Second Opinion Required

I just need to know - do you think these socks look stupid?

They're the lovely fan and feather toe-up socks (rav link) but I'm worried that the yarn is too busy for them, and maybe I should rip back to my trusty lifeline and do them plain. however, my knitting mojo is in such tatters lately that I am having an indecisive moment. And I really need this sock knitting this week, with all the travelling I'm planning on doing.

So please give your honest opinion. I can handle it.

FO: Hello Sailor! Socks

Well, they really did have to be called that, given the nautical stripes and the related pattern - Fishnet Socks from The Purl Bee by Purl Soho. A knit designed to be simple, easy and quick, to counter Orchid Thief. However, I got quite distracted with life / work / holidays and so they took me about a month. (also, in my rookie yarn-buying days, I'd bought a single ball of Regia not knowing you need two for a proper pair of socks, and this used it up nicely). My former housemate was excited when she saw me knitting them, exclaiming, 'Summer bedsocks!!' and since she clearly had a gap in her life for them I gave them away.

The modifications I made were to ssk instead of k2tog for the second sock to that the twists went the other way (which worked really well) and to knit the sole of the sock instead of continuing in pattern, to make it more comfy to walk on (which didn't really work, the twisting stopped for the foot). Only my second pair of socks so still learning but much happier with my picking-up and grafting skills. Though I'm hoping the next pair are toe-up, fingers crossed as I hear they're hard to start...

Woolfest 2011

Woolfest is only the second knitting-festival-thing I have ever been to, but it was just what I'm looking for in one. There was a lot of yarn to keep me happy, enough other aspects of the craft to inspire me to try something new, and some very cute animals.

I went with my mum, and we rented a cottage near Bassenthwaite Lake for a week (though I could only stay for five days) - I've been to a lot of places lately so I'll probably do a proper travel post soon. Here's a photo of everything that we bought, and I think it's quite a haul! The natural roving and the two blur rovings on the left are my mum's, though the herdy notebook is mine.

There are two cakes of roving are Waratah Fibres Polwarth-cross for Stephcuddles (here's a better photo just for you):

This is the one I cannot catch the colour on, sparkleduck self-striping sock yarn - the website is under construction but says they will be at Knit Nation (though I won't be) - well worth keeping an eye on as there was a LOT of beautiful yarn there (including some sparkly stuff which I managed to resist). This is going to be the first pair of socks I knit for myself; two at a time and toe-up.

Some blue sock yarn from Laal Bear. Not sure what I'll knit with it yet but it is very cuddly.

I couldn't even wait for a ball winder to start knitting with this; some toe-up socks for an as-yet-to-be-decided female friend. The colours remind me of one friend, but I only knit her some socks two weeks ago. Hohum.

I also bought myself a couple of hanks of merino roving, in the hope that I can learn to spin soon. I guess I've got a lot of knitting skills lined up so it might be a while. And it seems the purple theme remains....

So, now I just need to get knitting. Bring on the wool!

All Quiet on the Knitting Front

Well, not really. Things have been rather hectic in all other aspects of my life; on the rubbish side, deadlines loom at work and I've been under the weather. On the more fun side, I've been on holiday to Prague (lovely) and planning trips to Woolfest, a separate holiday to the Lakes, a trip to a festival in Scotland to attend and various trips to Edinburgh. However, all this Stuff To Do means I can't concentrate on any one thing: always flitting between the bits I need to do at work, evenings spent researching holidays and transport. And this has infected my knitting too. Currently, four projects on the needles, with apologies for the dodgy photos as I was losing the light.

My favourite first: Ysolda's Orchid Thief, from Brave New Knits. Despite some initial twinges of a bipolar relationship of loving the outcome but finding the whole thing rather hard work, I've grown to find the pattern intuitive and the result satisfying.

The second is a pair of Fishnet Anklets by The Purl Bee, mainly making use of a single ball of Regia I bought as a rookie knitter because I liked the colours, not knowing that it makes two to make a pair of proper socks. Fortunately, these are mainly holes!

The third thing is angora mittlets, a pattern based on the stitch pattern from the Darkside Cowl (ravelry link) but the shape of cupcake mittlets (ravelry link). I'm not quite sure I have enough yarn left, plus some sniffles mean I didn't fancy knitting angora *atchoo, so these have stalled. However, looking forward to wearing them with my lovely cowl (a gift along with the yarn from Stephcuddles).

The final thing is a soon-to-be-frogged hat. The band around the head is really loose, and it's irritated me to wear it when I've just been wearing it round the house [for testing, it's not that cold!] and I figure the wool is nice enough that it should be liberated and saved for a better day.

Now all I need is to finish some of 'em!

FO: Simple City

Yarn: Artisan Yarns Superwash Sock in Lavender's Dilly

I saw this yarn a good long while ago; our eyes met across a crowded stall, and I was away; love at first sight. I was obviously going to buy it, despite [trying to] be on a mission to only buy yarn I had a project in mind for, no matter how tenuous the idea was.

Some time later, I saw Eskimimi's Simple City [ravelry link], and decided it would be a match made in heaven. While many other projects were more pressing, I built the idea of this perfect yarn and perfect project up in my head. The pattern is brilliantly designed, straightforward to follow and beautifully laid out. I heartily recommend it to all but the 'complete novice' knitter - and the fruit salad of stitch markers, courtesy of Stephcuddles made any counting pain-free.

This huge build-up meant that, when I finished, I was a tad disappointed. No angels sang. No trumpets sounded. No knitting fairy furnished me with an idea of what I should do next.

However, in the intervening three weeks, I have fallen in love again; it is the perfect match of yarn, pattern and personality. Though I need to learn how to wear it in a less-of-a-mess way!

FO: Dalek

After much agonising and procrastinating, the Day of the Dalek has finally dawned.



Pattern: Extermiknit! [Ravelry link]

The pattern looks like hell on earth, but once you get into it, it's really not that bad! I had a crisis (on and off for about 8 months) about i-cords but once I asked for help and made myself do it (only thing I took to a Knit Night) I was fine and finished. There is a provisional crochet cast on that I also needed help with. This did mean he spend waaaay too long in this state:


Needles: 4mm dpns

I would definitely recommend knitting it in the round, but I hate sewing things up so I guess I'm biased!

Wool: Acrylic DK from Leeds Market.

The shop is on the right, if you do in through the doors on the corner of Vicar Lane and George Street (I think!). The right sort of wool for such a project - I bought two 100g balls (red and dark gray) for about £2.20 and used some white acrylic I had lying about. And I have loads left, enough to knit at least one more Dalek. Maybe there could be an army of them...?

What I've been doing lately...

Visiting idyllic castles (Bodian in Sussex).

Enjoyind the British countryside in not-very-British weather.

Pottering around gardens (Nymans in Sussex).

Remembering how much I love wisteria.

Walking in a bluebell wood

Falling in love with Edinburgh. Again.

Watching Spring arrive in Edinburgh

Indulging.

Learning that teapots grow on trees.