Progress Is Progressing

Here you go, proof that I finished the On Hold socks. They sure feel good. The second one wasn't quite as big as the first, which means maybe I was overly relaxed with the first one, or something.


I really like the colors, which aren't my usual. They look awesome with my pink Birkenstocks, though, and a new pink shirt I got. I know I will wear them a lot. One thing about the wool, though, is wherever it rubbed my shoe, it's already fuzzing up. So I will be careful with them.

And what you see below is a big relief: Bridget blocking. Thank goodness. I managed to sew the sleeves in fairly successfully and I think the buttons look great. Now I am waiting the three days it will take for the darn thing to dry. I turned it over last night so it can dry on the other side.



I'm really glad to be finished with this project. It went through so many ups and downs, from having to totally re-do the back to running out of yarn...just a lot of challenges. I believe it is blocking a bit bigger than it was unblocked, which means it should be a good fit. Fingers are crossed. Maybe tomorrow I will have a photo of it on me to share!

So, I am moving on. I did start the Hopscotch socks yesterday and love the yarn, Gone Fishin', the September 2008 Lorna's Laces limited edition. I think the slip stitch pattern is doing a pretty good job of mottling the colors--I got far enough to see it start to look like a textured ribbing, which is good. But then I got a giant urge to work on my Flit 'n Float scarf again. I zoomed through a couple of charts, and now am almost to my favorite section, the holey part before the ruffle. Since I STILL don't have any work to do, I predict I will get a bit more done on that today.

I officially gave up on using the extremely thin JoJoland yarn for the Diann shawl. I think I'm going to switch to my other JoJoland sock weight yarn on it. That will be pretty--it is reds and blues, as I recall. I can make the shawl really big with it. But, that will NOT get started until I finish Flit 'n Float. I feel very virtuous using stash, even for new projects I come up with. But, I WILL have to finish that darned Maelstrom shawl...I am running out of other works in progress to finish!

Socky Weekend

Hi there. No blogging over the weekend, but that means I was away from the computer, so there was more time for knitting!



Here's how much of the second On Hold sock I got done! That was done between noon on Saturday and about 4 pm on Sunday, so not too bad. We went to see Lee's dad, so there was a lot of knitting on the way there and back, and plenty of knitting time listening to him talk, and plenty of time to knit driving him to Victoria to eat in a real restaurant. The photo is rather washed out, but there are slightly better ones below.



Here's the first sock, all finished. I had to bind it off twice, so I seem to have gotten into some bad bind-off habit. I am now just hoping I have enough yarn for the second sock. I didn't realize this fancy yarn had fewer yards than most sock yarns, and I made this sock pretty long. Well, I usually have a LOT left over in normal yarn, so I am keeping my hopes up. I'll know soon!


This side view shows how the side patterning goes through the ribbing, and has a little glimpse of the heel. I love it, but I think I missed picking up a wrap, so there is a little hole. Well, no one looks at the bottoms of my feet, so I think I will be OK. I did the pattern on the backs of the socks, even though Wendy doesn't have you do that in the pattern. I just like doing the lace.

I already know what sock I want to make next. I saw it on Emily's blog last week. They are called Hopscotch Socks, and they really do good things to regularly patterned hand-dyed socks, like Lorna's Laces. However, it looks like I'll have to order the pattern, and I don't have the urge to spend as much on shipping something as it costs to buy the item. Guess I'll wait until I need some yarn. Boo hoo. I'll find something fun in the Cookie A. book or something, instead.

Now that I have the yarn (same dye lot, woo) I am going to finish Bridget tonight, I hope, then get cracking on finishing that vest and the Flit and Float! Plenty to do that isn't socks.

Let's hope I have something REALLY interesting to share next time!

Look, a Vest!

When I am not knitting on that pretty sock of mine, I am chugging along on this vest. It's name is Mora, by the way. I call it Poetic Mora, since the yarn is Poems. Obviously creativity is in short supply with me right now.

I like how it is mostly fairly subtle colors--lots of shades of navy and dark green. The garter stitch ribbing combined with the v-shape is really pulling it in. I can now see why the lady in the Ravelry photo wearing hers looked so much like Barbie. I do hope I end up with something I can wear! If not, well, I will have a very nice present for a smaller person, I guess! I am enjoying the knitting, though I have to look at the instructions fairly often due to the shaping in it. Not sure WHY it has to hug me any tighter at the waist, but it thinks it does!

Hmm, my glasses case is in that photo. I think that's the last time I saw my special computer glasses, when I was using them to hold down the curling edge on that vest. I should look on that couch, huh!

I'm working on the second half now, but I have to admit I love the way the On Hold socks feel so much that they are all I really want to work on. That Fleece Artist Blue face Leicester stuff is just plain comfy. My feet want the socks on them! So I guess I had better get to knitting on them! After that, I need to finish the Flit 'n Float scarf so I will have it to give as a gift or maybe wear. I am already planning things to do with the yarn left over from that project!

Thanks for all the comments on the last post. It is really good to hear from you all. I am hoping things have settled down for a bit and I will have regular blogging time again. I just have to put my web design software on the computer and then I think I can do everything I need to do on my giant new one. Woo hoo!

I hope your spring is going well!

PS: I realized I said I'd tell you when the pattern to that lovely Dianna shawl I posted about a couple of weeks ago was ready, and I forgot to in the busy-ness of last week. Anyway, it can be obtained as a free Ravelry PDF, so go get it. I love how its instructions tell you it is not gonna teach you entrelac. The author says, "If you want to learn this technique, Google
is your friend." That's right, darn it! As for me, well, I LOVE entrelac!!! Guess what my next non-garment project will be!!!

Knitting Stuff!

Here's the sock I have been working on when not battling with my lovely new computer, with the 17" screen and high resolution display. The yarn is so pretty. It's Fleece Artist Blue face Leicester sock yarn. I am knitting it with the same needles that I used on the Charybdis socks, but these are much bigger! The yarn doesn't seem much thicker than the Araucania, but it sure is knitting wider! As you can see in the pictures, I am wearing my first sock over the Charybdis. But, it will be fine once I wear it, and I love, love the way this yarn feels.

Oh, the yarn is an interesting kind of soft! And it has a bit of hairiness that you can see in the full size photos. The colors are so soft and sweet. I do think they overly match my skin tone, but who looks at my legs, anyway?

I also like the pattern just fine. It is not too boring, not too hard, and I do so enjoy Wendy Johnson's toe up heels. I'm actually at the point where the heel is done and I am going up the leg, but don't have a photo of that yet. Sigh, I am just happy that I was able to get some sort of photo editing software on here, get the Internet working, and get a blog entry done!

It's been a fine knitting spell lately, though. I have enjoyed a new email list I am on and enjoyed hanging around with yarn shop friends a bit more than usual. Everyone is really being kind and sweet to each other. Pilar's husband threw her a surprise party and some of us went to that. And Jennifer had her baby today! So now all that stuff I knitted has actual babies to enjoy it! Life's good in knitting land!

Now we just have to get my nice new job to settle down and not be quite so intense, so I can get back to blogging and more important, reading blogs! I have gotten a bit behind, but don't worry, I'll catch up. Hi to all my new readers, by the way.

Next entry I'll show you how the first half of my vest came out.