Twisted Rib socks! Done!!

... and they only took me ONE YEAR !!! I think I'm beginning to understand what second sock syndrome is all about. This was a great pattern - and the chart was easy enough even for a beginner like me. The yarn was hand dyed by me and I love the way it knit up. I wonder how warm these will be though - look at all those 'holes' !!

The pattern on one sock kinds of rolls to the side and I don't understand why. Oh well.

Pattern: Rib Fantastic Socks by Barb Brown
Yarn: South West Trading Company TOFUtsies

Cabled purse - done!

Well, kinda done - it still needs some type of closure but I haven't decided on what yet. I knitted this up in about 6 hours - it's Brown Sheep Burly Spun - a super chunky wool. I love, love, love the color! It took me a couple of days to put it all together though. Took me a while to line it - I made one that wasn't big enough so I had to add more fabric to it. I even put pockets in the lining - so I have somewhere to stash my iPhone! I didn't realize that the lining would 'squish' when I put the handles on - so the pockets kind of gap - but that's okay I'll just fill them up! The only thing that's really bad is that the handles cracked (cheap wood from JoAnn's). I glued them together and then spray painted them with black lacquer. Since it's not for sale I'm not going to worry about it. I really like this though and it looks way better in person than in the photos.

Posted by judi at 6:19 PM | Comments (5)

The Xmas socks are done!

I know it's a month after Christmas but, hey, what can I say. Like I said in my last post, I did manage to get one sock done and in her stocking ... now she has both of them! This was some self striping yarn my daughter picked out when we went shopping in Anchorage last month. They are plain vanilla socks - a ribbed cuff and then stockinette stitch. I'm still not used to how BIG hand knit socks look since there's no lycra or spandex in them! Kinda boring to knit but I wanted to try to get them done fast. This sock took me about a week - not bad for a beginner! Heyyyy - see how I matched the stripes too! Whoot! Now the question is what to cast on next - I think I'm hooked on socks!

Queen of Cups

I FINALLY got this pair of socks finished! I've been working on them on and off for months. I probably shouldn't have picked a lace pattern for my second pair of socks but I do like a challenge! I'm pretty tickled with them - they are comfy - maybe a tad bit too big - but I'll figure that stuff out as I make more socks. Next up is the mate to the plain jane sock I knit my daughter for Xmas. She was rather surprised when her stocking only held one sock, lol.

Pattern: Queen of Cups, Knitty.com, Spring 2007

The socks are done!

Had a blast at the yarn shop today - you'd never know we had a sock class going on amid the gales of laughter coming from our table. Our class table ended up being the place for everyone to hang out and knit and we had 6 or 7 gals on and off all afternoon. Nothing like doll classes! But then they aren't quite as portable are they? So here are the socks .. not very pretty but I learned what I needed to ..

The sweater is done!

I went to a knitting retreat this past weekend - lots of fun! We knit and ate, knit and drank, knit and ate, knit and chatted, and knit and ate. We stayed at a rustic lodge,which is actually a restored bunkhouse from an old gold mine. The place was neat but the lighting left a lot to be desired. Next time we'll have to bring some Ott lights along. This particular lodge is really popular in the winter with the Japanese tourists who come to see the Northern Lights and each bedroom had a bare red light bulb mounted on the wall so you could still see but didn't interfere with seeing outside. Didn't do much this time of year as it is already light most of the night but I thought it was a great idea and I might have to get one for my living room next winter!

Although a lot of the women knew each other from the yarn shop, this particular retreat was formed (created? sponsored?) through an online group from the knitty social network, Ravelry. I think it's pretty fascinating that the social landscape has changed so much - dating, crafting, friends, it's all so common on-line now. Here's a photo of Sarah's son Blake modeling my baby sweater ... I am so glad it is done. It has lots of mistakes but I learned so much doing it! Now I have some wrist warmers and a scarf on my needles!

Photo taken with my iPhone - can't believe I forgot my camera!