Year of Projects 8 - Week 09

After ripping back and restarting the heel of the second Venetian Blinds sock, I got on a roll and finished the pair. I was able to squeak out an opposite but matching sock two with a scant few yards remaining. Although my plan involved knitting toe up so that I could weigh my starting yarn and calculate exactly where to bind off in order to maximize efficiency, that plan was derailed when I forgot to weigh the yarn at the very beginning. Luck was with me though; i wouldn't have done much better by calculation!

They are lovely finished socks, despite all those ends to weave in! A fellow Raveller remarked about the colour combo looking "beach" which I can totally see. Both are muted shades but there's still enough contrast for the graduated stripes to pop out. The Shelridge 80/20 Merino yarn is quite smooth and nicely twisted so the stitch definition is very good.

So that's my Paper Bag Project for August complete. And that's me caught up in that group too. By this time next week I'll have selected my September bag and made a plan for that. I'm tempted to cheat and make sure it's that unknown red yarn as that would suit a test knit I've signed up for. I wouldn't even have to look since the remaining bags are so differently shaped that it's not too hard to guess what's inside. The fullest bag has 4 balls of Lang Jawoll Superwash. The emptiest bag has 2 balls of CoBaSi. The flattest bag has an uncaked skein of Songbird Fibers. Yeah, I think I'm gonna select the red yarn... and now it seems almost silly to wait until August 31st but rules are rules.

With nothing left on my needles, I went ahead and cast on Nain. The plan here is to use 90-95 grams of the remaining 160 grams of Dye-Version Stretch Bamboo Sock yarn from my stash, leaving myself enough scraps to knit some very colourful ankle socks to finish it all up. I've cast on the medium size (72 sts) and am working the leg on 2.5 mm needles. Based on the suggestions in the pattern and after reviewing other projects on Ravelry, I opted for a larger needle size than my usual for the leg. This pattern definitely bunches up and the fabric is somewhat contorted, so I think the larger needles are needed for ease. Even so, the leg looks quite small and the pattern is proving to be very yarn-hungry. That's okay - these are intended for a thin-legged, tiny-footed friend. Maybe by next week I'll have a completed sock for her to try?

2018 Paper Bag Project - September, October, November and December

      Twisted Flower Socks - using Hikoo CoBaSi yarn in Egyptian Blue
      Feny Socks - using Lang Jawoll Superwash in turquoise and chocolate
      Pattern TBD - using unknown variegated red yarn
      Diamondback Socks - using Songbird Fibers Sock in Ruby Throated Hummingbird

Full Skeins from stash

      Somewhere Socks - using Mountain Colour mini set
      Pairfect Socks - using Regia Pairfect
      Mood - using unknown variegated blue yarn
      Kazak - using unknown tonal purple yarn
      Harris Tweed Socks - using Wollemeise self-striping green/gold/red yarn

Large (more than 50 grams) and Small (less than 50 grams) scraps from stash

      Salor - in various tan, orange and brown small scraps
      Vanilla Bean Striped Socks - in various colourful small scraps
      Squircle Socks  -  in various colourful scraps plus something neutral from large scraps
      Escape Reality Socks - in various colourful scraps plus something neutral from large scraps
      Bill Huggins - in various scraps
      Mosaic Marbles socks - using Langwoll Magic Dégradé scraps with black (or white)
      Checkbox Socks - using large scraps
      Stash Buster Spiral Socks - using various scraps in green?
      Hearty Stripey Socks - using various scraps
      Double Heelix Socks - using leftovers from Feny Socks
      Nain - using large scraps of Stretch Bamboo in light blue
      Jelly Rolls - using all the leftover Stretch Bamboo in various colours