Never say never

Last year after I got my 12" circulars for doing the legs on these longies I thought NO WAY will I try Magic Looping again. The sized circulars are SO much faster! Well, that may be true, but I'm finding the small circulars are also really great for making my hands, wrists, and arms all the way to the elbow sore. Towards the beginning of the summer I was really sore. Even when I wasn't knitting. I had to take a few days off here and there because I was SO sore. This is not good for a knitter. But then I knit socks all summer. As soon as I picked up and started knitting this pair of longies, I started to get some of those twinges again. Dagnabit!

So when it came time for the legs I was really not looking forward to going down to the 12" circulars. I really dislike knitting with them. But they make the legs go really fast. So I did a couple rows and then decided to try Magic Looping again. After all I am going to be using up every last bit of this ball of yarn and ML'ing would allow me to do both sides the same without any unfortunate incidents or yarn waste... So I set one leg aside and got the other one started and then put them on the long circular. I worked a couple rows... I still hate having two balls of yarn attached, and all the adjusting... but really, it's so much more COMFORTABLE. So, I'm giving it a go here.

I'm pretty sure I'm going to rip the waistband off and find another color. That one just isn't doing it for me. It looked like it would work when I bought it, and it's ok, but it's not great. And the rest is turning out so great I'd hate to settle for an "ok" match on the trim.

So... the yarn? I dyed it. Oh yeah! It was this ball of yarn that had a lovely picture online, but when I got it in person... ugly. I tried selling it for a looooong time. No buyers. So, I got out some KoolAid and overdyed it. It was in pastel pink, lavender and orange. But this fiber doesn't take dye in a vivid way. So the original colors were just yucky and dirty looking. I adore how my overdye turned out. I knew it looked good in the ball, but I wasn't sure how it would knit up. I couldn't ask for it to look any better! No streaking, striping or pooling AT ALL. Yippee! Love it!

The knitting is slow because I'm spending my evenings sewing. I have a huge order I've been working on and it's taking FOREVER. I won't tell you how many mistakes or times I've run out of fabric or... you know. It's just a cursed order. I can't wait to get it done and out the door! But you can get a lot of knitting done while you wait for a 3YO to finish a meal... a lot.

Psst... do you see... that's RAIN on my window! Yay! We so badly needed some. The air is so much cleaner now. All the dirt is back on the ground where it belongs!

The End of Summer

It is definitely the end of summer! Last week our AC was still coming on and this week we had to turn on the heat and get out the down comforters. Our kids were waking up as "totsicles"! I was blogging last week in a tank and capri's. This week... sweater and wool socks. It amazes me how quickly it changes on us!

At the beginning of this summer I declared it "time to knit for myself". And I did. I have five new pair of socks to show for it! My feet are happy and warm. I am much better prepared for my second winter in Eastern Washington than I was for my first.

I managed to sneak in one more pair this week! Yes, an entire pair in a week! And I must say I really didn't have a lot of dedicated knitting time either. I've spent several very late nights in the basement sewing. Without these two large orders of sewing I've been doing maybe I'd have more socks! These were knit at a sportweight gauge. If I use this again I think I'll go down one needle size.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock, Mediumweight, Fairgrounds
Needles: 2.75mm and 3.0mm (for calf shaping)

They are delicious. Straight off the needles and onto the feet!

So, what did I end up with for my summers work?

Summer of Socks 2007 Results
5 Complete Pairs of Socks
1 "Itchy" Curious Monkey Sock
1 Cuff with no Foot
1 Foot with no Cuff
I tried a short row heel which taught me I have fat ankles.
I tried a couple of lace patterns which I'd never done.
I branched out and tried toe up socks - which I will avoid in the future! lol!

I'll be working on these slowly now. I need to shift focus a bit. The weather has turned so quickly and I have NO longies for Miss E. I knew this would happen, I was just trying to deny it. So I need to crank out a couple pair of those and then maybe a sweater... and more longies...

I will miss this from summer...



Our favorite outfit for Miss E. A soaker that Miss T made her. Every time I see her in this outfit I just wanna squeeze her! This is one that won't come again next season. She should be learning to use the potty by then! They grow up so fast!

Where did all the Mojo go?

Have you noticed the lack of mojo in the knitting world lately? I keep seeing blogs where people are mentioning that their mojo has left them. Where has it gone? Certainly not to the Seattle Mariners. They seem to have lost their Sodo Mojo too! Yikes!

Despite my scattered brain of late, I do have a few knitting things to show you. The MDK group on Ravelry was talking about "mini ballband" dishcloths. I thought that was a great idea as I do love the big ones for mopping up toddler spills, but they're way too big for me to do dishes with. So I whipped up a few mini's. They're just the right size.


Also, through the joy that is Ravelry, I did a trade recently with a really sweet woman. She wanted some yarn I had that hadn't worked out for the intended project. And she sews sock project bags! I've been really wanting some of these as I tend to tote my socks around the house with me following after the girls. Could they be any cuter?! I love them! Miss N immediately tried talking me out of them. HA! No way little missy!



This weekend I wasn't feeling too well. I got a little extra R&R which meant a bit of easy knitting. I picked up that STR and got it back on the needles. Sportweight yarn goes SO FAST! I couldn't believe it. I started a sock on Friday night and finished it by Sunday all while being sick, and doing some sewing (I have a deadline for that.), and the usual childcare. So fast. I love how it's knitting up too. So pretty!

I realized after my last post that I didn't tell you WHY I had to rip out the On Your Toes version with this yarn. I ended up having to reknit the toe after I'd done the foot... so it was a top down toe... then I made several attempts at figuring out how to turn the heel going toe up and failed... and well, I was over it. I couldn't imagine how I was going to knit the second sock... and, it was no longer an On Your Toes sock at all with all the modifications I made. It was a bit of a mess. And I soooo wanted to just enjoy this yarn. It's a real treat. So I ripped.



While my IL's were here last weekend, Hub and I got to go on a date. He took me to Paradise Fibers. (among other places, I promise!) They are mainly an online shop, but they are local to me and let you browse the warehouse. They are family owned and operated and very friendly and helpful! They have a fantastic selection of Lantern Moon baskets and bags. I picked up one of the classic baskets while we were there. I love tossing my little project bags into it and sticking it up high out of Miss E's reach.

Well, I hope that catches me up! I'm hoping to get this pair of STR socks done before the Summer of Socks deadline! I'll have a full SOS update and recap next. :)

Oh what a month!

I finally just did it. I ripped out the STR socks. I feel better now. Don't you? A good rip feels so good. I can chalk it up to learning toe up, and not feel bad about it. I'll recast them on soon.

I had some house guests over the weekend and needed some "no think" socks. So I pulled this out of the stash. I knew exactly what needles & stitches to cast on so I went with it. Stripey as all get out - which you know bugs me - but it was a yarn I purchased before I figured out how to buy yarns that won't do this so badly. It's Levi Rabbit on Kona Fingering from Daching Dach's. Cute color combo.


The Double Eyelet Rib socks are on to the leg now. I had to hide them from one of the house guests over the weekend, but will be bringing them back out now.

Think I'll be able to get another pair done before SOS ends?! My sock train seems to have derailed!

In non-knitting, I spent a whole day making this... my hands were cramping from all the peeling. I got two months worth of apple and pear sauces along with two pints of chutney. I'm taking a break for now, but next week will tackle another round. Cheap and super yummy apples and pears are a perk of living in Eastern Washington this time of year.


And... actual FO's! They go into the December gift box. I think there's enough left from each ball for matching Calorimetry's.

Pattern: Fingerless Mitt's by Gaea Creations
Yarn: Artyarns Handpaint Stripes colors 123, 127
Needles: US size 5

Totally simple, really fast and very wearable.

Why Oh what a month? Hub has been working crazy hours, and traveling. Miss N is having a killer growth spurt. And Miss E? Well, she can now climb on top of the dining table. Need I say more? The knitting has slowed significantly recently!

Scattered

It's been a couple of crazy weeks around here. I'm not sure what's gotten done or what hasn't. I'm tired. Who keeps waking my kids up so early?! Oy.

Last night we needed OUT of the house so we headed east towards Idaho and found ourselves at Lake Coeur d'Alene. Now should you ever find yourself there and should you have young children there is a magnificent play area in the part there by the resort. I think 100+ kids could play on it. It's all hand built and is a giant castle. It's awesome. You know... if you have small children... :)

There has been a little knitting. After getting stuck on the STR sock because I couldn't convert the heel to sportweight, I went ahead and started a sock in the right weight so I could learn the heel and then convert. I know... duh. Anyway. I am stuck. I have not been able to get kid & husband free time to sit down and figure out this heel while I still have non-exhausted brain cells. The not being able to knit on socks is somewhat painful for me. I wasn't sure what to do with myself... I've been planning other projects and winding yarn but that just wasn't cutting it.

So I turned my frustration into fingerless mitt's. Wow! I almost forgot how quickly worsted weight goes. Christmas has come to my house! This is the time of year that I gear up. I start getting on top of my gift list. So here it is. Two of the three UFO's in that picture are gifts. I just need to put a thumb on that one and I'll have an FO! In a day! Who wouldn't be thrilled with that?!

Where did Hub's "I'm not going to think about it" sock go? Frog land. The yarn was bothering my hands and Hub said "It looks like a girls camping sock". Not a hit. Off it goes...

I did do a little stash padding last week. I happened upon Crown Mountain Farms website just when they stocked Sock Hop. Whooo boy. I wish I had more money, but I restrained myself and got just one. I keep holding it and petting it. Handspun... ooooohhhhhhh....


I grew up going camping with my Grandparents right in the town where Crown Mountain Farms is located. So this is part handspun lust and part sentimental reasoning behind wanting some of this yarn. I will think of my Grandparents when I knit it and wear it.