Warm green socks, all done

I finished these – they will be very cozy come winter.  This is Shelridge Farms Soft Touch Heather yarn and it’s on the thick side of fingering.  I normally cast on 60-64 stitches for a sock in fingering weight yarn – but these fit with only 54 stitches cast on.  Truly, I think this yarn should be labeled sportweight.

The pattern is “Undulating Rib Socks” from Favorite Socks.

And just to show that sometimes I make something besides socks and other knitted objects, here are a few zinnias that started blooming last week.  I think of these as a late summer flower, but like everything else, they are ahead of schedule this year.  They are so cheerful and bright when everything else is wilting in the heat.

In other news, I finished the Color Affection shawl!  But it has to be blocked and photographed, so you’ll have to wait…

Progress report

I haven’t posted in a while… because I’m still working on all the same three projects.  I can happily report that I finished the first sock of the pair, though: Look at that eye of partridge stitch on the heel – so subtle. It will wear like iron but not be bulky at all – love it! This “willow” color is so hard to capture.  This (below) is truest to life (please ignore the weed): I have been knitting furiously on my Color Affection shawl.  I didn’t realize until I won the laceweight yarn kit from Miss Babs that the pattern included a laceweight option – I’d only seen fingering versions before that.  The two shawls have the same dimensions.  You know what that means, right?  There are WAY more stitches in the laceweight version!  I just keep going and going and going and still have a fair bit to knit. Here is a shot of the three-color striping section: Just as evidence that it’s growing.

I’m slowing spinning my SPAKAL fiber, too.  I have 29 little fiber-y nests and I’ve just spun #11.  Here it is! I have four wood bobbins and I’ve been filling them each with one ounce before transferring them to the storage bobbins.  I do this with a power drill.  Have I showed you this yet?  Maybe not.

The rubber band on the drill bit helps grip the plastic bobbin so that it spins properly.  I find I can get through 4 bobbins or so before the band breaks.  Then I go hunting for another one.  I’ve been labeling the storage bobbins in the order they are spun so that I can randomize when I ply.  I suppose if I were truly random I would put them in a box and shake them up… but I think we all know I don’t quite roll that way.  Accession numbers are in order.

What are you up to this summer?

This and that

I’ve begun several projects that haven’t made it to the blog yet.

First up, another pair of socks for office knitting.  Longtime readers may remember this pair, knit in spring 2009:

The pattern is the descriptively but boringly named Undulating Rib Socks (Ann Budd, while very clever, is not fanciful, at least when it comes to pattern names) from a great collection, Favorite Socks.  I loved these socks.  Loved the simple yet effectively textural pattern, loved the yarn (Dream in Color Smooshy), loved the color (Spring Tickle), which is green with flecks of brownish orange, just like real leaves.  But this yarn came into my life before my current sock yarn philosophy.  Yes, friends, it is 100% superwash merino, and the heels busted gigantic holes that couldn’t be fixed because the yarn was dissolving in front of my eyes.  Much sadness.

I’ve decided to knit a replacement.  Same pattern, but different yarn.  I’m using Shelridge Farms Soft Touch Heather in color Willow, which is fairly solid in color but much stronger than Smooshy (15% nylon, superwash wool but not merino).  Short time readers will recognize this yarn, from which I just knit a pair of mitts.  When I knit those mitts, my hands hurt.  My usual 2.0mm needles seemed too small for the yarn.  The yarn was labelled “light fingering” but to me, it seemed more like sport.  So for these socks, I went up to 2.25mm needles and am MUCH happier.  I initially cast on 60 stitches but ripped it back and began again with 54.  These socks will fit me now.Sorry about the color in the photo.  A storm was brewing and there was no sun to bring out the beautiful yellowish-green color here.  I have made a modification.  On the rounds where I need to increase from one stitch into three, I am using a different technique.  Do you see the difference between those increases in the first two pattern repeats (closest to the cuff) and the later ones?  I think the one specified in the pattern leaves a bit of a hole.  It wasn’t so apparent at the finer gauge, but it shows up here.  Anyway, I’m ready to put a heel on this sock.

In other knitting news, this has begun:Know what it is?  Garter garter garter garter garter… YUM.

I haven’t had much time to spin this week, but I’ve done this a few times: I’m using my power drill to move the singles from the wheel bobbin to the storage bobbin.  Fun!  I’ve made 5 of these now.  24 to go.  I’m not at all sure I’m doing it well, but I am certain that I’ll be better on bobbin 29 than I am right now.  There will be learning.

Tickle Me Spring

Undulating Rib Socks in Spring Tickle
Originally uploaded by JLW in PA

This pair of socks knit up pretty quickly - I started them at a conference on 3/11 and finished a little more than one week later on 3/22. These are almost identical to my mom's undulating rib socks, except the length of the foot is a tiny bit longer on my pair.

The modifications: I cast on 60 stitches and used my own slipped stitch heel and a star toe. I reinforced the inside of the heel flap.

The yarn is Dream in Color Smooshy in colorway Spring Tickle. I have always loved this yarn. It is that gorgeous apple green toned down by some orangey-brown bits. It looks exactly like spring leaves popping up through the brown leaves that have been rotting all winter.

I have a ton of yarn left over, too - 51 g (the socks themselves weigh 70 g). A hank of Smooshy is very generous. Just think of all the groovy Christmas balls I can make with this leftover yarn!

FO: Undulating Rib Socks for Mom

Here are the Undulating Rib Socks that are for my mom for Christmas later this year. When she was here for Christmas last year, she "shopped" my sock yarn stash and browsed my sock pattern books. She picked a couple yarns she liked and about four patterns. So she doesn't know exactly which socks she's getting... but here they are!

I agonized about these a bit (sorry, devoted readers) but I'm happy with the way they came out. Anne asked if the two socks striped the same way, and the answer is "no" - you can probably see that in the photograph. But because the color changes are tonal, it doesn't bother me as much as it would if the yarn was multicolor. I knit these cuff-down on 60 stitches with 2.25 mm circular needles, and used my own standard slipped-stitch heel and a star toe. The yarn is Shibui Sock (100% merino with a tight twist). I adore this color and will be on the prowl for more yarn in this shade.

I used to not believe in blocking socks - why, if they're just going on a pair of feet (which serve a fine blockers)? But presentation is everything. I bought a set of blockers before submitting several pairs of socks to a knitting exhibit at my library a year or two ago, and now I really like them. If I'm gifting a pair of socks, I block them. They look so much prettier right out of the box. Here is a photo with one sock blocked (left) and one sock fresh off the needles (right). The unblocked sock looks kind of twisty and wrinkled. A knitter would know that a rib pattern will stretch out and become beautiful on a foot, but a nonknitting gift recipient might not. In that case, I would block!

[Side note: Knit Picks just started making sock blockers, too.]

I finished these up in a hotel room in Seattle and immediately cast on for another pair of undulating rib socks - for myself. Photos of those are forthcoming.

I'm happy with how these came out!

What time is it?

I can barely keep my eyes open and it's not even 9 pm. Aren't I supposed to be on West Coast time? So isn't it still happy hour? I guess not when you got up at 3 am (West Coast time)!

Anyway, this is all to say that the detailed update of knitting in many time zones will have to wait, as will photos. Here are the highlights, though:

1. I finished sleeve #2 on the flight out (took me 4.5 hours, but it's done).
2. I took a Knitting 911 phone call from Kristina re the Must Have Sweater shortly after arriving in Seattle. It's not good. I'm afraid to look at my back and fronts to see if I have the same issue.
3. I finished sock #2 of the undulating rib socks for my mom.
4. I cast on for another pair of undulating rib socks for myself. Finished sock #1 and got halfway through #2.
5. I never needed the spare sock project, but it felt good to have it.
6. I visited the yarn shop on Bainbridge Island, which was absolutely lovely, but surprisingly, did not buy anything.
7. I had a blast at the Nordic Heritage Museum in Ballard. I made a new friend and it was even more fun to go with another knitter-librarian. I bought some books and some roving.

And now, to bed with me!

I'm packed

Tomorrow I leave for the West Coast. The knitting plan:

1. Finish sleeve #2 of Must Have Cardigan on the long flight. I'm over halfway done with my row count... maybe 2/3? Plus, the rows will start getting shorter at some point soon. [Pack extra pair of needle tips size US 5 on the off change that mine are taken at the airport. Pack end caps and key in case the knitting needs to be secured on the cable.]
2. Finish sock #2 of undulating rib socks for my mom. I've turned the heel and am almost done with the gusset decreases, so there's not much sock left here.
3. Start a new pair of undulating rib socks - for myself - using Dream in Color Smooshy in color Spring Tickle. This project uses the same needles as #2. I only have one pair in this size.
4. On the off chance that I finish 1-3 and still need to knit, or on the equally off chance that my sock needles from #2 are confiscated at the airport, I have one more project packed - Knit Picks Essential yarn in a heathery denim blue, the Hedgerow Socks pattern, and my trusty old 2.0 mm sock needles. Hedgerow is a simple rib pattern repeated over 6 stitches and 4 rounds (rounds 1-2 are identical, as are rounds 3-4), and it looks like good conference/travel knitting.

I also have books for 2 different book groups to keep me busy (Twilight, by Stephenie Meyer, about which some woman wonder why the teens are all aflutter, and The Elegance of the Hedgehog, by Muriel Barbery).

And a slew of knitting podcasts downloaded on my mp3 player.

Yeah, I'm packed.

Sock progress - undulating #1

Here is Undulating Rib Sock #1, finished and blocked. It's so much easier to see the pattern when it is blocked (or on a foot).

I still find the color striping a bit distracting but overall, I like the socks. I've decided to do my next sock in the exact same pattern - only with Dream in Color Smooshy in color "spring tickle." Seems timely - today is jacket weather, not coat weather, here where I live.

I've knit with Smooshy before and loved it, and I got this great color for my birthday last October. Since I already know this pattern, it will make for good travel and conference knitting. Same cast-on number, same needles, same everything.

I'm not sure if undulating rib will go with me to Seattle or not - I turned the heel on sock #2 yesterday, so they are pretty close to the finish line.

Undulating Update

Kris asked for an update on the undulating rib sock. In the end, I decided to stay the course. This sock has a cast-on number of 60 and is knit on 2.25 mm needles. I'm getting close to the toe decrease on sock #1.

This photo seems a little garish since I usually use natural flagstone as my backdrop. It was dark outside and so I set up a little photoshoot area with the mini tripod. I needed something that wasn't smooth for background, and this painting was nearby. I might get in trouble for posting it. I have no idea if it's a work in progress or something abandoned. It matches the bright red sock blockers, though!

Undulating headache!

I've been trying to start a new pair of office socks all week, and it hasn't been easy. I decided to get started on another pair of gift socks. When my mom was here over the holidays, I had her shop my sock yarn stash and identify a few things she liked. I also had her look through my sock pattern books and tell me which patterns spoke to her. I figured that since I knit her socks for Christmas 2005 and Christmas 2007, I'd better get ready for Christmas 2009.

Yarnwise, she picked Shibui Sock in a semisolid colorway called "Dragonfly" and Cherry Tree Hill in a Loopy Ewe Sock Club exclusive colorway that I think is a remake of Life's a Beach. I wanted to keep the CTH for myself, because I have a bit of history with this yarn.

Years ago, when Simply Socks Yarn Company opened, I eagerly cruised the owner's slide show of favorite sock yarns. She has updated it since then and the yarn I responded to is no longer there, but she had a gorgeous picture of some light turquoise blue and sea green handpainted yarn that I loved. I ordered it. When it came, it bore NO resemblance to the photo. It was so different that I assumed I made a mistake when ordering. I had an almost nonexistent sock yarn stash back then, and I didn't dislike the new yarn, so I didn't contact the owner about a possible mistake. Months later, Allison wrote a blog post about how Cherry Tree Hill changed their base yarn and the dyes were taking really differently. She specifically wrote about the Life's a Beach colorway and how they had readjusted their dye recipe to get a handpaint closer to the original, and she had the "new" Life's a Beach in stock. I thought about ordering it a second time, but didn't.

Fast forward. I made lots of socks using my tried-and-true Classic Crew Socks pattern from the Earth Guild in Asheville, NC, and eventually became ready to try something new. Charlene Schurch had just released Sensational Knitted Socks, and I had a copy. I decide to try a toe-up sock and to use this Life's a Beach yarn. Then Kristina had a baby. I planned to go to Boston to meet Katie and help out for a few days. I took this toe-up sock with me. I tried to get it cast on before the trip, but I had a terrible time with the provisional crochet cast-on. I probably did it 9 times. I started the sock but hated how the crazy yarn colors competed with the pattern. I only got this far before abandoning it. Later, I frogged it, soaked the yarn to get out the kinks, and rewound it into a yarn cake. It still sits in my sock yarn cabinet waiting for its next chance.

Fast forward again. I re-up in The Loopy Ewe Sock Club for Year Two because Sheri promises semi-solid colorways, and I'm tired of fighting with crazy handpaints. One month a hank of yarn shows up from Cherry Tree Hill, and it looks an awful lot like I remember the original Life's a Beach looking. I decide that this is life's way of tossing me a beach ball, and I am meant to make my peace with this yarn once and for all. I haven't cast on yet, but it seems like this yarn should be socks for me, not my mom. I'm also not sure I'd call it "semi-solid," but whatever. In Carol Sulcoski's new classification, I'd call it a "muted multi" - but we didn't have that language then.

Enough about the yarn. Suffice it to say that I chose to knit Mom's Christmas 2009 socks out of the Shibui Dragonfly because Life's a Beach and I still have unfinished business. Now to the pattern. Mom expressed interested in (links are to Ravelry):

1. Conwy (Nancy Bush Knitting on the Road p. 22)
2. Baby Cable Rib (Charlene Schurch Sensational Knitted Socks p. 33)
3. Diagonal Cross-Rib Socks (Favorite Socks p. 77)
4. Undulating Rib Socks (Favorite Socks p. 93)

I decided that #4 looked the most interesting to me. I knew immediately that I would have to modify the pattern, though, because Ann Budd (the designer) says she got 9 stitches per inch on a US 3 needle (3.25 mm) with a Fortissima Colori yarn. Ummm, that's a really fine gauge with a really fat needle. She must knit really tightly. I knit a gauge tube with the Shibui and had to fight a little bit to use my normal US 0 (2.0 mm) needles. I moved up to 2.25 mm needles and the yarn seemed happy (I also tried 2.5 mm and it was not happy). I got about 7 st/in. So I used the trusty old Classic Crew Socks pattern formula to figure out the cast-on number with my gauge and my mom's ankle measurement. It said I should cast on 56 stitches.

56!?! That seems LOW, even after I take into account that I usually cast on a lot (68-72, even 75 once). The undulating rib stitch pattern is divisible by 6, so I compromised and cast on 60 with a 2.25 needle. I also did some Ravelry reading and decided to use different techniques for the double increase and double decrease called for in the pattern. I knit a few inches and tried it on myself - I think it will work. (My mom's ankle measurement is very close to mine, so I can use myself for fittings.)

Are you still with me? If you are, I commend you. You must be a sock nut or else just have a lot of time on your hands. I did all that and started the sock. It took me a week to get this sock going. But do you see what I see? *&$#ing pooling!!! with a semi-solid yarn, which I thought was not supposed to do this!!!

Oh, well. I guess it just goes to show that a handpaint is a handpaint, even if it's painted all in the same tone. This is going to have that barberpole stripe going down it if I continue as I have begun. If the sock was for me, I would turn back and do something else. I suppose I should knit a bit more and ask my mom if she likes it.

Thoughts?