Fuzzy possum sock

This is my current office knitting project, the “Contemporary Brewster Socks” from a recent issue of Piecework.  It’s a very simple stitch pattern that is mostly stockinette with a moving purl stitch.  I find it pleasantly swirly.  I’m planning to modify the pattern slightly on the second sock so that the purls swirl in the other direction.

In keeping with the symmetrical swirl idea, I made the toe decrease lines lean left on this sock to match the leftward swirl in the main stitch pattern (normally my standard star-style toe swirls rightward).  [Thanks, Steven, for suggesting this!]  I usually use a SSK if I want a decrease to lean left, but this time I tried a K2togtbl (knit two together through back loop).  I’m not sure I love it, but I’m glad I tried it.  And it is easier and faster to work than SSK, I think.  Can you see it here? It’s difficult to see, I know.  I’ve been surprised how much the slight halo that the possum fiber brings to this yarn obscures the stitch definition.  I had a devil of a time picking up the gusset stitches because I just couldn’t distinguish one stitch from the next.  Maybe this was partly because of the yarn’s color, which is a bit more like charcoal than what you see here.  Still, I think the halo caused most of the challenge.

These socks will be great in next year’s Fall/Winter wardrobe.  They seem out of place given the outburst of spring here, though.  I think my next sock project will need to be COLORFUL!

Beginnings…

It’s spring in a very big way here, which is simultaneously delightful and a bit alarming (if you have pollen issues like I do).  This morning’s newspaper said that tree pollen is the worst it’s been in at least 6 years here on the East Coast.  My neti pot is my friend…

In the spirit of spring, I have 2 new socks to share.  I started these Retro Rib socks recently, thinking they were office socks.  But the pattern requires a bit more attention, so they became my home knitting project.  Of course, you never know when a home knitting project might turn into office knitting by the time you get to sock #2!  The yarn is Mountain Colors Bearfoot in a Loopy Ewe Club exclusive colorway called Montana Chokecherry – it’s gorgeous.  Autumnal (so I’m out of season) but gorgeous nonetheless.  I love this yarn, a wool/mohair blend.  I’ve knit one other pair from it, but they are a little big on me.  I knit them very early in my sock days and I think I used a size 2 (gasp!) needle.  I know better now…

Once Retro Rib came home, I started another office sock.  This one is a pattern from the Jan/Feb 2010 issue of Piecework called Contemporary Brewster Socks.  They are based on a 17th century stocking in the collection of the Pilgrim Society in Plymouth, Massachusetts.  Kinda cool.  They are mostly stockinette with a spiraling purl stitch.  The yarn is Cherry Tree Hill Possum Sock, which is an 80/20 blend of merino and New Zealand possum (really).  The possum gives it a fuzzy halo.  The color is called Slate and it’s pretty gray.  I’m not sure why my springtime knitting looks so fall/wintry, but there you have it.Both of these projects came out of my personal sock club basket.

I’ve been thinking ahead to some of the stranded colorwork socks in my queue that aren’t yet in the basket because I don’t have appropriate yarn.  I think I will use the Simply Socks Yarn Company solid sock yarn.  I saw it at Sock Summit and it’s quite nice.  But the real bonus is how many colors it comes in: 65.  I splurged and bought the color cards so I can plan.  These look more springy, yes? I also got another set of Addi Turbo Lace needles in size 2.0 (I really like the ones I have but often have 2 pairs of socks on that size at the same time) and a set in 2.25 mm.  I’ve been having more and more trouble with my Knit Picks circular needles and decided to invest in more Addis.  The tip on the Addi lace needle isn’t as pointy as the Knit Picks needle, but it’s pointier than the regular Addi Turbos (which are blunt and also have inflexible cables).

And because it’s so beautiful here, the boys and I took our bikes to the local park to try out the paved fitness trail, a nice safe loop to ride with kids.  My Skylark did great.  The bike shop got her in riding order, and now I just need to take steel wool to the rust to shine her up.  I spent some time today on that project but will need to do some more. Have a great weekend!