catching up!

incase you haven't heard, it's hotter than hell in north carolina. seriously HOT. so HOT it's in the news. so, my pictures today were not taken outdoors as usual. i was out earlier today, doing laundry, and then my weekly grocery shopping and errands, and then i quickly retreated back to my pseudo-AC'd cave.

it's funny though, town felt a bit like a ghost town today. that's not so unusual in the summer, as the coast is only 2 hours away. but still ... i think most folks are keeping a low profile and staying indoors.

okay, enough with the "oh i'm so HOT" rant.

socks! of course, SOCKS!

so, i finished the pretty rusty-colored pair of papaver socks ...


and i mailed them yesterday. these were knitted as a gift for someone i consider a mentor, who had a major back surgery recently, and she'd been admiring my socks for the last year. i wanted her to have something to help her "get back on her feet" so to speak. i'm certain she'll enjoy them.

because i gave them away, i wanted a pair for myself.


mine are on the left. i'm using some yarn i've had in stash for a bit now ... it's crystal palace panda silk. it's lovely stuff too! this yarn has tried to be other socks, socks that just didn't go anywhere. and now, it's found its pattern.

i'm almost finished with the first sock, and will quickly cast on the mate. the knitting is slow because i'm juggling too many projects right now.

the other sock in the photo is the test knit i'm doing for RoseHiver on ravelry. this month's challenge on SKA is colorwork, specifically fairisle. i've never been much of a stranded knitter, but, it's slowly getting easier. i find that my tension for my floats is best when i knit with my project inside out. yeah. i know.

it makes me still dream of knitting a fairisle sweater, and steeking! someday.

and inbetween all these socks, i did cast on another for mindless purposes ... another pair of jaywalkers.


this yarn is paca peds in colorway 'grapevine'. it's been in stash for awhile. i knew it would stripe in some fashion, so i opt'd for a pattern that was best for striping, the good 'ole jaywalker.

and if this isn't enough, i'm craving a sweater! last week, i was visiting my friends at the LYS. i hadn't planned on stopping by, and was underdressed for the AC temperatures. so, i ended up wearing a shop model for warmth. i was wearing this!


at first, i didn't care for it, but then it "grew" on me. it's called Canton from the louisa harding book called Chinoiserie. i'm going to knit the smallest size (finished 40") in colorway "intense" (a purplish shade).

the yarn arrived yesterday, i got the book yesterday too. needles are on order, but i did find a set on a project long abandoned. so, i'm pretty much ready to swatch. it should be a fairly quick knit as the shapes are all rectangles and the gauge is 4 sts/inch.

i'm very excited about this. it's going to be stunning!

clay socks

of course, i started another pair of socks. i've even finished the first one. and this design too ranks as "mindless knitting". the pattern is quick to memorize, and it's oh so pretty!


this is papaver sok by anne hanson of knitspot. i'm knitting the medium on size 2mm needles. the ribbed base gives it a lot of stretch. the pattern calls for a shortrow heel, but i much prefer a heelflap.


if you're wondering why the toe isn't finished, it's because i took my knitting to work and forgot my little kit with my yarn needle.

the yarn is cascade heritage. it's pretty thin, like lorna's laces. it's so smoothe it almost feels like cotton. and, it has crisp stitch definition. i really like this yarn, and the price is right too.

... and the RAINBOW socks

today, i was knitting on these outside of a panera bread store, waiting to meet up with a friend. never before has my knitting attracted so much attention. it's the COLORS. this yarn is knitpick's felici, in the rainbow colorway. this colorway is not available anymore, which is a shame. knitpicks got all "clever" and made these new colorways "limited edition".

i have made jaywalkers many many times now. it's a "go to" pattern for self striping yarns. i think it's one of those patterns that can make any non-solid yarn look good. and, for me, it's mindless knitting. i've knitted enough to know that all i need for success is:

1) cast on for the 76 st. size, but CAST ON 60 sts, work my 2x2 ribbing, and then increase 16 sts. on my last round to get the 76 sts.

2) knit on size 2.5mm needles

3) after i finish my gusset decreases, then knit another set of the double decreases in pattern on the plain round of the pattern (to make the foot a bit more narrow).

instant success and gratification.

fishes!!!

hey, i've finished one sock! i haven't started the mate yet, though i know i should. i feel a cast-on frenzy coming on, as i want to knit another 2 pairs of fairisle socks, plus a pattern by anne hanson, and a pair for a friend, and another pair for someone else ....

not to mention i still have a couple of unfinished pairs.

but, for the newest finished sock, here's my first sock of fishes!


i think i could had knitted the toe a wee bit longer before the toe shaping, but maybe the blocking will take care of that. the last pair of fairisle socks i knitted seemed a bit on the small side 'til i blocked them.

yarnwise, the first sock didn't even use up 1/2 a ball of yarn (and i'm talking about a 50 gram ball). so, i'll likely have a second ball of the 'marine life' felici yarn for a future project.

amazing! it's thundering, and i think i hear rain. it's been a long time since it's rained here.

oh, and i'm on the foot of my second rainbow sock. i'll finish the pair this weekend and post.

swim fishes swim !!!

i LOVE this sock! this is "swedish fish socks" by 'spillyjane' on ravelry. it's a paid pdf file pattern, and worth it =)

though, i've made my mistakes, i still think mine looks rather like the picture in the pattern (meaning, i am knitting fairisle socks). my colors are unlike hers, but i'm trying very hard to follow the instructions, as that's what i do when i'm in uncharted territory. (there are charts!) ... but sometimes i don't follow instructions all that well .....

this projects is totally knitpicks ! ... needles and yarns. the natural yarn is their undyed superwash sock yarn (merino/nylon) and the colored yarn is their 'felici' ... self striping socken yarn.

needles are their wooden 'harmony' needles. i knit the cuff on their 2.25 mm options needles, but the fair isle is knit with the larger harmony needles. from my limited experience, and lots of reading, i should knit the fairisle on a larger needle. it's working out just fine.

now, my floats ... i am knitting this sock inside out. that helps me control the length of my floats, especially when changing from one needle to the other.

this picture was taken with a flash, and it does not show off the subtle changes between the different shades of blue. this looks like a 3 color sock, but it's actually a bit more colored & complex than this.

the happiest sock ever!

i have finished my first sock with this felici yarn from knitpicks. i am going to finish this pair soon, i hope. of course, i could cast on for another pair ... because ... that's how i roll .....