back to the drawing board

One of my goals for this season's Southern Summer of Socks was to do some of my own designs. So far this has worked out well. The footies in the sea cell and Charlie's Sock, both shown below a few post, worked out well and I was pleased. ihave lots of ideas crowding around in my head but I thought I would try something different.
One of colours in washable merino was called Spring. Subtly varying shades of greens.

I wound it yesterday and thought that the colour looked like Granny smith apples. Never mind that apples are autumn fruits and the wool was called Spring! LOL. I sketched, then charted out an apple. I'm not at all capable at drawing, never have been, but an apple can't be all that difficult. I made a lovely picot hem with one of the neatest hems I have ever done and set about the apple. One on each of four needles, done in purl against the stocking stitch background.

Hmmm, not quite what I was expecting. I turned the sock inside out and it looked a bit better in stocking stitch against a purl background. Perhaps it would look better in moss stitch, that may stand out. Perhaps a lager apple like clocks up the side of the sock. Anyway, I was not happy and have frogged the sock.

I'll let some ideas run around in my head and try again. I know I could have done a swatch. That would have been about as much effort as working on the sock. If it had worked out, I would have been ahead.

Off to console myself by drooling over some of the socks on Ravelry now, as if I didn't have enough stitch books of my own and ideas too, as well as numerous sock books.

I'll show this yarn who's boss

I decided I would not let my twisty yarn beat me. I cast on again and knitted slowly, taking care to avoid twist. This colour is so fresh, I really love it. As I knitted I was thinking of names for the socks. I had decided on Granny Smith socks because of the similarity to the colour of those apples.

I wear a lot of footlet type socks so that's what these were planned to be. New technique to me for the short row heels. I usually double wrap and pick up the wraps and knit them together with the stitch. This time I followed someone's suggestion of picking up the wraps from the knit side only, knitting the stitch by itself and then passing the loops over. Picking up from only the knit side makes both heels identical but was a PITA to do on the purl row.

Round the heel and back down the foot. Lovely even stripes. Then I noticed the pooling starting. I don't mind some, but not with those lovely, even, narrow stripes. So this yarn is going back in the stash, pronto. It may be a hat or scarf or something, somewhere well down the track.

I'll finish the second sock I'm doing for my youngest grandson and add to Christmas presents.

pass the slipped stitch over

the flood dries up

i suspect everyone will be a little relieved to hear this, but i give up. On the sullivan's sock yarn pomatomas anyway. I got guage, it looks nice... it's not the most enjoyable thing i've ever knit but it isnt boring...

the yarn is hideous. i can say it. full of guard hairs, scratchy, stiff and then there's the colour bleeding onto my finger tips. ew.

so yes, it shall be frogged. i think i will skein the yarn and then give it a good wash to see if that makes it a little softer. after that? i give up.

And you know what? i dye my own sock yarn, what the hell am i doing buying a cheap commercial immitation of what i can do for myself?? nuts, totally nuts i am.

Also, i have a question. If we knit half a sock and then end up frogging it, does it count towards our total? or if we count it in the first place do we then have to add a -sock to the week in which we frog it? because i tend to count my socks by halves as that seems to be their natural breathing space...

Peace out,
Ms Spider

come to my pity party

A question before the whine...can anyone identify these needles? I was hoping to buy needles from a particular vendor at the Spinners and Weavers Day. However she wasn't there this year. Two years ago I bought some vintage needles from her, small dpns. As I walked down Burwood road a couple of weeks ago after leaving the Open Day, I saw these needles in a tin in the local Vinnies. There were eight of them, five yellow and three pink. They feel quite bendy and flexible and I wondered how they would go. They weren't dear at all so I bought them all. To my surprise, I really liked them. They are too long and I'll have them cut down, but they feel good to use, almost like my favourite casein needles. They look oldish plastic, have quite a bend to them but knit well. These are equivalent of 3 mm.
Now I bought this wool at the Open Day. it says 5 ply crepe. Certainly crepe finish but I think it resembles the thickness of Lion Brand Magic Stripes more than 5 ply. That would make it 6 ply, American sportweight. The needles shown are 3.0 mm and the fabric is very firm.

This is the spring green colour I wanted when I made the brown Zokni socks. I loved it and bought it immediately I saw it. Not expensive, but not cheap either. 200gm in hank which wound well. I tried two different patterns but frogged them both as the design did not show up well. I decided to let the colour speak for itself.

Now for whine #1. The wool is splitty, no matter what needles I use. It's as bad as the Wildfoote luxury sock yarn which makes beautiful feeling fabric but splits constantly. I've done several pairs of sock in Wildfoote and vowed never again.

Whine #2. I could sort of put up with the splitting of the wool, but I have another problem. It seems to be badly plied. If I have more than about a handspan of length of wool between needles and ball of yarn, that length immediately folds up on itself and twists as if making a twisted cord for a belt etc. If I disregard it for a few stitches, it seems to easily fall into a knot, or if I pull at the two sides of the twist, another knot forms. I need more yarn than 9" to work with an even tension. Is this a problem with the plying? I'm not a spinner although I do have a traditional Ashford wheel and did some many years ago.

Is thre any way of fixing this or of handling the yarn in a particular way so I can use it? Or do I just put it down to experience and put it back in the stash. It might work if crocheted but I'm not about to try that in a hurry either. I have the seller's email and a webpage on Ozemail so I could contact her about the wool, but thought I'd ask here first for ideas.

pass the slipped stitch over

Spinners open day and more croaks

I hope this is OK to post here but I just realised there are people in Sydney who may be interested.

Spinners and Weavers Guild (NSW) have an Open Day tomorrow at Burwood. I'm not a member at all but went two years ago and bought all soughts of things. Lots of wool, needles, some quite old, books, etc.

It's held from 9:30-3:30 at the hall of St Pauls Anglican Church, Burwood, behind the church. Burwood Road, Burwood, about three blocks up the road from Burwood Station. Perhaps ten minutes slowish walk. A fast train from the city will take about 15 minutes from Town Hall to Burwood. I'm close enough to walk, so may do that and feel virtuous about exercise!

I was making myself a pair of footlet socks as easy, no brain stuff to do at work. However, I decided I didn't like the look of the one I was doing, so have ripped it out. It was 75% made! My second mosaic sock may have to wait a while to finish. The academic year ends in early November for me and I will be able to concentrate at home on it. Quite easy, but just requires me to count accurately.

I've a few ideas in the pipleline but haven't settled on anything, although the crosshatch pattern from More Sensational Knitted Socks is calling me fairly loudly. I think I'll have a look at the Open Day tomorrow. Something may take my fancy thre.

A near disaster averted.

My reckless destashing without considering the size of the project nearly bought me under last night. Luckily I was saved from the fire by the kind ladies at Blue Moon Fiber Arts.

For those of you considering this as a reward for yourself on meeting your goals - you will totally enjoy the customer service experience. They have even altered their shipping method internationally to be less expensive and more efficient to their customers.

Whenever you ask something it is usually done and I have the rescue skein winging it's way to me shortly. So my second pair for SSS is on the shelf until it's arrival. Moving on to another stocking stitch pair for dh this time.

read about it here.

croak, croak

Can you hear the frogs? I think they migrated from my back garden pond to my mosaic socks. I realised I had made a mistake on half of one dpns. I waited till good early morning light this morning to unpick because the purple stitches were very dark, but found I was not really knowing where I was going.

So I ripped out about eight rows, back to where there were two rows of the dark purple together. It was much easier to see. Picked up all the sixty stitches and realised I still had them arranged wrongly on needles, etc etc. I carefully picked back another row, re-knitted it and am now good to go.

It's also easier to pick up the place from the pattern which is both written out and charted. The mosaic knitting looks more difficult than it is. Each pattern set consists of two rows. The first of these starts with the main colour for that row. Some stitches are slipped from the previous row and these will be in the second colour. The next row is exactly the same. Then colours and pattern arrangement are altered for the next two rows and so on. Because of the slipping, there is no stranding of the extra colour across the back of the fabric. Clear as mud??

People commented on my speed in the first pair. I'm not really a quick knitter, but decided I would spend all the holiday Monday knitting. Well, I did. Perhaps not quite all, but a good proportion of it. So that got me off to a good start. The pattern was easy. I had the stitches arranged with each set of fifteen on a separate needle. This cut down checking I was still OK. Also eliminated the need for a marker anywhere. I find markers very useful, but I have to stop knitting rhythm to move them from one needle to next. I made sure I did the ten full rows of the pattern each time before stopping. That never seemed to take very long, so I often started another set. Pattern is only on instep of foot, so that halved pattern knitting.

Froggy Went a Courting.

Froggy went a courting and found himself some Summer of Lovelace Socks.

At least I can count them in the Southern Summer of Socks.

Challenges

Challenges

I have set my challenges (on my blog), and as I misread everything (I blame having small children - hey - it's convenient!) and jumped the gun, I am going to frog my feather and fan sock and re-start it on October 1st! (How's that for dedication!)