Summer of Socks

I thought I signed up for Summer of Socks this year and it turned out I didn't. Oh, well, no big loss there really because it's not like I would win the contest for the most socks knit during the 2 month time frame. I'll just consider myself a member in spirit.

I don't know if you all hadn't noticed, but I was missing my sock mojo for a few months. It might have possibly been related to knitting the boring black/grey socks for M forever, or so it seems. I'm so happy they are done. I think I am saving these for his birthday (at the end of the month) or I may give them to him sooner, just not sure. He even asked me the other day who the socks were for and I told him they were for me. He mentioned that he liked those socks and they were close enough to black that he would wear them. I wonder if he's been reading the blog again, hmmph.


They may end up being a surprise or not, either way, they are done and now I'm happy to knit something fun again.



Project Specs:
Pattern: Men's Sock, using basic sock pattern, upped stitch count to 68 sts for M's foot
Yarn: Trekking XXL
Project start date: February 2008
End date: June 2008
Modifications:
Considering this is a basic pattern I've been using for years, no real mods, just changed stitch count from my usual 64 to 68 for M's larger feet. I still love using Trekking, although it's not as soft as other merino sock yarns, but it blooms wonderfully after washing and is a good workhorse sock yarn for socks that will get a lot of wear. And trust me, M is hard on socks.




Now, next up are a pair of socks that I am just loving! I am using a pattern, Apollo & Artemis by Kirsten of Through the Loops, which gives you two sock patterns for the price of one. I'm using some of Mary Kay's Red Rocks Fiber Works sock yarn in the Drink Me colorway and I am in love. The pattern is simple, but has a pretty lace insert on the sides. I'm knitting the Artemis sock pattern and the yarn and pattern are a perfect match.

June Goals

Reminiscing on my May goals momentarily, the success rate was pretty poor.

1. Knit three dishcloths. I might have to start changing this goal altogether from three to possibly two, because I have yet to accomplish this goal in two months. I did manage to knit 2 baby bibs and two dishcloths. The basic dishcloth is sort of my favorite, with a basic eyelet pattern in garter stitch. One was actually finished this month and the other in May. For these, I like to use the leftover scraps from other dishcloths, bibs, etc. They are pretty eclectic, but I like to call them rag cloths and they are easy to knit and good for using up the odd bits of cotton.






2. Finish the Caribou Cherub Thujas. I'm actually pretty close with finishing this pair of socks, but it looks like the first sock is a bit short. I'll have to go back and rip out the toe and reknit a bit longer.



Heh, no ripping, I say. I finally finished the second sock, but honestly it was not as pleasurable as other knits. I was merrily knitting away on the second sock, when I ran out of yarn. What I mean is that, of the yarn I purchased, each skein is 200 yards. Since the yarn is sportweight, I cast on fewer stitches than normal and used less yarn on the first sock. I was able to knit the second sock down to the heel flap before changing to the second skein of yarn. When that happened, the two skeins were markedly different, although it didn't appear to be so when I moved to the second skein. I looked down on the foot of the second sock and it appeared much darker than the first. That was really a bummer, especially as I really liked the first sock, but these socks are a bit heavier to wear with regular shoes, so they will be house socks or with clogs. Since I'm behind in blogging projects, this will serve as my FO report as well.

3. Start a Barn Raising square. All of my friends are doing it, why shouldn't I? Heehee. Nope, didn't happen. I do need to start at least one for June.

4. Pick up either the Hanami stole or the Enchanting Juno stole. Or perhaps start something new? :-) Hmm, I did pickup the Hanami stole again, but promptly put it down after a couple of rows because I realized I was reading the pattern wrong and need to rip back. Haven't gotten to that yet. But I did start a new lace project and decided to rip Enchanting Juno. Perhaps I'll start it again at another time or not.

June goals

1. Start a Barn Raising square. Since members of my knitting group are knitting squares for each other to put in our individual blankets, I need to have one completed by the end of the month to pass on to a special friend.

I won't even mention dishcloth cotton this month. The dishcloth cotton stash is getting low. I think I'm down to five actual skeins and I have scraps to knit two additional dishcloths, but that's fine.

2. Finish M's second sock. I finally kitchenered in the first sock and after more than a month, cast on the second sock yesterday. Since school is back in session starting last week, I managed to make some headway on the first sock with a mega-reading session tonite at a local cafe. I'm going out on a limb to finish the pair by Father's Day. I think I can, I think I can!



3. Continue working on my Flutter Sleeve Cardi (oops, haven't mentioned that one, getting stuck at the short rows currently).

That's about it for now. Life has been busy and blogging has been taking a back seat. My theory is life to be lived. I'll catch you all on the flip side.

April Goals revisited

In a follow-up to April's goals, let's see how I fared for April.

1) Finish the Everyday Tweed sweater. Done

2) Finish Jaybird hoodie. Yep! Even finally got that button added. Sweet.




3.Add fringe to sideways garter stitch scarf. Now that puppy is done. It's been patiently waiting for over a month.



4 & 5) April, sadly, has not been the month of socks. I finished the first sock of M's pair, but I have hardly touched my Cherub Thujas. I really do want them done. Must focus on this for May. No pictures, sorry.

6) My goal for knitting many dish cloths, well, three for this month, was not quite met. But I did knit one dish cloth, and a handknit kitchen towel (with a button tab closure), which used up 2 skeins of dishcloth cotton.






I'll cover all the specifications of the FOs in a post, soon to follow. The April goals were quite challenging and even though they weren't all met, I'm pretty happy with myself for staying focused on my goals. Now to see what May will bring. :-)

WIP it Up

Dear Readers,
I didn't mean to leave you for so long. Even when I think I will post more frequently, such as Spring Break 3 weeks ago, that's when I didn't post at all. Life just feels so busy most days that it's hard to sit down and post, especially with no pictures. I can only post sporadically, so it seems. I guess I can only do my best and post when I can, however infrequently that may be.

Thanks to everyone for the votes and comments regarding my Charlotte post last week. I appreciate all the thoughtful comments. I always like to hear people's reasons and theories behind their choices. Currently, I believe I will go with Set 3 v2. The first set definitely screams my colors, but I also love those two skeins of Trekking (purple & orange) and I think I would like those to be socks instead. And I think I will like the set with blues/turquoises towards my face and the brownish-blue-green and purples/greens towards the bottom. I haven't cast on yet, probably not until a bit later in the summer.

I seem to have quite a few things on the needles lately. Some of which is bugging me, because it feels like too much. The past 10 days or so, I've really not been feeling the knitting love. I felt like everything on my needles was boring and I didn't want to knit anything. I was still knitting, but it was more a labor of love than anything. Especially because I cast on for a few new items without getting close to the finish line on any current projects.

One I cast on for the beginning of the year, but it's barely gotten any love, is a pair of socks for M. I recently told myself I could finish them for a deadline, but as the time is approaching, it doesn't appear that will happen. Although the socks don't look too far along in the picture below, I have turned the heel and knit past the gusset increases and am well into the foot on the first sock. Since they're for M, I have more stitches than my usual 64 and the cuff is at least 8 inches in length. The colorway is variegated shades of grey. M wanted black socks, but I'm too young to go blind, so this is our compromise.



In the vein of lemming-like behavior, I recently cast on for the Trekking is for Necking scarf using some stashed Colinette Jitterbug in the colorway Raphael. I love the colorway, and of course, am enjoying the yarn. I made my scarf a bit wider than the original pattern, by 2 repeats wider. I love using my sock yarn for something other than socks, because I have so much sock yarn. But alternately, I don't love knitting a scarf on size 4 needles. That part gets old quick, especially, where it feels like I'm not making any progress. I have knit more on it, so it's a bit longer, though not much. It's all Kim's fault that I cast on. After seeing her pretty scarf, and then Michelle also cast on for one and it sealed the deal for me. I like the scarf and I'll continue to knit on it, but there's no hurry.



I've also cast on for Hypotenuse, a Knitspot pattern, but there's not enough progress to show right now.

One project that's never seen the light of blog is my Everyday Tweed sweater. I'm using Mirasol Hacho in color 303, Coral Reef.



The body of the sweater is actually finished now. The neckline of the sweater is a deep scoop neck, which requires picking up of many stitches around the neckline. I finished the body this past week, but haven't worked up my nerve to sit still and pick up stitches yet. It will happen this week though.



So perhaps, just in time for spring, I'll have a finished wool pullover? Haha, that's how it goes. Besides it'll be right on time for next winter. If I thought I could deal with knitting wool in the summer, I'd really think about knitting sweaters and other cold-weather accessories. That whole lack of a/c kills that for me though. This year I'm not much into knitting summer tops for myself. I have a couple of things I want to knit this summer, mainly because I have the yarn in my stash and I'd like to rid myself of the rest of my summer garment stash. I do wear a number of my knitted tops during the summer, simply because I work in an office environment and I assume at my new job, it might be chilly in the summer if I wear a sleeveless tank. However, once outdoors or at home, the tops feel too hot with no a/c to cool me off. Anyhow, enough of a ramble for now.

Until next time . . .