Year of Project 5: Week 21

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

Yeah, I'm late with this post. Feels like I've been running a bit late for the last couple of weeks. But I'm happy to report that things are getting done and by next week I expect to be mostly caught up. At least that's the plan for now!

I've finished the second pattern for the Cookie A Sock Club October shipment - Love Me Tender. It's a pretty typical cuff down cabled sock with "lace" columns tucked between the cables. The cable is worked across 9 sts, accomplished by cabling six in one round, and then cabling another six a couple of rounds later. It's a pretty dramatic cable, that's for sure! As for the lace pattern, I worked the YOs through the back loop to close up the holes, so for me these lace columns are more a pattern of travelling stitches.

It's a nice enough pattern, although I don't much like the stockinette bands at the beginning and end of the instep stitches. And it was a fairly tedious knit. Still, it's a very nice pair of finished socks... although I wouldn't voluntarily shell out USD $6.50 for the pattern. Never mind my whining; just one more shipment and two patterns left in the Club year.

The yarn is Twisted by Studio June and it's fabulous to work with. The colour way is one of my faves - Turquoise - and the subtle tonal variegation plays very nicely with the pattern. If you're looking for some stash enhancement, check out the Black Friday Sale at Studio June Yarns ... 40% with coupon code BLACKFRIDAY40. If your willpower is at low ebb, then DON'T LOOK!!!!

The plan for the rest of this week is to finish Gavin's socks - pictures in the next post -  and make some progress on Clandestine sock two. We had snow on the weekend and I woke to icy roads and sidewalks this morning so it's been an abrupt shift from our week in Florida. Time to plan the next getaway!!

Year of Projects 5: Week 20

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

This blog post is actually mislabelled. Absolutely nothing has been done about my Year of Projects list in the last two weeks; not more than a handful of stitches. Oh well.

Gavin and I spent most of last week in Cocoa Beach, Florida. It was unseasonably warm with hot sunny days in the eighties and nineties - which suited Gavin just fine - and we stayed at a Motel that was right at the ocean - which suited both of us just fine. It was a great week!

The highlight of the week was meeting Dee of Tangled Up in Sticks and Strings on Wednesday. Dee's mascot Flo had some influence in choosing my gifts, I'd guess! There's a beautiful skein of Lorna's Laces in a "Flamingo Stripe" colourway along with a Florida flamingo-themed mini Starbucks cup ornament. Too cute! And so appropriate too, because if you follow Dee's blog you'll know about Flo the Flamingo and you'll know that Dee likes her 'Bucks!

While visiting with Dee we visited Knit N Stitch in Cocoa Village - where I came away with more yarny goodness - and lunched at Pub Americana. It was all fantastic. As a vegetarian I'm very appreciative of a pub where you can pick your own protein! I had a Portobello burger, if you were wondering. Gavin and I also each enjoyed a pint of Oatmeal Stout craft beer from the Cocoa Beach Brewing Company. That was fantastic too... so good in fact that it prompted a visit to the Cocoa Beach Brewing Company tasting room later in the week for more!

If you had asked me yesterday I'd have told you that I was considering the Vanilla Latte pattern for that skein of Lorna's Laces. But today I'm feeling more inclined towards Mystik Spirals. I love the last pair of Mystik Spirals that I knit from scraps, but I think I'd love the pattern even more in self-striping yarn. Fun!

While at Knit N Stitch the staff directed me to a selection of locally dyed yarn by The Fiber Seed. I picked out a short-striping "Hollyhock" colourway. No pattern in mind yet, but suggestions are welcome!

I had another skein from The Fiber Seed in my hands, but when Gavin pointed out this ball of Fame Trend I went with that. It doesn't look or feel like sock yarn - it's very soft, seems underspun and has a very fuzzy halo - but it's very similar to Katia Darling from which I knit one of my very favourite pairs of sock ever, so I'm optimistic. I picked up a set of bamboo needles - which made it through airport security screening without any trouble - and cast on a pair of simple ribbed socks. I can't wait to get these socks on my feet!!!

Looks like there won't be any progress on my Year of Projects list this week either!

Year of Projects 5: Week 18

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

For most of the past week I've been knitting baby sweaters. I bought three balls of baby yarn, which is enough for 9 sweaters (3 pink + 3 blue + 3 grey) so that's the plan. No point in having leftover yarn. These little sweaters knit up so quickly that it hasn't even started to become tedious yet, even though four are done and a fifth has been started. My cousin's husband leaves for England at the end of November so I've got just over three weeks to complete and deliver them. Shouldn't be a problem.

Aside from baby cardigans the remainder of my knitting time has been devoted to the second pattern for October from the Cookie A sock club - "Love Me Tender".  I turned the heel and started on the foot last week at work. I'm hoping to finish sock one today so that the coworker for whom this pair is intended, can try one on. I'm not entirely sure of her shoe size so I'm not sure how long to knit the foot. I'm knitting this pattern pretty much as written other than I'm working the YOs through the back loops to close up the holes. It'd be lovely to get these off the needles and gifted before my vacation week after next, but that might be overly ambitious. We'll see.

And with baby cardis and Love Me Tender socks taking priority it looks like Clandestine will remain on the back burner for another few weeks. No deadline to complete them though, so I'll pick them back up once I've cleared the decks again. And I'd better start thinking about a vanilla sock for charity for November as well. Right now I'm leaning towards Vanilla Latte Socks in a self-striping yarn or Betula Socks in a solid colour.

It's been a lovely mild morning so far and it looks like a beautiful fall day is on the way, so I'll be outside enjoying it! Have a great day!

Year of Projects 5: Week 17

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

In the end I decided to be matchy-matchy in the yarn sequence for my scrappy Mystik Spiral socks. The first sock was so busy looking that I didn't want to add any more busy-ness. As well, I thought that matching the stripes would help make the mirrored spirals more dramatic. I'm happy with the way they turned out!

I can highly recommend the pattern, though it'd be better in self-striping yarn than from scraps. Although I love the socks on my feet, my scraps didn't knit to a very consistent gauge and as a  result the socks look lumpy and uneven when not on my feet. These are headed to my sock drawer rather than charity as I'm not entirely happy with them.

Late last week my cousin shared a Facebook post wherein the Diana Princess of Wales Hospital in Grimsby, England asked for hand knit cardigans for the preemies in their neonatal ward. Grimsby is her husband's hometown and he's headed their to visit his mum in a few weeks. After poking around on Revelry for a suitable pattern I settle on this one. Goodness it knits up quickly! Looks like I'll have several ready for him before he boards that flight! And just look how cute it is ... although it's a bit worrying that something that tiny would actually fit a child!

As mentioned the October patterns for the Cookie A sock club were released, and thank goodness, neither of them were bed socks. The designer admits that the luxury yarn wasn't likely to make durable socks, so with that I posted the yarn for sale within the group and sold it within minutes. At least I recouped a small portion of my investment!

I cast on and knit a pair of socks roughly based on one of the club patterns - "All Shook Up". As written the sock features a false seam down the back of the sock and the leg patterning tapers off to a V at the top of the instep. Instead I opted to knit the pattern seamlessly around the leg and continue the pattern to the top of the heel flap and across the instep to the beginning of the toe. It's a very simple pattern of knits and purls. Nice enough, but it wouldn't have been a pattern I'd choose to purchase and knit.

The yarn is from Shelridge Farms - 80/20 fingering in an "aubergine" colourway. The colourway is quite dark so the pattern is not as obvious as it might have been in a lighter colour. And the darkness of the yarn made it somewhat unpleasant to knit. I'm glad to have it knit up and out of my stash!

The other October pattern for the Cookie A sock club is "Love Me Tender" which is another simple pattern, this time with columns of cables and lace. I've picked out a light turquoise yarn for this and have knit most of the first leg... but more on that next week! And hopefully Clandestine sock two will get some love too!

Year of Projects 5: Week 15

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

Wait... what? Where'd that pair of Vanilla Socks come from?!

Well ..... the other day I was designing a custom t-shirt for my brother-in-law and discussing with Gavin the size of the blank t-shirt I should buy. Gavin inspected the design, decided he wanted one too, so he said I should buy TWO blank t-shirts, size large.

No, I responded, I have a 50% off coupon for ONE regularly priced item; I will be buying ONE t-shirt.

However, at Michael's I find that the t-shirts are BOGO, so two t-shirts it is, but what to do with the 50% off coupon?

A few minutes later, I'm in the sock yarn aisle with a ball of Kroy Grey-Brown Marl (166 yds) in my hand imagining it paired with a single orphan ball of Kroy 4ply (203 yds) in my stash to make a single pair of socks.

And voilà, a pair of somewhat striped vanilla socks were the result... as well as a t-shirt for my brother-in-law and a matching t-shirt for Gavin. Win, win, win.

Aside from those vanilla socks, I've also made a bit of progress on Mystik Spiral Socks. Sock one is almost done. If I follow the pattern as written it's half a dozen more rounds on the leg and then a cuff. Hmmm, won't that be a bit short? Right now I'm thinking about making the leg a stripe or two longer and then making the cuff a bit deeper than written. The colour scheme of these socks is pretty crazy, but I'm kinda loving the result. For my next pair - and I'm pretty sure there will be a next pair - I think I'll reel off smaller balls of scraps for narrower stripes. I think the spiralling will look even crazier with more stripes.

Clandestine Sock Two has been largely ignored. Maybe next week? Probably next week! I'm house-sitting for my sister from Tuesday to Thursday, and likely commuting back and forth to work on transit, so I expect to have lots of time to knit.

In other news the yarn for the October shipment of the Cookie A Sock club has arrived. The yarn is gorgeous, but I'm not too sure about making socks from it. It's Paulie from Shalimar Yarns - a fingering weight blend of merino, silk, cashmere and camel. Will it be durable enough for socks? Won't the socks be too warm? How well will those fibers wash and wear? My inclination at the moment is to trade or sell it for something more suitable for socks. What do you think?

The club patterns come out tomorrow. I have a terrible nagging fear that the pattern will be for bed socks. Fingers crossed that I'm wrong.

Year of Projects 5: Week 14

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

I haven't taken a recent photo for Clandestine, but I did pause for a photo after completing sock one. The sock is intentionally snug on my foot as the pair is intended for someone with smaller feet and skinnier legs than me. But it's a lovely sock and the yarn looks quite showy and peacock-like. Fun!

Sock two is on the needles. It's going to be a bit of a slower go, I think, as I have to reverse the charts to mirror the foot for the right sock. I might have to make photocopies to cut and paste the charts into the new order to get it right. Too much of my knitting time is distracted - it's an error waiting to happen if I don't take steps now.

And it seems like everywhere I look on Ravelry and in the blogosphere I see Mystik Spiral Socks, so I just had to buy the pattern to cast on a pair for my October charity sock. The pattern is written for self-striping yarn, and I did look online at a couple of suppliers to see if there was a stripe pattern that caught my eye, but in the end I've decided to create the stripes from scrap yarn.

With spirals created from short rows I wasn't confident that I'd know where to switch colours, so I've reeled off mini-balls from various scrap yarns, each about 4.5 yards for nicely even 8-9 round stripes. As I knit one mini-ball I put a matching mini-ball in a ziploc to set aside for sock two. Sock two might be matchy-matchy, but maybe not... I'm making this all up as I go along.

It's a pretty fun knit and a nice change from the Vanilla Bean Striped Socks that I've knit for the last few months. I'm already poking around in my sock yarn leftovers to plan the colour scheme for the next pair. The Warm Hands Network has their next shipment planned for January to a school in Kugluktuk which is on the shores of the Arctic Ocean - socks for school age kids are the highest priority!

Year of Projects 5: Week 13

KNIT. SOCK. LOVE. : BFF • Clandestine • Cusp • German Stockings • Gothic Spire • Hedera • In and Out • Lissajous • Marilinda • Mona • Monkey • Pointelle • Rhombus • Sake • Stalagmite • Stricken • Thelonious • Twisted Flower • Wedge

COOKIE A SOCK CLUB: June #1 • June #2 • August #1 • August #2 • October #1 • October #2 • December #1 • December #2

VANILLA SOCKS FOR CHARITY: July • August • September • October • November • December • January • February • March • April • May • June

As it turns out, these In and Out socks were a super quick knit! Seems like I had barely cast on before sock one was off the needles, and sock two wasn't far behind. Of course, with nothing else on the needles I knit them monogamously, so that surely helped. And I was motivated to finish them before I saw my sister this weekend - so that she could deliver them and save me the postage.

The pattern photos in the book didn't do anything for me - the samples are knit in such dark coloured yarn that the pattern all but disappears. Flipping through project pages on Ravelry suggested to me that the socks were best knit in a solid or semi-solid light coloured yarn. I had worried that this Smith and Ewe fingering might be too busy, but once knit it looks fine.

Once again the legs are a bit shorter than I'd like, but this time I did remember to lengthen the cuff. Going forward I'm really going to have to give some thought to adding a vertical repeat to the legs of Cookie A patterns to make the final sock proportions more to my liking. Maybe the designer's feet are tiny compared to mine and the proportions suit her rather than me?

One detail that I really like is the way the heel pattern starts at the center back of the leg and then spreads out and down the heel. No abrupt end to the leg pattern at the start of a heel flap. Nice!

So what's next? I was trying to decide when I saw these Clandestine socks amongst the project pages on Ravelry. Wow, look how nicely the variegation distributes itself in the shell patterns of this pattern. It looks very fluid and interesting! And don't I just happen to have some variegated yarn caked up and ready to knit?! So Clandestine jumped the queue and hit the needles. I'm almost twice as far along as the photo shows and thoroughly enjoying it. Can't wait to show you more of them next week!!