Next Up: Summer Socks!

I started a new project this week.  I found this adorable idea of using broken seed stitch strategically with a solid color yarn and a variegated yarn to make the cutest socks.  The resulting effect is adorable. 

See the instructions on Ravelry by clicking HERE.  It’s free!

I was wanting to make some new, summer socks since I wore one of my hand knit, cotton pairs to work last Friday, and it made me wish I had more.  I chose two balls from my stash of Crystal Palace Panda Cotton.  You would never expect it, but this yarn makes the BEST socks.

The solid color I chose is Ivory, and the variegated colorway is called Blueberry Pancakes.

I have already completed one sock, and it is still blocking on the sock form.  Sock number two is in the works since I need to have it done by the time Camp Loopy project one begins!

~Happy knitting!

FO: Primavera Socks for Camp Loopy 2012

 

Hooray for the weekend!  I finally had time to photograph the Primavera socks now that they are blocked and lookin’ all purty.

(You can click on the photos to enlarge them and see closer detail)

As mentioned in prior posts, these were knit for Camp Loopy 2012 (project one) in Cascade Quatro sock yarn in the colorway Antiqua.  I used size 1.5 double pointed needles, and even though I struggle a bit with this pattern in general, they went pretty fast.

I am happy with the final outcome, and I have submitted my photo to the Camp Loopy 2012 Project One photo gallery (click HERE to go to the gallery) to show my completed work, and to be eligible for the camp contests.  Once all of the projects are posted, we will all vote for our favorites.

~Happy knitting!

Locomotive

 

After work, I stopped in at Yarns to Dye For in Frankfort to pick up my raffle prize.  I was notified by phone last Sunday that I had won a raffle that was held at the World Wide Knit In Public Day gathering. 

I won this Classic Elite pattern book (called Locomotive) and two balls of lovely, linen blend yarn:

I was so excited to win this prize.  I had my eye on it and was hoping I would win it.

The yarn that came with the pattern book is enough to make the scarf pattern from the book, but this little sweater is what really caught my eye:

Isn’t it cute?  Yet another on my list of things I’d like to make.

Speaking of making things, my Primavera socks for Camp Loopy project one are hot off the needles:

They are soaking in some wool wash so that I can block them over night.

Photos to follow!

~Happy knitting~

Rebellious “Tendon”-cies (and FO: Calumet Socks)

 

I was planning to begin this post with a recent photo of my left arm.  If I had, you would see that I am sporting a splint from my elbow to my wrist, and that my left index finger is wrapped and immobilized.  According to the nice doctor (a DO, actually) that I saw last Thursday night, I have tendonitis in my left arm.

It came on suddenly, and I don’t really know how it happened, but I suspect it resulted from a combination of things that may or may not include knitting.  I was prescribed some strong anti-inflammatories, and I am to keep my forearm wrapped in a pressure wrap, as well as ice it a minimum of three times daily (icing in progress as I type). 

For the most part, I am following the orders religiously, since I really NEED this issue to clear up ASAP for both my job and my sanity.  The part that I’m finding the most difficult to comply with is the order to avoid things that make it hurt, which include knitting, for 7 days.

I had not touched a needle since last Wednesday night until last night, when I may or may not have strayed from my own better judgement and finished the second Calumet sock.  Doh!

  

This is HARD!!!

————————————————————————–

I mentioned previously that I had purchased some Knit Picks CotLin yarn in a pretty color called Planetarium in hopes of knitting a summer sweater. 

I had a bit of a tough time finding a pattern, but I finally found this one (and it’s free!) that I love:  Gemini (click the name to see the pattern and  photos) by Jane Richmond.

I hope to knit it up soon.

In other news, I have been super excited since I realized that SWTC had published yet another book in the Socks a la Carte series, this time with colorwork patterns! 

I did find a used copy for $12, and I’m glad I decided to purchase it, because my creative juices are now flowing in a whole bunch of new ways.

I’m in love with this cuteness from Lucy Neatby.

I hope you are having a great weekend.  I’m going to go concentrate on healing, and on resisting the call of the knitting needles.  Wish me luck…

 

…and happy knitting – for everyone but me 😦  

I have been wanting to read up on the history of sock knitting for some time now, so this may be my opportunity to finally read my copy of Folk Socks by Nancy Bush.

One Down, One To Go

I finished the first of the Calumet socks.  The sock weighed in at 31 grams total.  I am making these socks by splitting a fairly small, 58 gram ball of yarn, so I needed to make sure there would be enough left for me to complete the second sock.  About half way through this sock, I realized that I could knit the toe in a complimentary color to extend the main color for the two socks. 

I ended up  choosing a ball of Loopy Ewe solid series yarn in the color burgundy (left over from the trim on my Breath of Fresh Air Scarf) for the toe.  I think it worked out well.  I have already cast on for sock #2.

In other news, I discovered a new, local knitting group in my area on Ravelry.  They have been meeting for about a year, and they are called the NW Indiana Knit Wits.  They meet up on the last Sunday of each month, which works out great for me since I work during the week.  I hope to meet up with them at the end of this month.

Also, I placed my order today for Camp Loopy at the Loopy Ewe.  If you think you might like to join in, read about it HERE.  Camp Loopy is held every year by the Loopy Ewe, and it combines a sort of knit along with a challenge and contests where you can win credit for yarn purchases.  You also get discounts on yarn purchased for each challenge.  If you participate in all 3 challenges this summer, you will automatically earn a complimentary hank of cashmere yarn in a limited edition colorway created just for Loopy Ewe ‘campers’.  The gimmick/offer is totally working on me.  I want to earn my special yarn! 

So I ordered my yarn for the challenge today.  Challenge number 1 must be knit from a minimum of 400 yards of yarn (no holding it double), and it must be knit from a pattern by a designer who lives in a country other than the one you reside in.  Once my yarn gets here, I’ll show it on this blog, and share my plans for it.  I will have to get a move on since the project must be complete and posted at Loopy by June 26th.  I’m ready!

~Happy knitting!

By the way…I know I have been saying that I need to knit from my stash for a while, but to participate in Camp Loopy, I needed to purchase yarn within certain dates to be eligible for certain benefits of camp this year.  I got a 20% discount on my yarn since it was purchased for Camp Loopy, and the yarn I chose was more than 400 yards in a single hank, and the hank was only $12.50.  So, see?  I did my best to keep it on the cheap while still being able to participate in camp.

FO: Mandarin Vines Socks (and a look at SWTC Tofutsies sock yarn)

 

The idea of completing many of my UFO’s from this past year is still keeping my interest, and I finished yet another one this week:  my Mandarin Vines socks. 

  

 

I finished the first one last September, and the second of the pair was also started at that time, but never completed.  I knit these on size 0 DPNs, from Tofutsies sock yarn.  The overall design is mine again – combining the overall pattern for an 8 stitches per inch standard sock (from Ann Budd’s book, Getting Started Knitting Socks) with a body pattern option called “Mandarin Vines”, published in the first Socks A La Carte pattern book put out by SouthWest Trading Co., the same company that produces Tofutsies yarn.

Here is a look at the Mandarin Vines pattern stitch detail:

 

Have you used SWTC’s Tofutsies sock yarn?  Most people either love it or hate it.  It is tough sometimes to find it, even in the local yarn shops.  I happen to like it quite a bit, and I’ll pick up a ball here and there whenever I see it.

 

 

It’s a nice change from heavier wool options, and it makes cooler socks.  The yarn is VERY fine and thread like.  It is a combination of 50% superwash wool, with the other 50% content including cotton, a plant fiber called Soysilk, and chitosan which is a natural compound that has antibacterial qualities which are great for feet.

The Socks a La Carte Books are great when you need ideas.  They contain many inspiring photos of completed socks, as well as a flip-book style catalog of options for not just patterns for the body and instep of a sock, but also various heels, toes and cuffs.  So fun! 

 

 

Here are my finished socks with one already having been blocked, and the other just off of my needles.  What a case for blocking your knitting, right?! 

 

 Blocking really helps to show off the quality of the work, and gives the object a professional look.  Once the second sock is blocked (it’s already on a blocker as I type this), it will look just the like the lower sock in the above photo. 

I think these socks are in the running for inclusion as one of my Lake County Fair entries this summer.  They may be my favorite socks that I have made so far.  The yarn really allowed for the stitch pattern to show up nicely. 

I’m now on to hopefully finish my Primavera socks.

~Happy knitting!

Girl on a Mission (up way too late…)

I should really be in bed right now…

So I finished my cute pair of fingering weight mittens last weekend.  It kind of figures that the weatherman is forecasting 80 degrees tomorrow.  I guess they will come in handy next year.  I do love the way they turned out.  I haven’t taken a photo of the pair, but I’ll try to post one soon.

I have unofficially decided that I need to focus a bit on the many partially finished pairs of knitted socks I seem to be accumulating.  There are 4 pairs I can think of right off the bat that are SO close to being done.  I seem to always reach the same point in the projects when my interest trails off, leaving me with multiple pairs that consist of one and half socks.

The major drive for me when knitting anything is to see how the yarn will knit up initially, and then my interest is sustained by my need to see how the finished object will turn out.  With socks, after the first one of the pair is completed, both of those questions are answered for me, so the rest becomes a struggle.  I suffer from a lack of motivation once sock number one is done.  All of the mystery is gone, and my mind starts to wander with thoughts of new potential projects.

So this week I have been working hard on finishing sock number 2 of the Mandarin Vines socks that I started a while ago.  I LOVE how the first one turned out, and I think I will love wearing them.  I am a few hours away from finishing the Alpaca Sox socks as well.  Those have been reserved for small fits of knitting when I need something mindless to keep me happy, but I really should just get on with it and finish them.  I also have the second self striping cashmere blend sock to finish, and then my absolute favorite Primavera socks that I would like to enter into this year’s Lake County Fair.

After that, I should be mostly caught up except for a little anklet that I will likely make the partner to this summer since those socks were a summer idea to begin with.

So I’ll be socking for the next little while, until my project schizophrenia strikes me again.

I hope you get more sleep than I will tonight. 

~Happy knitting!

CREATE!

 

I finally have time to write.  This week was one of those that gave me lots of things to write about, but no time to construct an entry. 

Yesterday was a long day that started with SNOW (!), continued with about 5 hours put in at my place of work, and then ended with some super-fun holiday shopping on the way back home.  I was glad to find some great gifts for various family members, and I’ll be telling you about some of them in future posts.

At one of my favorite local gift shops, there was a section of decor and ornaments designed by an artist whose name I don’t recall.  Within the collection there were small, square, canvas wall hangings with various inspiring words on them such as “faith”, “love”, etc….  I’m not big into that type of ‘inspirational’ art, but one of the little squares did catch my eye.  It said “Create”. 

What a great little piece to have in your art room, or painting studio, etc…. 

We knitters know about the desire to create.  I don’t think most people really recognize fiber arts as actual ART, per se, but those of us engaged in the craft understand why it is.

I passed up purchasing the piece, but since then, I have been thinking that WHEN I get a chance to display my collection of antique sock blockers, that little square could be really great displayed among them.  Hmmm….maybe a second trip to the store is in order.

The Christmas gift knitting is underway, even though I’m still recovering from the exhaustion of the past two weeks at work.  I plan to head out to my parent’s home this afternoon to just relax, eat, watch some football, and knit.  I’ll keep you posted on the progress of hand-made gifts as I make my way through finishing them.  I just finished knitting two last night!

On a completely unrelated topic:

Sometimes I get really down on the way our society is coming along.  It is sad to see how many people feel it is appropriate to conduct themselves.  I hear things all of the time – like “nice guys finish last” – that are just so wrong, and that make me want to rage against these ‘norms’.  I notice that the public is really quick to complain about things, correct one another, and focus on the negatives, while the good and positive aspects of others and life go completely unacknowledged.

In the world of animal handling and training, there is recognition of the power of positive reinforcement.  It is noted that when an animal is being trained, they will learn best, and respond the most rapidly when being praised for good behaviors rather than being punished for the bad ones.  As a matter of fact, it is so in our human nature to stress the punishment part of the process, that professional animal trainers have to REMIND student trainers to communicate to the animal what TO DO, rather than focus all effort on communicating what not to do.

I was in one of those ‘frustrated with the state of society’ moods a few months ago when I decided to send some letters of appreciation to companies that I felt were doing a great job.  Positive reinforcement!  It wasn’t hard.  I just shot off a few emails. 

One of the companies I chose to write to was Lion Brand Yarns, for several reasons that I won’t go into here.  The short version is, besides the fact that they make many of my favorite commercial brands of yarn, they also provide many services such as free patterns and fun newsletters that have always made me feel that they really like their customers.  That’s a nice feeling.  So I told them so.  A few months later I received a nice email in response from one of the company executives.  I was glad that the email made it where I hoped it would go.

Satisfied with that outcome, I didn’t think any more of it until I got home the other night and noticed a box on my porch.  I thought it might be a Christmas gift from an out-of-town relative.  Closer inspection of the box revealed that it was a sampler of Lion Brand yarns sent to me with yet another letter – this time from the head of customer service – thanking me for the kind words and inspiration.

 

 

 

They really do like their customers.  I wasn’t expecting anything like that.  I almost feel guilty… but I will certainly use much of the yarn to knit more warm accessories for charities needing them.  The aloe vera infused sock yarn, though, I think I will enjoy for myself:)

~Happy knitting!  

Sure-Fire Ways to Cheer Up

 

It’s bed time for me.  I’m so tired, and I can’t seem to ever get to bed on time. 

I kind of had a crappy day.  I went couponing at the craft stores after work to cheer myself up.  It did actually help.  I found this great little keeper for all of my needle tip protectors and stitch counters:

I am always running out of tip protectors and stitch counters, so I have been stocking up, slowly over time, whenever I have half price coupons.  I think I may finally have enough.

I also finished the cashmere self striping sock that I started on Friday night.  I’m too tired to block it tonight, but here it is.  I can always block it this weekend when I will have hopefully finished the second one.

 

I like how it turned out, but the toe ended up kind of wonky and it’s bothering me.  I usually make perfect toes. 

Tomorrow is my big ‘ol birthday.  I sure hope my day tomorrow is better than the one I had today.  If not, I guess there is always knitting and shopping to cheer me up.  Aside from the vintage sock stretchers, I did get something else in the mail today (from Canada!) for my birthday.  It also cheered me up.  I can’t wait to show you, but it’s bed time now, so I’ll save it for another post – but here’s a hint:  www.freshislefibers.com

‘Night.

A Little Research

 

 

I had a little time tonight to try again to find some information about my new collection of old sock blockers. 

When searching for items to purchase, I noticed that sellers did not refer to them as blockers, but listed them as sock stretchers or sock dryers.  As it turns out, they are also referred to as hosiery boards, and I was able to find a bit of information about them once I figured that out.

So the Walkerton board has a mark that says C.S.B Co LTD.  I discovered that this refers to a company located in Walkerton, Ontario called Canada Spool and Button.  It has existed under various names since the 1800’s and I think it still exists today under the C.S.B name, but I’m not certain.  I wish I could find the dates that these boards were being made/or were in use, but so far, no luck.

The second board that I made some discoveries about was the one with the mark:  Jos.T.Pearson&Sons Co  Phila  PA

I found one being offered for sale claiming the board was made of maple, so I suspect mine may be as well.  I also found one supposedly made of poplar, so I guess I can’t be sure.

This board was made in Philadelphia, PA in a factory described as a ‘steam packing box factory’.  It mainly manufactured wooden boxes but the factory also made other wood articles such as the hosiery boards (sock blockers!) for companies that manufactured socks and related textiles.  The name in the stamp stands for Joseph (T is for Thurman I think) Pearson, who owned the factory for a time.  Again, I wish that I could identify the years in which the boards were manufactured.  This company also started in the early 1800’s, and as far as I can tell, is no longer in business today.

Well, I’m up way past my bed time.  I have an extremely busy week ahead.  I didn’t quite finish the new sock I have been working on this weekend, so I will be plugging away on that when possible.