Mommy, where do socks go when they die?

I knit these socks out of STR Lightweight. I really like the yarn a lot, and actually, I'm wearing a pair of socks that I knit out of the heavyweight version.

I have learned quite the lesson, however. I'm pretty sure I'll be investing in some nylon thread the next time I knit a pair of socks out of yarn without any nylon. It's interesting to me to see which socks last the longest. And I'm suddenly in a sock mood. I want to knit every sock right now. Of course that's not possible.

Especially because the Ravelympics are coming! In 2006 I joined in the Yarn Harlot's kntiting olympics. I didn't medal. I came pretty close to finishing the sweater I was working on, but in fairness to me, it was my first sweater and it was knit in pieces and I had troubles with it to boot. I figured that to give myself half a chance this time, I should knit a pattern I've already knit before.

A couple of years ago I knit a Tangled Yoke Cardigan. I really liked knitting it. I liked the faux seams on the side, I liked the shaping of it and the button band as well as the cables in the yoke. I actually found it fun to knit. Tragically, this sweater which I loved for a short time, had an unfortunate incident with some warm water and felted. It's still wearable, just not by me. So to give myself a fighting chance of actually medaling this year, and to replace a fabulous sweater which I dearly miss, I'll be knitting another Tangled Yoke Cardigan as my Ravelympics project for 2010. And, because I liked it so much the first time, I'll be knitting it out of Rowan Felted Tweed again, this time in green instead of red:


I haven't quite picked up the buttons yet, but I'm pretty sure that M&J still has the buttons I used on the first one, and that they come in different colors, so that's a good bet I think.

How about you folks? Are you joining in on the Ravelympics? I haven't quite figured out which team I'm joining yet, though, I guess I should do that soon. I'm tossing up the Brooklyn Team or Team USA. Are there any friends on either? Which should I join?

Mitts Socks and Hats

So, I'm not sure if it was really cricket, but I knitted all through Stan's cousin's Bridal shower. I really didn't know anyone there, and it kept my hands occupied. When my hands aren't occupied, I tend to try to occupy them by picking at them, and then they end up looking awful and feeling rough. So, I managed to finish the Bergen St. Mitts much quicker than I thought I would.



Sorry for the bit of gut there. One of us went on a happy doughnut, french fry, fried chicken, ice cream binge before my diet started up again. I knit these Bergen St. mitts way shorter than they were supposed to be. I realized that I have no purpose for gloves that go up that high because I tend to wear long sleeves in the winter since i get cold so easily. While I was knitting them, Stan's SIL said she wanted a pair in white, so I bought some of the same yarn (Aslan Trends Invernal) at Annie & Company Knitting yesterday.

I wish I had a photo of the socks I'm knitting now to share with you. They're coming out quite splendidly. I'm knitting the Spiral Boot Socks from IK Summer 2007 out of the purple Kraemer Yarns Sterling Silk & Silver. You're going to have to trust me for now that it's looking great! They're also zipping along. I've only been knitting them for a week and a half I think and I'm at the heel flap!

So, did I mention that I lost the Side Slip Cloche I knit? I'm 90% sure I left it in a cab on my way home from the Rodeo one night. I was a little bummed about it, but Stan never really liked it, and while I really did, knowing he didn't and that I could just knit another one made me feel a bit better. Also, it's the first hand knit of my own that I've just up and lost. It was bound to happen at some point. So, I think I'm going to cast on for the Better Bucket Hat (Ravelry Link). I got a nifty Abalone button at Annie's yesterday, and I think I'm actually going to do that right now. I'm itching to feel some Malabrigo...

2009

Every time I sit down to write a recap of 2009 I just get tired. But here we go. There were some projects that I didn't note on the sidebar that I do note here because they were on my Ravelry page (any links here are to the Ravelry Project).

1. Lucky 7 Snowboarding Hat
2. Hemlock Ring Blanket
3. Huron Jaywalkers A rare pair that fits each foot!
4. Veronique from French Girl Knits (Amazon link)
5. EZ's Bog Jacket
6. Indigo Ripples Skirt It's just a little too short. :(
7. Heather Betty Friedan Primavera Socks Another pair of happy socks that fit both feet!
8. Halvsies I've put the pattern for this up for free on Ravelry.
9. Boy Petal Bib for a co-worker
10. Morocco from Sublime booklet #623 Ended up way too big, so I gave it to my Mom. Lesson learned: wash your swatch!
11. Unisex Petal Bib for another co-worker
12. Vogue Tank #25 from Spring/Summer Issue Knit out of Handmaiden Sea Silk, this is one of my favorite projects of 2009!
13. A Couple of Hooters
14. Side Slip Cloche from Boutique Knits
15. Graded Diagonal Lace Scarf for Kristina for Christmas
16. Dr. Monkey Renner for Dr. Renner for Cristmas.
17. Dashing for Kristina's Mom - finished seconds before the ball dropped on New Years Eve!

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So, I responded to the Yarn Harlot's Knit-Signal today. A little too much actually. I didn't see the confirmation page before I accidentally navigated away from it, so I ended up donating twice! I'm going to file paperwork so my company will match my donation, which will, I think, be fairly helpful to Doctor's without Borders in the end. :) I'm sure my tax lady will be upset with me because it's not in 2009, but that's ok. She'll be happy next year when she sees it. :)

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Oh, but what am I working on? Well, I'm working up a pair of Bergen St. Mitts that are much shorter in the arm, but a bit longer in the fingers than the original pattern. I totally don't have any photos.

I just finished knitting a feather and fan cowl out of the same yarn I used for the bog jacket and the Side Slip Cloche. The idea was that it would match the Side Slip Cloche. I, however, am utterly brilliant, and left the Side Slip Cloche in the cab I took home from the Rodeo on Friday night. This is kinda a bummer, but I'm trying to look at it as an opportunity to knit a new hat. It'll probably end up being a Better Bucket Hat, and since I still have almost 2 skeins of that Malabrigo worsted in Pearl Ten, I'll probably knit it out of that. I'm not really upset with myself for forgetting the hat in the cab. It's ok, it's just an object. I'm kinda ticked with myself that I have to take the time to knit a new hat now. Especially since winter will (cross your fingers) be over sometime soon. Stupid. I'm just going to want a new one in December.

in the meantime, if anyone sees a nifty button that will show up against a deep brown that will match a purple coat (extra points if it'll match an orange coat too!), drop me a line with a link. I think I'm looking for something that's like 1-2" in diameter.

Alright, I'm going back to knitting and watching Conan. Poor Conan. Dude just wants to do his last few shows and folks keep taking up his time talking about what he's going to do next. I'm glad I can carpe diem undisturbed.