Wednesday, January 03, 2007

The Socks of January

Some of you know that I was trying to finish my pullover for Christmas Eve.  Well, that didn’t happen :) I finished the first sleeve and then tried the sweater on.  It was beyond horrendous.  The decreases occurred too seldom, the stockinette insisted on folding over the seed stitch panel and the cuff (which I also did in seed stitch) made it look as though my wrist had gained 10 pounds all by itself.  Uck....

I put it aside for a while, knowing I was going to have to rip it our but unwilling to admit it was all my own fault just yet - and for a little while, I did other things :)



Cabled sock



I started these socks in October but only got the first one done.  It sat in my work basket for almost three months before I picked it up to look at the cables.  Myria, seeing this, observed, “That’s a nice sock”.  I pretty much agreed and thought how nice it would be to be able to wear them.  Of course you do usually need two socks for that to work… So I cast on the second sock and worked on it off and on for about a week until it was done :)



Cabled sock - alternate view



They are warm, comfortable and fit perfectly :) I had thought I would use the second sock to work out a little fine tuning but in the end, I just decided to go with what I already knew how to do.  The leg is a bit loose.  However, thanks to the cables having so much...body...the socks stay up just fine.  If I make this design again, I may try smaller needles or do something else to provide a slightly snugger fit.  On the other hand, the chances that I’ll make this exact same design again with the exact same cables in the exact same places is, well, pretty small :)

I also did these:



Baby  socks



...in a super soft alpaca yarn using this pattern on US size 3 (3.25 mm) needles.  The Flair pen is there for scale.  This is a lovely little pattern and you can turn out a pair of these little beauties in an evening.  I’m told that socks are much more likely to stay on babies’ feet than booties so that’s what I went for.  I’m hoping to get several pairs of these into my Dulaan bag.  Let’s face it, I’d make them anyways just because they’re so darned cute!

About now, I finally faced the unlovely music about the sweater and frogged the sleeve.  I had just had to do something constructive before doing the destructive thing of taking the sleeve out.  When that was done, I wound up the frogged yarn and put the thing away.  I wasn’t quite raady to tackle the re-do just yet…

After I’d finished up the cable socks - and I admit I hurried through the second one because I had seen the Lacy Mock Cable Socks and was obsessed :) Among other things, I had gotten some beautiful sock yarn from a friend for Christmas and I couldn’t stop thinking about making those socks with that yarn.



Lacy Mock Cable Socks



So I finished the second cable sock, worked in the ends and immediately cast on with this gorgeous, washable merino.  This yarn makes me think of a bright garden with the sun pouring down on it.  I expect I will always think of these as the summer garden socks and while I usually wouldn’t recommend working a texture stitch in a variegated yarn, this seems to work just fine :) By the way, the pattern is very simple and has a great deal of stretch built into it because of the ribbing.  If that isn’t enough leeway, the pattern is worked over 4 stitches and 5 rows so it’s small enough to be quite flexible and adaptable.

And, speaking of gifts and pleasant surprises (we were!), this came in the mail this weekend:



Tahiti sport  weight



This is a gift from the clever, color savvy, not only knitting but spinning and weaving craftsperson extraordinaire, Rob over at robknits.  Spunky Eclectic sport weight yarn in the Tahiti colorway - a rich, brilliant sunrise of a yarn :) This may indeed go for socks, but I’m going to take my time deciding and until I find something that makes me obsess - like the combination of the yarn and sock pattern above - I’ll wait.  I may hang it on the wall while I’m waiting though; it’s almost too gorgeous to hide away in a cabinet :)

Tonight, I sat myself down and worked out the necessary math to get the sleeve decreased properly and not wind up with a sleeve that stretched from hell to breafast.  Thanks to a mini-lesson offered by our own barb-in-east-texas, I believe I’m on my way.  I got going on it again a while ago and things seem to be going nicely.  I am going to finish this sweater!  I’ll keep you posted :)

Chatters is on for tomorrow night!  See you then :)

Babbled by Robbyn on 01/03 at 11:30 AM
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  1. Those socks all look great.  I love the way the Lacy Mock Cable is working out in that yarn—that was a fun and quick pattern to use.  I’ll be using it again at some point.  Enjoy the Tahitian colors!

    Posted by Rob  on  01/03  at  11:15 AM
    Location : near a sunny window

  2. If I were a sock knitter, I’d want to be like you. :)
    Bummer about the sweater sleeve - good for you in persevering!

    Posted by Bron  on  01/03  at  12:09 PM
    Location :

  3. Rob - I continue to enjoy the Tahitian colors - even though I haven’t made anything with thnem yet :) Honest to goodness, those colors are their own excuse for being (apologies to Emerson).  They don’t need to do or to be anything else!

    Posted by Robbyn  on  01/03  at  03:45 PM
    Location :

  4. Bron - The only thing I about the sweater sleeve that bothers me is that it took me so long to get back to it.  I certainly didn’t want to abandon the project, but I was kinda discouraged :)

    Thanks about the socks; I know how you feel about sock-knitting so I feel very flattered indeed!

    Posted by Robbyn  on  01/03  at  03:47 PM
    Location :

  5. Having recently found in myself an unexpected fascination with oranges and other sunny colors, I am *drooling* over those summer garden socks. Gods, that’s lovely!

    I may (may, mind you) be able to pick up the sticks again now that sewing madness is over. I cast on for another pair of socks this morning… After that suit, I *desperately* need something easy. Maybe I’ll try the kiddie socks this weekend.  :)

    Posted by Colleen  on  01/03  at  06:10 PM
    Location : Work, for another half hour

  6. ah, glad to help with the sleeve situation- i am really glad you are about to have a finished sweater for yourself-

    socks are much better on baby feet than booties- no matter how cunning the booties look, they are not as escape proof as a pair of socks- i am going to use up some of the leftovers from dana’s ‘year of pink socks’ (we’re now going into the ‘year of purple socks’ for her) for some for my dulaan box- thanks for that pattern reference-

    stay happy-

    Posted by  on  01/03  at  07:33 PM
    Location : feeling 'socki-ish' here too

  7. Colleen - Those little socks make a gratifying project since they work up so quickly and are desperately cunning!  Just the thing for you as you ease your way away from the sewing machine and back into the sticks and string thing :)

    Posted by Robbyn  on  01/03  at  10:06 PM
    Location : Swimming in the stash :)

  8. Barb - I’d be horribly embarassed to tell you how long it actually took me to figure out what I needed to know.  The math was simple and straight-forward, it’s my mind that corkscrews, I think.  But thanks again for the breakdown - it really did help!

    Posted by Robbyn  on  01/03  at  10:07 PM
    Location : Swimming in the stash :)

  9. The socks look great. Love that second pair and love, love, love that yarn from Robknits. I hate knitting socks but I love wearing them, so need to find another pattern, just finished my 4th pair. :o) My feet sure are happy.
    Good luck with the sweater. I’d have chucked it all by now. Can’t wait to see it.
    Hope to remember tomorrow night! The post-a-note is still on the laptop.
    Sheri in GA

    Posted by Sheri  on  01/03  at  10:40 PM
    Location : GA

  10. I love the blue cable socks. Glory be to cables! The baby socks are just too cute. And the mock cables are so purdy! Soo sockalicious.

    Posted by Opal  on  01/04  at  03:58 AM
    Location : Honolulu, Hawaii

  11. Oooh, you’ve gone sock crazy.  I especially like the toddler socks, which are really cute.  Your mock cable socks are looking terrific too.  You always choose such fabulous colours :)

    Posted by Pamela  on  01/04  at  02:13 PM
    Location : UK

  12. Pam - Thanks :) Yes, I have gone a little sock crazy.  I don’t expect the phase to last forever, but I’m enjoying it while it lasts.

    The colors?  Well, if I ever make a khaki or black or navy blue sock (other than as a special gift for someone who can’t abide real colors...ahem) - just shoot me :)
    knitting.gif width=43 height=29

    Posted by Robbyn  on  01/04  at  02:56 PM
    Location : Swimming in the stash :)

  13. Hi,
    Love your work and you don’t sound shy on your Blog :)

    Are those baby socks done with a DK yarn ??? I’m not familar with the brand ..
    Thanks Penny

    Posted by penny  on  01/11  at  10:13 AM
    Location : Florida

  14. Penny - The yarn I used is completely different than the yarn in the pattern.  The alpaca supposed to be worsted weight, but I don’t believe it :) It worked up much more like a DK or even a sport weight - but it’s a lovely yarn, for all that.

    Posted by Robbyn  on  01/11  at  10:53 AM
    Location : Swimming in the stash :)

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