Simple Holiday Socks

The koigu bit/'monster' socks are complete! These are all ready wrapped and under the tree. The recipient gnabbed them out of my bag when they were on the needles a few weeks ago and made sure to show me that they were a perfect fit. (Almost like this person knew they were for her.)

These are the first pair of socks I've knit on 2 circulars with US 1s. They both have a crease up the sides from the needle switching. This goes away after their first wash.

It's amazing to look at left-over sock bits in balls, then see them when knitted together. They look entirely different~ I thought the blue would blend better with the yellow/orange sections. I could have blended them together a-la-Charlotte Web style, but there were tens of ends to weave in as it was. This wouldn't be a big deal if the first 4 colors didn't blend well together. Ahh, well. knowledge for next time.


Last winter I knit the first sock below-- "Bittersweet" Lorna's Laces Sport on US 1s in a 4x1x1x1 rib. I pulled it out of the sock drawer of shame last week and have knit about 1/2 of the second. So far, so good. You know, knit bright colors to dissuade Seasonal Affective Dissorder and all... :)
Unfortunately, I've added to the drawer in recent history. If the color wasn't as bright, one might not have noticed it's departure.

Plastic Chucks

Chucks
Originally uploaded by MamaHippycrite

Found on Flickr.

How cool are these? What a great way to show off your handknit socks!

There's zero support so some of us will never be able to wear them, although they're 150% more interesting than other similar (unnamed) products on the market.

The Wait

I know, I know-- it's a little late to talk about Thanksgiving. My regrets.

Here's a quick account of an extended family "up North" at the cabin.

Can you see the time on that clock?

This was 10:14 on Thansgiving day. Yep, the turkey still was not dethawed.

For some, the wait for dinner was unbearable.

"Big Boys" took to playing with leggos.

We couldn't serve roast Bryce, so we decided to play a few games and knit for awhile.

(pre-felted clogs make great hats)And then, well.... we had a late liquid lunch.

What else could we do?

Even the neighbors got into the act:The kids drank responsibly... milk and chemicals only.
Finally, dinner was served.

Brent's tummy grew two sizes plus one:

It was a Thanksgiving full of lots a' love.

and a wee bit of snowy exercise.

My 'feminine' bed was quite enticing that night.
We stayed for a few more days. Similar events occured over and over again.
It's a haul back home-- so we had an early drive home once the weekend was over.

Everyone's looking forward to our next holiday together.

Potpourri- Jeopardy Style!

I've been out of town for the past few weekends, and haven't had a lot of time for a decent post. So, here's a mis-mash of knitting-related stuff. be forwarned: picture heavy!

Wisconson Roads

Kinneared photos from the road just over three weeks ago. E and I went to the North Shore on the Wisconson side.

Retreat at the Nunnery

The only photo I took!?! Here's Marge (feet only), Amanda (knee) Chell, and Deb M. at our all-knitting, all-relaxation weekend.

Cathy and Chell have great posts from the event. Check em' out!

Bella Lana

A new knitting store popped up in Minneapolis called Bella Lana. (Beautiful Wool in Italian! It's located right next to the Minneapolis Aveda Institute-- perfect for a morning of pampering and yarn shopping!)

I just loved their white-on-white asthetic! Well worth checking out if you're in town.

Angela's Crazy Amazing Socks

Angela's slipper socks on pointe-- she has knit over 100 pairs of crazy socks. I love how she arranges her stash by color, then knits whatever she chooses, whenever she wants~!
These are both stashbuster socks. Three strands of sock yarn are held together and knit on US 4s or 5s. More of her socks to come.

Favorite Etsy Sellers

First, there's Pigeonroof Studios. I love her dyework soo much that I almost don't want to tell you about it! Everything is gorgeous. Competition is fierce. I've purchased 4 oz. of roving only... and I'll continue to watch her shop closely.

A new favorite is Twisted Fiber Arts. Meg is a fabulous new indie dyer. If you click over to her site, you'll see that she dyes hand-striping yarn that verigates within each stripe. Time-wise, her dyework must take forever! (An assumption after reading Eunny's loooong process for self-striping yarn dyeing.)

I couldn't resist ordering a skein in both the Rodney and Netherfield colorways. She added the wee skeinlet for free!

Recent Projects

On the left, I'm still plodding along on the koigu bit socks. Two at the same time seems to take f.o.r.e.v.e.r. Looks like they're going to be a holiday gift.

On the right, I've started a Felted Stained Glass Fan bag. It's a lovely pattern-- and I just love how the bottom looks like a rose window from a cathedral. Yarn is Plymouth's Boku #5 from Sheepy Yarn in White Bear Lake, Mn.

Shawl meets Sock Kong x2

Comfort ShawlLast week I mentioned a co-worker that didn't have the same test results that I did. At the age of 26 she found a lump and was told it was nothing. A few years later this single mom discovered her doctor was an idiot. She's now in the midst of battling stage four breast cancer.

I decided to knit a soft, easy-to-wear shawl for her. As written, the Shetland Triangle Shawl in Wrap Style can be knit with only three balls of Elann's Pure Alpaca. It's a quick and easy project-- perfect for upcoming holiday knitting!

I added an extra repeat and needed to use part of a fourth ball.

Check out Brooklyn Tweed's version to see truly fabulous photos.

Sock Kong (times two) Gunifer appropriately called my sock-work-window photos "sock kong"(s) in a comment about a month ago. I just loved it! I'll probably continue to take these photos, as I fight with decent light for knitting projects through the wintry months. (Also, it's just easy!)

So, here's the latest mix: Take koigu left-overs or bits, and arrange to your liking. Cast on using Judy's Magic (fabulous. you've gotta try it!), and you're off and running to the races!

These are 72 sts. on 2.25 circulars.

Gauge- approx. 10.5 sts/in.

I'm working on ball 3 of 6, but the first two were pretty tiny.

A Good Day

Morning hours spent here:Result: Whew! I wasn't due to start mamograms for about ten years, but I found an abnormality.
The tests weren't as horrible as I thought, but I am a bit sore.
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Tonight: stress-free knitting once again!
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Since I didn't have to wake up as early as usual, the morning light was perfect for photos of recent projects.


During the shop hop three weeks ago I couldn't resist a skein of Silver thaw (Noro) after a fellow attendee called the colorway (ahem) "gay". Well, I now have a beautiful and cheery reversable and double-thick hat to keep me warm while waiting for the morning bus this winter.


M, I'll wear this hat with pride!
Hrm. I'm thinking about giving it to her as a holiday gift... what do you think?

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On Monday I started the purple shawl blob below with a little alpaca in the stash. It's a project for a co-worker who unfortunately did not have the same test results that I had this morning.

18

The "Single Sock Liberation Movement" on Flickr makes me laugh. I laugh because it makes all too much sense to me.

Like some of you, I have a hard time staying motivated to knit a pair of socks-- you know, one right after the other. I'm prone to getting really excited about the idea of the project. A particular yarn, colorway, and stitch pattern will cause bizarre elation and joy. Some of you might call this the 'lust' stage of knitting.

Knitters like to categorize themselves as process or project people. Perhaps I'm a planner.

Strangely, I've finished another pair of socks. #18

For some reason, Claudia's yarn *has really pulled me in. (Perhaps it's the gorgeous dye work and v. tightly spun superwash merino.) I've finished two pairs within two months. This has got to be some kind of personal record!

*Claudia's Wollmeise now subtracts VAT for US orders. Skeins can be purchased at 12 Euro, so if you order five at once the yarn plus shipping is only $21.40/skein.