International Sassy Sock Yarn Swap

I swap with Swap-bot!

success!

I was able to frog back my sock to before the heel flap and I *think* I've fixed it. I've double checked all the stitches to make sure there were none lost/picked up in the process. What a headache.

I think I am going to have to revise my knit from stash guidelines to include sock yarn. I've had an extremely stressful two weeks and I've realized I've turned to yarn-oogling for comfort (which is better than food, shopping, or other vices). I wish I could somehow switch it in my brain to go exercise for comfort instead but for right now, yarn-oogling it is. Maybe I'll tell myself... 1.5 miles on the treadmill- then surfing for yarns.

I'm hoping to do some dyeing this weekend, including the two skeins of bulky Lamb's Pride my SP sent me.

Applied for graduation yesterday. It seems early since it won't be till July 2007 but that's what they want. Only 6 more weeks of the doubled up class schedule, and the last classes will seem so easy to do one at a time. So really, the main stress should go away by March 12. At least this time around, I've actually got some free time and am managing the workload better.

Yarn-y wishlist

This list is for my own reference and will be updated regularly, although any future secret pals, family or friends are certainly welcome to browse through it for gift ideas. :) Since my non-knitting family has no idea how many skeins make up a pair of socks, if I need a specific number of skeins I will note those as well.

Apple Laine yarn (Apple Pie yarn)
50% Superwash Merino, 20% Silk, 20% Kid Mohair, 10% Nylon (would need 2 skeins)
I found this when shopping for my fiber snob pal, and a few days later Wendy from Wendy Knits mentioned it (and showed her finished socks made out of it. They are gorgeous, which cinched its position on my list.) I'm leaning towards the blues and purples, then the pink color family. The colors Blue Jeans and Strawberry Jam are also nice. Note to self: The Loopy Ewe is supposed to start carrying them soon.

Elann Baby Silk
80% Baby Alpaca/ 20% Silk
I've been wondering about this yarn for a while but have never gotten around to ordering it. I can't figure out what I would use it on- you can double it up for a worsted weight pattern, or use it as it comes (fingering weight). The color range is nice- lots of yummy reds, blues and purples.

Manos del Uruguay
One of those yarns I've coveted since I started knitting, and never tried.

Knitpicks Gloss
70% Merino Wool, 30% Silk (one skein for fingerless mitts or two for socks)
I've heard great things about this yarn but for some reason I never remember it when I'm checking out my order on the Knitpicks site! I'm not crazy about the pumpkin shade but all the others are pretty. (Edited to add: wooohooo! I have some in Black now and its in my project queue- it feels fantastic)

Regia Silk
55% Merino Wool, 20% Silk, 25% nylon (2 skeins) I've been wanting to try this and for some reason, the solids are much prettier to me than the multicolored. I especially love the look of the deeper colors- navy and burgundy.

My un-doing

Ugh. My perfect sock is no longer perfect. I followed the pattern wrong around the heel and then tried to tink it back- not the easiest when it's on two circulars and I'm not all that experienced at tinking or frogging. So then I tried frogging it back after picking up the stitches on a lower needle but that did not fare well, either. I'm going to have to frog back to the cuff before the heel flap- which I'm nervous about since I can pick up stockinette stitches fine, but the purl one every 3 stitches or so is giving me trouble. I may end up taking it to a LYS to ask for help.

Instead of dwelling- because right now I am very frustrated, I'm going to make up a list of yarns I hope to try out one day for my sidebar for future reference.

Project Updates

I'm trying to turn the heel on my sock and I'm not sure I am understanding the pattern, so it's on hold until I receive an answer on how to proceed. I wish I could get to that point where I logically can figure out what to do when stuck in a pattern but I'm not there yet. I tend to follow the pattern like a recipe until I can really understand the construction and techniques, but once I understand the basic components, I can branch out a bit.

I don't want to make a wrong turn when so far they are looking really nice. (especially considering I had about 4 false starts and frogged a LOT to get these started right). This is my first sock that is not all stockinette, I did a 3 x 1 rib down the cuff. I'd like to try jaywalkers or a pattern sock that would work well with Lorna's Laces (and minimize any pooling) next. Or that gorgeous skein of Socks that Rock I received... I can't figure out what type of beginner sock pattern would work best for the STR.

I tried to start on the Austermann Step socks for my sister but I don't know what it is about 1x1 ribbing- it killed me. So I frogged (again) and set it aside while knitting up these other socks. The idea behind that was that this is sport weight yarn (the Cherry Tree Hill Sport I was raving about earlier) and so ideally they would knit up much faster than the Step. I want to get to the point where I am more comfortable with the lighter weight yarns- I like thicker socks to some extent but ultimately, the thinner ones are my preference. I have some really interesting yarns to entice me, so I plan on casting on some fingering weight yarn on my 1's today while I wait for answers about my gusset issues.

I ordered Spa and Bath Sets to Knit from Frugal Haus. I have some Knitpicks Shine Worsted in coral and reef that I thought might make some wonderfully soft bath mitts /headbands/soap bags, and the patterns in the Spa Set pamphlet looked so pretty with the eyelets.

I'm so annoyed that I've not been able to upload pictures for nearly a month. The dock for my camera was ordered two weeks ago and its still not here. I adore my camera, but this has been a nuisance. I have dyed yarn, sock progress, saturday skies and my knit mitt kit to share. Anyway, my Saturday sky is grey and cold, and the chill has settled into my bones.

Sock yarn goodness

I broke down and made a purchase of some sock yarn today. I have been making a sock out of Cherry Tree Hill Super Sport yarn and I adore it! However, it's been discontinued and I was so sad to hear that. I found someone who still had some stock left of it in colors I liked, and I splurged. I used the money from the sale of my textbooks (as if somehow, in my mind, that doesn't count) So I'm thrilled that I found it, but feeling a little guilty about breaking down so quickly in my quest to knit from stash. I just had a feeling it would be so hard to find by the time October rolled around.

Last night was productive... I tried my hand at kettle dyeing some sock yarn my Sockret Pal gave me. I ended up with a pretty turquoise/blue/plum skein and a pink/plum skein. It dried overnight so I'll see how it skeins up.

Knit Mitt Kit!

Yesterday I received an awesome package from my Knit Mitt Kit pal, Terry-Jo! I had postponed writing about it until today since my camera is still not uploading pictures properly. But it would not upload at work, either! So I'll update this with the photos I took as soon as I can get my camera working.

The package was wonderful- the bag she created was fantastic! It was a tiny red felt tote bag with a snowman scene sewn on it, and immediately I put my current sock project in there. There was some yummy chocolates as well, a very nice card, and a pattern for fingerless gloves which looks easy enough for me to try. And then the yarn... was simply decadent. Alpaca/Merino bulky yarn, naturally dyed in beautiful shades of soft blues and lilacs. Incredible.

Thank you so much, Terry-Jo!!

Temptation ahead...

Oh... this is SO cute!!! Martini Sock Blockers!! I love them! I'm just not sure I can order from Scout without being tempted by her gorgeous yarn.

I was up at 3 am and could NOT go back to sleep this morning. I'm not sure why it didn't occur to me to work on my socks but I somehow thought knitting would acknowledge the fact I wasn't going to go back to bed. So instead I kept checking email or blog surfing and waiting to get tired... the next thing I knew the sun was coming up. Argh. Thank goodness for Sugar Free Red Bull!

But we have movies to watch this weekend (Illusionist and some random Kevin Spacey movie), and with the sport weight yarn I am using, I'm hoping the socks come along quickly. I'd like to try some Cascade Fixation anklets, too, except I'm not sure if I want to learn the short row heel or just do them with the heel flap I always do. Luckily, I stocked up on Fixation a while back since they don't sell it locally.

KMKS gift (mailed out to pal)

I mailed out my Knit Mitt Kit Swap gift yesterday. Here's a sneak peek at it:

Felted Sheep Tote (pattern by Fiber Trends)

Mitten Knitting Notecards

Hand cream

Hand dyed Lamb's Pride (by me!)

Pattern, needles

Extra skein of Cashmerino Aran in teal tucked inside since my pal had mentioned wanting to knit Fetching with the recommended yarn

Update

I'm completely curious about this TOFUtsies sock yarn which is made of chitin (listed as shrimp and crab shells) amongst other things. I've heard it's fantastically soft and it has some super cute colorways, but am still waiting to hear some reviews.

G and I signed up to do some ballroom and swing dancing classes from the local college. My big thing is to learn how to do the tango- it's one of my favorite dances. Well, that and the jitterbug. It should be a lot of fun, and a great way to let off some steam. :) I saw they had a spinning class and was sooo excited until I discovered it was the bike workout type of spinning and not a craft class.

Still working out each day, some more than others. And I've been trying to set aside time for knitting, although the aforementioned exercising has made me nod off a few times when I should be knitting.

A bit of a lazy weekend...

It's been warmer than usual but rainy, which means naps in the afternoon for me and Gypsy.

School starts again tomorrow. For the first time, I'm less than thrilled about taking two courses at a time and if there was any way I could keep my July graduation date and move back one of my classes, I would. I keep telling myself it is only for 9 weeks, and after that, taking the last two classes (which are required to be one at a time) will be so easy in comparison. My grades are in: A in media, and A+ in PR. When I confirmed these grades there was much rejoicing here because this last session, burnout started to really take its toll. We'll see if the exercise schedule I am following helps this time around.

That means in 2006 alone, I completed 27 graduate hours (9 classes) and am maintaining a 3.89 on top of my fulltime job. I've never worked so hard and there's been times when I'm so exhausted I have fallen asleep in random - and sometimes public- locations. To be honest, I won't know what to do with all my time once I'm out... although being able to knit more than 20 minutes at a time would be wonderful!

Knitting content... I joined two more swaps through Swap-bot (that site is addictive!) and have been making progress on my bag for the Knit Mitt Kit Swap although not nearly as much as I wanted. I had expected to be done with the body and onto the felting step but instead I am planning on packing it into my car and working on it steadily during lunches this week.

I received some more of my last splurges before the Knit From Stash started- they were not many, but spread out amongst different vendors. So I've been getting a skein or two here and there that are specifically designated for projects or gifts (Branching Out, Mrs Beeton, socks for sister, etc). So at least I have specific projects that I can start at anytime without the need to go shop for the yarn ingredients :)

I'm dying to cast on for the Austermann Step sock for my sister, but I'm forcing myself to wait until the actual knitting part of my bag is done. If I can complete the bag and a pair of socks for my sister by Feb. 4th, I'll be thrilled. And next on my list is a pair of socks for Sockret Pal.

Belated pictures!

My Saturday sky from this weekend- I finally figured out I can use my computer at work to retrieve the images I had stored on my camera. It was such a pretty morning :)

Here's my progress so far on my Knit Mitt Kit Swap bag (along with my KIP bag from knitpicks that my sister picked for me!) The color turquoise is so much more vibrant but its so hard to capture that in the right light.

And today, waiting for me, was yarn from my little post holiday/pre-Knit from Stash shopping trip. All the way from England- two little skeins of Kidsilk Haze- one in Hurricane (deep smoky slate blue) and one in Liqueur (a rich wine color).

I ordered these Dec. 27 from Jannette's Rare Yarns, and paid absolutely no shipping and they were waiting for me today!! They actually arrived before the corresponding Cashsoft DK yarn I purchased here in the States did (for the rest of the Mrs. Beeton pattern)

And I did my walking/exercise today :) I'm going to try to add a tracker to the sidebar of my blog to track through April 1.

100 Miles

As if Knitting from Stash 2007 was not crazy enough... I signed up for this, too!

That's right... 100 miles by April Fool's Day. I'll be walking most of it, most likely, unless the weather continues to cooperate with me and I go biking. I'll be logging my miles with Cool Running, as soon as I can set up the account.

I had considered joining a gym but we are setting up the spare bedroom tonight with the treadmill and weights to see how that goes. (Which means I need to find another place for my yarn stash).