Monthly Archives: September 2005

Lovely and amazing

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I couldn't love them more Are they not tremendous? Just as I thought it might, my tour around the sockaPal2za universe led me past the socks that would eventually be mine, a wonderful pair of cashmere lace socks knitted with great care by Julia, from Folk Socks, by the inimitable Nancy Bush. They fit beautifully and are as soft as buttah, but what really won me over was the picot edging. Mmmm. Super-feminine picot edging, a something knitterly which I have not yet tried, and which I like very much. So pretty. Thank you so much, Julia! And a big thank you to Karen, who paid me a number of lovely compliments on the socks I knit for her, not the least of which was “They fit perfectly.” Whew, I mean yay! Thank you both.

So close to being doneThe Opal socks are almost finished; round and round the foot I go, pleased as punch that we appear to be on the bus to Matchville with these beauties. I am not the kind of person who insists that all her handknitted socks match exactly, but come on – with self-striping yarn, I want them as twinned as I can get; I’m fussy that way.

Because I’ve been “all socks, all the time” around here, my fingers rebelled this weekend – they said “serve up some worsted weight knitting, please” – so I did. I'm so lonely here on Sleeve Island Yes, that’s the sleeve for the sweater I started nearly two years ago. Nice; a lot of water has gone under the bridge since I first thought “I want to knit myself a sweater”, so there are fewer quality control issues as I come to the end of this loooong project. Well, if it’s not quite the end, at least I can see the end from where I am. I want to wear a finished sweater in the worst way, man.

And let’s talk for a moment about what else I want. I am in a phase of completion and stash consumption, quite happy with what I have – but that doesn’t mean I’m made of stone. No matter how slowly I knit up the yarn, the books and patterns are the promise of the next thing – no matter whether I want to knit a lovely Fair Isle sweater or a sweet pair of socks, if I have the pattern I’m ready for whatever tickles my fancy. You see what’s coming, don’t you? I come across at least ten patterns a month (more, now that this book is out a full month earlier than I expected, dammit!), and I’ve completed four finished objects in 2005 – three pairs of socks and a hat. Translation? I’m up to my eyeballs in all kinds of yarn and patterns – and it appears that it’s going to be that way for the foreseeable future, thanks to my burning desire to add a log cabin blanket, Liesje’s Socks, the Norwegian Snowflake Cardigan, Kepler, a Fair Isle hat, Spork, this amazing sweater from Lopi book 21 that reminds me of the ocean (and features just the right amount of apple/lime green, the official color of Knit One Purl Too), the Mossbank pullover, virtually any Miss Bea’s sweater (even though my pool of properly-sized child receipents is really small), and any and all sock patterns by Evelyn A. Clark to my knitting list. Whew! And that’s just this month.

But I am a woman on a mission – FO or bust! Thank God the new TV season just started, that’s all I have to say.

And this is a little something for Tiffany…
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Aren’t you finished yet?

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the beauty shot Well, yes. Here (click on all pictures to get a closer look), in what is record time for me are the beautimous SockaPal2za socks. Considering that I am still part of knitalongs that started years ago, I think I should get a gold star for my singleminded dedication to completing these in a timely fashion. The ingredients for successful project mania included three seasons of Alias, which means I watched a shocking amount of TV in the course of knitting these (apparently spycraft and lace knitting go together like peanut butter and chocolate).

sockapal2za_button.gif The details: Two and a half skeins of ArtYarns SuperMerino in color 115, a riot of pink, on size 4 Clover Bamboo needles (which were pink by the end of the project – heh). a lace closeup If you wanted to do toe-up socks, you could probably get away with two skeins because you could just end the leg when you ran out of yarn, but it’s not exactly a hardship to knit with this stuff, so I was happy to have a third skein on hand. The pattern was Ellie’s Holey Socks from the Knitlist, well-written and easy to follow, extra points for intructions on ensuring the lace pattern on each sock mirrors the other. That was a nice touch. [note: I didn't use this version of the pattern (I used this one - they're the same), so finding this link was the first time I saw a picture of someone else's finished Holey Socks - isn't it reassuring that mine look like that?]

toes ahoy What’s next? Dude, I have so many UFOs my mail gets delivered to Area 51. I’m about to turn the heel on the second rainbow Opal sock, so I think I’ll plow ahead with those. Two sleeves and a turtleneck are between me and a finished sweater; I’d be lying if I said this was my favorite project, but I can’t wait to see if I can make a sweater that fits – the suspense is killing me. Then it’s back to the Bearfoot Retro Ribs. Once I’m well into the second sock (rather than at the heel of the first), then and only then will I cast on for something new…what will the new thing be? A Christmas stocking (see pattern details here) by request for my husband’s godson a fine heel flap (I am his official Fairy Godmother, which puts me squarely in charge of Treats, Surprises and Special Things. Can I finish my first piece of two-color knitting in 80 days or less, plus get some of my many other goodies off the needles? I think I can, I think I can, I think I can…Why not? eighty days is a long time, and after all, I’m on a project-finishing roll here.