mystery solved!

these have been a long time coming. and think, each sock is only 1/2 a pair!

these are the mystery socks from ska, designed by verybusymonkey (ravelry link).

the way a mystery sock works, is each week, the group is given 1 clue. by the 4th week, we have all the clues to knit from cuff to toe.

i couldn't decide which yarn i liked best for the socks, so i started two different socks. and guess what, i like both!

the yellow sock yarn is a bit finer (it's knitpicks tonal sock in golden glow). the raspberry sock is a bit thicker (it's dizzy lizzie's sock yarn). but, both were knitted on 2.25mm dpns. they are also mirror images of one another (as the pattern is written).

these socks also use the technique of lace, meaning there are "holes". there's no cabling.

and, a MONSTER !

this is bea! she's from this book ...



i was nowhere near my stash, so i took a little trip to the local hobby lobby, and picked out some of their cotton yarns (as they had some really nice colors!)



and, i started knitting, and knitting, and knitting ...





i learned how to knit a "jogless jog" while knitting stripes



and i learned that i liked the lifted increase better than the kf&b when knitting with cotton ...



i still need to glue her teeth on, and stitch her a belly button, but essentially she's finished.

bea is for a swap in the Danger Crafts group on ravelry. my swap partner lives in texas, and she's knitting me a mystery monster. unless she's snooped in my project pages or blog, then this should be a surprise for her.

in the meantime, mom wants a monster too ... she picked out these greens from hobby lobby:



the lighter shade of green is also the "i love this cotton!" yarn, but it also has a strand of sparkle wrapping the yarn. (mom wanted "bling")

blue lace

i'm knitting these socks for the march challenge of ska ... one of the techniques is "lace".

i do have to pay attention to the pattern, somewhat, since every round does have patterning. to keep up, i'm using both my kacha (row counter) and magnet board.

i have bitten off more than i can chew since the new year, so it has been slow knitting on these. but, i really enjoy the pattern! it's called magic mirror by jeannie cartmel.

the yarn is also a favorite ... it's cascade heritage. it's a bit on the thin side, like lorna's laces shepherd sock. it has a nice smoothe twist. and the price is very reasonable.

SAFF socks

i bought this yarn at SAFF last october. like my brown socks in the previous post, this yarn is also miss babs yummy sock yarn.

i was so eager to knit with this colorway, that i would the hank into a ball in the car on the way home. and then i cast on my socks! and then they languished .....


this might be my last pair of spiceman for awhile. i think i've now knitted this pattern 4 times!

one pair off the needles!

this pair was the closest thing i had on the needles that i could call "mindless knitting".

i knitted this pair for ska's february challenge of "man socks". the challenge stated that the socks had to be designed with the Y chromosome in mind.

and these were .... but, i didn't want "man socks" ... so i sized them down with smaller yarn & needles.

the pattern is called twined rib socks. you can find the pattern here on ravelry. i also happy to report i FINALLY used a ball of stashed sock yarn that i bought at the first SAFF event i went to in 2007. the yarn is miss babs 'yummy'. it's a 2 ply superwash merino, and it has a nice hefty twist, kinda like koigu.

so now, when i look at this picture ...


... i can at least mark one pair off the "to knit list". (if you click on the picture, you'll be taken to flickr, and the photo has notes as to which socks are which design)

and when i look at that picture, i unfortunately realized it's missing 2 other pairs ... the jitterbug wanida socks (one knitted/finished, 2nd partly cast on) and the blue lace ones from my previous post (toe up, and i just turned the heel).

casting on

this casting on thing is getting a bit out of control. but it's so much FUN! with a new month comes a new monthly challenge. this month ... lace.

i know, that's not overly challenging for me, but i want to participate in my group, sock knitters anonymous (on ravelry).

i chose this pattern by jeannie cartmel (she's jeanniefanihi on ravelry). it's called "magic mirror". it does fit in the lace catagory, as it has the yo's and decreases. perhaps it's a stretch, since the lace isn't really the 'feature' as much as a 'vehicle' to get the pattern of twisted ribbing to shift.


i'm using cascade heritage for this project. that decision was a no brainer, as i'd just purchased it on saturday. also, it's nice and smooth, and really shows off the stitches.


on saturday last weekend, i went to a new LYS, Yarn Tree Studio. i really enjoyed the yarn selection and look forward to the store's growth (hey, this was only their first week!).

being the sock knitter i am, i was "weak" and got more yarn ... the blue cascade heritage on the left, and the golden ella rae lace merino on the right. now, the yarn on the right might end up something other than socks, as it's handwash and has mega yardage (460 yds). that would surely be enough for a shawlette.

i only plan 1 other cast on for this month ... there's also a mystery sock in this month's pot. and again, it's one of my favorite designers. that's hard to resist. i'll surely post pictures and notes, once i decide on a yarn and offically cast on.

brown sock

i've not made much progress lately. i have finished an orphan, but cast on its mate. i am very close to the toe of another 1st sock, and my mystery socks are suffering.

BUT, i've made progress on a new cast on. thus, the pretty brown sock.


it looks like a traveling stitch, but that singular knit stitch is traveling under "faux" methods.

the stich is formed this way: k2tog (leave on left needle), then, ... knit 1st stitch again ... and drop the stitch from the left needle. get it?

i'm also very please to be knitting with a stash yarn from SAFF '07! the yarn is miss babs "yummy" in colorway 'bruin'.

the sock pattern: "twined rib socks" by fkd designs. here's the ravelry link.

whoopsie!

apparently, i neglected to include the patterns for the socks from my previous post. whoops!

so, for the curious ...


this sock has been described as "pink lemonade", but it's actually called Rib and Cable Sock by nancy bush, from the fall 2005 issue of interweave knits magazine.

i have made it before, and LOVE it. and, like most nancy bush patterns, it has an unusual construction for the heel turn and the toe. but, i didn't like the heel turn, so kept that basic.

the yarn is a favorite of mine. it's called Sophie's Toes Merino Sock, and can be purchased online via Emily Parson's Etsy Shop. this particular colorway is called "daffodils and tulips".

you can see more versions of the sock pattern via this ravelry link.



the pretty blue socks in progress are the mystery sock from this month's challenge in the solid socks ravelry group. i've never done a mystery sock before, and i am actually enjoying it. it's knitting blindly!

the designer releases a clue (4 total, one each week) each tuesday. i am knitting them in tandem to avoid the SSS.

the yarn i'm using is some knitpicks bare superwash wool/nylon fingering. i dyed it on the stovetop using icing dye. i have tried several patterns with this yarn before, and have ripped them all out. this time, i'm thinking they're a keeper.

you can see more of these mystery socks in progess here.



the last sock is 'wanida' from cookie a's _sock innovation_. again, i have knitted this sock before, and i love the results! this time, i'm doing it in jitterbug. i should finish the first sock, so i can at the very least, weigh it to make sure i have enough for sock #2.

it's almost bedtime, but i think i have a little bit of time to squeeze in another episode of my current netflix series, and knit on clue 3 of the mystery sock.

happy knitting everyone!