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Socks

More Socks!

By Sheetar 23 October 2014 18 October 2014

Because one post wasn’t enough to catch you up on all the sock knitting I’ve been doing, here’s another one! These were from way earlier in the year, but I finally got photos and notes together to put on Ravelry. Don’t worry, there are still more to come even after this post. Yep, backlogged just a little.

Pattern: Jaywalker
Designer: Grumperina
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Zwerger Garn Opal Feelings in “1701”
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
I have a problem with Jaywalkers in that every striped yarn I find, I immediately think, “OH, this is perfect for Jaywalkers!” It’s more interesting than doing a straight, plain sock, and I love those chevrons. I will admit though to specifically buying this yarn to make Jaywalkers, so that’s okay, right?

Pattern: Jaywalker
Designer: Grumperina
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Snallygaster Fibers Lindy Hop Sock in “When Doves Cry”
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
See what I mean? OH STRIPEY, must be Jaywalker material! It’s neat how the pooling changed up so drastically on the legs as opposed to the foot. I still get my chevrons, but also neat tie-dye swirly craziness. Really love these colors.

Pattern: None / Basic Sock
Designer: Me
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: dkKnits Technicolor Dream Toes in “Galleria Glitz”
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
Just your basic plain vanilla socks. The colorway did some neat pooling, and I love what happened on the heel turn with the individual stripes of color. It’s kind of a hot mess in terms of the bright colors, but in a good way, I think. They sure are fun, even for being simple socks.

Pattern: Nutkin
Designer: Beth LaPensee
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Lightweight in, “Rare Gems”
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
Really easy pattern to knit, even if it doesn’t quite show up that well in the image above. The colorway had a little bit too much contrast for the pattern to show up well, but it’s still got more interest than just straight stockinette. The yarn was purchased at Rhinebeck years ago, and it was finally time to go ahead and use it!

Pattern: Hisuiiro Socks
Designer: Claudia Eisenkolb
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Cephalopod Yarns Skinny Bugga! in “Mr. Nancy”
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
These were a bit of a slog and took me almost six months to knit. Mostly, the delay was because the pattern involved charts and a good deal of concentration which I don’t always have time for when I knit. I am glad I finished them because the design is really lovely, and that heel is so neat and fits in perfectly with the design but is still a slip-stitch heel (my favorite).

Socks

Summer Test Knits

By Sheetar 14 October 2014 10 October 2014

The blog is slowly sliding away from One Local Summer as winter draws ever closer, so I thought I’d fill in some space with knitting and spinning updates! For those of you unfamiliar with knitting, when a designer whips up a new pattern, he/she typically will want to have a friend test knit it to make sure all potential errors are worked out before officially publishing a pattern. It gives the designer another set of eyes on the pattern which can be really helpful. On my end, as a test knitter, it’s really fun to be the first person to have a go at a new knitting pattern and help out a friend at the same time. So, that’s what I did this summer (among other things).

Pattern: Barrel Riders Sock
Designer: Corrine Walcher
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Aisha Celia Designs Hand-Dyed in “178AA”
–Ravelry Project Link–
I finished these pretty quickly and love the neat detail on the heel as well as the wave pattern on the leg/instep. For the time being, this pattern is a special release just for a yarn club and isn’t available to the public just yet.

Pattern: Clara Barton
Designer: Corrine Walcher
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Lightweight in unknown Mill Ends colorway
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
Another fun project! I think I knit these in about a week, so they knit up super quickly. The yarn just happened to be a happy match for a sock pattern called Clara Barton, named for the woman who founded the American Red Cross. It was a Mill End I picked up at Rhinebeck a few years ago, and I’m glad I held on to it for just the right pattern. Love that little cross on the heel, and the cable running down the front. Another great design and fun test knit!

Socks

A Year of Sock Knitting, part 2 – 2012

By Sheetar 19 December 2012 19 December 2012

I was originally shooting for 12 in 2012, and I just squeaked by with a quick pair of DK weight socks for grandma. I could probably do another pair, but I don’t think I’ll have the time. Anyway, the lineup is below!

	Pattern: Rick Designer: Cookie A Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits Sheepy Feet in, “Tangerine Tango” –Ravelry Project Link– I ended up having to cast on more to make the sock fit. Cast on 72, and then had to finagle around the heel to get the pattern to line up. The socks don’t exactly match since I’m a lazy knitter who tends not to write down good enough notes to do the second sock the same, but it worked out well enough, and they’re bright and fun to wear.
	Pattern: Dayflower Socks Designer: Dayflower Socks Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits Grab Bag Mystery Yarn in, “Electric Blueberry” –Ravelry Project Link– These worked up pretty quickly and were the right combination of lace and ribbing so that it was interesting without being boring. The color and the pattern just matched up perfectly and I couldn’t have been happier with how they turned out. The yarn was a neat thing too since it was from a club that offered a ‘grab bag’ option – list the weight of yarn you want and the dyer picked out something that would work. It did! I really like how lofty and airy this particular yarn is and it was fun to try something completely different.
	Pattern: Primavera Socks Designer: natalja Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Little Red Bicycle Tricycle Sock in, “Mistletoe Grope” –Ravelry Project Link– A friend gifted me the yarn for these socks a few years ago as part of a set where the yarn matched two pots of eye shadow. Pretty neat! I finally got around to using the yarn and love how it knit up in this pattern. It’s totally holiday-yarn-barf, but somehow, the pattern breaks up any pooling and keeps it interesting. I do love the little spot of pooling on the heel since it kinda looks like a candy cane stripe.
	Pattern: Jaywalker Designer: Grumperina Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Lang Yarns Jawoll Magic in colorway 1001 –Ravelry Project Link– Because no year is complete without a pair of Jaywalkers. Am I right or am I right? My brother brought back the yarn from a trip to the Netherlands and it was just SO much fun to knit with. The colors are spectacular and made for a fun sock. I had worn them before getting a picture, so they’re not as crisp as they were right off the needles, but they sure are cozy.
	Pattern: Pointelle Designer: Cookie A Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits Sheepy Time MCN in “Driftwood” –Ravelry Project Link– These probably rank as my #3 most difficult pair of the year. It wasn’t that the chart was particularly difficult, but it did involve actually looking at the chart instead of knitting away. I knit the larger size, but probably could’ve done the smaller size since there’s a lot of extra room, especially around the foot. I do love them, and love the subtle variation in the yarn that works well to show off the pattern without swallowing it up.
	Pattern: Simple Skyp Socks Designer: Adrienne Ku Needles: US 2 (2.75 mm) Yarn: Schachenmayr nomotta Regia Design Line Kaffe Fassett 6-fÃ¤dig 6ply in colorway 05958 –Ravelry Project Link– These were very simple and quick two-day socks. We were going to visit grandma and I needed something quick to knit up for her that she’d enjoy, hence these socks. The bright colors really jumped out at me and the pattern has a neat almost herringbone style motif inbetween the ribbing. Grandma was very happy with them and tried them right on – they fit perfectly! Gotta love ending the year with a fun pair of socks like these.

Finished Objects, Socks

A Year of Sock Knitting, part 1 – 2012

By Sheetar 7 December 2012 19 December 2012

I was originally shooting for 12 in 2012, and I just squeaked by with a quick pair of DK weight socks for grandma. I could probably do another pair, but I don’t think I’ll have the time. Anyway, the lineup is below!

	Pattern: Steampunkery Designer: Heatherly Walker Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Holiday Yarns FlockSock Sock Yarn in, “Vanilla” – purchased as a kit –Ravelry Project Link– They were an absolute PAIN to knit. I must’ve gotten an early version of the kit because there were errors and omissions throughout the pattern. No errata supplied, nothing. I am happy with the finished product though since they’re SO pretty, and what a neat idea to have the fully functional button up flap on the leg.
	Pattern: Child’s Sock in Miranda Pattern Designer: Nancy Bush Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Little Red Bicycle’s Boneshaker BFL Sock in, “Oh, Io” –Ravelry Project Link– These were meant to be children’s socks, but I cast on 64 stitches and worked the pattern as normal, ignoring the calf shaping. They came out great, and I love that the pattern is replicated from a historical pattern.
	Pattern: Gentleman’s Fancy Socks Designer: Nancy Bush Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Knit Picks Essential Solids & Twists in, “Sarge” –Ravelry Project Link– A friend requested socks ages ago and I finally got around to knitting them. What took so long? The requestor has a size 14 men’s shoe! Yikes! Took the better part of 2.25 skeins, but he commented in a thank you note that they are, “easily the coolest pair of socks I’ve ever owned.” WIN!
	Pattern: 14 Karat Designer: Glenna C. Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits, All Your Base in “Sunken Treasure” –Ravelry Project Link– Twisted stitches Ahoy! The chart was easy to follow, just time consuming, and I’m not good at memorizing charts with cables. Still though, they came out beautifully and I love the color depth in the yarn – there are so many colors that pop out of that yarn.
	Pattern: Business Casual Designer: Tanis LavallÃ©e Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits, All Your Base in “Fathoms Below” –Ravelry Project Link– They were easy enough to knit, but the photo doesn’t show the pattern very well. The diamond pattern shows up just fine in real life but didn’t photograph very well. The color is a favorite – I love the greens and black together.
	Pattern: Escher-WÃ¼rfel (Escher’s cube) Designer: Stephanie van der Linden Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits, Pearl Necklace in “Grey Matter” –Ravelry Project Link– The pattern is really just a stitch pattern to create the cube effect. I cast on 60 and knit a basic cuff-down sock. I was a little worried that 60 wouldn’t be enough stitches, but it was perfect with enough room (and a little extra) to stretch around my calves. Very happy with how these came out!

Sweaters

Knitting Update – finished objects!

By Sheetar 20 May 2012 18 May 2012

So I actually have been knitting, honest. I just haven’t posted everything here. So, here’s a quick post with a few recent finished objects.

On the top above, is 14 Karat. The yarn is from the club I’ve been a member of for a while now, and is a colorway called “Sunken Treasure.” I figured a pattern referencing jewels would work nicely with a color referencing treasure. They were pretty labor intensive and required working from the computer with the chart, but they’re well worth it!

On the bottom above is Business Casual, using another yarn from the club, this time the colorway was, “Fathoms Below.” Easy to knit, and they worked up pretty quickly. These two pairs of socks were worked at the same time, but the Business Casual socks didn’t require looking at a chart and were taken along with me everywhere. The faux-argyle diamond pattern shows up more in person than it did in the photo, and I really love how they came out.

This is the big project that I’ve had sitting in my Works in Progress (WIP) queue for a while. I started the Royale sweater in November of 2010 for the National Knit a Sweater Month (NaKniSweMo). I got about 5 inches up from the bottom and set it aside. With Ravelympics 2012 coming up soon, the team I joined decided that we should spend the month prior to the Ravelympics ‘training’ and finishing up WIPs. This one isn’t my oldest one, but it was a huge undertaking – the cables, twisted stitches! All the hard work was totally worth it though, I mean, just look at that! It’s sort of unfortunate that I finished now, mid-May, when I won’t be able to wear it all summer long. The pattern and charts were easy to follow. My only big mistake is that I usually don’t do as many increases for the bust as the pattern sizing calls for – everyone has different measurements and should adjust a knit pattern to suit their individual measurements for a best fit. Nooo I just kept trucking along! So, the bust is a little loose, but it’s not a dealbreaker, and there’s NO WAY I am going to go back and work all that over. The yarn used was Valley Yarns Northampton in the color, “Twilight Heather.” The photos above are pretty color accurate, and I’d call the color kind of a purpley maroon heather. I over estimated on the yarn purchase, so I have three skeins left – I’ve got a short torso, so while most folks have 4 or more repeats of that center cable pattern, I only needed three, cutting down drastically on the yarn requirement. Love this to bits, and I’m so glad I finally finished it!

Gloves/Mittens

Owlie Gloves

By Sheetar 7 February 2012 7 February 2012

Owlie Gloves! They’re just too cute, and a great way to use up my growing stash of handspun.

First, the Fiber:

Fiber is by Gnomespun and is Polwarth in colorway, “Hidcote” – I picked this up at Rhinbeck in October 2010

Second, the spun yarn:

Yarn was chain plied, and came out to 328 yards. It probably falls between worsted and DK and is pretty slubby and uneven, but it’s got a very handspun quality to it which is perfect for gloves. The unevenness seems to disappear, especially when knit at a smaller/tighter gauge. The yarn is lofty and squishy and perfect for gloves.

Thirdly, the gloves!:

Pattern is Owlie Mitts that I added fingers to so that I’d have gloves. I love fingerless gloves and mitts, but really, it’s my fingers that get cold, and adding fingers to mitts is pretty easy! They fit perfectly. The gauge is pretty tight (think knitting a thick DK yarn on US 1.5 needles), but there’s no way the cold is getting in through these. The beads were sewn on later rather than knitted in since I didn’t have the crochet hook or floss necessary to add them during the knitting. No big deal. Here’s the Ravelry Project Link if you want to see my short bit of notes.

knitting, Socks, Spinning

Go With the Flow Socks

By Sheetar 16 April 2011 16 April 2011

Finally, another spun-to-finished project. I’ve been accumulating quite the stash of handspun, and I figured it was time to put some to use. The yarn is dyed by Meg at Twisted Fiber Art, and she’s really quite the magician with dye. The colorway is called, “Intrigue,” and was part of a club Meg ran for 3 months. I spun the superwash merino roving into a thin single and then chain or navajo plied the yarn so that the colors would stay together as they were dyed. I ended up with about 425 yards of fingering weight yarn that was then turned into a really squishy pair of Go With the Flow socks. The pattern knitted up quickly, and I only made a few modifications – worked a plain slip-stitch heel and didn’t turn the work inside out after the heel flap was done. I love the way they came out and refuse to take them off now that the photos are taken. Yeah, it’s almost not-sock season, but that won’t stop me from stocking up for the winter!

2010 Knitting

The Year in Knitting, 2010 Edition

By Sheetar 13 January 2011 13 January 2011

I suppose it’s time to go back and review my 2010 knitting resolutions, even though I didn’t make them all. Also, letting the blog go for two months without a post is so not good. Need to get back on that.

1. The American Aran Afghan. This is the beast that I will tackle and finish this year.
YEAH NO. I got three squares in and ended up somehow injuring myself and couldn’t knit for a solid month or two. Pretty much killed that project. I’m sure it’ll be done eventually, just not any time soon.

2. Knit /spin any club yarn/fiber in the month it is received.
I hit this one out of the ballpark. All the club yarn was knit into socks, and all the club fiber was spun. Let’s just not talk about my stash equilibrium that I was hoping to work on by doing this.

3. Knit two sweaters.
Not just two, but THREE. One of those was a sweater knit out of handspun. Still need to get that post up, but I DID IT.

4. Knit one double-knitted item.
Missed this one for a second year in a row. It’ll happen when it happens, I guess.

And lastly, because the post needs some eye candy, a flickr slideshow of my Finished Objects from this year.