Well, here is sock #1 *again* LOL!
That’s all I’ve got time for today. I’ve gotta get caught up on work stuff after having company here for the last week. But, I’ll be back tomorrow with a tech post on how to continue patterns onto heel flaps as I’ve been getting an amazing number of e-mail questions on how to do such a simple thing and don’t have time to answer everyone individually.
I know, I’ve been totally missing in action this week. My in-laws arrived for a week-long visit on Tuesday and that has kind of thrown my usual schedule out the window for the week. So, I’m *trying* desperately to get on track with lesson writing and such, but it has been hard having to work around other people’s schedules and such and I’m afraid I’m not going to have a lot of work time over the weekend either.
So, there has been very little knitting. I’m about three inches from starting toe decreases on Heatwave sock #1. Which, of course means that not only do I know have a lot of blogging time, but I don’t have much to blog about either.
I will be responding to Snow’s tag on the book meme, but I’ll do so over at my Culture Catalog blog. I’m hoping to reward myself with a break this afternoon at some point and hopefully will post my answers over there during that time. Following the holiday weekend I should be back to a little bit more of a regular schedule.
The big surprise was that I had a spinning lesson from the very generous Snow on Sunday! This is my very first handspun using a wheel. Very “rustic” as DH so politically put it when I came home and showed him. But, considering it was the very first time I had ever sat at a wheel, I’m pretty happy with it. I now know the feeling of when I’m drafting and controlling the twist properly. I can’t do it consistently yet, but I know that is just a matter of practice. Now that I know the proper feeling it should only get better from here, right? 
The next step is to pick a wheel and get it ordered!
The minor surprise was that I knit an entire sock on Friday and Saturday night…
However, I ended up not being happy with the gauge at 5.5 sts/inch so I’ll be frogging it. Last night at SnB I tried my hand at some adjustments to the overall pattern and I now have a three inch cuff…
These are using Cascade Fixation. The first uses US4’s and the second uses US 2.5. My gauge on the 2.5’s is about 8 st/inch and I think I will like the hand of the foot much better at this gauge. I’m calling the pattern “Heatwave” because I started them in the middle of a very early and hot heat wave here in Colorado and since they are cotton with shorter cuffs and have a wave-like pattern I think it is quite apppropriate.
Well, today is crunch day for the week and since DH stayed home from work yesterday to prepare more for his parents’ arrival for their week long visit I really need to get to work…
Just when you most need it your camera batteries die, don’t they??
I was going to have a very exciting post today, complete with pictures, but when I went to photograph things when I got home from water aerobics there was just enough juice for it to turn on and shut back off… Unfortunately despite the fact that I have what is called a “Rapid Charger” it takes about 4 hours for the batteries to charge.
So, I’m sorry you’ll all just have to wait with baited breath for photos tomorrow. And, I’m not even going to tease you about what those photos might be of. Unless you know me in real lif, chances are you’ll never guess!
Regia Stretch
Sz 2 DPNs, 9 st/in, CO 72
~36,000 stitches total
I took Wednesday off and didn’t knit a stitch! But, last night I finished all but the Kitchner and I did that this afternoon after going to water aerobics and attending to my online classes. So, they are done! Monster man socks in camoflauge colors are complete.
Now, the real test will be to see if DH actually ever wears them. Camo isn’t really his sort of thing, though the colors in general all, I guess just not all together like that…
Despite it resembling camoflauge, I’m quite happy with these socks overall. The varigation does what it should do and there is no unsightly pooling of flashing - even in the gusset area! This makes my heart sing! I wish I knew the secret I hate pooling and flashing colors, especially when it changes so drastically in the gusset area. And I’m not too fond of having to work two balls at the same time, as it reduces the portability of a sock project. Getting accustomed to the stretch was a bit of a challenge and I’m not overly fond of the fact that the elastic is the center strand with the wool plied around it. But I would probably use it again if I came across it on sale in favorable colors. Though I guess we’ll see how it wears/washes (if DH wears them).
What’s up next? You mean other than pulling Skyway out from beneath my bed and finishing it? I think sock-wise I’m going to pull out the Cascade Fixation that Snow so generously gave me for my birthday. As I sit roasting in my 77 degree bedroom with a hot laptop on my lap I think of how lovely cotton socks would be this time of year. And, seeing as I just finished a pair of socks that had elastic in the yarn I think my hand should be primed for working with Fixation.
I am a bit stymied on what size needles to use. I’ve poked around and seen from US 2 - US 6 being used. I tend to be a bit tight when on DPNs so I’m going to go for middle of the road US 4 for my first swatching and see where that has me. I did also read a suggestion to actually wash and dry your swatch and I’m a bit impatient for that. That person said they have a 1 st/inch difference, but they didn’t say in which direction. Anyone know?
Well, I’ve been *very* productive this week so I think I’ll be rewarding myself with a slightly shorter day today and knit. After I take a cool shower to cool down…
There may be a very exciting post on Monday, so check back…
Last night was a girl’s night out. We went out to celebrate Amanda’s new job in June. She treated us to sushi! Thank you again Amanda! It was very good, as was the company and conversation. In fact, I had a pouty DH who pouted about how late I got home. *sigh* I can assure him he wouldn’t want to have participated in the majority of our conversation and that sushi place had no vegetarian options. We had planned on knitting, but got too talkative and missed it, LOL!
I was tagged early this week by Snow to participate in a meme. Since I have no real remarkable knitting to report (other than I have 1 inch before I start the toe on the 2nd camo sock) I shall take today to respond to this meme…
Choose 5 and complete the sentence and then tag 3 other bloggers…
If I could be a scientist . . .
If I could be a farmer . . .
If I could be a musician . . .
If I could be a doctor . . .
If I could be a painter . . .
If I could be a gardener . . .
If I could be a missionary . . .
If I could be a chef . . .
If I could be an architect . . .
If I could be a linguist . . .
If I could be a psychologist . . .
If I could be a librarian . . .
If I could be an athlete . . .
If I could be a lawyer . . .
If I could be an inn-keeper . . .
If I could be a professor . . .
If I could be a writer . . .
If I could be a llama-rider . . .
If I could be a bonnie pirate . . .
If I could be an astronaut . . .
If I could be a world famous blogger . . .
If I could be a justice on any one court in the world . . .
If I could be married to any current famous political figure . . .
If I could be a musician I would be a broadway actor/singer who didn’t suffer from dibilitating stage fright that made her performances unpredictable.
If I could be a librarian I would be a research librarian because there is nothing I enjoy more than a good search for unusual information. I would also enjoy getting to run a book club.
If I could be a chef I would run an Italian restaurant that served appropriately proportioned and priced courses so people could have a BALANCED meal when dining at my restaurant. One that included starch, vegetables and protien sources. It would also have several vegetarian selections other than just Eggplant Parmagiano.
If I could be a painter I would be famous and able to bank roll DH working on his creative ambitions. Okay, so I already can sort of claim the role of painter, but I don’t make enough to even bank roll myself, let alone DH too!
If I could be a doctor I would find a definitive cure/treatment for all auto-immune diseases such as Fibro, Lupus, MS etc….
Hmmmm, those that first come to mind to tag, don’t blog! Grrrr! Let’s see, I’ll tag Jessica, Abby and Margene!
Sorry for the poor photo, but we’ve all see socks 1/2 way through the gusset decreases, right?
I’m definitely not suffering second sock syndrome this time around. Perhas it is because it is mindless? Perhaps it is because if I head DH make one more reference to the &@&*(#@) plumber’s wife when someone asks him about the handknit socks I’m going to scream?
I’d say probably both, but I think I don’t often suffer second sock syndrome, and often the high from finishing the first sock propells me through the second sock at a much faster pace than the first one progressed. Camo sock seems no different. Here I am, 1/2 way through the gusset decreases on a MAN SIZE sock at 9 st/in gauge after only two days and a little bit of knitting this morning while suffering from allergy related insomnia. Not too shabby if I do say so myself!
I’m afraid the allergies will likely prevent much more knitting progress today. Between staying up until 2am finishing my book (see Culture Catalog for details) because I was afraid of the repercussions of lying down and waking up after 3.5 hours of fitful sleep I don’t think I’m going to be in robo-productive mode as I was yesterday. And, what little energy I have I need to direct towards my on-line classes (there is still time, and even a sale if you’re interested) and I need to get over to the library to return a couple books TODAY!
Wish me luck, and if you have any magical powers over allergies, I’d appreciate the assitance
Here it is, the pic of the completed camo sock for DH. I also got about 1/2 of the cuff of the second sock completed this weekend. Most of it was accomplished last night as we awaited the upstairs to cool down to a sleeping temperature.
As I’m working hard on lesson planning and writing I’ve been neglecting Skyway, though with the current weather trend I can see I will need to try carve out some quality time to spend with her in the near future. Though for Stitch ‘n Bitch tonight I think I’ll just work on the sock. It’s a great no-brainer project for chatting.
Notes to self - 9 st/in on US 2, CO 72 sts, I Kitchnered 14 stitches on each side for the toe, DH says on next pair to point the toe a bit more
I finished DH’s camo sock with less than a superball sized bit of yarn remaining. Phew! I’m tight on time at the moment so a pic will have to wait until Monday. But, I had him try it on this morning after his shower to check the size before I did the Kitchner and it was great. So, I finished it up this afternoon real quick. I even nailed the Kitchner once again.
Though the question remains, will I nail it on sock #2 or am I always destined to have 1 sock with a great Kitchner and 1 with a less than perfect Kitchner??? Stay tuned…
We’ve been watching a lot of TV on DVD lately (Millenium, X-Files and All Creatures Great and Small - posts coming soon on Culture Catalog), so I’ve picked back up the camo sock. I’m about an inch or so past the gusset and am getting a little nervous about having enough yarn to complete the sock. DH doesn’t have huge feet (Sz 10.5), but that ball of yarn is feeling awfully light, and I don’t have anything that would coordinate for a toe in my stash right now, and I don’t think DH would have been happy with a shorter leg in his sock either… *sigh* Perhaps this will call for a shopping expedition again in the near future…. I’ll probably know in a couple of days I guess.
Here, Emma shows off that I have edged one arm hole and have picked up the stitches for the other. I’m in crunch time now for my on-line classes (they start next Wednesday) and I feel it requires more attention than I can give it while taking in the previously mentioned TV shows so progress has been slow, but steady.
Here is a closer look at the edging. Keep in mind that it has not been blocked, but that this stitch pattern does block flat. I think it’ll be good. I’m really going to have to phsych myself up to do that neckline though. It’s 45-46 inches long! That’s a lot of lace knitting followed by a lot of 3-needle bind off! Phew! I’m hoping to be done next Wednesday, but with the classes beginning next Wednesday, I’m not sure that is possible.
Lastly, for anyone wondering about the quietness here, please see my visual art blog. It should shed a little bit of light….
| M | T | W | T | F | S | S |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| « Apr | Jun » | |||||
| 1 | ||||||
| 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 |
| 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 |
| 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 |
| 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 |
| 30 | 31 | |||||
