Work-in-Progress Wednesday

Over at the Socktopus KAL on Ravelry we are knitting Mince Pie Mayhem socks from December 1st to January 31st. I've finally cast on and made a start.

As written there are small, medium and large sizes knit on 2.5 mm needles knit over 72, 80 and 88 sts respectively. After reading the comments in project notes on Ravelry I decided to cast on 80 sts and work the sock on 2.25 mm needles. So far I've found it necessary to shift down a needle size on every pattern in the book to get a nicely fitting sock, but now with this sock, the sock might end up small. It's really quite amazing how much the fabric is condensed by the criss-crossing twisted stitches. Still, it fits over my heel, ankle and leg, so I'm continuing as is.

The yarn is a colourway called "Big Red Barn" from Wandering Cat Yarns. Every year I knit a pair of red socks for a friend whose birthday falls just before New Years, so this yarn was the perfect choice. It's Alley Cat sock which is a light fingering - nice tight twist and not splitty. With this many twisted stitches, that "not-splitty" part is a must. And with this dense a fabric, the lighter the yarn, the better I think.

That's it for me, this work-in-progress Wednesday. I've been finishing up some other projects to show on Friday, all with a view to ending the year without any WIPs on the needles. So far, so good. As you can see in the photo, it has snowed AGAIN and there is more and more snow in the forecast. Can't wait to see what my drive to work is going be today!