Birthday Socks are gone, but I forgot a picture

The Birthday socks are done, and two days early! DWE and A came by this afternoon, and she was happy to have them. She doesn't say much, but she knew her feet would be warm in these socks.

As I worked the cuff, I had a little knot in the skein and I cut it out and continued. When the color changed to the next stripe, I was amazed to see the progression had reversed! I cut the yarn again, unwound yarn from the outside of my skein till it matched, and then finished the sock. The cuffs now match, but instead of just two ends to finish off, that sock had six ends to weave in. I had heard stories about Opal yarn reversing direction but had never seen it in action. It was fixed easily enough, but still was a pain.

I'm working on baby hats again, and will make a delivery soon with 24 hats. I have just 4 more to go. With the cold weather predicted for this weekend and into the next, I will have lots of time for knitting. I have discovered I can knit baby hats while I walk on the treadmill, and get an inch or two done during my 30 minutes of torture. It's my own fault, after my broken wrist, I am extra cautious about walking on ice or snow on top of ice.

It's been a year since I knit any socks for myself, and these socks went so quickly, I decided to start another pair. I'm using Knit Picks Essential, Dune Twist, and #0s. Diametrag and DWE gifted me with a Knit Picks sampler of sock yarn for Christmas 07, and I'm stash diving with enthusiasm. Dune Twist is dark brown and caramel twisted together, and it's pretty and knitting up soft and smooth. A little splitting with the increases, but nothing terrible.

The plan is to balance baby hats with socks, and work in a little tatting, too. But that's another blog.

Birthday Socks

I'm working on a pair of socks for a birthday on January 9. I probably won't give them to her on The Day, but I'd like to get them done pretty close.
Jake's gf has very cold feet, a birthday in January, and likes green. The yarn whispered her name as I looked through my sock yarn stash. I wasn't planning to knit a pair of socks, but now I am. Baby hats are on hold as I speed knit the socks. Fortunately she has skinny feet which aren't much longer than Diametrag's.
I started the socks Sunday night, but took a couple days off because I got a little cold. The socks are almost ready to start the gussets. The right sock, showing the instep, has 6 more rows to go, the left sock shows the sole, the stockinette side.
I'm making them in a plain k2p2 rib, Opal Chameleon. It was an impulse buy at my LYS, and I never liked it enough to start a pair for myself. Now I've gone through one color cycle, I like them a lot, and almost wish they were for me. I have sock yarn from last Christmas, thanks to Diametrag and Jake, and I think I will get started on pair for me when these are done. I can alternate between baby hats and socks, right?
Knitter's details: k2p2 rib, Opal Chameleon, #0 dpns, 68 sts, 50 rounds to the gussets. Toe up, 2 at a time on dpns, easy rectangle toe, heel flap and gussets. My gauge is 9 spi, 12 rpi.

Progress on Tofutsies Socks

I turned the heels and have a few rounds done in the cuff. When I looked at the picture, I thought the socks looked a little short, even for me, so I measured them. The rectangle toe folds under so they are actually a bit longer than the photo, but still measure barely 8" from toe to heel. I was concerned this might be too small, and slipped one on this morning. Aaaah, it is a snug fit in a beautiful soft yarn.

Now you can see the colors are gray-toned rather than all brown. In natural light I can see spots of pale aqua in the mix. Diametrag, this is excellent yarn and I love the color! (#807)

I must admit, Tofutsies will split if my attention strays. When I was working the heel flap, I didn't like the way the end stitches stretched. I knit through the back of those loose stitches, and avoided gaps where my heel flap joins the gusset. The heel flap shows very little definition with the k1, sl1 heel stitch. If I make another pair of Tofutsies, I will try giving the knit stitch a twist by knitting in the back.

I like Tofutsies, but wouldn't recommend it for a beginner because it splits easily. I am used to knitting with a thin sock yarn like Opal, and I think Tofutsies is comparable in size. If you are used to knitting with a dk yarn, you may have to make some adjustments to get the correct size in your sock. I'll be very interested to see how it wears and washes. All my handknit socks go through the washer and dryer, I'm not knitting heirlooms, I'm knitting for warm feet.

Finished Socks For Me

The first pair of Socks for Me is done! They are warming my feet as I type; they feel soft and fit just like I like them!

I added 10 rounds to the length I normally knit my cuff, and didn't die from the exertion. They are tall enough to fit in my new boots. After my k1p1 cuff, I bind off with the Kitchener Stitch, rather than a knitted bind off. It takes some time, but I finally learned it well enough I don't need my cheat sheets any more.

I'm trying to decide which yarn to use for my next pair of socks. Ah, the luxury of having 6 more skeins to choose from. Diametrag and Jake are superior offspring; they know how to make this old mom happy! I will skip the black and dark brown, and leave that for summer knitting when the daylight is reliably bright. Diametrag slipped a skein of Tofutsies into the mix, and I may try that next. It's a tweedy gray and white, and the stitches will be easy to see in the gloomy days we have this time of year.

Knitter's details: Knit Picks Felici, Pebble, (superwash merino), #0 dpns, 64 stitches, toe up, heel flap and gusset, stockinette stitch

Knitting up the leg

I finished the gussets, turned my heels, and knitted the heel flaps on both socks. Now I'm on the home stretch, knitting up the legs.

This is where I typically run out of gas, and end the sock early. I want to add about an inch to my standard length cuffs in order to fit comfortably in my new boots. I have at least one pair that slides down, and I give a good tug to keep it comfortable. I hope a snug heel and a longer cuff will take care of that.

I have been knitting socks for myself since about 2003, and have enough pairs to make it through a laundry cycle. Lately I noticed that the first socks I reach for were the ones with the plain foot, and I realized they were more comfortable. The Opal socks are nice, but a bit thinner. This Knit Picks Felici is a tiny bit thicker, not a dk, rather a fat sock yarn. I will see if my feet can tell the difference.

I don't pamper my socks, they get washed and dried in the machine with all my regular laundry. Recently I spotted the first signs of wear. Other than one pair that I snagged on the furnace floor vent in the kitchen, I have had no holes in my socks. Now I see tiny wear spots in my toes. Not the heels, not the heel flaps, but the toe! I have a toenail that sticks straight up, and that must be the culprit. I'll have to keep them trimmed closer, I guess.

Progress on Socks for Me!

I haven't been knitting a lot since Christmas; I took a little break. Last night I picked up my Christmas socks, and made good progress. One sock is almost done with the gusset increases, the second sock is waiting its turn. I like to knit my socks in tandem, on dpns. I work on one pair, then the other, so I have only suffered from the dreaded Second Sock Syndrome (SSS) once. It was such a horrible experience I vowed to never let SSS happen again, and have since knitted my socks together.
The yarn is Felici, from Knit Picks and it feels smooth as it runs through my fingers. I want to finish these socks soon, I can't wait to see how warm they are. The skeins didn't start in the same spot in the colorway, and I just started knitting, rather than trying to find a corresponding starting point. I think of them as fraternal socks, rather than identical. The colors please my eye so much, I don't care that they are different.
My feet are small, these socks are only 64 sts on #0 dpns, and I only knit 4.5" before starting my gussets. I've been teased that I have an unfair advantage because I don't have to knit big socks. Now Alwen can laugh again. I got boots for my birthday, and I'll have to knit longer cuffs for my socks. I have been knitting socks that are a bit short, and I find they are barely long enough to protect my leg from the cuffs on the new boots. My Christmas yarn came at just the right time, I need longer socks so I can walk in the snow and stay warm.

Socks for Me

I finally finished my pair of socks. It seems like it took longer than usual, and now my Christmas knitting is far behind. I have started in September in the past, but was not so motivated this year.

I loved the brown shades when it was in the skein, but didn't like the stripes in the foot at all. I needed a stockinette foot, since ribs down the instep were hurting my feet on long walks. I know, it makes me think of The Princess and the Pea, and I'm not so delicate, honest.

I knit the leg in Harris Tweed, and all those knits and purls blurred the stripes very nicely. I have found I like to keep the leg about as long as my foot. It just happened that my yarn changed to white when I was thinking about switching to ribs. I didn't notice the matching white toes, heels and cuffs until I took the picture. Now I like them even more. Hooray for serendipity!

I have done my socks with 68 sts and rib on the instep. About half way up the foot I wondered if I needed fewer sts with a stockinette foot. I am pleased to say the socks fit fine, and I'll probably make my next pair with a stockinette foot, too.

Toe-Up Socks for Me

We went camping last week, just a two-day outing to get away and relax. I took my latest socks in progress. When we left, I had one sock done up to the gussets, and the second sock had only the toe done. I finished both gussets, turned the heels, heel flaps and now I'm working on the cuffs. Lots of time for knitting.

I made the feet plain stockinette, and had a little trouble when it came time for the gussets. I didn't realize how much I used a patterned instep for reference. I made it through, but got very tired of the stripes. I'm a big fan of brown, but these colors are just a bit off to me. (Opal, Rainforest Owl) I decided to break up the stripes with Harris Tweed on the cuffs, and it really does the job.

I am a fanatic when it comes to keeping my socks the same, right down to the number of rounds in the cuffs. Now that I'm doing Harris Tweed I don't have to track my rounds as I would have with k2p2 rib. Not familiar with Harris Tweed? It's k2p2 rib broken up by rounds of knit or purl. It's not very effective in worsted, but in sock yarn it makes nice little squares, almost like a waffle stitch.

Rounds 1&2: *k2, p2*. Rounds 3&4: *k*. Rounds 5&6: *k2, p2*. Rounds 7&8: *p*.

My Socks are Done!

I have too many projects on the needles. Before I started more projects, I finished the socks I started after Christmas, and two dishcloths.

The socks are Opal yarn, it's been so long I don't remember the color name. I used a new-to-me toe up sock from Sensational Knitted Socks by C. Schurch. I thought the seam along the ankle bone might be uncomfortable, but when I tried them on last night, they were great! I'll wear them in shoes today and see how they feel.

I don't usually blog my dishcloths, they aren't very creative or exciting. When we go camping, I take several balls of kitchen cotton, and knit while we travel. I use my dishcloths every day and I need to replace them after a year. The cotton never wears out, they just look dirty even after washing. I usually use Sugar and Cream by Lilly because I like the ombre colors. Since they fade so quickly, I decided to try ecru kitchen cotton by Lion Brand. I plan to use and wash each cloth once/week and see which one turns yucky first. The cloths are similar but different, and I should be able to tell them apart even after the colors fade from the Sugar and Cream cloth. Just for reference, I cast on 32 sts with #6 needles. 16 rows for each of 3 sections. I used double moss stitch and box stitch.

Opal Socks for Me

My DS gave me Opal sock yarn for Christmas, my DH gave me "Sensational Knitted Socks". I decided to try the toe up sock with the new to me heel flap/turn/gusset method. I knit the socks up to the point where I would normally start my gussets. (This is my only complaint about the book so far. CS doesn't help you decide where to start your heel flap on a toe up sock.) Then I knit a flap on the sole stitches, only in stockinette instead of the sl1,k1 heel stitch used in a top down sock. I wondered how it would fit, until I remembered that stockinette stitch would make a heel flap that was a rectangle rather than the square you get with the heel stitch. I had 36 sts and did 37 rows of stockinette and ended with a rectangle that was at the right spot for turning the heel.

After the heel turn, I picked up gusset sts and started knitting in the round again, decreasing just as for a top-down sock. It was a bit tricky to remember that my heel stitch needed to alternate plain knit rounds with sl1,k1. I finally got things synchronized by remembering that my sl1,k1 round was the same round to decrease gusset stitches.

My heels are done and I'm back to 72 stitches. Next is to knit up the cuff, in plain k2p2 rib, That fits me very well, and doesn't interrupt the wonderful patterns in the self-striping yarn.

I love this yarn, thanks Jake! (you know who you are)