-9 until skirt is desired length.
Bind off using a double crochet bindoff.

Explanation of k3tog: slip one, knit 2 together, pass slipped stitch over

Little Sock Uno

I have seen Cat Bordhi's New Pathways for Sock Knitters on many knitter's post-Christmas blog report. I actually received this pre-Christmas, slid it in on top of some holiday shopping. I find it a very stimulating and exciting book. I've been fired up to knit some of these socks, but naturally I need to finish up the holiday knitting. Like the alpaca mittens.

However, there were some pre-Christmas events when I couldn't knit on the gift knitting for fear of spoiling a surprise. That's when I started on the little learning socks. I first used the leftovers from the cranberry hat.



My initial reaction to knitting these patterns? I love it! Her heel is awesome. It incorporates a classic knitted heel, but there is no picking up gusset stitches. Let me say that again. No Picking Up Gusset Stitches. Not only do I dislike picking up gusset stitches, but I'm not happy with the results. My fabulous Lithuanian socks wear so comfortably, but have a huge row of gaps along the gussets. Next up I need to make some adult sized, so I can see how the feel in everyday wearing situations.

Turns out the leftovers were only enough to make one sock. That's okay. I learned a lot in the making, and I was certain a use could be found for a singular baby sock. Indeed, it is so! My daughter is babysitting Molly, who sustained grevious injuries in a fall last week, while Molly's mistress is out of town. The sock is perfect for a little patient with one leg in a cast.

One hand clapping

I completed one Alpaca mitten before the gift-giving event was upon us. My good man is so familiar with me and my ways that I didn't even need to explain why he only received one mitten. He was very pleased to learn that it was made from the yarn he sleuthed out for me in Lima. Mitten #2 now has its cuff complete. I'm just not knitting quite so fast in the post-Christmas haze. Especially since I had to return to work on Boxing Day. *grumble*

How to drive a young teen crazy

Wrapping has become a bit of a Deal at our house. It involves a lot of decoys and deceptive packaging. For the past three years, I have employed legos in packages of things that don't rattle, specifically to mislead my curious son. This year I didn't bother, simply because it's been done too much.

For the past several years, I have employed mostly cloth gift bags, and for a few years, I had the goal of making a couple more each year. My use of cloth gift bags has unfortunately declined in recent years. Investigative and curious adolescents are more dangerous for gift-secrecy-security than toddlers ever were. I wrapped most gifts inside boxes and inside paper, because paper provides the best (though certainly not fool-proof) tamper resistance. I looked at all that paper under my tree that would soon become garbage, and resolved to find other ways to wrap any remaining presents. One, a set of special game cards, I taped to the bottom of a box that was on its way to the recycling, added a jingle-bell instrument, taped shut the box, and put it inside a cloth bag. Another, a gift of action figures that would rattle most suspiciously, I wrapped inside a sheet, which I then wrapped inside another sheet, and then another, until I had it plump enough to fill a t-shirt. The suspicious rattling was completely muffled, the wrap job was precarious enough to be entirely tamper-evident, and as it turns out, it drove the young recipient mad. As Christmas approached, he got more and more worked up about the contents of that t-shirt. Come Christmas morning, it was the first he opened, with the jingle-package being the second.

Just wait til next year, my young son..... muahahahaha

Labrador Mitten

Another work-in-progress, cast on this morning. I'm using the yarn brought from Peru, an undisclosed blend of alpaca, wool, and cotton, and the baby twist I got from the mitten swap last winter. The pattern is the Labrador Mittens in Favorite Mittens. The Peruvian yarn is fuzzy and lacks stretch, 2 qualities that are unfamiliar to me. The mittens seem quite nice, though, if fuzzy, so I'm hoping they'll work out.

Pirates--The Finished Object!

Pirate Mittens!
Pattern: From Hello Yarn
Yarn: Black Cascade 220 and Knitpicks Bare
Needles: Size 8 and Size 9 circulars
Modifications: Inner cuff, as described earlier.
Started: Oct 11, 2007
Finished: December 22, 2007



Gracious, it was a rocky journey for these! I decided in early October I would make these for my #1Son. My first attempt was way too small for him. I set that mitten aside, though it was recently finished, and started a larger pair. This mitten was knit up with a tragic critical flaw, and was cast aside. Just last Friday did I get back to it, and this morning I knit the last thumb and wove in all the ends.





Look carefully at that picture of the palms, above. Do you see any inconsistency? I only saw it when the mitten was finished. It's going to be a proud part of the mitten, that screaming little detail that says, "MADE WITH LOVE BY MOM." Did you need a close up of that?