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.

How fast do you knit?

How much knitting can I get done while riding from Rochester, NY to Portland, Maine?

I can cast on a toe-up sock and work the toe, foot and gusset. This will help me guesstimate how long it will take to knit a pair of socks using an intermediate -difficult pattern. Let me explain.

I am not a speed knitter by any means, but I am not slow either. I knit because I enjoy it and it relaxes me. But last week when I was catching up on my blog reading, Purl Diva had to show me this: the SKP: Sock Knitters Pentathlon (click button below for Yahoo group).

The basic idea is to "challenge yourself by knitting in ways you don't normally knit and in the process become a better, stronger knitter". We will knit 5 different pairs of socks over the next 9 months. The patterns will be released at predetermined times, each about 2 months apart and will be intermediate -challenging in difficulty rating. As you finish a pair, you are given a number (first person done = 1, second = 2, etc). At the end of the year, the person with the lowest score wins the Pentathlon and some fun prizes. So far there are over 500 participants from 30 countries. Do I expect to "win a medal"? Of course not, but it will be fun "racing"!

Here is my yarn for SKP Sock 1 (needed to be solid/semi solid). It is "Jitterbug" from Colinette (color: Velvet Damson 118) which I have not knit with before, so I will be checking my gauge this week.

PS...I think it will take me a minimum of 1 week to knit a pair of socks and not neglect the rest of my life.

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!

SKP Sock 2 complete

I finished my second pair of socks for SKP: the Berlin socks. The original pattern sent out had a few translation errors (the pattern was originally in German), but once that was all straightened out, it was a fun lace pattern to knit.

Here are the details:

Pattern: Berlin-Pattern/Wollkistchens by Kristin Benecken (and if you are up for some German translations, here are some more great patterns by Kristen: http://www.von-stroh-zu-gold.de/muster/

Yarn: Seacoast Handpainted Yarns; Merino/Tencel
Color: Bubble Gum (and that is the perfect name to describe it!)
Gauge: 7.25 st/inch, unblocked
Needles: US#2.5/3.0mm

Comments: I think I need to attempt Kristen's Bremen-Muster and Hannover-Socken patterns in the near future...

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.

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!

Jacobean socks

Well, I'm tired, but I finished my SKP2008 socks 2 days ago. Then I decided not to knit yesterday, but I'm jumping back in today.

So here are the details:
Pattern: Jacobean by Julie Persinger for SKP2008 sock1; toe-up pattern with short row heel; magic loop or 2 circular needles
Yarn: "Jitterbug" from Colinette; 1 ball (Recommended yarn=fingering wt)
Color: Velvet Damson #118
Required Gauge: 8 st/inch; My gauge: 7 st/inch, but I was making these for a Men's size US10 and the pattern was written for Women's size US7-9, so I did not adjust the pattern.
Recommended Needles: US 1.5 /2.5 mm (I used 2 circ US4/3.5mm)
Comments: Fun pattern to knit. I hope the short row heel holds up (I usually only use short row heels for baby socks and Christmas stockings).

You really can't see the diamond design in these pictures, but the design looks nice in person.

And here is a close up of the short row heel:

Back to knitting today. I hope to finish up my Firestarter socks.

Rattlesnake Creek Socks-SKP sock 3, WIP

Once the Olympics and Ravelympics start (early Friday morning here in Maine!), I will not have much time for the computer and will likely only be blogging about my Ravelympic projects. So to tie up some loose ends before then, I will share some WIPs and knitting misc over the next couple fo days.

Remember SKP (Sock Knitters Pentathalon)? Well, sock 3 was released on July 1 st and I am nowhere near finished. Here is my WIP:

And no, I have not completed the first sock yet. It is a fun and easy pattern; I just have not had the time. The pattern is "Rattlesnake Creek" and I am using Nova Sock colorway Peacock. These socks will be top priority after the Olympics.

The details for Sock 4 were released August 3. They will be stranded knit socks in 2 colors. If I wasn't so overwhelmed with all of the knitting I have in front of me for the next few weeks, I would be really excited about this!

SKP Sock 2: Berlin Sock

And.....they're off!

SKP Pattern 2 has been released. Here is my yarn:

And here is my first sock in progress.

It will be a busy weekend! As of this moment, 12 (total competitive participants around 228) people have already completed BOTH socks...

Ambitious

I have big knitting plans for July. Here goes:

1. Start and finish SKP 2009 Sock 3 (to be released today). The only thing I know about the sock is that it is a mosaic pattern. Want to finish this by the end of week 1.

2. Finish Girasole. The plan: Chart F week 1, Chart G week 2, and edging weeks 3 and 4.

3. Finish Hanami. Haven't made an attack plan yet...

4. Finish Lady of the Lake. Really, it is almost done and I need a mindless knitting project mixed in here...

I'm off to 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...

Merry March!

Merry March! Here in Maine, spring is only a couple of months away. I have lots of knitting projects planned for March. Here goes, in order to be completed:

1.
SKP: Sock Knitters Pentathlon Sock 1: pattern released midnight on Friday. I had guest all weekend, so I didn't cast on until yesterday.
Finished 2/3/08

2.
Finish my Firestarters. I am so close...
Finished 3/28/08

3. Another thrummed mobius. This one is a requested gift for my dear stepmom. Her birthday is in March and she will be coming for visit March 20, so it needs to be completed by then. Update: I never even started this, but I will get to it soon...

4. HSS3 socks: Hogwarts Sock Swap socks: I need to knit at least 1 sock and cast on the second. I would like to mail them the first week in April. Update: well, I cast on sock one 3/29/08...moving this to April's list

5. Faroe Cardigan: everything must be knit and ready for steeking by the end of the month. I will be going to another of Claudia's knitting retreats in the first week of April and I want to wear this there (if I feel brave enough to steek it before I go...)! Update: never got to it in March

6. Mystic Light KAL: the swatch will be released sometime in the next week and the first clue will be released March 26. I hope to finish each clue before the next one is released, but that may be a bit too ambitious. Update: I tried 3 different yarns/swatches....

7. Project of the Month (Ravelry group): this month we are knitting "Fetching" fingerless mitts. Update: given the way the month was going, decided not to even attempt.

8. Monthly Adventures: an easy swap this month; no knitting, thank goodness, because I am going to be busy! Update: I did manage to mail these out before the end of the month!

July wrap up

So I had some hefty knitting goals for July and here's how it turned out:

1. Start and finish SKP 2009 Sock 3--done!

2. Finish Girasole--done

3. Finish Hanami --done!

4. Finish Lady of the Lake--done!

It would not have been possible to finish all of these if the weather had been nice. I guess there are some perks to a soggy summer, but I must admit--I would be happy to do less knitting in August in exchange for some sunshine.

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!

Already August?

Is that really possible? Wow. As I mentioned yesterday, not much knitting happened in July, but that will certainly change for August. Ravelry is hosting the Ravelympics 2008, similar to Yarn Harlot's Knitting Olympics which are held every 4 years during the Winter Olympics. Being the Ravelry junkie that I am, I of course have entered. So this month's knitting goals will revolve around the Ravelympics. Basically, I have from the start of the Olympics (Aug 8) until the closing ceremony (Aug 24) to complete my "events" (see below).

I am on 2 teams and doing a number of events. Here is the summary:
Team Monthly Adventures (my very active swapping group)

• Project: Start and Complete "Hanami Stole" from start to finish (pattern from June swap). Can swatch ahead of time (considered training). Events this project is entered in:
  1. Balance Beads
  2. Lace Weight Long Jump
  3. Shawl Relay
  4. Hand Dyed Hurdles (I will be dyeing the yarn sometime during the next week, but I did buy yarn that would work in case my first-ever dyeing attempt does not produce the results I am looking for!).

• Project: Finish my Seaglass Beaded Bag (from our swap back in March and April). Events entered:
  1. Balance Beads
  2. Bag n Tote Backstroke
     
  3. Holiday Handball
  4. WIPs Wrestling
     

Team Countrywool (with Claudia, the fearless leader of my knitting/spinning retreats)

• Project: Finish my February Lady Cardigan. Events this project is entered in:
  1. WIPs Wrestling
     
  2. Sweater Sprint
  
  

I will be really happy if I can get all of this done in 17 days. I'm not even sure it is possible, but I am willing to lose sleep trying!

After the Olympics, I need to finish my SKP sock 3 before the end of the month (I have barely started). Those are my knitting goals for August.

Monthly Adventures June Swap

I realized that I never really discuss my Monthly Adventure swaps or share the goodies I have received. Swapping is so much fun: you meet some great people and get fun presents! So from now on, I will starting posting about my swaps.

My favorite group on Ravelry is Monthly Adventures. I know I have mentioned it before here on my blog. It started as a simple holiday swap last year (my first swap ever). It has evolved into a month swap with occasional small KAL/CALs. It's a great group, very chatty, fun, and supportive. I look forward to reading the posts every day from this group!

So for June, the swap involves lace. We are sending and receiving a pattern and yarn for a lace shawl or stole. We helped our partners out by listing some of our favorite patterns in Ravelry. It is fun to secretly 'spy' on your partner to discover fun gifts for them. This month my package came from the same person I sent a package to!

I am so excited. Above is my package from 'GreenAlgae'. She sent me a pattern I have been wanting to make for SOOOOO long: Hanami ! The Hanami stole was designed by Melanie of Pink Lemon Twist (the creator of Mystery Stole 3/Swan Lake which I knit last summer--see below).

I can't wait to cast on! But of course, I do need to wait, because I have 2 projects I absolutely must finish first (Zum dirndl and SKP sock 3, which I haven't even cast on yet...). My desire to start this pattern will be inspiration to finish the other two. Thank you GreenAlgae--I am off to knit!

Stitching in September

So much to do and so little time!!

I have my knitting time used up clear into December. There is NO room for more projects and yet...

Here's what September looks like:
1. SKP sock 4
2. Monthly Adventure's (Ravelry) stash-buster project: we will be given 1 small project a week through September, with the intention of busting some stash and knitting some quick and early holiday gifts.
2. Keep working on Hanami
3. Write pattern for Hogwart's sock swap 4 (HSS4)
4. Resist temptation to start MS4, and finish/work on one of my 3 WIP cardigans I have going.

I need to clone myself.

Merry May

Is it really May already? April flew by and I didn't get a chance to post so many things I wanted to share. I'll try to catch up this month. But I need to start with this month's knitting list:

In order of priority:
1. SKP: Sock Knitters Pentathlon Sock 2: pattern released today at 7pm. Will I stay up all night knitting? No, but I will probably stay up later than I should. Update: Finally finished on May 13; see post here.

2. Monthly Adventures (Ravelry group): So we've swapped the beads, and then the yarn and fabric, now we wait for the pattern! We will be making a small knit-with-beads bag. I'll post more details when I get the pattern. Update June 1: 90% of the knitting is done, need to make the liner and straps; click this link to follow project (Seaglass bag)...

3. Mystic Light KAL: All of the clues have been released and it's a very pretty pattern. I only finished clue 1 of 5 last month; I would love to complete this in May, but realistically, want to complete clues 2 and 3 at the very least. Update June 1: didn't even touch this in May...

4. Two-end knitting mp3 bag: this project has been waiting patiently for me. I WILL complete it this month at some point.

5. Beaded stitch markers: need to make some for BuzzandFuzz webstore. Update June 1: working on these, hope to have them posted soon!

6. Juliet sweater: I really want to make this sweater for this summer. My minimum goal for May is to check may gauge. Update June 1: can't find the right yarn/gauge, so I think I will need to heavily modify the pattern to work with my yarn/gauge...

7. And as a side note, I took an amazing bead class last week and now NEED to make some bracelets as gifts. I'll share more details later. Update: posted here.

Jumping July!

Wow, is it really July already? I started this blog one year ago today, so I guess that makes today my blogiversary!

The kids are on summer break so there has not been much blogging or knitting time the past couple of weeks. I thought I would post my July goals along with pictures of my WIPs. SO here goes:

1. SKP: Sock Knitters Pentathlon Sock 3: pattern released today at 12pm EST...

2. Zum Dirndl Test Knit: I have not completed this first sock, but I LOVE the pattern. I should have the first sock complete by the end of THIS month, but here's where I stand:

3. I have wanted to make the Juliet sweater for some time, but I haven't had the time to sit and rewrite the pattern for the yarn I wanted to use. Then I was tempted into starting a "February Lady Sweater". It is cardigan pattern by Flint Knits/Pamela Wynne. I am using HandMaiden Great Big Sea Silk in colorway: marine. I, of course, love the yarn. Here's where I am so far:

That's it, the whole list. I would be so happy if I could just meet those 3 goals! I will not have computer access for the next few weeks, but I will post updates when I get back.

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!