Done and done

The birthstone socks were, in fact, done on Easter. Okay it was Easter Monday, but I've decided that it still counts. They turned out beautifully. A fortuitous meeting of yarn and pattern. Here they are fresh off the needles, unblocked and not showing to full potential.

V's Birthstone Socks
pattern: Hedera by Cookie A.
Fleece Artist Basic Merino in Amethyst

Overall I really did enjoy working on them. I finally decided that the problem I had sticking with them came down to the lace element. I like knitting lace, and I like knitting socks, but I knit them in entirely different situations. The combination meant that I needed an additional, plainer sock project for my traditional sock moments.

Speaking of plainer socks, the Serious Hiking socks are also finished. It was a productive week. Not least because the weather here, in these first days of spring, has been absolutely wintry. This pair has already had a trial in the weekend snow.


I have some thoughts about these socks, but I'm going to save that for another post. I may write up the pattern properly and offer it free here at some point. Anyone interested? There don't seem to be a lot of heavier weight sock patterns out there at the moment.

The clouds did lift for a time today and all the snow had a highly picturesque effect on the mountains. Alas it seems that there is more weather to come and thoughts of spring knits remain far off. However the Spring Interweave has finally arrived and the weather will catch up eventually. And there is a sweaters worth of yarn on my coffee table, just waiting to be wound.

Half way?

I've been knitting on the second birthstone sock almost exclusively [I took the hiking socks to knitting group on Tuesday, I can't work the lace and carry on a conversation at the same time] since Monday morning. And this is all I have to show for it.


The leg and heel flap are complete. Next is the fiddly bits and the long rounds (nearly 100 stitches at the start of the gusset decreases). I may make it. May.

I'm giving up a couple of hours of knitting time tomorrow happily: I'm off to a yarn shop with Yvette. I haven't bought yarn at all since I've been in France, so I think I can justify a little treat. Perhaps I'll have some pr0n for Friday.

No snakes here

The first birthstone sock is done, finally. When I started this project (February 27, according to Ravelry) I thought I could have the pair finished by Easter, no problem. They've been dragging on a bit, clearly. In fact I let them languish for a couple of days last week, needing only a few rows before the toe, without touching them once.

What? How do you celebrate?

I love everything about these socks, but more often than not when I sit down to knit for a bit these days I seem to be reaching for something a little more mindless. It's a sign (I'm sure) of where my mind is these days. Life seems complicated enough.

I'm not a slow knitter, but lace isn't my strongest event. And I haven't been working on these enough to get into the rhythm necessary to gain speed. It's less than a week now until Easter, if I really crack down and apply myself can I have the second sock knit by then? And should I even try or is this an invitation to cranky, squinty madness? Hmmmm.

The cold, grey rain returned on the weekend and we've been reaching for wool socks and hats yet again. It seems that spring is slow to come in a lot of places this year. As a consolation I definitely earned my Proselytize Knitting badge last night while wandering (through the drizzle) back from the pub and explaining to my compatriots why wet wool isn't cold.

If St. Patrick's Day has you thinking of cables and twists you can get a wonderful vest pattern and help fund important research at the same time. Visit Kirsten at Through the Loops to find out more.

There's an Alp back there somewhere...

Noro Hero Hat

I wasn't sure I would, but I really like this hat!

Saartje's Noro Hat

pattern here
Noro Kureyon 149

It was easy to knit without being boring. Saartje says that she used a little over one skein of Kureyon but mine took closer to two (both of which had the Noro standard one knot to mess up the striping). I'm actually pleased with the way the striping worked out here, though it was utterly by chance.


And Himself likes it too! He's been wearing it everywhere. I suspect (hope?) it will be too warm here for wooly hats soon, but this one will be tucked away safely for next Autumn. There are some really lovely examples in Silk Garden popping up on Ravelry as well...maybe I'll make one for myself by then.

my hero

Fiddling

Winter is having a last gasp here in the Alps and the cold (really cold!) wind blowing down the mountain has pushed thoughts of cute summery sweaters right out of my mind. This week we were back to winter scarves and extra layers to keep warm and I was reminded that I had promised Adam a pair of thick hiking socks.

I have knit many pairs of these socks before. They use a worsted weight wool, so they usually work up really quickly but with this pair I have decided to take some time to tweak and properly record the pattern. When I first knit socks at this weight, I think I used Elizabeth Zimmermann's pattern for Woodsman's Socks. The number of stitches I cast on has remained the same, but little else.


Funny looking objects to be sure, but they really are warm and durable and they're meant to go inside one's hiking boots, where high fashion is (happily) not the primary concern.

I'm still knitting pretty socks too, having completed the heel on the first birthstone sock. Progress on these is steady but feels slow. I like working on them - the lace pattern is nicely absorbing and the yarn is lovely in every way - but after a few repeats I have to take a break. I can't get into a rhythm on them.


As a quick comparison of these photos might suggest, a couple of days ago both of these socks hit the fiddly heel bit at around the same time. In the future I must try to keep something at a non-fiddly stage at all times. I wouldn't usually have two pairs of socks on the go at once, but the knitting of these (fiddly heel bits aside) is completely different.

The cold weather here has given me the opportunity to observe the cold weather accessories of the locals (they're a well accessorised people, the French). Scarves are very big and I've spotted a number in the past few days that I'd swear were hand knit. Yet knitting is not very popular here at all, especially among younger women. Are there still French grannies out there somewhere knitting for their families? Or are these insanely pricey designer scarves that are being churned out in a factory somewhere? Even at designer prices hand knitting seems unlikely, is the new trend in machine knitting to look more like hand knitting? Curious. Knit hats are also very popular, though these seem to be machine made. I will never, ever be able to wear a knit hat (no matter the pattern) as chicly as a Frenchwoman. Oh well.

I am going to order yarn for a big project this weekend, so something other than socks should appear in this space fairly soon. And won't that make for a nice change?

Waffling

I finished the waffle socks a week or so ago, but didn't manage to get decent photos of them until this weekend.


These were largely made up as I went along. As you can probably tell they're a little too tight across the instep. Adam's feet are widest right at the ball there, and I didn't compensate enough in the pattern. Also I'm not entirely happy with the gusset decreases. Happily they're still good, wearable socks - and I know what I'll do differently next time.

I can give a good report on the yarn though. It's the Elann Sock it to Me 4 ply, which is 75% superwash wool and 25% nylon with 210m to 50g. It's not very soft in the ball, but it wasn't unpleasant to work with and the twist is nice and tight. Washing the finished objects made a huge difference, they came out nicely soft and sproingy. I have 2 more pairs worth of this yarn and may buy more.

We saw the finished boot socks of betrothal already, but they look a lot better with feet in them.


I really liked this pattern, both the working and the end product, and would knit it again (though perhaps not on a deadline). The pattern called for 2.75mm needles and I went down to a 2.25mm. I nearly always need to go down, but I think in this case I would have been better off trying a 2.5mm. The firm, cabled fabric isn't all that elastic.

The Noro hat is done as well, but it may be the weekend before I can have it modeled in the manner it deserves. There has been some suggestion that winter is on the way back to our Alpine valley this week, so wooly hats might be just the thing.

Leap!

So I was entering the birthstone socks on my Ravelry last night and having a look at my projects. There's not one sweater on that list. I never went back and entered all of my older projects on Ravelry, many of them had long since been gifted away and a few I'm not so proud of now and I didn't blog back then so hauling things out and photographing them was more than I was willing to take on. So most of the items on my project page are things I've knit in the last year or so. A lot of socks, of course, a couple of scarves and (after the Christmas knitting) quite a number of hats. No sweaters. Rarer even than leap years.

Speaking of the birthstone socks, they're ticking along nicely. Also why don't I work in twisted rib more often? I'm enjoying the pattern, the lace is simple but pleasingly engaging. Yummy yarn too.


But back to the sweaters (or lack thereof). I have knit sweaters. Quite a few in fact, though some more successful than others. As near as I can recall the last sweater I knit was the Christmas before last - a top-down raglan for my Dad. My Dad is a fairly big guy and likes his sweaters very plain, so I can see how it might have taken it out of me for a while, but over a year? I certainly didn't make a conscious decision not to knit sweaters. Maybe I just didn't feel I had the time to take on a big project, or maybe it seems like a lot of yarn to buy at once.

When I went through the stash before storing it away I noted that I didn't have a sweaters worth of anything, but I certainly have lots of sweater patterns. Patterns that I have intended to knit. My Ravelry queue has several sweaters.

I need to get back to knitting sweaters and there are currently several good reasons why I should. My brother is getting married this summer and Adam and I will be in Canada for his wedding. I'd love to make a nice little summer sweater to wear to some of the family functions. Summer sweaters are small, maybe that's a good place to start. Also I'm engaged now, and it's time I knit Adam a sweater.

So I'm doing preliminary reconnaissance. Looking at patterns, plotting whether it is better to try and find yarn here or order from overseas. Easing into it.

Nothings going to happen too quickly though, because at the moment I am completely obsessed with Norwegian Snails. These ones:

click for big

Yeah, I can't explain it either.

Heads and toes

No points for guessing what this is.


Ah Kureyon. So pretty and yet so frequently vexing. Why is it so often the case that the best this yarn looks is sitting there in the ball? This time I seem to be lucking out and things are still looking good. This colourway, 149F, is about as neutral as Kureyon gets, I think, and the pattern works with the yarn rather than against it.


Another hat for Adam, who has gone way above and beyond for me this week. He does like a knit hat, though we've been having unseasonably spring-like weather recently so this may be the last one for a while.

Also in gift knitting: anyone remember this?


One of the yarns from the Chevron Scarf Fiasco (let us never speak of it again). I came across this Fleece Artist Merino the other day and was reminded how nice it really is, despite the fact that it didn't work for it's intended project. The colourway is Amethyst, the February birthstone, and as it turns out my soon-to-be Mother-in-law has a birthday in February. Perf! She won't get them anytime close to the birthday, of course, but it's a nice idea anyway.

I hunted around a bit for a little scarf or wrap, but defaulted to socks (I know, look surprised). I'm thinking something something a little lacy for spring. I'm thinking Hedera. This semi-solid should make the pattern interesting without obscuring it. Also despite ogling many, I've never actually knit one of Cookie's sock patterns.

Off to cast on and try to follow the NHL trade deadline via the Internet. Because apparently you can take the girl out of Canada......

look! alp!

Good Dog

.

very good dog

Vetta 1993-2008

Two hats

This hardly qualifies for a finished object post: Adam's hat is the one I knit on the plane on the way over. No pattern to speak of, just ribbing. The yarn is Berocco Peruvia and is very soft. Too soft I suspect to be durable enough for a sweater, but very nice for a hat.

awwwww.....

My hat is the one that was started in the leafy period back in January. I finished it before I left but didn't get around to blogging it and I didn't need to wear it until I got here. The pattern is Foliage from Knitty. I almost certainly could have gone down a needle size, but it's a great hat.

I'm afraid I still don't have a whole lot of knitting to show for my time here. I've been working on a pair of socks. Often I work on them while listening to podcasts on my laptop - which I do when I get to the point where I really need to hear English for a while.


This is another one that I'm largely making up as I go along. The yarn is Elann Sock it to Me 4ply, which I haven't used before. Shortly before I left Canada a bunch of this went up on the Elann site and I'm always on the hunt for good solid colour sock yarns. So far it's not the softest, but we'll see how it washes. It has a nice hard twist and great stitch definition. If you've got a pair of cabled socks in you queue this is a yarn worth considering. Can't beat the price either.

Happily I am finally feeling settled and have been considering some bigger projects, so things should get a little more interesting soon.

Home, away.

Long distance moves are never simple, but for some reason this one has had some complication at every available turn. I'll avoid the gorey details, but even I was surprised to look at the calendar and see that it is nearly mid-February.

As promised, the Alpine booties were finished and felted before I left Canada.

Fuzzy Feet
Teresa Vinson-Sternson Knitty
Patons Classic Wool

They've come in very handy indeed. Apologies for the iffy photos, I'm working with different light here.

Also finished were the Bootsocks of Betrothal. I was at first shocked that it had taken me a month to knit these, but the pattern is fiddly. The result is good thought. All those crossed stitches make a really dense fabric. They do fit (only just) though I have not yet managed to get an 'action' shot.

Uptown Bootsocks
by Jennifer Appleby
in Favorite Socks
Dalegarn Sisu

I'm glad that I had these to work on in that last crazy month. They kept me busy and focused and mindful of what all the crazy was for.

I decided against socks for the plane knitting this time, opting instead for a small project I could have done in the course of the trip. I decided on a simple ribbed hat. I cast it on to a bamboo circular the night before I left and had no problems with security. And due to some "issues" during travel I ended up having to clear security three times in three different airports. Fun. Hat photos will have to wait for next time, as it is being proudly worn to the Netherlands, where Adam has gone for a couple of days of meetings.

That's the old stuff dealt with, and actually there hasn't been much new knitting since I've arrived. Within a couple of days of getting to France I was felled by some sort of Euro-virus which wiped a week out of my life. I'm feeling a bit better now, but I'll save the wip shots for next time, if only to have some filler. There's nothing very exciting.

I also haven't yet had much of a chance to see what's on offer locally. I have made contact with a group of local knitters through Ravelry, and I'm hoping to meet up with them in the next week or so. I'm hoping they'll be able to give me to inside info on stash aquisition - I'm already a little worried about how long the supplies I carried with me are going to hold out. Very disconcerting!

I want to take a moment to say thank you to everyone who has sent good wishes and wondered how I'm doing. It's been a time of huge change and sometimes has felt a little overwhelming. It's good to know that there are people out there thinking of us and wishing us well. Thanks. I'll keep updating here, stay in touch.

Up and away

There are finished knits to be shown, but you'll have to take my word for it for a few more days. Have you seen the ticker over there? Yikes.

So I've been busy busy but regular posting will resume in a few days.

I'm off to sort out my plane knitting.

leafing out

In a small act of solidarity, I knit a couple of leaves.


And then I couldn't stop:


It's addictive, clearly. I really ought to be packing boxes or something....

Reckoning

I spent an evening this week going through my stash. It had to be done. What do I take with me to France, what goes into storage until we have a longer-term place to live and what gets de-stashed. It was hard.

We knitters do get a little odd about our stashes, don't we? At the end of the day it's just yarn, but in reality there seems to be a lot more caught up in the strands. After much sorting and re-sorting and gnashing of teeth I had a big box of purged yarn and 6 bins for storage. And that's all of it. Every back of the closet, stuffed in a drawer, trunk of the car (ahem) meter of yarn is accounted for.

Some surprises:

• Most of the purged yarn was easy to part with (what was I thinking of when I bought the pastel mint green scary shiny baby yarn). Some of it will find a better home with other fiber artists, some will likely end up in the thrift shop. Overcoming that mental barrier that says "you can't get rid of that, it's yarn" needs be done only once. After that it hardly hurts at all.
• I don't have a sweaters worth of anything. A lot of the stash is comprised of leftovers and "one off" skeins. I'm okay with that. I've been knitting lots of small things lately, so these quantities do get used up.
• I do have a couple of shawls worth. Thought I knit less of it last year, I am surely a lace junkie. And apparently I can buy yarn for lace a little more impetuously and tuck it away out of sight. Of course this is in no small part because a shawls worth of yarn is a lot more compact than a sweaters worth of yarn (even if similar in yardage). Also I can guesstimate and buy a shawl yarn I lust after without having a pattern in mind, I would be much less likely to do that with a sweater.
• I very little cotton. And if you subtract dishcloth cotton I have almost none. I should probably either come to terms with cotton or give up on it entirely. This should be a post in itself.

Less surprising (Zimmermaniac that I am) is that I have quite a bit of good, plain, solid wool. And there is some sock yarn. Fortunately sock yarn doesn't count.

So it's tidied and sorted and packed away. There's only one way to celebrate this sort of thing.... Buy yarn!


I know, clearly I'm past help. None of this is going into the bins though. That sock yarn on the left is for a pair of mindless striping socks for me. I suspect with all the chaos in the next few weeks I'll need a project like this. The lovely green on the right is Cascade 220 and is going to be cast on very soon. It's become colder here, will be colder still in the alps and I've been saying I need a hat for a while. That green is a reminder that spring will come.

The tweedy brown is Elsebeth Lavold Silk Wool, surely one of my top ten yarns. That one's going to France. Another hat, I think, something lighter for when the days begin to warm. Mostly (and irrationally, I know) I just want a skein to take with me.

The alpine booties are nearly ready for felting. There is a mistake in one of the heels (3 am knitting again) but nothing that will be noticeable once they're done.


Should be the first FO of 2008.

Greenfeets

I don't know whether to notch it up to the fact that I'm moving soon and don't know whether I'm coming or going half the time or just the recent heavy use, but I came way too close to leaving the house with a cable needle in my hair. This is why.

I've been putting in some serious time on the boot socks of betrothal. I love the way they're coming out, but the cable rows are fiddly and the extra needle gets a good workout. And as always, when you're crossing stitches you lose some elasticity. I had a few hours of panic shortly after the heel turn when I convinced myself he wouldn't be able to get them over his heels. Measurements were taken and compared, and I think we're okay, though some tugging may still be required. Were I to do it all over I'd probably go with a 2.5mm needle.

Adam reports that the Alpine Clogs are proving to be well suited to their eponymous local. Our flat over there has bare floors, drafty kitchen windows and (not to put too fine a point on it) is on an Alp. Which reminded me that I'll need some feet warmers too.

So I started some booties for myself. These really are ridiculous in the pre-felted state, but they work up fast.

And just under the wire for yarn pr0n Friday:

A skein of Berrocco Peruvia, which is a new yarn to me. It's lightly spun and lovely soft. I suspect it wouldn't have the wear properties I'd want for a sweater, but that's okay as this skein is destined for a hat. I love this cognac brown colour and my LYS had some other beauties as well. Somehow saturated and subtle at the same time.

There's only so much more packing I can do before I have to really deal with the stash. That ought to be good for a post or six.

Renovating

The blog is getting a bit of a face lift for the New Year so things may look a little funky for the next day or two.

New Year

New year, new projects, new stuff. Where to start? I did indeed get all of the xmas knitting finished, though the mystery project didn't come off the needles until the wee hours of the morning of the 25th.

They were felted clogs, from the (brilliant!) Fiber Trends pattern. I gifted them in their comically large pre-felted state so that I could felt them with the recipients feet present for the best fit. It took a couple of cycles to get them felted down, but the end result is excellent. I can see knitting more of these.

Alpine Clogs
Pattern - Fibre Trends Felted Clogs
Patons Classic Merino

The coffee bean socks were also finished and a big hit, though I seem to have neglected to get a photo of them in their finished form. The Somoko was a dream to work with, beginning to end and washed perfectly. All in all a successful season of gift knitting.

I got a few lumps of coal for xmas (corundum too):

Yes, I was surprised. And very happy. Spreading the news and celebrating made the rest of the holidays even busier than usual, and knitting (for once) took a back seat. After a couple of days things began to return to normal and we made a trip to the yarn store. I picked up 3 balls of Sisu on sale, which are becoming the Uptown Boot Socks by Jen Appleby from Favorite Socks.

The large size of the pattern is pretty large, so I went down a couple of needle sizes, which is also giving a really nice thick fabric. If you look carefully you can see that my Harmony sock set finally arrived from Knit Picks. Pretty no? The finish is exceptionally smooth. I may be truly converted to the non-metal school of sock needles.

So 2008 is shaping up to be a big, exciting year. Stay tuned.

So close

I just might make it. The Gran hat is done. It still needs the ends woven in and the button sewn on (I found a button on Friday - harder than I expected) but it's done.


The coffee bean socks have been zipping right along. They need only a toe, a little weaving and a quick wash. Easy.


The un-bloggable gift is where I may fall down. I worked on it till the small hours this morning, but it still needs several hours before it can be called done. This doesn't sound bad, I know, but my non-knitting life is starting to interfere. The wrapping and cleaning and cooking and requests that pull one away from the needles.

So tonight, yet again, I'll be plugged into some podcasts and knitting after midnight. I'll get it done. It might be close, but I'll get it done. I thought I'd kept the list short this year, and started in good time. Perhaps the knitting expands somehow to fill all available hours? No time to speculate now - must knit.

Yarn pr0n Friday

Though only just (and as long as you're reading this in the Western half of North America). The weather here has settled into West Coast Winter. It's gray and drippy and not really conductive to drool worthy yarn photos. I persevered though, because this is too good not to share:

Squee! Socks That Rock in Pond Scum, Scottish Highlands, Jasper Rainforest and Socktopus. I got a couple of patterns as well, but they don't photograph very interestingly. Adam (who knows how to keep his knitter happy) sent me a Blue Moon certificate in November and I dithered about colours for a while before I ordered. I'm so pleased with my choices. I think the Pond Scum (I love that name) will be a pair of Embossed Leaves socks. I'll be living very near the Chartreuse mountains in France so it seems appropriate that this yarn should be knit up there.

I'm in the early phase of deciding what to take with me and what will be left behind in storage. The smart thing to do would be to sit down and plan out projects, assemble required materials and stick to the plan. Any bets on how long that would last? When does the first Knitty of the New Year come out? Yeah. And then there's the whole book problem. I'm used to having all my resource materials at hand. I'm sure some of you have been in this situation before - any hints?

Returning to socks, the second coffee bean sock is started

and with the holiday knitting nearing an end I hope to have it done before Adam arrives. I notice than Simply Socks now has some of the Somoko. Try it, you'll like it.

Getting there...

Is there an inverse relationship between the amount of knitting and the amount of blogging? Surely this shouldn't be. When one is knitting a lot one should have more to blog. I think I'm running out of things to say about hats.

This one has taken forever to dry (it's winter, apparently) and so will be late getting in the mail. With luck it may still make it for the day.

Utopia Hat
by smariek
Cascade 220 Heathers

And the last gift hat of the season is cast on. This one with no cables at all.

Bright, isn't it? This one is for my Gran, and she loves her purple. Pattern is by Rachel and can be found here. Very quick knit in bulky yarn, the only challenge will be finding the perfect button. The knitting portion should be done by the weekend.

There is one more gift on the knitting list for this year, which isn't even started yet. Still, I think I might make it. Knitting all these gift hats, combined with the chilly temperatures, has had me thinking about a topper of my own. I have cables twisting in my brain and I should get them onto paper and onto the needles.

In fact, there has been lots of yarn activity here I just seem to be having trouble merging it into a cohesive post. Aside from the holiday knitting (and the non-yarn holiday planning), I'm in my last few weeks at my job and getting ready to move. Having small projects to work on has been good - I can't seem to focus on anything for more than half and hour at a time. I think for January I'm going to need something absorbing, yet not too trying to absorb my pre-move anxieties.

The mail this week included a package from Scappoose, Oregon so lighting allowing, there will be pr0n tomorrow. Maybe a book review too.