Queen of Beads

Name of Project: Queen of Beads by Sivia Harding
Yarn: Socks That Rock lightweight, colorway: My Blue Heaven
Needles: Size US 0 (2.0 mm) Knit Picks dpns
Pattern Notes: The hardest part about these was stringing the beads on.

I love the way they turned out! The pattern has a really nice fit and they look stunning on. On to the next shipment, Rogue Roses.

Giselle

It's taken me awhile to post about this sweater for a couple of reasons. It didn't live up to my expectations as a finished object and therefore I was not satisfied with the pictures I was getting of it. These were the best ones after several attempts at photographing it.


Name of Project: Giselle by Marnie MacLean
Yarn: Tilli Tomas Plie and Tilli Tomas Voile de la Mer from Dreamweaveryarn.com
Needles: Size US 7 (4.5 mm) Knit Picks Interchangeables
Estimated Time to Complete Project: 2 months

A few things I would like to say about this pattern. I loved the thought of it. It looks so renaissance and drapey and beautiful. I was a little disappointed with the end product because of a few things.

The yarn called for in this pattern is silk. It had absolutely no structure when I took it off the blocking board. I had to reinforce the entire neckline and waist-join for it to not fall off of me. I slip stitched with a smaller crochet hook to reinforce. I wish I had thought to take a picture of the before.

I took the yarn into consideration when starting this project, and I made the small. I am not a small woman. I’m 38 inches give or take with a DD cup. I should not technically fit in a small. I know wrap sweaters are VERY forgiving in fit so it’s a little hard to gauge. I feel like the gauge should have been tighter for this yarn to hold shape and size better. The loose knit gauge just added to the unstructured nature of the yarn.

The other part that I had a hard time figuring out was how to tie it in the back without the side front gaping open. I searched and searched for a picture of the back that could show me how people had done it, but was unable to find a satisfactory fix. I ended up weaving the ties in and out of the crochet joins.

About the pictures of me - I’m wearing a corset under the sweater. It was the only thing that would hold the sweater up on my body.

In other news, my lace shawl is still progressing. I am loving working on it, but am having a hard time finding the time and places appropriate to work on it. I'm carrying the Queen of Beads socks around in my purse and am working down the foot towards the toe. They are very close to being finished. I was hoping I would get them done before the next shipment came, but no luck. Which is a shame, because I wanted to start these right when they came.

Rogue Roses by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee. Oh Yarn Harlot, how I love thee. This colorway is called Gertrude Skein.

I think I'm so lucky that I have so many cool projects to knit. It's a constant source of happiness and entertainment.

Holidazed

Name of Project: Holidazed by Anne Hanson
Yarn: Socks That Rock Mediumweight - Muddy Autumn Rainbow
Needles: Size US 1 (2.25 mm) Knit Picks circulars
Estimated Time to Complete Project: 1.5 months
Pattern Notes: This pattern was simple enough for me to carry around in my purse to work on while I was waiting.

This was the last shipment from the 2008 Rockin Sock Club and it was just in time, because on Friday I got this...

My Blue Heaven. Yes it is. 360 yards of lightweight, superwash, hand dyed heaven. This is the first shipment from the 2009 World Domination Tour of the Rockin' Sock Club. I think the universe has been trying to send me a message of some sort with the seemingly random peacock colored blues that keep coming to me. This is going to match the Peacock coat I finished last week, exactly.

The kit came with a keychain, button, binder cover and a bag of beads along with the pattern and dyer's notes. The pattern is called Queen of Beads by Sivia Harding. It looks very beautiful although the pictures that came with the pattern are kind of dark so it's hard to see a whole lot of detail. I've wound the yarn into a ball and still need to string the beads, so I won't be starting it right away. Hopefully by the end of this week.

I've been playing with a knitting machine that a very giving and good friend has decided to pass along to me. It's very different and I am still a little unsure of the in's and out's of it. I have some coned yarn that is perfect for the fine gauge machine and I'm having fun learning. I am still trying to finish Giselle before Stitches West so I really need to stay focused and not let myself be distracted so easily. I've got one sleeve done and one more to go, then all of the trim. It's so close! I'll just keep reminding myself to work on it first so I can have something beautiful to wear that weekend.

Rainy Day

My son came home from school today and asked me if I could get him some rain boots for tomorrow. It's actually raining enough to contemplate the need for rubber boots. I know it's not going to last though, so I told him not to worry about it. Seeing it rain and clean all of the trees and landscape has been wonderful today. The temperature has dropped enough that even my wool sweater is just not warm enough on its own. Cuddled up with my boys playing board games and eating warm things, that's what I call a good day!

Some of my Christmas things that I normally do aren't going as planned, but I did manage to finish the Wonderful Wallaby for Son #1. I've layed it out to block, but the cold temperatures have really hindered the drying process. This is the third day and I can still feel a little dampness when I hold it.


Name of Project: Wonderful Wallaby by Cottage Creations
Yarn: Wool Ease and Vanna's Choice
Needles: Size US 8 Knit Picks circulars
Estimated Time to Complete Project: 3 months, although it was really more of a side project and I'm sure it would go a lot faster if I worked on it continuously.
Pattern Notes: I really love how this sweater came out. I tried it on him before I put on the hood and it's going to fit him beautifully.

Since I had a handmade gift for Son #1, I wanted to make sure Son #2 didn't feel left out. He helped me pick out some yarn and I decided to try this pattern out of Cat Bordhi's book, New Pathways for Sock Knitters.

Name of Project: Marcelo's Seven-League Boots
Yarn: Socks That Rock Heavyweight and KnitPicks Sock Garden
Needles: Size US 3 Knit Picks circulars
Estimated Time to Complete Project: A few days

These socks are super cute and easy and my son is all excited about them. He keeps walking around with the one sock on because I haven't finished the other yet. His new nickname, "One Sock". It actually rolls of the tongue quite naturally. It's going to be hard to not just give them to him instead of keeping them for a Christmas present.

In other news, when I thought about not signing up for the 2009 Rockin Sock Club, it was before I saw this.

Do you see who the designers are? I think it's going to be a fabulous year and I just couldn't miss out. Of course when I lamented to my husband about it, he was more than willing to get it for me for Christmas. It really made my day when one of the packages came, and he used to put it someplace where I would see it, but wasn't necessarily obvious. Like on top of the window valance, or around the corner on the stairs. He knew it was special mail and that I would be excited when I saw it. It made it all the more fun. So there it is, I am an official Rockin' Sock club junkie. I can not resist the club and the happiness that it brings. I guess I could have worse addictions...Merry Christmas to me!

WIP Central

It's been so long since my last post because I have so many long-term projects I've been working on. I usually post when I've finished something.

A ton of things have been in the works for me. I've been working on my socks for the Think Outside the Sox contest. It's a lot more laborious of a process than I thought it would be. It's one thing to knit a sock not using a pattern and come up with your own ideas. But then to try to articulate them down on paper so anyone can read it and know what you're talking about is quite another. I guess it comes down to the deadline. All submissions have to be in by January 1, 2009. If I could take my sweet time, and work on other things when I felt like it then it wouldn't be as bad. But the next shipment of the Rockin' Sock Club came, and I can't start them (again). Look at this colorway...
It's so beautiful! I want to start them and work on them but I just can't let myself until I finish my entry. It's the only way it'll get done.

Which brings me to another point. Stitches West 2009. After careful consideration, hemming and hawing, and almost absolute denial that I was going to submit to a frivolous trip completely for myself...I'm going. I've got my hotel room at the Santa Clara Hyatt Regency, I've got my plane ticket to Santa Clara, and my classes have been signed up and paid for. I'll be joining a few of my fellow enthusiasts for a fun-filled getaway that I've already dismissed my guilt for. One of the motivating factors for me going was the sock contest. I mean, they're announcing the winners there! I'm not the only one of my friends who will win that night either. My other friend is going to win in her category also, so it makes sense for us to be there together to celebrate. (It's good to visualize your goals!)

I did manage to finish these socks for Son #1. They were the ones I would carry around in my purse and knit on when I had a few free moments.

-->Name of Project: Garter Stitch Toes and Heels
Yarn: Sock it to Me! Collection Harlequin
Needles: Size US 0 (2.0 mm) Knit Picks dpns
Estimated Time to Complete Project: 2 months
Pattern Notes: These are based on the Timberline Toes pattern from Lucy Neatby. I went toe-up using a provisional cast on with 28 stitches, short-rowing down to 9 sts, then back up to 28 sts. Then I picked up where the provisional cast on was and worked in the round for the foot. I worked a garter stitch short-row heel over 34 stitches, short-rowing down to 10, then back up to 34. Then worked up the leg. I knitted 1.5" of ribbing for the top then used a sewn-bind off.

As usual they are now his favorite thing to wear which makes him a very worthy recipient.

Another event to be excited about is the Torrance Fiber Festival. A couple of us are going to meet up to go check it out. It's about a 2 hour drive from where I live which I think is a bit more reasonable than the 14 hour drive to Taos, New Mexico for the Taos Fiber Festival. So that's it! Back to working on the never-ending sock entry...

Pomatomus

Name of Project: Pomatomus by Cookie A.
Yarn: Knit Picks Bare Fingering Weight Merino/Nylon Blend, Hand-dyed blue and yellow
Yardage: almost one hank
Yarn Source: Knitpicks.com
Needles: Size US 1 (2.25 mm) and Size US 2 (2.75mm) Knit Picks circulars
Estimated Time to Complete Project: 2 months
Pattern Notes: These socks were an exercise in gauge for me. The leg was done on Size 2 needles and although I checked my gauge, they were knitting up a little loose. When I got down to the heel flap, I decided to try the Size 1 just to see if it would look nicer. What an improvement! The yarn looked better, the stitches looked better, and everything went way better.

I think in the future, I'm just going to have to err on the side of smaller needles. It seems to always work out that way for me.

The next sock pattern I'll probably do is this one:
The second shipment of the Rockin Sock Club! I'm not starting right away, because I want to do some swatching for some other things. I plan to finish up my Central Park Hoodie soon also, it's so close to being done.

Totally Worth It

Today was the day my very first Rockin Sock Club shipment arrived. O Happy Day! I knew it was going to be here soon, I had been following their blog intensively. My first shipment did not disappoint. I got my binder, which includes the Dyer's Notes for the yarn I received, a couple of really cool charts and notes, and my first pattern. I also got a little keychain made out of the same yarn for the pattern and two buttons. They are so cute!
The beautiful yarn that arrived is called Dragon Dance and is part of the Chinese New Year Celebration. The theme of this yarn makes me feel connected to other parts of the world and has the most wonderful reds. The pattern, Serendipity, that was chosen to go with this yarn has a lace pattern that looks like candle flames. It's going to be wonderful!

I am usually a monogamous knitter, with only one pair of socks and a bigger project on the needles. I like to finish the thing I'm working on before starting another project that is the same kind of thing. I have not finished my Pomatomus socks yet but I just can't wait to cast these on and get started. I've already wound them into balls and made a working copy of the pattern so I can cast on tonight.
This was taken a little over a week ago and I'm down to the end of the heel flap. I just need to turn the heel and finish the foot and toe. So I figured I'm not that far off.

Rockin Sock Club

Oh yeah baby! I was left out last year but not this time! My registration form is in the mail and in 2008 I'll be getting a gift that keeps on giving.


I told my husband that the Rockin Sock Club is what I wanted for Christmas. He had the perfect response ready. "You know I want to get you what you want, how do I sign you up?" I couldn't have planned it better. Socks that Rock is my most favoritest sock yarn ever and next year I'll have the newest and greatest in my hands. It's a good day.


Halloween was fun last night too!