Sock Sunday

Well, I suppose if I am knitting 4 pairs of socks in the next two months I can make Sock Sunday a regular feature.

Progress this week has been good.  The once and future "Mush!" socks have been reincarnated.  Nothing special going on here, just stockinette for miles.

The "Always" socks are up to row 67 of chart C / D and the gusset increases are well underway.  This is a new kind of heel for me so I am following directions and hoping it will turn out well.  I made my first Russian join yesterday when the yarn broke at a tender spot.  So far, so good.

These are the "Forest Hideaway" socks, so named after the colorway. This yarn was a reward for finishing the Camp Loopy projects a couple years ago.  It has been waiting for the perfect project and so far it is turning out well. The yarn is very lovely and soft.  I am improvising the pattern: started with ribbing, then moved to spiralling ribbing, then got bored and kept just three "paths" going down the leg.

Sunset Socks

A well-matched pair, indeed

Isobel

The little hat is done and has been pressed into service.  It's still too big but I like that it covers my ears, so it is staying that way.

Yep. It's a hat.

Preheating

Samah approved

Before

The Steampunk Blanket

I made a little lap blanket. It all started at Christmas of 2012 when I got a set of Loopy Cakes in “Steampunk”. I bought 3 skeins of “Mohagany” in solid series to flesh it out.  It took three years but now it is done and I even used it to fend off the drafts today at work.  

When I cast off last night, I had three inches of yarn left over.  I won at yarn chicken!

Monday Musings

Well, not musings so much as a progress report.

Blue & white socks, ribbing done, well into the leg of sock 1.  This was my work / laundromat knitting today and it was perfect.

Steampunk blanket:  it is here on the desk, I can totally finish it tonight (12" to seam, a couple ends to secure and a ss border all the way around) if only I would get off the internet.

Today was laundry day and cat fluid day. Neither was too horrible.  Tuna salad on homemade bread for dinner rounded out the afternoon.

Super Sock Sunday

Green Snape Socks - added several rows more after the photo session.  Am on to the second set of charts and the increases for the gusset.  We are making a Fleegle heel - I know what a heel is, I know who Fleegle is, this should go well.  This one is perfect "Midsomer Murders" knitting because it needs a chart.

 White / Blue / Gray plain socks.  These are for the HMC #2 and are coming along nicely.  This one is my mindless knitting for the week.  Just around, around, around.

Green / Gold Pelle fair isle mittens.  You can see the beginnigs of little cats on the left hand mitten (4 feet and a ball of yarn).  The palms are also patterned.   This is also a good "knit in place" project, again due to the chart.  I really need to catch up the second one so I can do the same rows in the chart concurrently.  They have different charts but I think it will prevent 2nd mitten syndrome.  

Janet & Ruth are also making "kitten mittens" and today we had a nice "cast on" party.  I was already through the first cuff and jumped right into the patterning.  A good thing too, as that is where I needed to talk through some questions on the pattern.  It isn't poorly written by any means but it has a lot less hand-holding than most current / modern patterns.

In other news, Tuppy the cat has been super affectionate tonight. I wonder what he was up to while I was gone today.

Snacktime

Galen and Bingo hope I am bringing food as soon as I put down the camera.

We had a yarn & beer meetup last week and it was a great time.  I aquired some destash yarn and a little new yarn.  I am on a real sock kick right now so I have to be well stocked.

This one is becoming socks right now.

Monday Musings

It's official - I need to rip back the crochet hat and rework with a smaller hook.  I'm also going to leave off the ribbon row and the ruffle.  It was just bad all around.   Smaller hook has been obtained. Just need some wine now.

Progress is good on the new socks.  The yarn is just superb, it's a yellow / orange / pink / purple colorway called "Summer Dusk".  Stockinette in the round is seriously better than therapy.  It makes everything better: laundry, TV time, vet waiting room, break time, telephone call time.

Took Galen to the vet for a blood draw to check how the thyroid meds are working.  His fur is fluffier but is acting a little strangely and is becoming fussy about his food.  That reminds me to go get the chicken I cooked up and hide his pills in it.

Starting Again

Happy "buy a new calendar" month, everyone.   That reminds me...

Ravenclaw won the House Cup & the Quidditch Cup at last last term.  I knit hard and scored well. I even completed an OWL and a Mission for the Order of the Phoenix and scored a sweet new badge.  I didn't even know it was a thing that is hard to do!

I didn't get too much done over the December break month; finally seamed the last of the blocks & added a few finalizing rows to the Steampunk blanket.  I'm thinking of buying one more skein to use as a large border to make it a little bigger.  

My head was cold this weekend so I broke out a skein of pretty yarn from this summer, an old issue of Spin-Off and crocheted up a little hat.  I love the hat, I like the pattern... not sure about the finished project.  It is more muffin cap than cloche.   I made a cord as a drawstring with my handy dandy lucet so it fits better but it is still puffy.  I may give it another try or I may rip it halfway back and rework with a smaller crochet hook.

I still have a stack of items that need finishing work but I also need to sit down and think of some projects to complete this term. I've already warmed up the spinning wheel and am working through some half started bobbins.  Need to ply some mystery gray (chain ply, I think, I can already use another hat) and I am spinning through some mystery blue / gold / green (merino / silk?).  This one is interesting - there are two lots of about equal size but one is richly colored and one is more pastel.  My choices are ply the two against each other or ply them separately (2 ply? chain ply) and decide if I want to use them in the same project. It might look nice as stripes.   Idea: ZickZack scarf.

I didn't set any resolutions except that I kind of did:  read 16 books for the Goodreads challenge (G16) and also participate in the January Cure again.   So far I have swept one room and every time I sit down to read I just fall asleep.  Will have to work on these.

Fox Paws

North Pole Bound

My Quidditch project for match 4 is a selection of ice floes... but only one is the real portkey.

Now they must hibernate until they are sent off as holiday gifts (with soap) next month.

In other news I have been making soap like crazy in anticipation of a little show this weekend.  I am super excited and hope it goes well.  

Knitting on Fox Paws continues and I started a little scarf as well.  It may be cutting it close to finish the whole thing by the 30th but the pattern is simple enough that I can work on it in little chunks of time here and there.

The last baby bird is coming up on 6 months old (where does the time go?) and is clearly a male.  Yellow face, whistling, displaying feathers and stalking around are all little dude behaviours.  I moved him in with his older sister (Peaseblossom) and he is getting used to more attention.  Just need a nice Shakespearian name for him.   His sisters are named for fairies in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as is his "uncle" Robin Goodfellow.  Oberon is too fancy.  Bottom is too silly even for me.  I'm sure something will make itself apparent.  His dad is Hamlet... perhaps Horatio will fit.

Autumn Glow

I am happy to announce the Bosc Pear shawl is complete & has been submitted for my Order of the Phoenix mission.

The setting sun gave me warm light... perhaps a little too warm.

This Week in Pictures

Cat Face Coaster

Snoflakes

Fox Paws - 50 % mark

Handspun cotton washcloth

Clean as a Whistle

It is the beginning of soap season here at the Picky household and with soap comes washcloth knititng.  I finished two already this week and they are headed to new homes soon.  Happily they make excellent packing material around the soap.

Other knitting is still going well.  I cast off the CeCe sewater Saturday.  All that is left is sewing down the neckband and adding a button and it is complete. The Bosc Pear shawl is still nearly done (it has been on pause while I've been catching up on other things).  Fox Paws is at the half way mark but I have less than half the time left so I need to keep my nose to the grindstone with that. The repeats are getting much smoother - only one day of kniting per repeat instead of 4 days.  And I have a stack of new snowflakes ready for photographing.

Flake-y

Just a quickie tonight - 4 new snowflakes are complete. I got smart this term and am completing each unit separately. Then later I will rip back the last row & join them to the blob.  Gotta max out my points for Ravenclaw to win the House Cup back.

Cat-ching Up

I am still sifting through completed items that I haven't posted yet and today's pick is this cute catface coaster.  I was a tad short on yarn so the second one is a circle but they are both performing well as coasters.

In other news it is Friday, I have a gin & tonic and am ready to start the weekend.

Adrift

A few weeks ago a lace blouse was featured on the Ravelry front page.  I immediately snagged the pattern and grabbed a cone of cotton warp.  These particular snowflakes are a good size, a nice pattern and easy to join as I go.

I'm not sure it it will end up as a blouse, shawl or curtains but I am having a grand time making the motifs.

Necking

 I've had this yarn in the stash for a few years now (2007?); it's a nice gold with rose & green sections.  It reminds me of the black hills gold colors that were all the rage when I was younger.  Finally I get to enjoy it.

One skein became one very shiny cowl.  It's a bit too big as I added 2 repeats to make up for using a different yarn & needle size than the pattern, but I can always squash it inside a jacket collar.

Pattern is Waverly Weekend Cowl and knit up - as promised - in a weekend. 

Oh, Baby

Presented for your review: the first baby thing I have ever made & given to the happy parent.  A quick project and fluffy (if small) lap blanket.  The pattern is the "corner start" blanket and after a few moments of skepticism it was surprisingly simple to work.

The yarn was free and when I was done with the border I had maybe 3" left.  A crafting success if ever I had one.

In other news, today was the second day of the Vista Fiber Fair (held at the Antique Gas & Steam Engine Museum). Some of the vendors bailed out because of the rain but the hardy souls who remained were much appreciated.  I brought home only one skein (on clearance!) and one pattern so I call that a win.  Even better was seeing old friends and sharing the event with a new friend.  Everyone should experience the joy of the AGSEM.

After we were done there it was time for a taco lunch in Oceanside & visit to my friend's rental place.  I got in a respectable amount of work on my Bosc Pear shawl.  I may need to take a break tomorrow to rest my fingers.

Steam-Picky

I have been crafting away here at Chez Picky.  My best friend finally fell down the crafting rabbit hole so I have been crocheting a lot as we were having the first lessons. Then I remembered I love crocheting and my friend is a good "finisher" so she is pushing me along to get some UFOs out of the storage bins.

The steampunk blanket is coming along at last.  All the little squares have been done for some time.  Now I am connecting the nine-blocks.  Then the six of those will be made into a little lap blanket.

Green square

Silver square

The yarn is Loopy Ewe Solid Series, Steampunk sampler plus a lot of brown to balance.