sock bone connects to the ... stole bone !

girly sock #2 is underway ... i am on the gusset, so it's all downhill from here!

normally, i would be dreaming of my next pair of socks ... but, i'm not. i'm dreaming of lady eleanor. this entrelac beauty is from interweave's scarfstyle. and like all good books, it inspired an ongoing KAL that's in its second year!

... now i just need to get my hands on some silk garden! (the yarn diet is almost over)(not that i was faithful)


EDIT: after mouse left a comment, i replied to her comment with gusto! i felt the need to further explain my latest obsession ...

"you know how sometimes you're in love with something ... that's what it is .... LOVE. lady eleanor LOVE!
i saw one on a woman at my LYS last winter. i gasped! i held my breath .... and i whispered .... "oh, it's a lady eleanor". i thought i had whispered, but the woman turned around, beaming with pride and recognition.
i'm sure moments like that made her think the cost and time was so worth it. not that any of us knitters are vain (as seinfeld would say, "not that there's anything wrong with that.")
but, webs has a colorway i like on closeout.
i'm going to try and be good and only order that yarn.
i can do it.
i am strong!"

... sometimes i just don't understand myself. i'm okay with that, but i'm sure it (sometimes) bewilders others. ahhhh, e l e a n o r . . . .

one down, one to go ....

i often knit in public, and i am often asked if sock knitting is hard.

"no, the hardest part is knitting the (dreaded) second sock."

baaaaaaah !

i have sheep on the brain. i have rhinebeck on the brain. i made my reservation via amtrak tonight. choo choo ! i have some wonderful fiber buddies that i've been friends with since college (damn! almost 18 years!), which live in hudson. we're going to have a blast !

and, for some reason, i think i need a sheepyscarf. when i bought this book years ago, this was something i had always intended on making. it's knitted with brown sheep lamb's pride. can you say itchy ?! i think it will be (or some version of it) lovely in rowan's cashsoft dk instead.

but, i don't really know. maybe i'm just under the influence of something that is turning my teeth purple ?!

mean green girly socks !

... otherwise known as simply lovely lace socks, spring '06 IK. i couldn't resist casting on. i know. i know.

see what's written in the bottom right corner of the calendar page? i'm planning my great escape !

this, of course, doesn't mean i've forgotten these ....

sockyarnlandia

recognize the pattern? i'll give you a hint. i have made them before, i don't really enjoy knitting something i've knitted before, but i did want a pair for myself. this particular shade of koigu is 1230/49, but i describe it as icky-pea-soup-bronzy-green-ick, or something like that. it's really hard to describe the color, as it changes depending under which light source it's being viewed. though the color sounds disgusting, i really really like it! i'm also at the point of beginning my heelflap! the sooner i finish these, the sooner i can play with this ....



that would be my just yesterday dyed knit picks color your own merino fingering wt. yarn. they now call it "bare".

i saw this yesterday on flickr, and decided i needed green yarn too! i already had the knit picks yarn, and all i needed was the little jar of wilton's. don't stand in the way of a knitter-girl on a mission ....



isn't it just yummy ?!



the plan of course is socks ... though i have considered gloves. i am more eager to knit socks as a test. i searched the net for reviews of this yarn, and how it wears, and could not find any reviews. i did, however, find lots of pictures of beautifully dyed yarn!

small, but all ....

this is the first pair of socks i have finished in some time .... the yarn is koigu, and the pattern is sockbug's river rapids socks. i knit these on size 2 crystal palace dpns. though the stitch pattern isn't obvious, it does make for more interesting knitting. both have a tubular cast on, which is my favorite for stretchy ribbed tops, but somewhere along the way one sock strayed from the other. again, because of the coloration, you can't see how they are different. there's another view over here.

of course this leaves me sockless, so to speak, and i need to cast on for another pair, but i am having trouble with the marriage of sock yarn, pattern, and gauge. i was thinking something in a solid color, with lots of texture ... or something really colorful with ....

freestyle

have you seen this book? do you like freeform knitting & crochet ... and virtually anything from prudence mapstone? i picked this up at my LYS today. i just had to have it. i don't plan of doing this any time soon, ... but i figure when i do want to explore these techniques more that i won't be able to find this book. i already have an earlier book of hers too ....






i got two copies of this book a couple of years ago ... one for me and one for a friend. it's fantastic ! it covers most of the basics, in a striking artistic format.




and this is one i don't have, but wish i did ....

anyhoo, go and check out prudence mapstone's webpage.

i have been up since around 4am. i just couldn't sleep. i usually get up when i cannot sleep. i figure it's better to do something than to just watch the clock.

i don't mind it so much, though it does make the rest of my day feel out of kilter. what i like about the wee hours? ... the quiet. and quiet knitting.

i finished sock #1 yesterday, and actually cast on for the mate! i think i may have a finished pair soon! sock #2 is pooling. oh well. i'm already planning my next pair of koigu socks ....

too yummy to resist

i think it's been pretty well established that i have cheated on my diet with multiple offenses, but ... at least when i've done so, it was for a worthy yarn!

my latest offense? koigu ....

my LYS finally received their long awaited shipment of koigu. i saw it all spread out across a table. when i see koigu like this, it's even easier to fall for colors i wouldn't normally go for. i picked up 2 hanks each of three colorways for socks. please remind me sometime to take a picture of all the socks i've abandoned in the past few months ...! and, i cast on for sockbug's river rapids socks.



i have knitted socks from her site before ...



the picture above was a progress shot of the first of the lacy scallops socks. no shame here, i did finish the pair! ... and these too were knitted with koigu !

when i fell off the wagon the first time, i acquired some malabrigo. i used it to knit a super simple & basic scarf ... as i knitted it in seedstich, while carrying the yarn in my left hand. i wanted to learn how to knit with the yarn in my left hand, so just in case i want to knit a cardigan totally in seedstitch. i think the combination of gauge and fiber made this (so far) one time experience seriously pain free!

what's hiding underneath the seedstitch scarf? oh ... that would be the string of pearls chickami. i actually finished this days ago, but hadn't woven in the ends ... and then there's that whole thing of "what do i wear this with?!"

knitting has been spotty at best lately. i get moments here & there. and the timing doesn't necessarily coincide with opportunity. sigh ......

ps. i have another hank of malabrigo ... what will it become ?!

looky what i got !

literally, fresh from london! ms. rrrrrita went on holiday and brought me back some extremely thoughtful gifts ... rowan's latest magazine 40, and two pieces of cotton from liberty!!!! there's enough fabric to make summer dresses ....