Charade

Okay, so it has been a wild week. Between State Wrestling, Basketball games, and getting the little one healthy, it has taken its toll! It is now my turn for the creeping crud that has made its way through the house and Needle Nook, and work. I don't think the weather has been much help lately. I took this picture off the front porch on Saturday.

It was snowing hard and fast. I did get a new camera however, and had to get a close-up of the snowflakes before I went back in.

We ended up with about an inch of snow. And then it was in the 50's on Sunday and was all gone again. I am just ready for the weather to make up its mind. Especially now that spring sports have started and I am outside again.

Well, I still managed to get some knitting done. I am sure that part of it is the deadline for the February Sockdown challenge on Ravelry. I know that you don't have to be done until the end of March, but I have two pairs of socks going for this challenge. So, here it is! I also finished the Twist On Your Toes February socks! The pattern is called Charade.

I did change the heel to be an Eye of Partridge for my Sockdown challenge. Here it is!

The only other adventures I had was that when I was finishing the first sock, I ran out of yarn with six rows to go. I tried it on, it fit, so I finished it there. When I finished my second sock ,(which ended up with a slightly tighter gauge so I don't know how this happened) I still had plenty of yarn left, so I very very carefully took out my bind-off, frogged (ripped) a few rows, gently picked up the live stitches, added the extra yarn into the toe, and finished the six rows I was missing. I now have two matching socks! And, because of fixing the toe on the first sock, and frogging to fix a hole in the heel turn of the second sock, I feel very brave! I can't believe I did it, but I did.

Well, I have a basketball game tonight, and don't feel so hot, so I am off to take a nap so that I can make it through work tonight!

Eyes of a Three year old

Have you stopped to remember lately what it was like to be three?

We had a very big weekend this past weekend. My little one turned 3! It seems like that went way too fast. My mom was in town, and the three of us went on an adventure! We started at my favorite LYS, Twist. She was having a grand time making us tea with honey and making us snacks and putting us down for naps. All the while entertaining the Saturday evening gathering of knitters. We then were on our way to dinner. We decided to have Chinese for dinner, and she was very insistant that we eat there, and not at home. When we were looking through the menu and deciding what we were going to have, I commented on the fact that were were going to be getting tea. When the waiter took our order, she matter of factly told him, "You need to bring us tea." Then when he did bring it, he only brought 2 cups, so we had to ask for another. The little one got her tea! She also had to have some egg drop soup, fried wontons, and she tried the egg rolls, but did not like the cabbage. The red sauce was a big hit, and she enjoyed dipping everything, even her Lo Mein. We have not had such a quiet meal with her in a long time (usually she is talking the whole time - loudly). She was very into the meal and was a very good girl. If you have not experienced Chinese through the eyes of a Three year old, you must try it. There is nothing like it.

We were also amuzed when she told my mom that "she (my mom) was not a big girl, she was short like Mommy!" She also told her big sister that she has "options" for what she wants to be when she grows up. I didn't even know she knew what that word meant!

On another amuzing note, for Valentine's day, both girls got stickers. Pretty soon, my big one was looking at her kitty stickers and says "look I have a sticker of Mommy's favorite thing ... Yarn!" She was right. She does have stickers of little balls of yarn :)

February = Basketball

In this house, and for my job, February = Basketball just as much as March does. This past week I have spent at least 17 hours just at basketball games, and that is pretty normal. It does sometimes make it harder to get to the computer, but I kept on knitting. I was so excited on Thursday, not because of Valentine's day, but because, I finished the first Charade sock!

It did however come with a few challenges! I was 6 rows from finishing the toe, when I had just over 12 inches of yarn left. Now, that is not enough to do 6 rows. At first I panicked, one because I was so close and did not have the other skein of yarn, and two, I did not want to have to buy more yarn for inevitably 12 rows of knitting. Once I started thinking clearly, I did the only thing I could think of ... I tried it on. It fit, was at the top of my toes, so I did my bind off, and that sock was done! And it even fit. I decided then that was one downfall of knitting a tight gauge, I use up more yarn because I have more rows. So now, one done and one to go.

In the meantime, I have been working on the rambler sock as well. I just love the colorway watching it change colors and rotate all at the same time is just facinating! Here, take a look for yourself!

Isn't it just beautiful!

Well, I also need to finish the pair of the Charade socks, so I cast on the second one. As you can see (It is the little band above the finished sock), I have a long way to go yet, but it is fun to watch something grow!

Kansas Weather

Got to love Kansas Weather! Saturday the temperature was in the 60's, Sunday it dropped to the 30's, and to top it off, at 4 am this morning we got another surprise. Hail, thunder, lightning, the ever present wind, oh yah, and freezing rain. When I opened the garage door to go the the bus stop there was at least a half an inch of frozen hail stones on the driveway. It is somewhere between driving on ball berrings and a gravel road. Still slick as snot trying to get the big one from the car onto the bus and not have her slip. We didn't need any more accidents after the big goose egg she has on her head from trying to crawl out the window of her play house and running into the wall. I would definitely say that the wall won! At least the sun is out now, and everything can melt until the sun goes down and I have to drive home.

Stay warm everyone!

Anatomy of a sock!

I was thinking about my knitting, and my blog, and realized that not everyone who reads this is going to understand what I am talking about when I say that I "am ready to turn the heel" or other things about the process of making a sock. I also definitely think in terms of anatomy, greatly in part to my job. So I thought I would take you through the anatomy and evolution of a sock!

I am working on all my socks top down right now. That means that I start with the cuff, and end with the toe. The other way to make them is starting at the toe and working up to the cuff. I am still relatively new at sock knitting, and I have not tried it from the toe up yet. One advantage to the top down, is that if for any reason I ran out of yarn, at the toes, no one would really see them, and if I needed to do a different color at the toe it would not be a big deal. This is great with Hubby's socks, because he keeps asking for really long socks, so having a different color toe allows me to not worry too much about running out of yarn. His tan socks have lime green toes, and his Big Black Socks (BBS) will have yellow toes. He picked that one out himself.

On with the socks. This is the cuff of my Charade sock. It is a 2 x 2 twisted rib which just refers to how I make the stitches. I made the cuff 1.5 inches long.

Next I worked the leg. For this sock, and most of my long socks, my leg and cuff length measures 6 inches total. On my rambler sock, partly because I have some extra yarn from Mom, and partly because it is so stretchy, I may go ahead and make that total length 7 inches. Only time will tell. After I get the length that I want, it is time for the heel flap. That is not the only way to make socks, but is how I am making this pair. The heel flap is just what it sounds like. It is a square flap of fabric that goes on the back of the heel. This sock, I am challenging myself and trying a new to me heel. This one uses a stitch pattern called the Eye of Partridge. It really compliments itself nicely to the herringbone pattern of the leg.

This is what the sock looks like at this point. A big leg and cuff, with a square at the back of the heel.

Then comes time to do the heel turn. It is a series of partial row (aka short row) stitches that take a flat piece of knitting, and put a curve into it. This curves the sock under the heel.

After that, you have to join the heel back up with the rest of the sock. You can kind of see the triangle space that is just plain knitting. This is called the gusset. (sorry about the slightly out of focus, I am still playing with the camera and taking pictures of knitting - totally different than pictures of people)
After the gusset is complete, you are down to doing the foot. This is a big tube similar to the leg of the sock. Once you get it to about 1.5-2 inches from the total length you need for the foot, you begin forming the toe. As you can see, I just finished the gusset, and I haven't gotten to the toe yet. I will show you that once I have this sock finished. Then, you just have to do it all over again to make the second sock.

In case you are wondering, all the purple cording hanging around is really my cable to my needles. I like to do my socks on 2 circular needles. The other way to do it is on 4 or 5 double pointed needles (dpn's). I am trying that on the Hubby's BBS, but for portability and dealing with the kids, I find the 2 circulars easier, and less likely to lose stitches. Also, you may see pictures with this hanging thing, that is just my row counter to make sure I am doing the correct amount of rows.

That is the anatomy of a sock!

Progress

Well, progress is sometimes slow, but it is being made! First, my Charade sock is to the point of starting a heel flap. Yea :) This is where I try something new which is all the more exciting! I have continued to play with my camera, and hopefully, you can see the beautiful herringbone rib of it if you click on it to get a better look. (I'm not promising it will work) I have been having camera adventures, and I can't decide if the problem is me or my camera. I am somewhat hoping it is the camera, because it is much easier in the long run to buy a new camera than to try to fix me! I have also been working on my Rambler sock. As you can see, it is starting to rotate :) The best part is the surprise as the colors change. As you can see, right now it is working on a green shade, and when it will change again will be the next surprise!

I have also managed to get some sewing done. I finished up a bra for a friend of mine. We always start the first bra in something basic to get a good fit before we get too fancy. Usually that basic color is pink, white, or what I call "boring beige" (not that there is anything wrong with beige - you always need some good basics). But not this time, today basic got to be PURPLE, and you all know I have a certain affinity for PURPLE! I think it turned out really nice, now I have to decide what color I will make the next time I make one for me!

Now, on with the heel flap!

Super Sunday!

Boy, it was a super Sunday! I got to start the afternoon off with a trip to Twist, followed by a 24th Anniversary Celebration for Anne and Needle Nook Fabrics. I got to snuggle with my kids, and have a Super Bowl picnic. We made pigs in a blanket, tater tots, and had a grand time watching the game and the commercials.

Congratulations to Eli Manning and the New York Giants. It was a fun defensive game to watch, and it could have gone either way. Also congratulations to New York Giants Athletic Trainer, John Johnson, who will retire after 60 years of working for the Giants. That in itself is an amazing feet. He is 90 years old, and has been working with the Giants longer than the NATA (National Athletic Trainers' Association) has been around. Oh the changes and progress he has seen to the profession that I share with him.

The only thing, everytime they talked about Amani Toomer of the New York Giants, all I could hear in my head was Arnold Schwartzinagger say "It's not a Toomer (tumor)". Name that movie.


I also did get some knitting done, and here is how the OYT sock is going.

I am over half way through the leg of the sock.

By the way, Best Superbowl Commercial - Coke's commercial with the giant ballons where Charlie Brown finally wins something! :)

Socks and more socks!

The great sockdown has begun! I was already planning on starting two new socks for myself this week, when I made a wonderful discovery. I found a new group on my ravelry site called "Sock Knitters Anonymous". They have great forums, and even have a monthly sockdown challenge. This months challenge that I am going to do is to try a new heel to me, that I have not tried before. The biggest keys, are that it has to be cast on in the month of February, and both socks finished by March 31st at midnight. It is a worthy challenge, and I will see if I am up to it. I started with casting on my rambler sock on February 1st. Here is the cuff that I have started.


I have said that this ramble sock is inspired by the hat that my Mom made me for Christmas out of the same yarn. Here is the hat.

This is why I can't wait to work on this sock, and mimic the rotating rib. I can't wait to see what they are going to look like! I hope I can do the hat justice with my socks!

So, to qualify for the sockdown challenge, I am going to try a technique called a short row heel. I have not done this before, and I look forward to the process. But as you can see from the top picture, I do have a ways to go before I get to the heel.

I have also started another sock, that I cast on on yesterday. This sock is for my favorite Local Yarn Shop (LYS), Twist's new sock of the month club called On Your Toes. This months sock pattern is called Charade. I was going to do it in a teal green, but the pink just kept calling to me. And, I am going to try a heel called the "Eye of Partridge" for this sock, so it will also qualify for a new type of heel for me. I started this sock yesterday while sitting and enjoying my time at Twist. It was movie night, and we had a lot of fun watching "Edward Scissorhands". I truly enjoyed getting to spend some time there. It is like another home! And, I got to make several new knitting friends. What could be better.

So now, my biggest test will not be doing the two new heels, but seeing if I can manage to get both pairs done by March 31st! We will see how everything progresses!

Little Hats

Little hats are just so much fun! They take no time at all. I did the bigger version of this hat for the 6yo's teacher for later, but I decided that she needed one for now as well. It is still cold in March for little heads. I think it is pretty cute!

I did need a model though, and the only thing in the house with a small enough head was a Cabbage Patch Kid. Well, it is a little big on her, but you get the drift. I am hoping it lasts at least until it gets warm this year, and then she has the blue hat for next winter, and maybe even longer. The bigger hat did fit the 2yo.

I think the pattern is pretty cute though, and because it in multiples of 18, I think I can enlarge it enough for an adult. I might have to try that as well!

Now, it is sock time! I started the rambler socks today, and the OYT's sock yarn will be bought and started tomorrow! Yea :)