Socking It to Me

Perhaps I am getting back into the knitting a bit. I moved along on the plain pair of socks I am making and started a patterned pair--getting braver again!

I must have measured poorly on my previous socks, as I tried to write down when to start the gusset on a toe-up pair to make the sock fit just right. I ended up making the gusset at least a half to 3/4 of an inch too soon. Gee, can't I even get a basic sock right? The good news is that I now have memorized the number 6, as in six inches to starting the gusset. OK. Six. Got it. More good news is that I just made the gusset longer and the heel a bit deeper as a consequence, and by gosh, the sock fits just fine.

My incredibly white leg wearing the foot portion of a sock in Trekking XXL

I am really, really liking this colorway. It really looks like smoldering embers to me, so it fits with the Flaming Desire theme of the socks I showed last entry. I'm now working my way up the leg in a 3x1 rib, which I like because it looks more stockinette like but does hug the leg more than a plain stockinette leg does. Thus, it will sag less when I wear it, and I do plan to wear these nice, utilitarian sockies.

I guess the next pair I am working on also fits in with the theme of heat. I am using some really lovely yarn. It is Fleece Artist Somoko, which is a blend of wool, mohair and silk, in a colorway called "Sun."

Beginning of Devon sock pattern in Fleece Artist Somoko.

This sock is top-down, and comes from Cookie A's Sock Innovation book, a pattern called Devon, which has yarn-overs on every row. This will be my third pair of socks from this book. I am enjoying going through the book very much. Cookie A says that this pattern works in both solid and variegated yarns, which is why I picked this yarn. Also, it's just plain cheerful. I had almost chosen a more subtle green peppercorn skein, when the happiness of this hank called out to me. While I did once make a sock with some yellow in it, this will definitely be my first orange-yellow one. I am wearing more colors like this lately, so I think in the fall this one will actually get some use. I'll find something good for that other yarn.

I am finding it fun to limit myself to the yarn I have on hand. I have so much sock yarn that it's not exactly horrible to have to choose from what is already there. I'm trying to slowly use up all my workhorse yarns (the Opals and Trekkings and such) and intersperse them with the exotics and hand-dyed ones. This Somoko is definitely exotic. It feels very different from the Trekking in nice sturdy wool and nylon. Having a plain and a fancy sock to work on is perfect--I get lots done on the easy one while riding in the car with my son as he improves his driving, waiting for seats in restaurants, etc., and the complex one keeps my mind of the violent scenes in the Angel television series that Lee and I are now watching every single episode of, thanks to our friend Kira selling it to us.

Perhaps NEXT weekend will be the "get that shawl going again" weekend! Thanks to all who commented on the last post in person, on Facebook or by email. It's nice to hear from you.

Class with Cookie A

My classmate was finally able to send me the photo of me and Cookie A, but since I was waiting for a very slow process to finish at work, I figured I should take this time to write it up, before Saturday became a completely faded memory. So, this post was photo-less for a while. But, now here it is, all fixed. Look, it's me and her. I am labeled so you can tell it's me.

So, Cookie (aurhor of a recent knitting book, designer of some of the most popular socks ever, Monkey, and at one time a blogger, though I don't know if she still is doing that) taught a whole bunch of classes at Austin LYS Hill Country Weavers last week, and I wanted to meet her, but knew how to do all the stuff she was teaching (toe-up socks, etc.). Of course, I figured she would have tips and tidbits I'd find useful in all of the classes, just because she knows so much about socks and knitting in general. But I picked the class on Intuitive Chart Reading, because I'd hoped it would help me learn to make my own charts for things.

It did not help that I was late to the class, through no fault of my own, and I totally missed the part on reading lace charts. That's OK, I am already an intuitive lace chart reader--I am way more comfortable with charts than with written instructions, and I no longer think what I am doing, just do what the picture says (YO, K2tog, SKKP, etc.) without internally translating. All that slows me down, early on, is counting spaces. But once I am established, I don't do that too often, either. I just go to the right spot, relative to the previous row.

I did enjoy the part I heard all of, which was about reading cable charts. I haven't done as much of that, and still spend a lot of time translating each diagram into what I need to do before I knit it. After going over the various types of charts, and practicing interpreting them, I realize that I'll be much more natural next time I need to read a cable chart. So, the class was worth it for me.

Actually just the words, "Be Right Back," made the class worth it. This is how you remember that to do a right cable, you put the stitches on the holder in the back. I will never forget this, now! (The whole phrase she taught us was something about "I left it out front, and will be right back" but I'm paraphrasing.) Handy, handy mnemonic that is!

I met a few nice folks in the class, which is always half the fun, plus my friend Marcia was in it with me. Cookie A is pretty much exactly like I thought she'd be, and was great to talk to. She spent a lot of time coloring in my Dianna lace motif pattern to try to make it a little more sensible. I was really relieved when she took a look at it and said it sucked, because I was afraid I was just a bad chart interpreter when I had so much trouble with that one at first! We both grant that the chart works; it's just not intuitive. On the other hand, it is clear what the designer was intending to do with the chart, which is make it look like how it comes out, and that's commendable.

So, other than traffic issues, I had a nice time at the class, and I was relieved to get another skein of the yarn for Dianna #2! All's well in the knitting world!

New Dianna and Things My Friends Make

I told you I was going to start another Dianna, and indeed I did. I like this extra perky colorway a lot more, and I have three skeins of the Noro Kureyon sock yarn now, thanks to another visit to Hill Country Weavers this weekend. That means I can make another row of squares, and I hope even do a bit of a border on this shawl. I think it would look good with one. The designer of the shawl made a border of the leaf motif, which I saw on the Ravelry group for stuff (MaweLucky Love, if you are interested). I think I'd do something less complex.
I'm so happy with these colors and really thrilled with the cool beads (which show up fairly well in the photo below). They are amber/gold with sky blue lining, which ends up looking sort of electric green. They are quite quirky, just like the yarn colorway. This thing is so darned perky that whatever I work on next will probably bore me to death! I guess I'll worry about that when I get to it--really need to finish those works in progress, don't you think?



Below is yet another colorway in this yarn. I am amused at how I keep buying this stuff, even though it is scratchy and has knots in it. I just like the colors. The one below is one of the new ones, S255. I got two so that I could make some kind of shawl out of it. I think, hope, believe, that I will not make yet another Dianna! Thinking a modular vest might be good...

So, the reason I went to the far-away yarn shop on Saturday was that Cookie A was doing workshops there, and I had signed up for one. I will post about that event tomorrow, I hope--I am waiting for one of my classmates to send me the photo she took of me and Cookie.

It was hard to drag myself away from Bluebonnet on Saturday, though, because there were all sorts of fun people there and I was really enjoying myself. There's just no substitute for all the friends I have at Ye Olde Yarn Shoppe! And they did have new sock yarn (which made listening to the devotees of that yarn scrap and bargain with each other quite an amusing spectator sport--both of them are reading this now and thinking, "I wasn't that bad, was I?"). I, of course, did something embarrassing--I picked out my yarn and forgot to pay for it. So I won't photograph it or put it up on Ravelry until I do so next time I'm there!

I gave John-Francis, the Dude of Chicks with Sticks, some fabric and a pail of cat litter. Why? Because he is making really handy knitting totes out of them! It's as fascinating as his Yarn Caddy 300, I assure you. I like how sturdy they are--your pointy objects won't poke through like they do on fabric or plastic totes. Plus I get my wonderful pansy fabric, and he gets a lot of free cat litter (I think his garage is rapidly filling with litter removed from pails that he has turned into totes.) Yeah, I'll have to keep him around, even though I did meet another dude knitter at a dinner with Lee's coworkers Friday night. I doubt this other dude is also trained in tailoring. That would be just too much!

Oh, and speaking of knitting containers, do check out the international knitting bag project that Shells and Umme (my blog friends!) are doing together. I do want to get one of the zippered bags for sock projects. I am awaiting my next big ole paycheck (I am now working more consistently--yay). Also, wow, that homespun on the Etsy site is yummy. I have only knit one thing on handspun yarn, my wedding shawl. I want to try some of that colorful stuff.

Well, see, I had plenty to talk about without going on about that Cookie A class, so it can wait until I get the photo!