did i mention?

... oh yeah, i finished another pair!


aren't these pretty?! i have now knitted this pattern 3 times. it's called papaver sok, by anne hanson of knitspot.

i got the yarn this past may at our local fiberfest. it's called tinsel toes, and it's by the unique sheep. the colorway is called 'prince of the wood elves', and was dyed especially for a sock club. perhaps this hank was unclaimed, or just extra.

i grabbed it because i love the sheen of a wool/tencel blend, and i loved its subtle coloring ... this wonderful silvery gray with blips and stains of greens and browns.

anne designed the pattern with a shortrow heel. i prefer the fit of a heelflap, so that's what i did ... though you cannot see it in my picture. i also knitted the 70 stitch size on 2.25mm dpns.

so, so far in this august challenge of finishing PAIRS of socks, i have now finished 8 pairs. if you're a long time reader, i'm sure you're impressed. heck, i'm impressed!

i still plan on finishing 2 more pairs ... and more if i have the time, or don't get distracted.

2 more pairs in the bunch!

i am thrilled to report that the finished sock pile is growing! i finished two other pairs this week ... actually, i just finished this pair today.


these are my skew socks which i had cast on in april for ska's "unusual construction technique".

this pattern is free on knitty.

these socks are knitted on the diagonal, from the toe up. the construction is "unique" to say the least, so you just have to trust the pattern. and i can attest, the pattern is correct. so, just trust it and knit.

i used lion brand's sock-ease yarn. i really like that yarn. i like it even more when i can buy it with a 50% off coupon! i just wish they would expand the color line. i've never seen their solids in any of my craft stores, and the multi colorways are the same as when they first rolled it out. i like ALL the colors, but i do expect a company such as lion brand to change things up a bit (more).

the other pair i finished is the honeycomb socks by mona schmidt.


these socks are knitted with the reynold's soft sea wool. it's a heavy fingering, thus the sock has fewer stitches than most of the socks i knit, and i knitted them on 2.75mm dpns.

this pattern is from reynolds steppin' out.

let's just say the pattern & book have lots of mistakes. the pattern is very pretty, but if you knit the pattern as written, it won't look exactly like the socks on the book's cover. that said, i left some notes on my ravelry project page.

i now have 7 pairs completed for this august challenge. i intend to complete at least 10 pairs. more, if i have the time. i think i will at this rate!

i am finishing my pairs!

as i posted in my prior post, i'm trying to finish as many sock pairs this month as possible. i did a lot of "homework" in july to get ready for this knitting frenzy in august. and, it has paid off.

i have completed 5 pairs thus far!


this first pair was started back in the summer of 2007. i really do love this design. it's by mona schmidt, and is called "lace and diamond socks". the yarn is reynold's soft sea wool. the yarn is inexpensive, a bit of a heavier fingering wt, and must be hand washed. i don't know how it will wear, as until this month, i'd never completed a project with this yarn.


jaywalkers is one of my alltime favorite sock patterns. i swear it can make any sock yarn look good! the yarn is by opal, and is called 'krokodil'. these are actually pretty "fresh". the yarn was in stash for many years, but i cast these on in june.


this pair has been my biggest challenge thus far. i had started the 2nd sock some time ago, and put it down, and didn't leave myself any notes as to which chart i was knitting from, or if this was considered sock #1 or #2 (different instructions for each, as they mirror each other).

it probably took about 2 evenings to get on track. the pattern is 'cadance socks' by verybusymonkey on ravelry. at the time, i had decided to knit 2 pairs, but had only finished 1 of each colorway i was knitting. now, if i really want to be a rock star, i will have to cast on the 2nd yellow sock.


this one was super duper easy. there's nothing like mindless knitting in stockinette with a self striping yarn. i bought the yarn about 4 years ago, and cast on immediately, and then ravelry came along, and i dropped my needles for another project. the yarn is by opal, and is called 'lollipop'.


and lastly, a fabulous pair designed by nancy bush, "birch leaf socks". it's from the book _a gathering of lace_. the yarn is st. ives by wendy, and ... i like it, but it kinda has a hairy look to it that compromises the stitch definition. i think it's a good yarn, but probably a poor choice for this pattern. i started this pair back in 2009.

my goal is to finish 10 pairs. it's just that the other 5 pairs may take me more time to finish .....

getting ready for august

i think it's safe to say i knit A LOT of single socks. i just can't help it sometimes. i knit the first sock, and it's fun. and then, the thought of doing it again ... isn't as fun as starting something completely different!


but, a fellow raveler, mapleweave, has propossed the challenge of completing as many PAIRS as possible during the month of august. she's a lot like me, and has a sock orphanage to rival me.

i created a new tab in my projects for this challenge. and, some of the socks may or may not get mates. some might even get ripped and the yarn reclaimed. and some ..., some will get mates.

she said i could "cheat" and start working on them now. the only goal is to complete more pairs that she does in august.

so ... i'm very committed to this challenge! it will be nice to "clean house", so to speak.

monsters!

i'm pretty sure anyone who regularly reads my blog knows i'm a member of ravelry's Sock Knitters Anonymous (or SKA for short). and, more recently, i joined the Danger Crafts group.

what i like about the danger crafts group is we do swaps! (they do kal's too)
i have never joined a sock club, or any kind of swap, before this group.

i really like this group. we knit MONSTERS. and i LOVE me some monsters! ... whether knitted, crocheted, or sewn. teddy bears? ... not for me.

my latest swap partner and i were paired up, and we both love the color green (it's a color-themed monster swap). i'm very pleased to report she got her package in yesterday's mail.

mr. postman said, "should get there by thursday". oh, mr. postman, please don't jinx me! (yeah, yah, got there friday).

i wanted to share everything i made/sent to her ....

here's a shot of everything that went into the fabulous green bubble mailer. ps. i found the bubble mailer at office depot. they had red, green, and blue mailers.

monster on the left is sammie the sock monster, and monster on the right is max the sewn monster. i made a max for my last partner, and he's just cute! the sewing pattern comes in 3 sizes. the first time (for first swap) i sewed the size small. this time, i went for medium.









i also knitted a couple of dish cloths. i first ran across this pattern in the 1st mason-dixon knitting book. but, the pattern is from Elmore-Pisgah yarns, and they call it the ballband dish cloth (click link and scroll down just a bit). i like mine a little smaller than theirs, so i only cast on 33 stitches.



i also got her a couple of fat quarters ... they were on sale at the joann's fabric store for $1 each. i used the 3rd one to make the sewn MAX monster up above.
(i actually had a hard time deciding which fabric to use for the monster! maybe next time, my next swap partner will get nothing but sewn monsters?)



THIS THRILLS ME THE MOST!
so, the same day i went and got my ice cream maker, i ran over to the nearby barnes & noble bookstore. i was looking at the page magnets, and found MONSTER MAGNETS! ... a little $ (well, for a swap, that was 1/2 my budget), but how could i not?! i got a set for myself as well =)

if you've never used page magnets, they are awesome. i use them to mark the page of my knitting pattern from whichever book i'm knitting from, or as a general bookmark. and, the backside, it says, i ♥ monsters !

candy is usually welcomed, and it was a challenge finding green candy. but, again, i got lucky ... and there is a candy shop in my city (candy shop, not a chocolate shop). they had these bulk bins, to purchase candy by the pound. i was able to go through and pick up a variety of candies in green only. the little green tin came from the fabric store as well ... i found it in the $1 bin just before checking out.

it's always great to get things, but giving is so much fun too !!!

(beer) SOCK !

when i finished my last pair of socks, i decided these pretty leftovers should become a beer cozy. i made one last year, and you know what? it's pretty handy! it WORKS! it keeps the beer cold longer, and no more drippy bottle =)

it's really great for leftovers too. it only requires about 15 to 17 grams of fingering yarn. i already made one cozy from the leftovers above, and am trying to squeeze out one more. if i run out of this yarn, then i'll just finish it off with another leftover from stash.

i don't have many beer-appreciating friends, so, i won't be making tons of these as gifts or anything ... but i do have a couple of friends that would be jazzed to have one.

the pretty handpainted socks are finished

sometimes, you get a yarn that's just all so pretty, and you kill yourself trying to find the "perfect" pattern for it. sometimes, all that yarn needs is stockinette to show it off.

i had purchased this yarn at the nc fiberfest back in may (?). this pair of socks became my "mindless" knitting ... a pair to knit on when all other projects required too much of my attention.

and now that they're completed, i'm going to have to go stash diving for another yarn too pretty to be anything else other than stockinette ......

the same day i finished these, i also finished the first of my 3rd pair of papaver soks ...




the yarn was also purchased at the fiberfest. this yarn is The Unique Sheep Tinsel Toes , in colorway Prince of the Wood Elves. it's a merino/tencel blend.

i love the sheen of the tencel. now, i just need to cast on sock #2!

happy independence day !

and, happy knitting (of course !) !!!

ps. on lucy's head is a new sock cast-on. it's a toe up sock, wendy johnson's "lacy ribs socks" from her book _socks from the toe up_. the yarn is crystal palace 'maizy' in colorway 'bittersweet'.