Tag Archive | sock knitting

New projects!

It’s funny, the way grief can come back and just give you a swift kick in the ass. We’ve been having a long, cold, snowy winter, and I was joking with my husband about how living in the desert would be preferable. And bam, my mind took me back to being in Arizona with my parents after my dad retired, and he was so happy and loved it out there, and I felt the ache of missing him, sharp in a way I haven’t felt in a while. It passed, of course, but it took me by surprise. I wish he was still here, that’s all. And I wish I was in the desert right now!

But I’m not. Instead I’m home in the snowy Midwest, knitting all the time. On the last day of my 4-day weekend, I wanted to cast on something new, so I pulled out three yarns that have been calling my name to ponder, and went with the softest, fuzziest one. It’s acrylic from Joann (I bought four skeins when it was on clearance) but it’s fuchsia and fuzzy and perfect.

I chose the very simple knit COWL pattern and modified it bit, casting on more to make it a bigger, looser cowl. And I do love it, but I kind of want to use the other two skeins to make a snugger version too!

And then, because that was so fast, I went ahead and cast on with my second favorite of the three skeins, a purple Araucania Huasco Worsted. For this one I chose the Escarpment Cowl, which looks really cool. I love the idea of a shawl look with the ease of a cowl. And then I also cast on a new pair of socks, because socks. This yarn is Show Me Yarn Bootheel in the color Butterfly House, and I’m calling them the Granola Socks because I’m doing the 3×2 rib that Mildly Granola recommended.

Yesterday was a little rough because I had to adjust from knitting several hours a day to just knitting during lunch and a little at night. It wasn’t my favorite, to be honest. But hey. Gotta pay for the pups, right? Especially when they break a nail, crack another, and have to go to the vet for a bandage, nail trim, and meds. Sigh.

He slipped out of his collar in the waiting room, but thankfully he’s a lover so he just ran back to visit the girls behind the counter. He’s also up to 104 pounds, which I recognize is too high and the vet tech told me…TWICE. So he’s on a diet now which he won’t love and I don’t blame him. BUT! He rides so nicely in the car and sits patiently when I open the door to grab the leash, and he hasn’t tried to chew off his bandage at all. Not even overnight, when he was all alone! If I could combine the good traits of all three of my dogs, I’d truly have the perfect dog. Alas, apparently dogs are like people, with good and bad and you have to accept what you can’t change and love them anyway. Or try to, anyway. I’m still working on that.

If you are anywhere that has sunshine and weather above 30 degrees, please enjoy it on my behalf today!

To Frog or Not to Frog

Feb15

There is snow in the forecast, could be up to six inches, which means there is knitting in the forecast for the weekend. To prep for that, I pulled out all my WIPs to see what I’ve got to work with. My current WIP count is seven.

My sweater is growing nicely, thanks to some lunch break knitting this week. I can see this being some good movie knitting this weekend. I’ve got my two travel projects at the top there, which I want to work on but I also want to save for travel projects. (The dark purple on the left is the Sockhead cowl and the one on the right is a new sock, pattern TBD.) The bottom is a scrap cowl I started last year as a mindless project for concert knitting, but I’m afraid it looks dumb now. I kind of wish I’d done more of a gradient, striping in new colors. I can’t decide whether to frog or keep.

My Mermaid cowl is that creamy yarn which is barely started and I don’t know that I’ll get to it this weekend. I definitely still want to make the pattern but it requires more concentration, and I haven’t had as much of that the last couple of months. So this one might float along a little longer.

That leaves two projects that I’m unsure about. The top left is my Warrior Cowl with some Cascade Heritage 150. I’ve already used half the yarn and I’m not convinced I’m more than halfway through the pattern. Plus it seems very large. Plus it’s just not thrilling me for some reason that I can’t explain. So I’m pretty sure this one is getting frogged.

And finally, I’ve got a barely-begun Zomboni in that blue/purple/white mix and I’m really on the fence with that one. I cast on almost three months ago, and haven’t felt the urge to work on it, and usually that’s a good sign that it’s not a good fit of yarn and pattern. But then I look at the finished projects and think I’ll probably like it when it’s done, if I just push through. So maybe I need to give it a second chance this weekend and see if I can get into the groove? And if I can’t, then it gets frogged. That seems reasonable, doesn’t it?

But still, none of those are exciting me right now. Pretty sure I’ll need to cast on a new cowl!

Two More FOs!

Feb9

Maybe I needed that fast FO to kickstart my finishing urge: I finished two more projects in the last two days! Apparently, if you keep knitting on something, eventually it gets done. Crazy, right? First I finished my Gossip socks, on the needles for two months.

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The yarn is Hedgehog Fibres Sock and it’s so pink that I struggled to get an accurate photo, but this is pretty close. I liked knitting with this yarn; it wasn’t like alpaca-soft but it felt good in my hands, and it feels like it will hold up well. I’ll let you know!

My other FO is my Standing Rock Hat, which took a month despite being just nine inches of ribbing. It was my travel project until I decided it needed to just be done.

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Mine didn’t look as good as a slouchy hat as the designer’s did, so I cuffed it up and like it a lot. The yarn is Primrose Yarn Co. Jasper, a DK merino. It wasn’t nearly as soft as I thought it would be, so I don’t know how it will feel against my skin for prolonged periods. I don’t normally block hats but I think I’ll unsnap the awesome removable pompom and give it a soak in some wool wash to see if it softens up.

I can see the finish line on another project, so that’s my goal for this weekend. Hope you all are getting some productive knitting in too!

New sock pattern!

Feb2

Remember those pretty lace socks I made recently, the Guildhall Yard socks? They were a test knit and I’m delighted to say that the pattern from is now live!

They were designed by Jem at Under the Olive Tree Knits, and they were a treat to make. I typically prefer simple socks for speed and mindless knitting, but these worked up so quickly! They weren’t knitting-group socks but they were fine for TV knitting if I didn’t need to be watching all the time, and the lace pattern kept my brain engaged and interested.

They’re cuff-down with a heel flap and gusset, and the pattern is well-written and clear. Check it out if you need a pretty new sock pattern! They’d be delightful for spring.

Pattern: Guildhall Yard Socks

Yarn: KnitPicks Stroll in Razzleberry (OMG this yarn attracted dog fur like a magnet. These socks will never be fur-free.)

Finished!?

Jan27

Guess who finished TWO projects today?? THIS GIRL! That’s right, thanks to the women’s and men’s finals of the Australian Open, I bound off my Boho Baby Blanket today! And even got the ends woven in, how about that? AND! Then after that, I had a sock that was ready for a toe so I zipped through that while catching up on Grey’s Anatomy, and voila, two projects off my WIP list!

I do need to block the blanket and take some good photos, but still, I’m down to seven WIPs and I’m committed to working it down further. I really don’t like having so many clamoring for attention.

I might have also made a couple more teeny sloths this weekend. Thank goodness they’re fast!

The Little Engine

Jan25

That’s me, as I keep plugging away at all my WIPS: I think I can, I think I can, I think I can! My quick little distraction projects last weekend did a good job of cleansing my palate, and I returned to my WIPs happily, but there’s just no finishing happening. It’s maybe getting close for a couple of projects, though. I have just two or three pattern repeats left on my blanket (depends on how long the yarn lasts).

My second Guildhall Yard sock has gotten a couple of hours’ work, so I’ve got half the leg done. And I went back to a sock during lunch breaks at work, so I’m onto the foot of my 80s sock. Can’t wait to start wearing these, so bright during this dreary, gray January.

This week was also week two of the Australian Open, when the tennis starts getting more exciting, so I switched to mindless stockinette for TV knitting, and I’ve added nearly four inches to my Clarke pullover. It’s starting to look like a real sweater, which makes me more eager to work on it!

Who knows? Maybe I’ll have a finished blanket to show off on Monday!

A few new goodies

Jan16

Hello. My name is Bonny and I am a yarn addict. It has been exactly four weeks since I purchased yarn. I’m still feeling strong and have only briefly been tempted by seductive skeins in photos on Instagram. It helps that we are making progress in getting our finances in shape so that we can do a very big home improvement project this year, and the pleasure of not feeling stressed about money is better than the pleasure of impulse-buying yarn. (Let’s hope that lasts. Knock on wood for me, will you?) However, I feel I must be honest and say that I did ORDER a new skein of yarn. I just didn’t technically pay for it, since I used some credit from returning a Christmas gift. And really, new yarn is even more fun when you don’t have to pay for it!

This is KnitPicks Hawthorne Fingering in Turkish Delight and it will become socks. I’m tempted to use some leftover bits of variegated yarns for heel/toe accents. I haven’t used this yarn before, so I’m eager to see how it knits up. (side note: did you know you can buy some KnitPicks yarns on Amazon?? Craziness!)

I also ordered another size 6 needle, since that’s the size I use for almost all of my shawls, and I’d rather buy a new needle than finish a shawl WIP. Makes sense, right? I chose a 32″ ChaioGoo fixed circular, mostly because it was cheaper than the Addi Turbos. And since I’m talking about knitting accessories, let me show off my other recent acquisitions!

I finally got my pocket scale, which I’ve been wanting for ages! I haven’t needed it yet, but it goes with me in my knitting bag and I know it will come in handy one day. And I also got a wall hanging to display all my enamel pins! I kept thinking I’d figure out how to make one, since they’re so simple, but I just don’t like sewing enough, so I was tickled to get the gift. It holds most of my pins and hangs in my bedroom so I can easily pick a pin to wear in the morning. As much as I love having pins on my project bags, I’ve now lost two that way, and I’d rather keep them safe by wearing them myself.

Did you get any fantastic knitting gadgets for Christmas?

Meager progress

Jan16

Well. Here it is Tuesday and I haven’t posted since Thursday, and in between those days were two lovely snowed-in days, and you’d think I’d have a ton of knitting to show you.

I don’t.

I worked on my Boho Blanket but it looks about the same so there’s no point in showing another photo. I worked on my Wave shawl and the yarn is still gorgeous, but again, not enough progress to warrant a new photo. So this is all I have to show you today.

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Since I had three first socks done, I spent part of Saturday casting on three second socks. That way they’d be ready to go and I’d have no excuse not to work on them. That’s the theory anyway.

So I guess maybe that was plenty of knitting for the last five days? I don’t know. All I know is I better start finishing some projects soon!

Two socks done

Jan10

I had a few hours of waiting time today, and the best thing to do during waiting time is knit. And since I had two socks almost done, finishing them seemed perfect. So I have a complete 80s sock:

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This yarn is Show Me Yarn Bootheel in the color Hit Me With Your Best Shot.

And I have a complete Guildhall Yard sock:

+ldyup7rrvwqnbnj4hjpva Isn’t that lace panel stunning? I swear, I’m so in awe of knitting designers who can create such pretty things! This one is from Jem and Under the Olive Tree Knits, and it was a test knit so I’ll have to let you know when it’s live.

Now, do I cast on second socks, or work on one of my other WIPs?? Hm….

And then there were three

Jan6

People, that is. The girl left yesterday to go back to college. With her here for a whole month, we’d gotten used to her being around again, so it was like pulling off a bandaid. But not as bad as the first time around, and it helps that she was happy to be going back. I’m glad she loves college; I just wish paying for it was simpler/easier/less stressful.

Anyway, we kept ourselves busy after she left by taking down the Christmas tree and having a movie night, and I of course had some knitting therapy, and now there are three…socks on my needles! I’ve still got the second Gossip sock to make, and I’ve been cruising along on my Show Me Yarn 80s sock. Just a foot left on that one!

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Plus I cast on a third sock, this one a test knit for Under the Olive Tree Knits. It’s called Guildhall Yard and features a beautiful lace pattern down the front of the leg, but I’ve only gotten the cuff done so far. I’m hoping to reach the lace today.

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Her sample was done in a solid color, and when I went to my sock yarn stash to choose my yarn, I discovered that apparently I don’t really like solid color socks; my stash is full of striped and variegated yarns. But I had two balls of this KnitPicks Stroll in Razzleberry. I’d ordered it to have on hand for accent colors in heels and toes, but it will be lovely in this lace pattern. I need to have the first sock done by the end of the month, so it will take priority over the other socks for now.

We’re having unseasonably warm weather right now, so the pups and I might spend some time outside again today!

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Happy Sunday, friends!