They Talk About Us

1 pr socks 2 go

2006-05-01T21:45:00.000-04:00

Finished knitting!! I was worried at first - the second sock is a bit smaller than the first, even though they're the same number of stitches. But I think they'll be okay once I block.

The finished socks:I love them! My feet do, too. They couldn't resist copping a feel....or two. They're definitely digging the handmade sock thing.

The specs:
Yarn: Koigu Kersti Merino Crepe
Pattern: Basic Ribbed Socks. A great pattern for my first pair of socks.
Needle size: US 5 (3.75 mm)

Heels on Wheels

2006-04-29T21:45:00.000-04:00

The heel has been turned, and thank goodness for that! I think heels are the most difficult parts of socks, though short row toes are the same. This was my second try - the first was too narrow - and I'm hoping it's fine.

After this picture I finished about half of the foot on the way to and from the bookstore, where I got Stitch 'N Bitch. I keep hearing good things about this book! I have some new stuff I want to try as soon as I finish this sock.

Hip to be Square

2006-04-25T20:38:00.000-04:00

Finished another square with some neat, funky yarn, but forgot to take a picture. I'll post up a pic of the yarn as soon as my camera finishes charging. --Edit: finished!
I'm currently working on the second sock for my Sockapaloooza pal. I've finished the cuff and need to brush up on short rows before I begin the heel. I hope it won't be so confusing this time around!

...Action!

2006-03-24T23:58:00.000-05:00

Wow, it's been a LONG time since I've updated! Unfortunately that's because I hadn't knit anything until now. It was the dreaded second sock syndrome, I fear. (Also I couldn't find the notecard with my row count, but that's mostly resolved.) I was depressed because the fuzzy red scarf I have been working on for my aunt has come to a screeching halt. I tried to take it back a row and now cannot find the loops of the yarn. I can't pull it out anymore, either, because the fuzziness has tangled everything. I probably ought to buy three new rolls and just throw away what I have now, but it seems like such a waste when the scarf is almost completely done. At least it's a fast knit.

Today I update with a pic of a square I sent for the February exchange of Stitch-My-Square, which is a really cute exchange of 8"x8" squares. Presumably I could do a whole bunch of these and make a blanket.

My square is made of worsted weight Red Heart "Blueberry Pie" yarn (I got tons of this for Christmas. Great name!) and is a really simple pattern. For a couple weeks I thought about colorwork, but I could never actually make it work, so I'll be saving that for later.

Here's the square I received:
Isn't it pretty?? The yarn is really nice. And the edges of the square don't curl up.

It Just Goes On And On (x4)

2006-02-13T18:59:00.000-05:00

Finished the first sock!

It looks rather weird. It looks better on, I think, at least on my little brother's foot, which happens to be close to that of my sock pal. I hope I'm okay going with just a K2P2 ribbing.

Sock Challenge: Part 3

2006-02-12T13:56:00.000-05:00

Finally finished the short rows for the heel! And went on for the foot, too, since I could.
Now I'm mostly worried about making this the right length. Last attempt, I started the toe too late - at 8", or something - and it was over 10.5" when I need it to be 10". This time I'll try starting the toe at 7".
The ribbing makes it look a bit odd, I think. I hope my sock pal likes ribbing. *crosses fingers*

Next Stop on the Sock Journey

2006-02-11T12:28:00.000-05:00

Yes, still working on these short rows.

I finished the first sock, but the short rows were ugly (and came out bigger than I expected, so the sock was too big, too.) I also had a good deal of yarn left over, so I frogged it and used my extra yarn for cuff. I also decided to try ribbing down the entire sock.

Now I'm back at the start of the short rows for the heel.
Last time I tried yarn-over short rows and came out with big gaps, so this time I'm trying the Sherman method, as on Hipknitism Basic Ribbed Socks. I'm having trouble with the encroachments - I've already had to rip back this heel a couple times, and now I'm back at the beginning. Oh, well!

Knitting > Sleeping

2006-02-02T02:38:00.000-05:00

Whoever said short rows aren't hard lied.

My seventh (?) try:
From a very awkward perspective, but you can at least see my attempts at short rows. It still isn't quite right because I ended up with one more stitch than I started with, but I think I'll keep knitting this for now and fix it later. I'm not sure how much ribbing I want to do yet, anyhow.

I love the way the yarn is coming out, though!

SockapalOOOza!

2006-02-01T21:50:00.000-05:00

Sockapaloooza has begun! I'm quite excited, not in little part due to the fact that I finally get to use this great yarn:
My first ever nice-yarn buy, Koigu Kersti. It feels so, so nice. I know because I'm now wearing my swatch, which doubles as an arm band:
The color is not near as blue as this pic suggests; it's actually got a large amount of purple. (I hope my sock pal will like it!) I'll try taking a pic in better light when I start making the socks.

Now it's time for my least favorite part - doing the math for the pattern. :-/

Dad's Scarf (Yes, it's done!)

2006-01-31T17:10:00.000-05:00

I finished this a couple days ago and got around to posting pictures. It's just been sitting on my desk all this time, which probably isn't a good idea if I don't want him to see it, but it's nice to look at.
Here it is all folded up:

And here it is spread out:
Next I'd really like to knit a sweater, but I'm not sure what to use for yarn, so we'll see where that goes.

Dad's Scarf (Take 2)

2006-01-28T12:25:00.000-05:00

Still working on this scarf. This time I'm trying vertical stripes in garter stitch by knitting it lengthwise. I was afraid it wouldn't be long enough, but I ran a line through and it's almost too long. I've just got left the two rows for the stripe and then two more rows of grey and bind off.
It looks so funny on the needles - I get a lot of What are you doing? but it's just a scarf. :D

Friday nights are reserved for knitting

2006-01-21T01:20:00.000-05:00

I'm working on a scarf for my dad, whose birthday is coming up. His request (when I questioned him) was very specific - masculine pattern, a yarn that feels nice, not too long, not too wide, not too thick... and he doesn't want it to look hand knit. He suggested I work at a very small gauge.

This is what I've come up with so far, but I don't like the way it's turning out. It's my first attempt at Intarsia, and I think I'm going to switch to US8s - 5s are just too small. Hopefully the next time around my diamonds will look better, too.

Pictures!

2006-01-15T16:23:00.000-05:00

So I finally got around to hooking everything up, and I've got pictures! I haven't found all my knit stuff from last month, yet - it seems to be scattered about the house by the ungrateful recipients - but I'll post pictures of those once I find them.

This is my first crocheting attempt, before I learned to knit.

The yarn is some cheap red acrylic we'd had around the house for years and years. My stitches are really uneven and the scarf is of varying widths because I didn't count how many and just kept going. But it was a good learning experience.

This is the second sock I ever made and therefore MUCH better. I tried to put in a contrasting color for the toes, heel, and ankle, but I wasn't sure when to start for the heel and it looks pretty stupid. Still, good learning experience.

This yarn, however, is absolutely terrible to wear. It's 100% acrylic sport weight and only pretty to look at. So this sock doesn't get a mate.

Here's a hat I made out of some multicolored Red Heart yarn, displayed on a stuffed animal.

And that's all for today. Happy knitting!

Merry Christmas!

2005-12-26T23:23:00.000-05:00

Christmas was nice; I finished the knits for my main family members and received two more knit requests. My dad got a hastily knit bookmark, my mom a potholder, my brother a scarf, and my littlest brother a hat. (The hat was the best.) I'll post pictures once I figure out how to work my camera!

I've now been asked to knit a bookmark and "just something" and I think my mom wants a multi-colored scarf, as well. I also received tons of purpled worsted weight yarn with no directions - but I think my mom wants us to crochet a blanket together.

I knit another hat yesterday before and after the dinner affair. It's very bright! I was going to wear it myself but my family keeps asking who it's for, so I may give it to someone instead. I want to make ear flaps for mine, anyway.

Happy holidays!

All The Knit Are Belong To Us

2005-12-23T22:08:00.000-05:00

ZOMG, I never thought I'd start a knitting blog. Of course, I didn't see myself as much of a knitter until Dec 3rd, when I bought some needles and went into overtime. To date I have knit a scarf, a sock, and a stuffed animal (or, rather, person, since I didn't finish the ears before I had to give it as a present. She liked it, anyway.)

The Family has caught on to my new obsession and now, unfortunately, expects lovingly crafted handknit presents for Christmas. (Ohdear.)

We'll see about posting pics of what I manage if I get that camera I've asked of Santa.