The sock drought

It's been almost four months since I knit a pair of socks (that I could share on the blog). That seems like a very long time for someone with the sock yarn stash I've got hiding upstairs. If we're going by that metric, this pair of socks barely count in the grand scheme of things (given that they are a) handspun and b) worsted weight yarn). However, I'm the one keeping score, so we're not going by that scale thankyouverymuch.

Toe-up socks with 2x2 ribbing at the cuff, Riverbed sockitecture a la Cat Bordhi, finished last week, but ends woven in yesterday. I split the roving (a gradient dyed superwash Corriedale from Spunky Eclectic) in half lengthwise, and then split each half in half again to spin two skeins of (mostly) matching two ply yarn. Started with red at the toe and kept going until I ran out of yarn (thus explaining the short-ish leg length).

 

I like them. G-man likes them too. They are just the thing to cure the winter blues, which is unfortunate since spring seems to have finally sprung. Guess that means it's time to weave in some ends on Himself's sweater, and finish the secret knitting.

Regressing

After a solid week of fingering-weight, handspun colorwork*, I felt the need to do something waaaay mindless and straightforward.

Enter toe-up, thick yarn socks, in handspun. Fiber is superwash Corriedale, colorway "Tartan" from Spunky Eclectic. US 5/3.75 mm needles. One sock finished in two short evenings of knitting. Gotta love it**.

* I finished on Saturday afternoon, wrapped it up, and gave it to Himself for his birthday. He was very pleased, and totally unsuspecting. Now I have to find the mental fortitude to weave in all the ends.

** I've also finished the center panel (yay!) and started the border on the SYB, picking up umpteen million stitches around the edge and starting to work in garter stitch. I'll keep going until it's big enough or I get tired of the damn thing.

While the cat's away

Yesterday Himself left for a week-long chair building course in Dorset (his Christmas present). I am planning on using this time* to finish the goddamned blankity-blank fracking River Run pullover that I've been working on for more then a year. Because it's his birthday present (please God don't let him pick now to start reading my blog. Kthxbai!) and his birthday is Saturday.

This sweater, while gorgeous beyond all belief, is making me pull my hair out. Because it's taking FOREVER. Nine colors, a 20-something row repeat, and diminishing amounts of handspun, handyed yarn are combining to give me an ulcer. Last night I finished sleeve #1 and promptly celebrated by sticking it in the corner and finishing off the third edge of the sock yarn blanket(now at this stage). The sleeve was five full repeats in total. I am hoping to get one repeat done per night (hahahahahahahahahaha!!!!!) this week and am considering sacrificing one of my children to the All-Powerful Handspinning Gods so that I don't run out of yarn. Because not only will my "schedule" not allow for spinning and dyeing any more, I'm also running out of fiber.

Oy. Thank goodness it's pretty!

* This assumes that the yarn for my sooper sekrit deadline knitting doesn't arrive in the next few days. If it does, Himself will be receiving a sweater with the needles still attached. I'm pretty sure he'll live.

PS - I've finally moved and updated my pattern pages (up there underneath the header) and added the newest pattern - the Southwark Collection (an ebook of my four London-inspired accessories). I've got two more patterns to release this week, so check back for those.

FF: Just in time for spring

Last week I finished up and photographed an absolutely lovely pattern - the Matanuska Eternity Scarf, created by one of my fellow Hello Yarn Fiber Club Members, Melinda Peiserich. It rocks!

It's a very simple pattern with slipped stitches, which is perfect for breaking up the stripey nature of most handspun yarn. I used 3-ply Finn in "Buckland", which was the club fiber from November 2008 (!). I loved spinning this yarn and was saving it for something really special - I had two skeins of 3-ply and one of 2-ply, so I used up all the 3-ply on this piece, a total of 472 yds.

More details:
Needles: US 6.0/4 mm
Start/finish: 3 February - 21 February (it's quick too!)

I love the colors in this yarn knitted up even more then I loved them in fiber/yarn form.

I'm particularly taken with the Bright! Chartreuse! Green! that shows up next to the richer red/brown/pink combination. I was a bit concerned that the Finn would be a bit scratchy around my neck, but it is getting softer and softer as it gets worn.

Sadly, the days for wearing it are probably numbered, as this interloper

is now wide open. Welcome to spring!

FF: Bad porpoise, no cookie

I have been very, very bad. I probably need to be punished severely. You be the judge.

You see, for the first time, I have real-live, actually-has-a-deadline, secret knitting for people other then myself that needs to be done. Two projects even. And yesterday, I had set aside a load of time to finish off one, finish writing the pattern, proofread, get things packed up for the postoffice, etc. And instead I tranformed this

into this,

and then into this.

Yet another Lacy Baktus, this one done in Spunky Eclectic Falkland in "Change", bulky weight, 108 yds, US size 13/9.0 mm needles. In my efforts to use up all the yarnz I got a little overzealous, and ran out on the decreasing end. So it's not symmetrical. Big effing deal. It's squooshy and warm, perfect for a little neck kerchief type thingie next autumn.

Now...back to the secret knitting.