Scaletta socks

Time to get back to updating my poor, neglected blog!  Although I have not had as much time as I would like to knit, I have finished a bunch of projects that I haven't shared.  I will try to post them over the next couple of weeks.

Let's start back in August 2011.  I finished a test knit for Yarnissima's "Scaletta" socks.  I loved the pattern, but really did not like working with the yarn I chose.  It was single ply with varying thickness and even broke once while knitting.  I was really worried that the yarn would not hold up as a sock but luckily it made it through it's first season just fine.

Pattern:  "Scaletta" by Yarnissima, published in The Knitter #38, available for sale on Ravelry
Size: large
Yarn:  Poems Sock by Wisdom Yarns, colorway:  open seas 962; at least 1/4 left over
Needles: US 3/3.25 mm and US 2.5/3.0 mm
Additional Comments:  made second sock mirror image of the first.

Appunto Socks

I spent the past month finishing up orphaned socks.  This was the last pair:

Appunto

Another Yarnissima test knit.  I made these for my dear MIL.

Here are the details:
Pattern:  "Appunto", designed for Three Irish Girls by Yarnissima
Size: medium
Yarn:  Araucania Ranco Solid, color: 115

Needles: US 3/3.25 mm

Comments:  Great sock!  The only mod I made was to mirror the cables on the second sock.

Fire socks

Girl on Fire Socks

I finished these socks as I finished reading The Hunger Games Trilogy so it seemed only appropriate to name them "Girl on Fire" socks.  This was a fun test knit for Yarnissima.


Here are the details:
Pattern:  "Gush", a Ravelry mystery knit designed by Yarnissima; click here for Ravelry link
Size: medium
Yarn: Regia Canadian, colorway: orange/red
Needles: US 2/3.0 mm
Comments:  The pattern looks like flames coming up the sock--much easier to see in person or with solid color yarn!

Sheepy Socks complete, a while ago...

Sheepy Socks

These were actually finished in the beginning of November, but I am just sharing them here.  I love these socks!  They are knit with Briggs and Little 'Regal', which is a worsted wt yarn, making them very warm (and quick to knit).  My dear MIL has requested a pair, so you will be seeing these again ion 2011, although I will make them in a lighter weight for her.

Here are the details:

Pattern:  Sheepy Socks (Ravelry link) by Claudia Krisniski/Countrywool
Size: medium (woman's)Yarn: MC: Briggs & Little Regal, a brown-tweedy color; CC:  Sandnes Garn Mor Aase Ullgarn ,    color: 9544; scrap white and black yarn for sheep
Gauge: 5.5sts/inch, 7 rnds/inch, blockedNeedles: US2/3.0 mm, US5/3.75 mm

Apollo and Artemis complete!

Socks for September:

I enjoyed knitting these.  It has been a while since I have made a pair of socks that didn't require a chart.   There is a mistake in the pattern for Apollo (see note below). I haven't cast on another pair of socks I can share, but I am working on a test knit for Yarnissima and I am planning on knitting 3 Christmas stockings over the next couple of months. I also plan to make some slippers for gifts and finish up 2 sweaters I started last year. I plan to be busy for the rest of 2010!

Here are the details for Apollo and Artemis:
Pattern: Apollo and Artemis by Kirsten Kapur
Size: medium
Yarn: Handmaiden Casbah Sock, colorway: amethyst
Needles: US 2/2.75 mm

Details: Quick and easy pattern to knit. Apollo has an error:  the YO, SSK should actually be SSK, YO.  Easy pattern to memorize making these great for the car.

Apollo complete

Usually I don't blog about one completed sock because then actually finishing the pair seems anti-climatic, but since this pair of socks has 2 different socks, I can share:

Apollo is complete and Artemis has been cast on:

Looks like I may actually finish this pair in September!

Apollo & Aretmis

I have decided to knit Apollo and Aretmis as my September socks. I cast on over the weekend and expect these will be a pretty quick knit and easy to fit in around my other projects. I am actually knitting these for me and not as a gift! I cast on Apollo first and I am working on the leg:

I would be further along if I had read through the Ravelry comments and caught the error in the Apollo sock. As it was, I had to rip out a few rnds to get the patterned band correct. The pattern says YO, SSK and it should be SSK, YO. I know I have said it before, but Casbah sock is my new favorite sock yarn to knit with--so soft! I hope it wears well...

Progressive sock wrap up

Finished these a couple of weeks ago:

Pattern: July 2010 Colorwork Mock - Progressive Sock Party! by Chrissy Gardiner; available on Ravelry here.

Size: women's medium

Gauge: 8sts/inch, unblocked

Yarn: MC: Handmaiden Casbah Sock, colorway: natural
CC1-String Theory Hand Dyed Yarn Nano, colorway: North Haven
CC2- Brown Sheep Wildfoote Luxury Sock , colorway: blue
CC3-Seacoast Handpainted Merino Tencel, colorway: Bubble Gum
CC4-ShibuiKnits Sock, colorway: Peony

Needles: US 2/2.75 mm

Details: Fun pattern to knit. 3 heel options: I knit the hybrid heel. Wish I had used a darker pink (CC3), but otherwise happy.

Up next: socks for September. I am thinking I would like to make these (Apollo and Artemis) with this (Casbah Sock in Amethyst):

What do you think?

Easy socks

Another finished project. These were supposed to be a quick and easy pair of socks to knit during the Ravelympics. They were certainly easy, but I started them in February and just finished a couple of weeks ago, so I didn't manage to finish them quickly.

Here are the oh-so-interesting details:
Pattern: my own, nothing fancy, just let the yarn do all of the work; top down sock, CO 64
cuff: K2,P2 ribbing
leg and foot: K6, P2 wide ribbing
Yarn: "Best Foot Forward" by Nashua Handknits, colorway: 7329 Autumn; 1 skein with about 25% left over
Needles: US#3/3.25mm

Comments: The sock seemed to grow a bit after soaking and blocking. I was really surprised at the color of the water after soaking--a lot of red/purple coloring.

Done...Summer socks.

But not in time for Christmas gift giving. The good news is that I am coming out of my knitting slump and I'm looking forward to finishing some projects and starting some new ones. Ravelympics2010 starts Feb 12 with the Winter Olympics so get those needles ready!

Here are the details for the finished socks:
Pattern: "Summer!" by Ingrid Hiddessen; link to free pdf here ; top down sock, picot edge, lace and cables
Yarn: "Nano" by String Theory, color: North Haven; 1 skein with about 1.6 z (or 30%) left over
Gauge: 8st/inch
Needles: US#2/3.0mm

Comments: I made the cuff longer and continued the lace and cable pattern to the toes.

SKP2009 sock 3: Mosaic

On July 1 the 3rd sock for SKP2009 was revealed. I managed to finish in 4 days which made the colors of this sock even more patriotic!

Here are the details:

Pattern: "Samarkand" by Andrea Krüß-Anders (available as a free Ravelry download)
Yarn: Misc yarn from my stash
Needles: US#4/3.5 mm
Comments: My first mosaic knit!

Shopping

Last Friday I met up with Catherine (Ravelry: CathV-S) in Newburyport, MA. We had a great lunch and then went over to "A Loom With a View" for a little shopping. Look at the fun sock yarn I got:

Yes, it is as bright as it looks! I figured it would be fun for almost-summer knitting. The yarn is 'Superwash Me Sock' by J.Knits and the colorway is "Florida". I will probably use this for my June SKP2009 sock 3 which should be out in 2 weeks.

After that pair of socks, I need to work on some summer anklets. I will be designing a few pairs in Seawool...

SKP 2009, sock 1: Salida

Yesterday I finished the first sock for SKP 2009. It is a great pattern and I LOVE how these socks turned out:

The details:
Pattern: "Salida" by Janneke Maat aka Serena on Ravelry; magic loop, top down
Yarn: Fleece Artist SeaWool, colorway: amber; 3/4 skein
Gauge: 8 st/inch
Needles: US#2.5/3.0mm

Comments: The only change I made was to substitute an eye of partridge heel for the short row heel (just a personal preference). The twisted traveling stitches make a great design!

SKP sock 5 finished!

I have finally finished my last pair of socks from the 2008 Pentathlon. I actually finished them a few weeks ago, but finally got the time to post them here. But first, here is a recap of the pentathlon:

And the final sock:

Cable down back through heel
Lace around front and foot

Project Details:
Pattern: 2008 Summer Olympic Medals Socks by FrauHugs/char (group moderator); top down
Yarn: Lang Yarns Jawoll Superwash Solid, 1.5 skeins
Color: dark navy blue
Gauge (after blocking):
Needles: US#3/3.25mm

Thank you to the organizers of SKP2008 and the pattern contributors. And congrats to the winner, Barbros (an amazing knitter who completed every sock first). I have had a fun 11 month knitting adventure!

And now prepare for SKP2009...starting tomorrow! Click here for the Yahoo group or here for the Ravelry group.

SKP Sock 5 underway...

The pattern was released Nov 1 and I have started. It is a pretty lace and cable pattern and knitting up quickly, but I haven't had much time to work on them. Here is the yarn I am using:

And here's what I have so far:

Hopefully over the weekend I will have these both finished through the heel and gusset. I also need to finish a scarf this weekend for a swap. Can't show you pictures of that until it reaches its destination!

Zum Lederhos'ns

I am lucky enough to help test knit another beautiful sock by Yarnissima (see my "Firestarters" and "Zum Dirndls"). No, I have not finished my Zum Dirndls yet, but I will...

Her latest pattern is Zum Lederhos'n. The pattern is being written for men, but I am making the smallest size for me! I am knitting these with Fleece Artist Merino 2/6 in "Ruby". And here's what I have so far:

A toe up pattern with lots of twisted stitches and cables. There are initials worked into the gusset which you should be able to see on my sock soon. Another unique pattern!

SKP sock 4- Ziggy

Another fun pattern. And I love the color of the yarn. These are my socks for September, also knit for SKP sock 4.

Here are the details:
Pattern: "Ziggy" by Meg Meredith published in Knitty Summer 2008; 2 needle, toe up, wrap and turn heel/gusset
Yarn: ShibuiKnits Sock, 100% superwash merino
Color: 220 Peony and 4103 Roppongi; 1 skein each
Gauge (after blocking):
Needles: US#2.5/3.0mm

Comments: For me, stranded-knit socks are not easy to get the fit right (see Birdfoot bag). My gauge was right on, but I still found the wrap and turn heel/gusset too tight. So for the second sock I increased the number of stitches I worked the heel over to 39 (from 33). This gave a more comfortable fit. If I were to make these again, with the same yarn and needles, I would add 6 stitches (1 pattern repeat).

For my October socks, I will be working with a Harry Potter-inspired theme as part of the Hogwart's Sock Swap 4 (HSS4). I will be using my own pattern and plan on making something similar to my HSS3 socks, but this time I will be knitting for a 4th year Gryffindor, so the colors will be scarlet and gold. I have a tweed yarn that I will be Kool Aid-Dyeing and I hope the colors come out right (Pineapple for the gold and Black Cherry for the maroon). We'll know after this weekend!

SKP3 finished - Rattlesnake Creek Socks

I finished these socks on the very last possible day, August 31. And I managed to get them posted to the SKP group with 90 minutes to spare.

Here are the details of this pattern:
Pattern: Rattlesnake Creek Socks -SKP2008 sock ＃3 ; top down, magic loop
Yarn: Nova Sock; 100% merino wool, washable
Colors: Peacock
Needles: US 2 / 2.75 mm

Notes: I started with US1 needles, but switched to US2 for the cuff and all of the second sock. The cabling made these socks less elastic then others. It was a fun pattern to knit.

Zum Dirndl WIP

It is hard for me to sit and blog when it's summer and the kids are running around and the garden needs tending. I also have a lot less time to knit, but I make some time. Here's my progress on my Zum Dirndls:

The view from the side:

And a closer look at the front cable:

And last, the heel and back cable, the best photo I could get without a model (my models are sleeping right now...)

I LOVE the pattern. My knitting has gone much quicker now that I switched over to AddiLace needles (there are a lot of twisted knits and cables in this one). If I could find an hour a day to knit, these would be done in no time...

But be warned dear family, I will make time for knitting and ignore my other responsibilities to fulfill my Ravelympic commitments. What's that you ask? More tomorrow...

July Socks--Mira Mira

The month has escaped me, so I needed a quick pair of socks. And here they are:

This pattern has been sitting around for a while, so long that this is a discontinued yarn. These are my daughter's favorite colors, so it all good!

The details:
Pattern: Plymouth Yarn S417; top down, 2 needle
Yarn: Plymouth Yarn 'Mira Mira'; 98%Wool, 2% Metal
Colors: 2747 lime green (MC), 141 Fuchsia (CC)
Gauge: 5 st/inch
Needles: US 7 / 4.5 mm