As an extra bloggy present, I'll post a review I wrote a while back of the new sock book that's sweeping the nation, 2-at-a-time Socks by Melissa Morgan-Oakes. If you're on ravelry, I'd encourage you to go over to the rav group for the book. Melissa herself is live and in person there quite frequently, and as much as I liked her in the book, the real live her is even more awesome.
I'm going to preface my review by saying that, though I don't like every pattern in this book, I am very glad I bought it, and it has a higher ratio of patterns I like to patterns I don't than any other knitting book I've bought yet. I'll start by reviewing each of the patterns individually, and in a later post I'll review some of the things that make this an awesome book, format wise. I'll preface that later post by saying this has my favorite format of any knitting book I've ever seen. I'll explain why later. =]
On to the pattern reviews!
So, first, for a little knitting history. The first socks I ever knitted were knitted this past summer. Not because I had some deep desire to knit socks – knitting socks seemed quite silly to me – but because I’d gone to the lovely ‘local’ yarn store (local to where I was this summer, at least) asking for a nice small project. “Have you tried socks?” “They seem to hard.” “Nonsense!”
With that exchange, I got started. My first sock took probably over 3 months to complete, and my second was finished up in (I think) less than a month. My second (completed) pair of socks was a pair of no purl monkeys, and those I managed to get through in about two weeks.
The patterns: (in the order they are in the book)
Sample Socks
I decided not to knit the sample socks for one simple reason. There is no toddler in my life, and it is likely it will be many years before there is one. That said, I love the write up of the sample sock, and in working on the other socks (or thinking through the other socks) I keep referring back to this. That strikes me as a Good Thing.
Berry Season
I’m not sure if I’ll ever knit berry season. The socks are made out of a thick yarn, but they’re ankle socks – for me, if I want the warmth the thick yarn would give, I’d prefer a little more leg power. I’m also not a big fan of the roll at the top of the brim. That said, I’ll probably use the stitch pattern in some future Franken-sock of my own. These socks are very pretty, and maybe potential GiftSocks, but not for me.
Spice
These socks are also not for me. Or, at least, not for me as written. I’ll admit the colors here are not my personal favorites, and I have a hard time trying to think out the pattern in different color combinations. Also, right now, socks don’t warrant the time and effort of color work to me. I like the contrasting toe and heel, and I might like these socks with just a plain stripe where there is now the color worked section, but as written, I’m unlikely to knit the socks. Of course, many other knitters probably enjoy color work, and these socks are for them.
Be Mine
These are the socks that sold me the book, plain and simple, and they’re the first socks from the book I’ve started. The cable pattern is beautiful. I love the way the hearts are somewhat subtle (because they’re cabled hearts, not color work), but the socks themselves look oh so deliciously girly and fun. I have a pair of dansko mary janes that I believe will show off the pattern quite well. That said, it’s slow moving for me on these socks. As many times as I’ve tried to learn to cable without a cable needle, I haven’t managed, so that keeps me having to have an extra needle in hand. The pattern itself (for my size foot) is a 32 row repeat, and not one that I could memorize. This makes these nice audiobook socks, but pretty bad tv socks. Of course, I still think they’re the prettiest things ever, so don’t let my warning scare you off.
Varsity
I’m not sure if I’ll ever knit these socks or not. I suspect I might someday, but not necessarily soon. I like the striping sequence, and I think this could be a good ‘guy sock’, but I don’t have any guys to make socks for. Personally, if I knit these I suspect I’ll combine the orange and green stripes into one larger stripe for added symmetry and because I like the look better. I also might prefer to have the heel in that orange/green color, instead of in the white the way it currently is. That, or try and have the first rows before the heel in white, and the heel in the burgundy. (If you have the book, that’ll make sense. If not, buy it already!)
Belle Epoque
If Be Mine sold me the book, Belle Epoque is what convinced me my money was well spent. Like Be Mine, these are girly to the extreme. Dainty lace and a delicate cable, combined with an adorable picot edge, make these too cute for words, but they’re definitely ‘serious’ enough that they could be office footwear. I want to do these in black. I suspect a dark color would best set off the lace surrounding the cable, but they look delicious in the green they are shown in. Though I haven’t started knitting these yet, the chart looks much less intimidating and much more intuitive than Be Mine, so I suspect these would be a faster knit. It’s almost all made up of K, P, K2Tog, and Yo! I can do those with my eyes closed! I can’t wait to cast on for these.
Frolic
These socks, like the sample socks, I will probably not knit until a toddler comes into my life. They look cute and a little complicated, so I can see how they’d get good gift knitting mileage.
Coquette
Coquette, like Berry Season, is an ankle sock. It reminds me of socks I wore as a child, and it’s honestly difficult for me to imagine an adult wearing these, though I think that’s partly because of the color they were knitted in. They were knitted in a very busy multicolor that, honestly, makes the socks look a little like The Kind of Socks Knitters Who Give Knitting A Bad Image wear. Yes, that’s horribly judgmental of me, and yes, I know there are plenty of cool knitters (Melissa included) who apparently like this kind of yarn. I wish there’d been a secondary picture of these in a solid color. I suspect I might like them more then, and I’ll keep my eye out on Ravelry for a good pair to prove my dislike wrong.
Socks for Aidan
See above (Frolic) re: no kids in my life and see above (Spice) re: not loving color work in socks. Again though, IF I had kids that warranted knitting, and IF I wanted to knit color work, these are cute. Not for me, but cute. I like how the color work is on the folded over cuff. Sock cuffs were very important to me as a kid, and this makes the cuff itself part of the design.
Twilight
I can’t tell if I like these socks because I like the pattern, because I’m in love with the yarn, or both. Melissa says this pattern works best on hand painted yarns, and I believe her. It gives the socks a little texture to add some visual interest, but I suspect these would be perfect TV socks, train socks, or socializing socks. I look forward to knitting these sometime.
Sugar Maple
With these socks too, my love is part pattern love and part yarn love – coincidentally, this is the same yarn as before…maybe I should get myself rich so I can buy a skein or three. =] These socks scream fall to me, in a very good way. I like the pattern and it’s versatility. Though this looks great in a hand painted yarn, I suspect it’d look equally brilliant in a solid color. It looks a twinge more thought-involved than Twilight, but I’d say these can still qualify as TV socks….just, maybe not House or Lost socks.
H Sock
I might like these socks, but I can’t tell. I have to say, as much as I love Lorna’s Laces, this colorway (or maybe this yarn) did not show off the pattern to its best. The colors are so busy that I have difficulty making out the pattern even in the close up section, and the on-feet picture isn’t much better. I want to see this pattern with different yarn before I fully judge, but right now, I’m not positive I want to make these.
Athena
Damnit MMO, why must you make so many beautiful things with cables?! If the name of this pattern hadn’t sold me, the picture would have. I love the way these look. Of course, that said, I’m a little curious what it would be like to wear them – the cables look on the bulkier side, and I don’t usually want thick and bulky socks with shoes that show off how pretty the socks are. I don’t know if I’ll ever knit these, but I’ll sure as hell drool over them.
Emily’s Socks
What with how these are also kiddy socks, you might think you know exactly what I’m going to say – but! Hah hah! These are *also* the socks on the cover. (Well, mostly…) I actually like these much better in the cover shot than in the kiddie version because I think the yarn is better suited to them. In the kiddie version, the yarn’s got some mohair, and that kind of ruins the stitch definition. In fact, when I look at the close-up photo of the stitch pattern, it looks to me like ribbing, not like anything fancy. The cover however is much nicer. On the cover, I can see that this is a fun texture, but not a super busy pattern. I can definitely picture myself knitting these, both with or without the super cute picot edging.
Sailor’s Delight
These just look awesome to me. I love the color, and though these socks have a bit of mohair too, the yarn doesn’t detract from the stitch pattern at all. Of course, that said, I wish that the closeup picture had been on white sock blockers or some other way to make it easier to see exactly how lacey this looks. I definitely plan on making these. These, too, look like potential good TV socks, and they seem like they’ve got a lot of buck for the bite, or whatever the expression is.
Pitter Patter
Nice simple kids sock I don’t think I’ll knit forever.
The Classic Sock
This is basically the two-at-a-time version of my first socks, and I love them. Mine were in Trekking Pro Natura, not XXL, but same difference. I have a special place in my heart for k3p1 ribbing in socks – it looks much nicer to me than k1p1 or k2p2 – it’s a design choice, not just a way to keep the socks on the feet! I like that MMO included a mens large size for these, though I think if I’m ever going to knit something for a guy with large feet, a hat would probably be faster than the massive pair of socks.
Ragg Hiker
If I wanted to make worsted socks, these’d be the socks I’d want to make. They look perfect for going under boots – nice and thick and cozy. I also love love love the yarn choice here. A good pattern to end the book, though not really a pattern exactly. Either way, very nice.
Showing posts with label socks. Show all posts
Showing posts with label socks. Show all posts
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Long time no see
So...um...hi! ::waves::
It's been quite a while, I know. Largely I haven't been updating since I haven't been crafting, but that's not completely true. Since my last post, I finished my monkey socks and my fire fetchings, and I started sewing an apron. Oh, and I finished the first heart on my Be Mine socks. Partly I've been going slowly because I've never really gotten momentum on my Be Mines, but since they were my project spectrum feb/march socks, I didn't feel comfortable starting a new project until they were done. Now, though, now it's april. This means "earth" is officially in swing, and I can start my next pair of socks, which I've admitedly been getting more and more excited about. Even better, I can sew the project bag whose fabric has been sitting stacked next to my computer!
For my earth one-person-KAL with already purchased yarn, I'm going to be knitting the Embossed Leaves socks from the Interweave Favorite Socks book, in Knit Picks Risata in Grass. I think the 'leaves' aspect of Embossed Leaves makes this a good thematic choice, as well as the fact I think I'm just in love with the pattern. I can usually recognize it right away if done in most solid colored yarns, but there are some times when I'll see a pair on flickr or something and think "wow, those socks look awesome! I want to knit those!" Another thing I'm liking about this pattern is that it's all friendly stitches: mostly knits with a few purls, k2togs, ssks and yos thrown in there. As much as I think the Be Mines are maybe the cutest socks in the world, their pattern is too thought intensive for me. These should, hopefully, be a little easier.
If I end up finishing these, or if I end up devoting a lot more time to knitting these months than I previously have, I might work on finishing up my Branching Out, in it's beautiful and thematically appropriate yarn choice. The trouble with the Branching Out is that I don't like the needles it's currently on. It's on some of my grandmother's old aluminum straight needles. They're too long, overly heavy, and they make a sound when knitting that reminds me of nails on a chalkboard. After the major crush I've developed on the Knit Picks long circular sock needles I bought, I've been heavily debating getting a set of their Options, once I've saved up the money. I know there have been some complaints about the cables breaking or the needles coming undone from the cables, but I think I'm willing to risk it. For things like the branching out that I'm currently doing on old-but-annoying straights, I suspect options would be prefereable. As it is, I think I prefer circular to straight simply for the portability factor, and the nice smooth cables of the Options add to that.
As far as my sewing goes, I've been working on a skirt from Sew What Skirts, but it's been frustrating me. I'm looking forward to a nice break with my pattern bag. Though I have a decent amount of fat quarters to choose from (I stocked up when JoAnn's was having a 1 for $1 sale) I ended up chosing two that aren't my favorite pattern or color, but which go very well together. Both are from a fat quarter package I purchased at PurlSoho back in NYC. The outside is an asian inspired brown fabric with orange, pink, yellow, and green flowers and leaves. The lining will be a lime green that matches the green on the outside pretty well. Unfortunately, the only zipper I have that'd work size wise for the project is dark green, and I'm not much in the mood to go out and buy a new one. I'm trying to convince myself it'll look kicky, not tacky.
Oh well, off to work! I'll try and post more pictures once I've started knitting/sewing.
It's been quite a while, I know. Largely I haven't been updating since I haven't been crafting, but that's not completely true. Since my last post, I finished my monkey socks and my fire fetchings, and I started sewing an apron. Oh, and I finished the first heart on my Be Mine socks. Partly I've been going slowly because I've never really gotten momentum on my Be Mines, but since they were my project spectrum feb/march socks, I didn't feel comfortable starting a new project until they were done. Now, though, now it's april. This means "earth" is officially in swing, and I can start my next pair of socks, which I've admitedly been getting more and more excited about. Even better, I can sew the project bag whose fabric has been sitting stacked next to my computer!
For my earth one-person-KAL with already purchased yarn, I'm going to be knitting the Embossed Leaves socks from the Interweave Favorite Socks book, in Knit Picks Risata in Grass. I think the 'leaves' aspect of Embossed Leaves makes this a good thematic choice, as well as the fact I think I'm just in love with the pattern. I can usually recognize it right away if done in most solid colored yarns, but there are some times when I'll see a pair on flickr or something and think "wow, those socks look awesome! I want to knit those!" Another thing I'm liking about this pattern is that it's all friendly stitches: mostly knits with a few purls, k2togs, ssks and yos thrown in there. As much as I think the Be Mines are maybe the cutest socks in the world, their pattern is too thought intensive for me. These should, hopefully, be a little easier.
If I end up finishing these, or if I end up devoting a lot more time to knitting these months than I previously have, I might work on finishing up my Branching Out, in it's beautiful and thematically appropriate yarn choice. The trouble with the Branching Out is that I don't like the needles it's currently on. It's on some of my grandmother's old aluminum straight needles. They're too long, overly heavy, and they make a sound when knitting that reminds me of nails on a chalkboard. After the major crush I've developed on the Knit Picks long circular sock needles I bought, I've been heavily debating getting a set of their Options, once I've saved up the money. I know there have been some complaints about the cables breaking or the needles coming undone from the cables, but I think I'm willing to risk it. For things like the branching out that I'm currently doing on old-but-annoying straights, I suspect options would be prefereable. As it is, I think I prefer circular to straight simply for the portability factor, and the nice smooth cables of the Options add to that.
As far as my sewing goes, I've been working on a skirt from Sew What Skirts, but it's been frustrating me. I'm looking forward to a nice break with my pattern bag. Though I have a decent amount of fat quarters to choose from (I stocked up when JoAnn's was having a 1 for $1 sale) I ended up chosing two that aren't my favorite pattern or color, but which go very well together. Both are from a fat quarter package I purchased at PurlSoho back in NYC. The outside is an asian inspired brown fabric with orange, pink, yellow, and green flowers and leaves. The lining will be a lime green that matches the green on the outside pretty well. Unfortunately, the only zipper I have that'd work size wise for the project is dark green, and I'm not much in the mood to go out and buy a new one. I'm trying to convince myself it'll look kicky, not tacky.
Oh well, off to work! I'll try and post more pictures once I've started knitting/sewing.
Friday, December 14, 2007
Socks, p.1
In my search for the perfect sock pattern, I came across this wonderful article. It's a list of patterns that either don't pool or pool less than traditional patterns. Given my uncanny love for Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock Multi, I think this list will be good to keep around. =]
Sunday, December 9, 2007
Impatient
So, let me preface my post by pointing out I'm aware this is a really lame thing to complain about. Lameness noted.
My birthday was back in November. For my birthday, I asked my mom for a yarn winder and a swift. I picked one out, and she said 'sure, I'll get them for you!'
It is no longer November. It is in fact, December, and almost a month after my birthday. In all fairness, I know it took me a while to pick out a winder, and I know it took my mom a while to get it, and we're getting it from a place that hand makes all the swifts, so I understand that the care that's going into it means it takes longer than two days (or two weeks, in this case) to get to me. That said, I want my swift! =P
I've finished up my La Vie de La Boheme, and I'm currently un-enamored of my Stag Bag, though that's only because now I have to sew stuff and I don't sew. This means that, other than my boring Holiday Presents (which are lots of little flower pins) I don't have all that much knitting going on. I really want to start a new pair of socks since I frogged my Columbine socks, but there's a problem...
I got this very exciting new book yesterday, Knitting Circles Around Socks, that has some not-s0-great patterns, but has an EXCELENT tutorial on how to knit socks on circular needles. Not just how to knit ONE sock on two circulars, no, how to knit TWO socks on two circulars! Only exactly what would solve my forgetfulness problem of not bothering to count rows as I know! The only problem with this is that it requires two balls of yarn. This isn't really a problem, since I have two skeins in each of two colorways in Lorna's Laces, a lovely yarn that comes one skein per sock. One of these skeins is already in something resembling a center pull lump, this is the skein that was once part of a columbine sock. The other skein is in its pristine skein-like glory, not-wound (i was about to say 'unwound' but that means something else entirely =P) and undefiled. I don't really want to spend the hours it would take for me to wind it into a center pull lump if my yarn winder and swift will be arriving soon.
Were they my own purchase, I'd have a way of contacting the company and asking nicely for an estimate. It's not that I'm rushing them, I'd just like to be able to plan my knitting around when it will arrive. Since it's a gift, I can't really do that, and I don't want to look a gift-swift in the spokes (heh heh) and ask my mom to check for me.
Alas alack what a terrible problem.
I think the solution will be either to finish my adaptation of the Interweave Holiday Knits mug cozy I was working on or start the Icecream Pint Cozy I've been admiring in the book Not Your Mama's Knitting. Let me say of this book: the name and color scheme dissapoints me. In many ways, this book is a much much better book than it seems. It doesn't just have the same basic 'how to knit' that lots of knitting books do, it has mini stitch pattern collections! Many of the patterns have variations that can get a whole new look out of the pattern - for example, the icecream cozy can be a beer cozy if you follow steps X, Y, and Z. The book's main problems are its name (which screams 'hip knitting book,' which makes me want to run in fear of fuzzy yarn) and the poor quality of the layout and the photos inside. The photographs, which are all in the center of this otherwise on normal paper book, all have odd color balance and look like they were taken by a beginning photographer. This wouldn't be a problem except for the fact that it's a KNITTING BOOK. I want to be able to look at the pictures and see this wonderful glorious knit object that I could imagine myself replicating and using. If the pictures aren't great, the object isn't going to look great, so I won't want to knit it. This isn't to say that I'd knit all the patterns in the book - there are a few of them, like the O'Gloves (arm length black gloves with garish silver 'accents) and the V neck sweater (a cute v neck that somehow was brutally mauled so it doesn't cover the model's belly button) I wouldn't wear if someone forced me. That said though, there are a lot of very nice patterns, and, though I haven't knit anything from it, the patterns look like they're well formated.
I don't own this book. It was one of my library books today. If it wasn't for the problems I'd mentioned above, I'd buy it in a heart beat, but right now I'd be a little ashamed to own something so seemingly garish. Silly and superficial of me, I know, but it's true.
Now, to go drool over the patterns in that silly book. =]
My birthday was back in November. For my birthday, I asked my mom for a yarn winder and a swift. I picked one out, and she said 'sure, I'll get them for you!'
It is no longer November. It is in fact, December, and almost a month after my birthday. In all fairness, I know it took me a while to pick out a winder, and I know it took my mom a while to get it, and we're getting it from a place that hand makes all the swifts, so I understand that the care that's going into it means it takes longer than two days (or two weeks, in this case) to get to me. That said, I want my swift! =P
I've finished up my La Vie de La Boheme, and I'm currently un-enamored of my Stag Bag, though that's only because now I have to sew stuff and I don't sew. This means that, other than my boring Holiday Presents (which are lots of little flower pins) I don't have all that much knitting going on. I really want to start a new pair of socks since I frogged my Columbine socks, but there's a problem...
I got this very exciting new book yesterday, Knitting Circles Around Socks, that has some not-s0-great patterns, but has an EXCELENT tutorial on how to knit socks on circular needles. Not just how to knit ONE sock on two circulars, no, how to knit TWO socks on two circulars! Only exactly what would solve my forgetfulness problem of not bothering to count rows as I know! The only problem with this is that it requires two balls of yarn. This isn't really a problem, since I have two skeins in each of two colorways in Lorna's Laces, a lovely yarn that comes one skein per sock. One of these skeins is already in something resembling a center pull lump, this is the skein that was once part of a columbine sock. The other skein is in its pristine skein-like glory, not-wound (i was about to say 'unwound' but that means something else entirely =P) and undefiled. I don't really want to spend the hours it would take for me to wind it into a center pull lump if my yarn winder and swift will be arriving soon.
Were they my own purchase, I'd have a way of contacting the company and asking nicely for an estimate. It's not that I'm rushing them, I'd just like to be able to plan my knitting around when it will arrive. Since it's a gift, I can't really do that, and I don't want to look a gift-swift in the spokes (heh heh) and ask my mom to check for me.
Alas alack what a terrible problem.
I think the solution will be either to finish my adaptation of the Interweave Holiday Knits mug cozy I was working on or start the Icecream Pint Cozy I've been admiring in the book Not Your Mama's Knitting. Let me say of this book: the name and color scheme dissapoints me. In many ways, this book is a much much better book than it seems. It doesn't just have the same basic 'how to knit' that lots of knitting books do, it has mini stitch pattern collections! Many of the patterns have variations that can get a whole new look out of the pattern - for example, the icecream cozy can be a beer cozy if you follow steps X, Y, and Z. The book's main problems are its name (which screams 'hip knitting book,' which makes me want to run in fear of fuzzy yarn) and the poor quality of the layout and the photos inside. The photographs, which are all in the center of this otherwise on normal paper book, all have odd color balance and look like they were taken by a beginning photographer. This wouldn't be a problem except for the fact that it's a KNITTING BOOK. I want to be able to look at the pictures and see this wonderful glorious knit object that I could imagine myself replicating and using. If the pictures aren't great, the object isn't going to look great, so I won't want to knit it. This isn't to say that I'd knit all the patterns in the book - there are a few of them, like the O'Gloves (arm length black gloves with garish silver 'accents) and the V neck sweater (a cute v neck that somehow was brutally mauled so it doesn't cover the model's belly button) I wouldn't wear if someone forced me. That said though, there are a lot of very nice patterns, and, though I haven't knit anything from it, the patterns look like they're well formated.
I don't own this book. It was one of my library books today. If it wasn't for the problems I'd mentioned above, I'd buy it in a heart beat, but right now I'd be a little ashamed to own something so seemingly garish. Silly and superficial of me, I know, but it's true.
Now, to go drool over the patterns in that silly book. =]
Thursday, November 15, 2007
Start-itis, a Frogging frenzy, and my young Stag bag
Well, I've done quite a lot since I posted last! I had been hoping to accompany this post with photographs, but I can't for the life of me find the cord to plug my camera into my computer! This is what happens when I clean...
First off, I finished my Time of Your Life socks! Very excited. So far I've washed them and partly blocked them, but I haven't finshed sewing in the ends. I'd been waiting for darning needles I just ordered (which came in yesterday, so I don't have an excuse anymore...) but I do have a nice photoshoot of them! Stuck on my camera of course, but you'll see them soon.
I'd gotten so used to knitting while I watch tv that it was hard to go without something to knit. So I didn't. I knitted a 'garter mug cozy' from the Holiday 2007 issue of Interweave knits. This pattern is why I bought the magazine, and I was very excited to knit it, but I'm rather dissapointed! I tried the resulting cozy on every mug in my house, and there was only one it could fit onto at all, but it was too baggy to be useful. I started a second version of that, probably not in garter stitch (because I really don't see the point) and I'm paying more attention to the increases - I'm going to try knitting up a few rows without doing the last three inc rows to see if that fits my mugs better. I'd been hoping to give these for gifts, so it'd be nice if I could figure out some way to salvage the pattern. One thing I like about doing the pattern in stockinette instead of garter stitch is that I could (with my new found color work skills) have a design like a snowflake or an initial.
After my disappointment with the mug cozy, I cast on some Lornas Laces in Pioneer for a pair of Columbine Socks, from socks soar. For some reason it took me two times of starting the cuff before I was happy with it, but finally the cuff was done and I was in the first lace repeat...when I dropped a stitch. I tried saving my stitches four times, but in the end I had to frog all. So sad! I tried knitting the cuffs up AGAIN but I didn't like how the yarn was pooling - especially after seeing the neat spiraling I'd gotten it todo before - so I ripped it. Again. This is not the week for those socks. Needless to say, next time I finish the cuff, I'm putting in a lifeline!
SO! My birthday fell in the midst of all this, and, since I failed to ask for much specific, I got some money. Which promptly was spent on some Ultra Alpaca Light for my stag bag. I'd decided a while ago to do this in blue and brown - ideally a rich chocolate for the stag and a nice light blue for the background. Well, my trip to my LYS changed my mind. Thanks to the lovely women at Woolstock that day, I decided to use a fawn brown for the stag and a richer blue for the sky. I cast on yesterday as soon as I returned from the store, and I'm over halfway done the chart for the front. I can't decide how I want to do the back. My mom suggested I do another repeat of the chart, probably not realizing how much easier said than done, but I'm warming to the idea. I'll see how I feel when I'm done the entire front, and if I'm up to it, I think it'd be neat to do a mirror image of the front chart, so that, in theory, both stags would be looking toward the same side. (Another way to think about it - if the pattern was stained glass, you'd be 'seeing through to the other side'. )
I'm loving this knit and I'm loving this yarn. When I was at the store I bought the two colors of Ultra Alpaca Light that I'd been crushing on since, oh, September. I have no idea what I'm going to make with the two skeins, but for now, I'm quite content just looking at the yarn and occasionally fondling it.
That's all the knitting news for now. I've been doing a bit of reading lately too, and I've finished these since my last trip to the library:
Death by Chick Lit - Lynn Harris
Needled to Death - Maggie Sefton (I meant to start with Knit One, Kill Too but it was checked out.)
Both books were good easy bedtime reads. For me a bedtime read is something frivolous, so I'm enjoying it, something light so it's okay if I fall asleep while reading and miss a page or two, and something quick, so I can finish it in a week or two.
Now, time for bed! The sooner I get to bed the sooner it's tomorrow and I can knit more!
First off, I finished my Time of Your Life socks! Very excited. So far I've washed them and partly blocked them, but I haven't finshed sewing in the ends. I'd been waiting for darning needles I just ordered (which came in yesterday, so I don't have an excuse anymore...) but I do have a nice photoshoot of them! Stuck on my camera of course, but you'll see them soon.
I'd gotten so used to knitting while I watch tv that it was hard to go without something to knit. So I didn't. I knitted a 'garter mug cozy' from the Holiday 2007 issue of Interweave knits. This pattern is why I bought the magazine, and I was very excited to knit it, but I'm rather dissapointed! I tried the resulting cozy on every mug in my house, and there was only one it could fit onto at all, but it was too baggy to be useful. I started a second version of that, probably not in garter stitch (because I really don't see the point) and I'm paying more attention to the increases - I'm going to try knitting up a few rows without doing the last three inc rows to see if that fits my mugs better. I'd been hoping to give these for gifts, so it'd be nice if I could figure out some way to salvage the pattern. One thing I like about doing the pattern in stockinette instead of garter stitch is that I could (with my new found color work skills) have a design like a snowflake or an initial.
After my disappointment with the mug cozy, I cast on some Lornas Laces in Pioneer for a pair of Columbine Socks, from socks soar. For some reason it took me two times of starting the cuff before I was happy with it, but finally the cuff was done and I was in the first lace repeat...when I dropped a stitch. I tried saving my stitches four times, but in the end I had to frog all. So sad! I tried knitting the cuffs up AGAIN but I didn't like how the yarn was pooling - especially after seeing the neat spiraling I'd gotten it todo before - so I ripped it. Again. This is not the week for those socks. Needless to say, next time I finish the cuff, I'm putting in a lifeline!
SO! My birthday fell in the midst of all this, and, since I failed to ask for much specific, I got some money. Which promptly was spent on some Ultra Alpaca Light for my stag bag. I'd decided a while ago to do this in blue and brown - ideally a rich chocolate for the stag and a nice light blue for the background. Well, my trip to my LYS changed my mind. Thanks to the lovely women at Woolstock that day, I decided to use a fawn brown for the stag and a richer blue for the sky. I cast on yesterday as soon as I returned from the store, and I'm over halfway done the chart for the front. I can't decide how I want to do the back. My mom suggested I do another repeat of the chart, probably not realizing how much easier said than done, but I'm warming to the idea. I'll see how I feel when I'm done the entire front, and if I'm up to it, I think it'd be neat to do a mirror image of the front chart, so that, in theory, both stags would be looking toward the same side. (Another way to think about it - if the pattern was stained glass, you'd be 'seeing through to the other side'. )
I'm loving this knit and I'm loving this yarn. When I was at the store I bought the two colors of Ultra Alpaca Light that I'd been crushing on since, oh, September. I have no idea what I'm going to make with the two skeins, but for now, I'm quite content just looking at the yarn and occasionally fondling it.
That's all the knitting news for now. I've been doing a bit of reading lately too, and I've finished these since my last trip to the library:
Death by Chick Lit - Lynn Harris
Needled to Death - Maggie Sefton (I meant to start with Knit One, Kill Too but it was checked out.)
Both books were good easy bedtime reads. For me a bedtime read is something frivolous, so I'm enjoying it, something light so it's okay if I fall asleep while reading and miss a page or two, and something quick, so I can finish it in a week or two.
Now, time for bed! The sooner I get to bed the sooner it's tomorrow and I can knit more!
Friday, October 26, 2007
Things I Like Today
I'm sure you're all wondering what that white circular thing is, and why it's not a picture of my socks! I'm sorry I haven't posted a picture of my socks, I haven't been able to take a good one yet. It's been raining almost nonstop this week, which is great for the plants, because it's been very dry, but not so great for taking nice pretty outdoor sock pictures. In the meantime, I've started my second sock! I anticipated a bad case of second sock syndrome, especially since I have so many new projects I want to try, so I cast on and knitted half an inch or so immediately after casting off sock one.
I don't have all that much to say, so I'm going to do another list of things I like, which will include the weird thing on the side.
- Method Aroma Ring (yeah, that's the weird thing)
I was at Target today and I saw the Method had a line of Holiday scents. Now, I love most holiday related things. Their holiday scents were peppermint vanilla, holly berry, and cinnamon bark. I wasn't a big fan of the holly berry. I don't usually like fruit scented house things - the scent is almost always too strong for me. I was excited by the other options. I love most things cinnamon or spice scented in general, and the peppermint vanilla reminded me of one of my favorite candles. This candle is an Aroma Naturals soy candle I got last holday season. It somehow smells just like those after dinner peppermints - sweet and minty, and delicious. It's the first scented candle I've burned to within half an inch of its life. Anyhow, back to the aroma ring. I saw it was a scented thing that I didn't have to set on fire or plug in, so I decided I'd try it. I got it in pepermint vanilla, and got refills in....gingerbread spice! Seeing the gingerbread spice made me crave the similarly named Starbucks latte. The aroma ring...right. So, moral is, I took it home, unwrapped the foil bit and sat it there. It just sits there, people! I love it. Nice fresh scent. Cool modern looking weird vibe. That's that thing I like. - Blueprint Magazine
If you are not familear with Blueprint magazine, I'd suggest you go to your local booksellers and pick up a copy! I say this despite the fact my local bookstore didn't *have* the newest issue and I had to get it at Target, but, that's neither here nor there. Blueprint is one of Martha Stewart's latest ventures. It's been around for over a year now - maybe around two years? I'm not sure exactly - and it's aimed at the 'early career professional' set. (my term, not theirs). Normally, I read a lot of magazines. My local libraries have always had a decent selection, and when they don't, I'm not above browsing through some at bookstores. My family subscribes to Gourmet and Food and Wine, so I get to read those when they're done. I also like to read style magazines (though those I don't subscribe to) and I've become a big fan of Women's Health. At the library, I also check out Martha Stewart Living and Real Simple. All together that's food magazines, craft magazines, fashion magazines and health magazines. The way I like to figure it, Martha (yes, we're on a first name basis; we're Facebook friends!) was looking through her stack of magazines and thought "I know, why not take ALL THESE THINGS and put them into ONE AWESOME MAGAZINE" and thus, Blueprint was created. That's my mind, at least. In reality, I personally think it's just plain awesome. I wish it were every month, not every two months, and I wish the issues were much longer, but as far as it goes, I'm a fan. - Thai Food
Okay, so, this wasn't going to go on the list, but I just went out for an amazing dinner with my mom and stepdad. We had a whole fish, deep fried and then covered with sauce, and it was AMAZING. I had a beef salad as an appatiser. It wasn't what I meant to order, but I didn't want to give it back, so I ate it and DAMN was it spicy. Now, my stepdad loves spicy food, to the extent that when he goes to a new restaurant, he says "pretend I wasn't white and make it as spicy as you can, I won't send it back" or something to that effect, and they do. Tonight I could see the chilies on all his dishes from across the table. The restaurant we went to tonight is one of their favorites, and they have a favorite waiter who knows them well. Unfortunately for me, this means that *everything* ordered by the table is spicier than usual. I was somewhat convinced, for part of the evening, my lips would fall off. But, our fish was delicious. - Pumpkin Yogurt
I'm sure to some of you that sounds disgusting. I'm sorry. For those who are wondering where they could get such a thing, I must sadly tell you you can't purchase it. This is an original recipe, so to speak...take some Fage greek yogurt and add a tablespoon or two of Trader Joe's Pumpkin butter. Mix, and enjoy! This is my favorite desert. I need to pull out the icecream make and make a batch of pumpkin frozen yogurt. I think that might end up being my favorite thing ever.
Monday, October 22, 2007
First sock!
My first sock is now DONE! I'm very excited. Tomorrow I'll take some pictures of it - it's not the most exciting thing in the world, and it's far from perfect, but darnit, I'm just glad it's done! Now....for the second sock. =]
Sunday, October 14, 2007
So much for writing about senior year...
Okay, so I guess doing the actual homework (and socializing) took precedence over starting this blog. I’m okay with that. However, I do still want to *have* a blog. These days I’m leaning more towards a knitting blog (or an all inclusive blog) than towards the previously attempted foodblog. (see: http://kitchenphilosophy.blogspot.com/ )
So, how about I include some actual content…
Sometime toward the middle or end of this past August, I found myself in a strange city (well, not that strange, it was in New Jersey) with no knitting to speak of and time on my hands. I went to my LYS (local yarn store) and asked the woman for her recommendation on a one or two skein project that would be portable. She asked me if I’d tried socks yet, and when I said I hadn’t because I’d been afraid of them, she told me not to worry, everyone she knew tried the pattern she gave me (Yankee Knitters #29) to great success. She even let me borrow a #4 needle for casting on, since my needle stash was at ‘home’, still not unpacked from my move out of my apartment, post graduation.
Well, I’ve been working on those on and off (I had to take a break to knit a friend a squid, like you do) and here’s today’s update:
So, I’d left the socks mid heel-decrease (or, in the technical term, mid heel-gusset, but Coupling made that word make me giggle. Heh. Gusset.) and didn’t want to pick them up again. Two days ago I finished the heel gusset (heh) and went on to the foot!
Now, I’d been debating for a while wanting to try knitting on two circular needles. I like double pointed needles, but I’m always worried about taking the sock places. I’m somehow convinced one of the needles will fall out or break or something. SO I decided to try knitting the rest of this sock (or at least the foot part) on two circulars. With Cat Bordhi’s book in hand I transfered the sock over and I realized one of the other benefits of knitting on two circulars: You can try on the sock!
Well, I have to admit I’m not as pleased as I’d hoped. The mess ups in the ribbing (why is it I always mess up at the beginning of a project, long after I’d let myself rip it) are noticeable, but otherwise the socks fit nicely. They’re looser than my normal socks, as well as thicker (duh) but I think they’ll look nice peeping out from my Dansko MaryJanes.
I think on the next pair of socks I do I’m going to cary the ribbing down the top of the foot. It should help keep them a little tighter, and I personally think it looks nicer. Now, here’s hoping I finish this sock!
Thank you, loyal internet (I’d say readers, but I am pretty sure I don’t have any yet). Expect a picture of sock-on-foot coming hopefully soon.
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