Possessed to Knit

Latvian Mittens

I have a few mitten books that I have collected over the years and I find them very inspiring.  The Spring/Summer 2008 issue of Vogue Knitting features a mitten project from Latvian Mittens (written by Lizbeth Upitis and published by Meg Swansen).  I selected these Knit Picks Palette colors for this mitten project (in the lower left corner), which was also a recent knit-a-long on the Schoolhouse Press website.  I like most of the colors, but I'm not sure about the green.  It is just in the cuff, though, and I look forward to seeing how these colors work together.  There is a corrected chart for the Vogue Knitting version of the pattern here.  The Vogue Knitting article shows Meg's two-color cast-on and how she creates the fringe along the cuff edge.  I will likely not start on this project till the fall, so in the meantime, I will continue to enjoy reading my mitten books.

Ocean Lace in Sea Song

Here is a swatch I knitted in Fibra Natura's Sea Song yarn.  It is 80% cotton and 20% sea cell with 109 yards in a 50g ball.  My sister, Maria, selected this sweater from my Interweave Knits when I visited her.  I've seen this sweater advertised quite a bit, yet it was difficult to find the yarn.  I finally found it at Yarnmarket.com and waited over a month for them to receive this color and the pattern.  I used the recommended size 6 needles for the swatch.  The Addi Turbo Lace needles are very helpful with the ssks involved with this pattern.  At first the swatch appeared to be too small, but some blocking brought it to about 6 sts and 6 rows per inch.  The yarn has a nice drape to it and is very soft.  I'm enjoying this particular colorway with its gentle changes in color.  I think this will be a fun summer project to knit.        

More Cotton Socks

While I wait for the next step in Sock Wars III, I have been working on some cotton socks.  I am experimenting with size 00 circular 40 inch needles.  I am using Meilenweit Cotton Fantasy (#803) on the left with 76 sts on Addi Turbo Lace needles.  I thought this sock might be turning out too small so I started the Regia Cotton Tip & Top (#4086) on the right with 80 sts on Hiya Hiya needles.  I like the pointier tips of the Addi Lace needles a little better than the Hiya Hiya needles.  I have learned that I can never really have too many needles, and it works out nicely to use them simultaneously for this project.  I will be curious to see how each needle does during the short row sock heel.  For now, I will continue with the Tip & Toe socks as I wait for either a pair of sock wars socks or a partially completed pair of socks for my next target. 

Sockotta Fair Isle Socks Completed

I've completed my Sockotta Fair Isle socks.  They are a cotton/wool/nylon blend and I like the way the Fair Isle pattern turned out.  I used my size 0 Addi Bamboo dpns with a gauge of 9 sts and 12 rows to the inch on 72 sts.  I managed to squash one of the needles and bend it a bit.  I straightened it out the best I could and it works okay.  I did return to using my DPN work in progress tube and it was very helpful in preventing further needle mishaps.  I initially thought they were a little pricey, but I am very glad to have them now.  I predict these socks will be very comfortable for the summer.

I am still alive in Sock Wars and I have "killed" my target.  I did receive a message from my assassin over the weekend that I am "on notice", so I'm not sure how much longer I will be alive. 

Sock Wars Socks

Here are my completed Sock Wars III socks.  I used Tofutsie sock yarn in the Tender Foot colorway and size 3.0 mm Knit Picks circular 32" needles.  I used a smaller needle for the heels and toes.  I also did a few little modifications like picking up an extra stitch on each side of the flap heel in an attempt to minimize the little gap between the heel and the instep.  For the toes, I slipped each edge stitch over the next stitch before grafting to make the toe more rounded.  It was somewhat like knitting a marathon.  I paced myself and took breaks as needed.  I stretched my shoulders and wrists a lot, too.  I also completed my Petite Rib socks as I traveled to visit my sister and her family.  It has been a busy week of sock knitting.  It will be fun to see how far I get in Sock Wars III. 

Sock Warriors

Here are my Sock Warriors, Justin (left) and Joshua (right), holding my Tofutsie sock yarns.  I went to see my sister, Teresa, and her family for a long weekend.  They were patient with me as I continued to check my email throughout the weekend to find out who my target is and what her sock size is.  I had a wonderful time with my darling nephews.  They took turns clicking my row counter for me.  They also enjoyed playing with my retractable tape measures, who knew that a knitting bag could be a treasure trove of toys?  My sister, Maria, is my coach as she monitors my sock knitting progress and cheers me on.  She convinced me to sign up and compete.  Al thinks the Sock Wars III competition is a little over the top, but he is well aware of how passionate we knitters can be.  My assassin's nom de guerre is Madame De Farge so I am not sure how long I will be alive in this game.  At the very least, it has turned into a fun family affair.

MSWF - Swatches

I've been experimenting with this roving that I bought at MSWF from The Barefoot Spinner.  I would like to knit a cardigan.  I could be adventurous and design my own pattern or I could use on of my Knitting Pure & Simple patterns.  I guess I will spin the yarn first before I decide.  I spun some samples of singles yarn, washed them, blocked them, and knitted them up.  The one on the lower left is my first swatch.  I boldly decided this would likely be my yarn and spun quite a bit of it.  I used the 1:8 ratio on my Wyatt Norwegian and drafted about 1 treadle per inch.  This thin, wiry yarn is 20 wpi and 4.5 sts per inch on size 6 needles.  I then increased the take up and drafted about 2 inches per treadle for the bottom swatch on the left.  The resulting yarn is a bit uneven at 12 - 16 wpi and about 4 sts per inch on a size 8 needle.  My favorite is the swatch on the top.  I used my Lendrum with a ratio of 1:5 (the bulky/plying head) and drafted about 1 inch per treadle.  This yarn is much more even, about 14 - 16 wpi and a little over 4 sts per inch on size 8 needles, so I think we have a winner! 

MSWF - Sock Yarns

I did manage to find some sock yarn at MSWF.  Starting on the left, we have Sock Hop Superwash Merino in the Mermaid Colorway from Dalis Davidson of Dancing Leaf Farm.  Next, we have Studio Sock (100% Superwash Merino) from the Neighborhood Fiber Company in the Brookland colorway.  In the center, we have more Superwash Merino sock yarn from The Sweet Sheep in the California Dreaming colorway.  I bought two skeins of this yarn as I plan to make a fancy twisted stitch sock and do not want to be worried about running out of yarn.  I'm seeing a purple/green color trend yet each yarn looks quite different.  The next yarn is Rio de la Plata kettle dyed sock yarn in Evergreen, Ethereal Blue & Sparling Grape.  And last but not least, we have Colinette Jitterbug in the Kingfisher colorway.  No preprinted yarns for me, this year it was all about the hand-dyed sock yarns.  I am even more inspired to finish up my current socks so I can cast on with one of these pretty yarns.

Maryland Sheep & Wool Festival

I purchased this lovely Romney mixed with a little Alpaca roving from the Barefoot Spinner at the festival yesterday.  My big news is that I got to meet Opal!  She even helped sort the fleeces on Friday for the fleece show like a MSWF regular.  She, Patrick and I had a wonderful time looking at wheels and roving together.  Opal is considering a second wheel and did quite nicely on the Schacht Ladybug.  She invited me to try it and I had a little trouble adjusting it.  She also did well on the Lendrum which is the one I would vote for.  I have mine set up very conveniently for plying.  I look forward to hearing her final decision.

I enjoyed checking out Patrick's entries in the Skein & Garment competition.  I was thrilled to see Mr. Penney's Argyle sweater in person, perfect zipper and all.  I did disagree with the judges, giving it third place.  Patrick's handspun and handwoven scarf was gorgeous and it won First place. 

After frolicking with Patrick and Opal, I met Kate and Toni at the Junior Spinning Contest.  The young spinners are so much fun and it is a joy to watch them compete.  Sadly, Kate will be moving to Florida this summer and this was our last contest together.  I have learned so much about alpacas and their fiber from her.  She also made our knitting classes together a lot more fun.  I will truly miss you, Kate!

Pearls on the Pulse Cuffs Completed

I've completed my Pearls on the Pulse cuffs.  I used Velvet Bilberry Jitterbug sock yarn that was leftover from a pair of socks and size 8 beads.  I provisionally casted on 24 sts on size 2.5 mm Brittany Birch dpns.  This time I started the grafting from the bottom instead of from the top of the cuff.  Before I graft, I remove the crochet waste yarn from the provisional cast on and then I take out the first row of knitting which is essentially the row where I picked up the stitches from the crocheted chain.  When I knit the cuff, the beads are added every other row with a knit row in between.  I stop knitting my cuff after the last bead row.  I end up with one bead row on each dpn and then I graft a plain row of garter stitch between them.  In the photo, I have placed the graft in the center of each cuff.

I will be at Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival on Saturday.  I will help Kate with the Junior Spinning Contest.  She has wonderful pictures from her Mitered Square Class with Candace Strick.  I'm looking forward to seeing Opal and Patrick there, too.  I do not plan on buying much, but as I recall last year, I thought I wasn't going to buy any sock yarn and I ended up going home with 5 skeins of sock yarn.  I know at the very least it will be a fun & relaxing day.