Tuesday, January 29, 2013

cowls

Work proceeds on the rick socks, I've managed to complete the right sock and have started on the left.

You might have heard though that last week the midwest got bitterly cold. I mean bitterly. Here in Michigan was no exception. We had several days in a row where we deemed it too cold to walk the one block to school (seriously). And in the midst of this we discovered the girls did not have scarves.

I KNOW!! I couldn't believe it either. And then some well meaning family member suggested I buy them scarves. I swooned.

Actually I picked up my big needles (size 11--was the biggest circs I had) and some stash yarn and created not a scarf but a cowl:

cowl

Which worked well for one girl--who loves purple more than anything, but the other one has been balking at pink and girly things lately. So a trip to Michael's and an good afternoon of knitting later and she too had a cowl:

Cowl

Several teachers oohed and ahhed over them and I realized that hey, these would have made easy teacher gifts. Nothing like realizing that a month after the fact.

Tuesday, January 15, 2013

the reward entry

Yesterday, I managed to accomplish a lot of stuff on my to do list. My treadmill workout seemed easier, I stayed within my calorie allotment despite eating out, I ordered new glasses, figured out how to manage a part of the sock that was driving me nuts (more on that in a minute) and managed to take a "refraction" picture (This is a picture where you can see a picture in a small drop of water--and it can be tricky to pull off):
panda stalks bamboo

So today I am rewarding myself by putting aside the gazillion things I *should* be doing, and do something I *want* to do. (which if you haven't guessed is this entry)

So, the socks. Back at Christmas we planned a small car trip (12 hours in the car all told) and I had recently finished a pair of toe up regular socks (the purple stripes last entry) and so I thought that I wanted a portable project, but I didn't want "regular plain socks". Evidently I don't do anything halfway because before I knew it I had packed Sock Innovation, my harmony DPN pack and a skein of cascade Heritage (in purple solid).

I picked out the pattern Rick somewhere along the way and cast on in the car. The ribbing went fine, and soon I had started on the lace. And soon I ripped back to the ribbing. And then I started the lace again. And then I got distracted and pulled a needle out of stitches, couldn't find them again, and ripped back to the ribbing. Then I started the lace again and we reached our destination. By this time I think I had about 2 inches of lace.

So we did our trip thing, got back int he car to go home, and I pulled out the knitting. I was doing well, so well. Then I don't even know what happened but suddenly instead of 60 stitches on the needles I had 59. I tried back tracking, but couldn't find where I had dropped them. I was devastated and not sure what to do--do I rip, do I tink? And then a driver in the next lane pointed out we had a flat tire. After that car knitting just didn't happen. We pulled over at the next town took everything out of the car, changed the tire, loaded everyone back in and by then it was getting dark, we were all wound up and nervous about driving home on the spare (oh and 2 low tires--which we fixed at the next exit).

Back home it was clear, I needed to rip back to the ribbing, and start using lifelines. After the lifelines, I only have had one "swear incident" (as my husband calls them), in which I was getting ready to put in a lifeline and again pulled the needle out of 20 stitches--but 8 rows lost and it didn't take me near the ribbing.

sock

So then I'm knitting away happily, I do the heel and it looks good, then I pick up the gusset stitches and for some reason it is easier than I remembered (probably because the pattern gives no number of stitches to pick up (which is sensible, it really doesn't matter) and then I start across the top of the foot--which continues the lace. For some reason I no longer had the 32 stitches I had put aside when I did the heel, I now had 31. (insert cosmic scream here)

However, while I was waiting for the eye doctor yesterday it clicked for me--it had dropped at one end. Quickly I figured out which end and made my peace with the idea that that row might look a tiny bit funny and suddenly I had a sock again.

Now I'm debating the need for a lifeline in the one lace row (I think I need one) and slowly moving along.

All this work and I still have to do the left sock (yes the socks are mirror image patterns--it is going to be totally cool).

sock close

Thursday, January 03, 2013

christmas knitting

I've been sitting on this for a while. Back in the summer, June or July maybe, I started a scarf for my mother in law. She likes red, and hates scratchy things. So a while ago, (April maybe) I picked up this misti alpaca pima cotton/silk, in red. (yes, she is a good mother in law!). Anyway, I made this from a one skein wonders book:
Beth Scarf

I had forgotten the pattern name, thankfully I recorded it in ravelry! It is called: Ruffled Merino-Seacell Bias Scarf, and is from 101 Luxury one skein wonders. It is super soft and nice (I left off the ruffles), and I think she likes it. here is the pattern closeup:
scarf closeup

The other project I finished, wasn't a gift, but more a finally finished. I started these socks for my daughter a long time ago, but kept putting them aside to work on more urgent things. Finally Christmas Eve, I finished them.
Libby socks
Given that I've washed them twice (and I think they are dirty again), I think she likes them.

I started a pair of socks for me (in purple) and her comment was--oh socks for you?! The implication being that I should knit more purple socks for her!

More on my socks after everyone goes back to school.