Socks, yarn... what else???

Above is my Magic Loop sock progress before going to class tonight. Maybe I can finish knitting the leg during class. I should at least make good progress. I am still loving the Panda Wool yarn!

I received another order from The Loopy Ewe today! With my next order, I will officially become a Loopy Groupie!! Although I think I already am, in spirit... I just love shopping there!

Here's what arrived:
Jasmine Knitter's Hand Soap from the Blue Ridge Soap Shed - I have this in Green Tea and have really enjoyed using it. The Jasmine smells really good, so I can't wait to try it! One bar seems to last for quite awhile too.

The yarn I got is Sockina Cotton (I've used this before and loved watching the fun stripes appear as I knit), On Your Toes Bamboo (no wool, really soft, haven't tried this yarn yet - it's new at The Loopy Ewe), and Summer Sock (I just love the blue color of this yarn). Sorry, I'm too lazy put all the links in right now. You can also see my little yarn samples of Claudia's Hand-Painted Yarns in fingering and sport weight. I love how The Loopy Ewe puts these in with each order so you can see what different yarns are like. Great idea!!

Shelby had to try sneaking into my photo shoot:
I think when he sees me with the camera, he assumes he's supposed to pose for pictures...

really quick update

First Magic Loop sock is finished!

Second Magic Loop sock is cast on with about an inch of progress.

Sorry... no pics yet, but hopefully tomorrow!

Magic Loop progress

I'm almost ready to start the toe section of my first Magic Loop sock! Even though you have to slide the stitches back on to the end of the needles after knitting each half-round (which at first seemed to take longer than knitting on dpns), I still seem to be making good progress on these. I thought the magic loop process would be slower, but it doesn't really seem to be slowing me down. I actually tend to keep knitting for a longer time than I do when using dpns. Maybe it's just because it's still a new technique to me, and therefore still seems fun and interesting. Who knows!

I'm guessing I may be able to finish knitting this sock tonight.

Here's a close-up of the heel section:
This yarn is so pretty and really nice to work with! I think I will definitely knit with Panda Wool again sometime.

Grey socks finished!

The second sock was knit even faster than the first! I knit the 2nd sock in just two evenings - wow! I'm happy with how they turned out and I think my Dad will like them.

I made him these socks last Christmas from the same type of yarn (Lion Brand Wool-Ease) and he seemed to like them:
Ugh, what an awful picture! Maybe if you click on it and make it bigger it will look a little better. Anyway, I think the ribbing on the grey socks will help them stay up better. He just wears them to sleep in anyway, but I think he said the brown ones got a little slouchy. So hopefully my modifications on the grey socks will be an improvement.

I still haven't worked on the Magic Loop socks since class on Wednesday because I was finishing the grey socks, but my plan is to work on the pretty pink Panda Wool today. It's supposed to get hot and humid outside today, so I think I will stay in and knit. Sounds like a plan!

Perhaps I'll have some progress to show on the Magic Loop socks tomorrow!

various updates

I finished one of the grey Wool-Ease socks for my Dad. This was such a fast knit, just 3 evenings to complete!
Here's a close-up so you can see the detail a little better - it's K2,P2 ribbing down the whole leg and top of the foot:
Magic Loop class tonight was a lot of fun. I knit the heel flap, turned the heel and picked up stitches in preparation to begin the first round of the foot:
This technique is so cool! But I'm so glad I'm learning this in a class. I can't imagine trying to teach myself because it's very bizarre the first time you're trying it. It's so nice to have a teacher right there to ask questions and show you exactly what to do. She wrote out really helpful instructions for the exact sock we're working on (since it's a little different from the pattern that was in our class booklet) and one of my classmates lent me the little black stitch markers since I didn't bring any to class. It's kind of nice not knitting by myself for a change!

Here's a close-up of the heel section:
And, I also bought some new sock yarn while I was at yarn-love:
The colors kind of got washed out in this picture. They are a bit brighter; it's a really pretty yarn. It's Cascade Yarns Fixation which is 98.3% cotton and 1.7% elastic. I haven't worked with it before but I have wanted to try it. Since I only have Panda Cotton and Maizy in my stash, I thought it would be fun to try something different during Summer of Socks.

So, I'm off to knit some more tonight! Either cast on the 2nd grey sock or start the gusset decreases on the Magic Loop...

Easy socks

After finishing the Brigits, I just had to cast on a quick pair of worsted weight socks using the basic sock recipe from Knitting Rules by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee.

I'm using Oxford Grey Lion Brand Wool-Ease that I had left over from another project and US 7 dpns:
I'm going to do K2, P2 ribbing down the whole leg and perhaps on the top of the foot. These socks will be a birthday gift for my Dad. I made a couple pairs for him last winter using this same yarn in a different colorway and he liked them. I think he just wears them to bed and not with shoes; they're probably too thick. He may be able to wear them with slippers around the house too.

Anyway, they will be a fast knit for SOS08 and I'm sure he'll be happy with a new pair. If I have enough yarn, I also plan to knit him a pair of matching fingerless gloves to wear in the house in the winter because his hands get cold. I'm not sure if he'll wear them, but it's worth a try and I found a good pattern to use. But, that will be AFTER Summer of Socks!

Determination

Well, I started knitting the Brigit socks this morning and looked at how much I had to finish (by comparing to my first sock) and realized I didn't really have that much more to go! So, I made up my mind that I was going to finish these socks TODAY. I had to knit about 10 more rounds of the foot and then knit the toe section. But, I did it! The Brigit socks are DONE! Woo-hoo!!
Pattern: Brigit
Yarn: Crystal Palace Yarns Panda Cotton
Colorway: Periwinkle
Needles: US 1 bamboo (aka long toothpicks) ;-)


Now, I need to decide what pair to start next. I may do a quick worsted weight pair that I was planning on because I really need a break from the tiny needles!! I'll decide tomorrow... unless I decide to cast on later today...

Magic Loopy

Loopy wanted to model the Magic Loop technique. It's pretty cool! As you can see, I am just about done with the leg. I think it's about 6" long now. I usually don't make very long sock legs, but it seems that I have plenty of yarn with the Panda Wool, so I may be able to make these 7" legs.

I'm really enjoying the Magic Loop techinque! Here's a close-up of the Panda Wool:
If you click on it to make the picture bigger, you may be able to see the variations in the yarn. There's a lighter shade of pink and a darker shade twisted together. It's so pretty!

I didn't take a picture of the Brigit sock, but I did finish the gusset decreases last night, so now it's just round and round on the foot until I get to the toe section. I hope to make progress on that this weekend because I won't start the heel of the Magic Loop sock until my next class!

Of course, I could always cast on ANOTHER pair of socks so that I can prolong the Brigit socks even longer! It's just those tiny stitches and the bamboo needles... too delicate for me! But I will persevere!!

first Magic Loop class!

I had my first Magic Loop class at yarn-love tonight! It was so much fun. I really enjoyed learning this new technique and after a couple rounds it was really pretty easy! I haven't decided that I like it better than dpns but it is certainly another option.

This is the yarn I decided to buy for my Magic Loop class:


It's Crystal Palace Panda Wool in Magenta. This yarn is 51% bamboo, 39% wool and 10% nylon. It is very nice to work with and is less splitty than Maizy or Panda Cotton probably due to the wool content. The color is really pretty. The pictures don't do it justice. There's some subtle variations that I really like.

Oh - we are making a full-size pair of socks, so it will count for Summer of Socks - yay!

Here is the progress I made after my first class:
That is 60 stitches cast on US 2 addi Turbo Lace 40" circular needles. I'm doing K2,P2 ribbing. I'm debating whether want I want to do ribbing for the whole length of the sock (which I like the look of) or just a couple inches ribbing at the top and then switch to stockinette (which will probably be quicker to knit). I guess I'll just see if I get tired of the ribbing or decide to keep going!

There were two other people in the class with me and the instructor was very nice and helpful. I was happy with the progress I made. Our goal is to try to finish the leg of the sock this week so that we can start the heel next Wednesday. I think I can manage that!

SOS08 update!

Why is Loopy so excited?


Because I finally finished my first pair of socks for Summer of Socks!! Hooray!

The Fall Herbs socks are off the needles!!

Pattern: slipped stitch rib from Sensational Knitted Socks book
Yarn: Crystal Palace Yarns Panda Cotton
Colorway: Fall Herbs
Needles used: US 3 dpns

I'm really happy with how they turned out! They were actually a pretty quick knit, but since I was knitting the Brigits at the same time, it took me longer.

I did start the foot decreases on the Brigit today so hopefully another completed pair will soon follow by the end of this week.

turned the heels!

I finally turned the heels on the 2nd sock of each pair. These still feel like the never-ending socks even though I do like both patterns and the yarn. I'm just ready to move on to a new pattern!

Here's a close-up pic of the Brigit cables:
Short post today!

another mosaic and a sock update

I had so much fun making that mosaic the other day that I decided to make one out of pictures I had taken. I probably should have planned it better, but I just randomly picked 9 pictures from photos I have taken of my various projects and yarn.


Hi Loopy, do you have some finished socks to show everyone???

Loopy is modeling the first socks, but the matching socks are still in progress...
Loopy is wondering "Will these socks ever be done???" So am I...

I am making progress and plan on knitting more tonight. The start of my Magic Loop class was postponed for a week, so that will start next week now. I still would like to finish these 2 pairs by the weekend so that I can cast on a new pair for SOS08!

Quick Saturday update

I am still making progress on the 2nd Brigit sock. I finished the leg this morning and started on the heel flap. The cables were definitely easier the second time through.

Sorry no pictures now, but hopefully tomorrow!

I may cast on the 2nd Fall Herbs sock today to take a break again from the tiny stitches on bamboo needles. I'd really like to finish both pairs before next weekend!

Happy Fourth of July!

Photo credits:
1. Kitty... For Cathy!, 2. "I, Piórko, like Cheese!", 3. Boogie Woogie, 4. water droplets in the shower - o.k. bokeh, 5. Henrik Lundqvist, 6. The Dr. is IN, 7. Fort St Catherine, Bermuda, 8. Vegan Key Lime Tartletes, 9. Pottery maker, 10. My Little Diva, 11. Twin February Sweaters, 12. 7.2.08 005

I saw this on a few other blogs recently and thought it would be fun to do. You can click on the mosaic picture to see a larger version.

The Questions:

1. What is your first name? cathy
2. What is your favorite food? cheese
3. What high school did you go to? Mercyhurst
4. What is your favorite color? blue
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Henrik Lundqvist
6. Favorite drink? Dr. Pepper
7. Dream vacation? Bermuda
8. Favorite dessert? Key lime pie
9. What you want to be when you grow up? Pottery maker
10. What do you love most in life? knitting (note: the questions says "what", not "who"!)
11. One Word to describe you: knitter
12. What is your Flickr name? etownknitter

If you’d like to do it too here’s what you do:

Open three windows. One with the list of questions, another open to Flickr and ready to do an image search, and a third to Big Huge Labs’ Mosaic Maker (create a mosaic with 4 columns and 3 rows). Answer the first question, put your answer in the search field on Flickr and choose one of the images from the first page to represent your answer. Click on the photo then copy and paste the url into the #1 spot on the Mosaic Maker. Do that for all 12 questions, then click create and post the results to your blog.

Just thought that would be fun, and a bit of a change from my usual knitting posts. But, I did knit quite a bit today. I am moving along on the 2nd Brigit sock and am almost done with the leg portion. Since the deadline is right about now for the first bi-weekly contest, I obviously won't be entering, but I hope to enter several pairs in the next bi-weekly contest. I want to finish both the Brigits and the Fall Herbs and hopefully cast on the red Panda Cotton for a pair of Spring Forwards!

10,162 stitches

I finally finished the first Brigit sock last night! Hooray!
I just had to know how many stitches this sock was because it felt like it took me FOREVER to knit it. So, I did some quick math and calculated 10,162 stitches. Wow! It's not an exact stitch count, but it's close. Now, I need to knit approximately 10,162 more stitches to have a completed pair of socks to enter in SOS08! I can do this!

I also finished my first Fall Herbs sock:
This is a fun, quick knit to give me a break from the Brigit sock. Although I am looking forward to trying the Brigit cables again with the knowledge I learned from the first sock. Hopefully it will go quicker!

Some close-ups of the Fall Herbs sock... pretty...
I received my confirmation for Knitters' Day Out this week (otherwise known as KDO because we knitters love to abbreviate whenever possible)!! I got into my first choice classes. This will be my first time attending KDO. I will be taking "Introduction to Fair Isle Knitting" on Saturday morning and "Knitting with Beads" on Saturday afternoon. I'm really looking forward to this; it should be a lot of fun! My non-knitting friend is going with me and taking a "Beginning Knitting" class during both Saturday sessions. We will probably also go up Friday night to check out the knitter's market. This isn't until September, so it seems like a long way off now. Although with the way this year is flying by, it will be here before I know it! I need to make sure I knit my caps (a donation to Caps for Kids is part of the registration fee) and do my prep work for the Fair Isle class.

But, I will actually be taking my first ever knitting class starting next week! Up until now, I have been pretty much self-taught, but I have signed up for a Magic Loop sock class at yarn-love. It's a four-week class and I'm really looking forward to it. I hope I like the Magic Loop technique. Up until now I've been a die-hard dpn sock knitter. But, I'm interested in trying this new technique. That's one thing I love about knitting: there's always something new to try and learn!!

That reminds me of one of my favorite quotes that I recently saw on the Modern Yarn website:

"Be afraid of skydiving. Be afraid of wild boar. Be fearless with knitting." - Stephanie Pearl-McPhee