Possessed to Knit

Sock Wars Update

I've completed these socks over the weekend and they will be my fourth "kill".  Sock Wars has turned out to be a little complicated.  I killed my first target and when I received her socks in progress, it turned out that there was not enough yarn to complete them.  I made another pair yet one sock turned out to be bigger than the other, and after studying my target's blog, I knew they would be too big.  I knitted her a correctly fitting pair and "killed" her.  She lives in England and it took over two weeks for her socks to arrive.  Then the Supreme Commander of Sock Wars decided to end the war with a name drawing.  Many members were not happy with this and some decided to continue on in the Yarn Smackdown.  I received socks to send to my next target as the person sending them decided to drop out.  She ended up traveling and completing the socks so all I had to do was send them to my third target.  My third target sent me her socks in progress, she had one sock started and was half way through the gusset decreases.  I started the second sock before continuing with her first sock to see if I had the gauge correct.  This is Plymouth Happy Feet yarn and I ended up using my 2.75 mm Knit Picks circular needles to achieve the correct gauge.  These socks are washed and ready to go into tomorrow's mail.                           

Fuscia Print Socks Completed

I've completed my Fuscia Print toe-up socks.  I prefer top-down socks, but I did not have enough yarn to knit these from the top down.  I started each sock in a section with a large block of color so I could avoid the stripiness that occurs with shorter blocks of color.  I started each sock with a provisional cast-on of 32 sts and a short-row toe on size 0 Addi Bamboo dpns.  I worked the heels with the size 0 Addi Bamboo dpns and the remainder of the sock with 2.5 mm Knit Picks 32" circular needles.  I did a k2,p2 tubular bind off which turned out to be a little tighter than I like.  I may have loosened the bind off on the top sock a bit much, but it feels and looks better when I wear it.  I'm glad to use up the rest of this brightly colored sock yarn leftover from my Fair Isle socks.

Pearls on the Pulse Cuffs Completed

Here is a pair of beaded cuffs I recently completed from the Pearls on the Pulse book that I like so much.  The yarn is leftover from my Fair Isle socks and I found the beads at The Knitting Zone.  I enjoy knitting beaded cuffs, they are quick and fun and a nice change of pace.  I get one cuff completed and then move on to other projects.  When I return to complete the second cuff, sometimes I am at a loss to which needles I used for the first cuff.  I guessed that I used my 2.5 mm Knit Picks Harmony dpns as they were a little jumbled in their case (they are part of a set ranging from 2.0 mm to 3.25 mm in 0.25 mm increments).  The second cuff turned out to be larger than the first cuff, not that anyone will notice when I wear them.  To prevent this issue, I need to knit the second cuff quicker or at least put the needles aside with the yarn for future reference.

Lace Rib Watch Cap

 I completed this hat today to send to the Dulaan Project.  It is the Lace Rib Watch Cap from Hats On! by Charlene Schurch.  I used size 6 (4.0 mm) Addi Turbo needles (16" and 32" for the crown using the Magic Loop) and some leftover worsted weight yarn.  This hat starts with a tubular cast-on.  I found the whole thing to be a bit fiddly.  I didn't want to start the hat too tightly, but I think I could have made it a little tighter as the ribbing edge is not very stable.  The ribbing felt like an eternity, all that k1, p1 over 120 sts.  I find that my gauge is very similar to hers so I just start off with whatever needle size she used.  I like this book a lot except some of her patterns (such as this one) decrease too quickly for the crown giving it a gathered look.  I did not have the inclination (or much yarn) to redesign the decreases for this cap.  I have adjusted the crown on some of her Fair Isle hats and was much happier with the results.  I'm just glad to have this cap done in time to send it off to Arizona before July 1st.

Felted Hats

I had about 6 oz of my handspun Icelandic yarn leftover from the raglan sweater and I decided to give felting a try.  I've never felted on purpose before and I found this free hat pattern from Crystal Palace yarns.  These hats were very quick to knit on size 11 needles and I used my Denise needles (which I bought for the rare occasion that I need a larger size needle).  These hats were so huge before felting, I thought I had done something wrong.  I put them in hot water in my washing machine with some Euclan woolwash.  There was hardly any felting after the first 15 minutes.  I then added a pillowcase to the mix and felting took place much more quickly, almost too quickly.  I rinsed them in cold water and then placed each one over a plastic bowl.  I put them out in the sun this afternoon to accelerate the drying process.  Now I have two felted hats to add to my Dulaan Project donation.  I am clearing out some of my stash, too, creating a win-win situation. 

Icelandic Raglan Completed

I've completed my Icelandic Raglan sweater for the Dulaan project.  I used size 9 needles for the body and sleeves and size 7 needles for the ribbing.  The gauge was 4 sts and about 5.5 rows per inch on size 9 needles in the stockinette stitch.  This sweater was a good review of button and buttonhole placement for me.  I took a "7 Things that Can Make or Break Your Sweater" class in March at Springwater Fiber Workshop.  Our instructor told us about using the actual row gauge to determine how many sts to pick up for the button and buttonhole bands.  With 5.5 rows per inch along the sweater edge and 5 sts per inch on my size 7 needles, I picked up 5 sts for every 6 sts.  I think it worked okay, but the buttonhole band turned out wavier than I like.  (Please feel free to add your insight, Patrick).  I see that I also need to work on my buttonhole spacing, at least this sweater was practice for me.  I found my Denise needles especially helpful as I could just change the tips depending on what I needed next like when I used the size 8 for binding off.  This is not the softest sweater I have knitted, but I am hoping it will still keep a Mongolian child warm this winter. 

Fair Isle Socks Completed

I've completed my Fair Isle socks.  The pattern called for 60 sts and size 2.75 mm needles.  I used 72 sts and size 2.25 mm Lantern Moon Sox Stix for the body of the socks and 2.00 mm Addi bamboo dpns for the heels and toes.  The color work went pretty well, I used my knitting thimble and eliminated the jog.  I have to adjust the stitches a bit after changing the beginning of the round with each round, but it is worth the extra effort to have a continuous Fair Isle pattern.  I thought the ribbing was only 12 rounds (instead of 16 rounds), but it turns out that the Sock Wars III sock has 12 rounds of ribbing.  I guess this is what can happen when I knit more than 1 pair of socks at a time.  I have over 2 ounces of the On Your Toes Fuscia Print left and plan to knit a pair of toe up socks.   This yarn has aloe vera in it and will make a nice pair of ankle socks.  I am wearing my cotton blend socks these days as it is very hot here and it will be months before I wear these extra warm socks.

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. 

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.