Totally Addicted...

"Wanida"

Corny Eunice

Whew... what a blast! These socks were too fun to put down.



Like I said, Maizy wasn't my favorite yarn too work with but I won't mind knitting this pattern again sometime. Maizy is a corn fiber and elastic blend that is quite splitty and actually doesn't feel very elastic. But really, what should I expect from corn? The texture of the yarn added to the bulkiness of the pattern as well. So my advice would be to use a fine smooth yarn like Lorna's Laces for this pattern if you want to try it. And I think you should!



"Eunice" from Sock Innovation by Cookie A
Crystal Palace Maizy in "Ivory" (white really)
Size 1 Knit Picks magic loop

Corn? Really?

Saturday morning was spent surrounded by sock yarns and patterns. I pulled out many seasonal colors from solids to stripes... wound at least 1/2 dozen hanks into colorful center-pull skeins... and spent much time pondering the perfect spring pattern.

Finally, dizzy with options and color, I settled on...






white.

Afterall, one can always use white socks... and I thought the wool alternative might be good for summer.

Boring? Maybe.

But two days later...



Not so boring!

The pattern is "Eunice". My second pattern from Cookie A's Sock Innovation. The pattern is wonderful and super addicting, but the yarn... eh. Unfortunately it's splitty and doesn't provide the pleasing tactile experience of knitting with wool. I almost ditched it several times but, like I said, one can never have too many pairs of white socks.

Indecision

My brains are scrambled. That's the only way I can describe my head as of late. So I'm going to send you to visit one of my favorite designers... Anne Hanson. She has such an eye for beauty in the everyday things as well as being an incredible designer. I especially love her lace and socks. (You can see all her patterns here.)

I recently started her Caricia after weeks of agonizing over the perfect yarn. I really wanted to use the Malabrigo sock in Indiecita that I had purchased...



but I only had one skein and I wanted to make a medium size version. In the end I decided to go ahead and make a one skein version because this yarn just really needed to be this shawl.



Please excuse the colors. I have found this yarn almost impossible to photograph.

Then when I saw Anne working on Trevi... I knew it would be next on my lace list. I was quick to order the kit from One Planet Yarn & Fiber when it was announced so I could use the same Pewter colorway of Handmaiden Sea Silk she had used. The yarn is just amazing. Again, I'm sure I haven't captured the colors but the subtle transitions of silvers, greens, and bronze are stunning.




So here I sit surrounded with beautiful yarns and gorgeous lace patterns... and I've spent my morning trying to pick out a sock pattern to start. Scrambled I tell ya.

The Non-Essential Essential

As I mentioned before, I recently picked up one of the much anticipated Knit Kits.



You've most probably seen them around by now, but I thought I'd throw in my 2 cents just in case. I must admit two things up front... (1) I really didn't need this, and (2) it's much bigger than I expected. For some reason, I expected some little key chain size doo-dad full of microscopic gadgets. But that doesn't mean it's too big... just that I'm terrible at visualizing objects in my mind.

Anyway, as you can see, it has it all... tape measure, row counter, crochet hook, thread cutter, stitch markers, needle protectors and scissors.



I can personally testify to it's claim to be TSA approved because I bought it in St. Louis and flew home with it. (You know... curiosity and all.)

While I can't say that the Knit Kit contains anything that I don't already have at least 2 of... I can say that I'm pleasantly surprised with how convenient it is to keep in my purse and how often it's come in handy already. My only concern is the quality of the plastic construction... it feels quite fragile, but I guess time and use will be the judge of that though.

I still need to get buttons sewn on my last sweater, but I've started a little something for summer.



It's the Trellis and Keyhole Tank from the summer Interweave Knits. I'm using Rowan's new Lenpur Linen, a very soft and lightweight yarn that is knitting up beautifully.

Ribbed Ribbon Socks

I really enjoyed knitting these socks. They were the first toe-up pair that I really felt comfortable knitting (and didn't have to re-do the heel numerous times).



The pattern is Ribbed Ribbon Socks from Wendy Johnson's new book, Socks from the Toe Up, using Oceanwinds Knits sock yarn (in a forgotten colorway) on size 0 needles. Very nice yarn by the way.



The actual color is somewhere in between these two pictures.

Happy Mother's Day!

What can I say, boys will be boys.

(BTW - This next photo was taken less than a year ago.)

The difference just blows me away!

Hip to be Square

I saw the new Kollage Square Needles while on my recent trip and, well, how could I not try them out for myself? I decided on a size 0 circular for magic looping a sock since there is no such thing as too many size 0 sock needles. Really.



I really love these needles! They are exceptionally lightweight and addicting to knit with. I cast on for this sock just to give them a try and couldn't put it down. They say the square shape is easier on your hands... I'm not sure if I can pinpoint that as the reason, but I can say that they are very pleasing to knit with and the resulting stitches are neat and even. (BTW - the Regia Cotton Color I'm using is not too bad either.)



The cable is insanely flexible and, as promised, won't "kink, kurl or knot"... unless you wanted to tie it in a knot... then you could... it's that flexible. Just saying.



Unfortunately, the only con is kind of a big one. Because of the lightweight flexibility of the cable, sliding your work from the cable onto the needle is not a smooth process. The cable tends to bend back on itself in between stitches making a usually simple procedure a bit awkward and time consuming.



I've thought about trying them in a larger size for lacework but I fear the cable joint would remain a problem and I'm not sure how a heavier project would hang on the lightweight cable. They do have dpns and crochet hooks so if you use either of those on a regular basis, I would recommend giving them a try. The unique shape seems to offer some real benefits. But unless somebody has a tip for using the circulars (which I'm really hoping for), I doubt I'll be using these much.

Next in my series of unnecessary necessities for knitters...

Kickin' It...

One of the greatest stresses before I left for my BIG trip to St. Louis was deciding on a sock pattern to start. I bet you think I'm kidding... but I seriously couldn't pack until a pattern was decided. I had two knew sock books to choose from (plus at least a dozen others on my shelf), but it had to be just the right pattern. I wanted something interesting but with a chart that would be fairly easy to memorize or at least follow.

Since, I had just finished a sock from Cookie's new book, I really wanted to try a sock from Wendy Johnson's new book Socks from the Toe Up. I finally decided on the Ribbed Ribbons Socks which turned out to be an excellent choice. I've even managed to finish one in spite of the amount of time I spent sleeping with my mouth hanging open on the airplane.



This sock is extra special because Wendy herself approached us while I was visiting with my friends in the lobby of the hotel hosting the Spring Fling. With impressive class and grace, I casually requested a photo shoot of the two of us and my sock. Unfortunately, I must've failed to upload the world's goofiest picture of me from my friend's camera to my flickr account so I am unable to share it with you all now. Awwww. But I can tell you she was very friendly and not at all put off when I lurched at approached her for a picture.

Anyway, here are a few other patterns I look forward to knitting from the same book:







In other news, my son's school has just been closed for a week due to a suspected case of swine flu. Extra quality time with a restless, house-bound teen. Oh boy.

ETA: World's goofiest photo of me with Wendy Johnson generously provided by Julie.



Tune in next time when I stalk Sheri from The Loopy Ewe. Sigh.

Where do I start?

In the midst of a rather bad few days last month, I did something that I have never, ever done before in my life... I got on Expedia and booked a flight to St. Louis to visit my dear friend Julie who moved away last September. If you've read my blog in the past, you'll know that I don't travel well... and that's putting it mildly. So to make travel plans of my own free will is absolutely unheard of. But I did it, and spent last weekend with Julie in her new home.

I spent much of my childhood in the midwest and east coast so I was immediately comfortable in her new envrionment. I fell in love with it actually. Her new town is charming and the sprawling green countryside was so pleasing to my senses.

Spending time with Julie and her family was such a treat. She has been a source of comfort and pillar of strength and encouragement to me through so many hard times, that (even though we talk at least weekly by cell phone) I can't even begin to express the joy of spending a few days at her side. And I'm nominating her DH for Husband of the Year since he put all his plans on hold so he could care for the family while Julie played with me.

And play we did! Friday we had the special treat of meeting up with 5 of the wonderful friends I made on a certain large knitting site I refuse to name. A couple live in the area, a couple were there for the Loopy Ewe Spring Fling which was going on the same weekend, and one traveled across the state for the meet-up.



The five of us in the above picture had never met before in person, but it was like we had known each other for years. We were immediately comfortable and I can't even find a picture in which we are not laughing.



We ate, shopped, knit, crocheted and laughed all day.

I think I came home with a much greater appreciation for travel.

(So Bonnie... are you ready for me? :)