Socks, socks, socks

These socks are for me after I got all my Christmas knitting done. The yarn is Jaggerwool in an autumn tone. It knits up into quite a nice fabric but I haven't done a wash test yet. The pattern stitch is called Eyelet Mock-Cable Rib and I don't remember where I got the stitch pattern from but it's very easy.

Eyelet Mock-Cable Rib Stitch
Rnd 1: *Sl 1, K2, PSSO, P2; rep from * to end.
Rnd 2: *K1, YO, K1, P2; rep from * to end
Rnd 3: *K3, P2; rep from * to end
Rnd 4: *K3, P2; rep from * to end
These socks are for my daughter done in plain stitch with Kroy sock yarn in a color called Krazy Stripes.
These socks are for my mom using Kroy sock yarn in the color Paintbox and using the
Blueberry Waffle pattern.

Off to the frog pond

I spent the morning frogging 2 pairs of socks that I've never really liked. One pair was done in a faux cable with Trekking XXL that has always been a bit on the tight side. I did them toe up and the instep has always been so tight that I had to yank to get them on.

The other pair were with a Lana Grossa yarn that I really loved but the socks shrank a bit when they were washed. So I ripped back the toes and added more but they still were tight in the instep so they got frogged too.

I'm still working on Christmas gifts so reknitting will have to wait but I feel better with them wound into balls instead of sitting in my sock drawer reminding me that they don't fit every time I open it.

Tutti Frutti

These are the latest socks completed on my Christmas list. The yarn is Kroy Sock in Tutti Frutti.

Hallowe'en princess

This is my little princess, Nyla, dressed up for Hallowe'en!

Fixation

These socks are made with Cascade Fixation. I really like the feel of the fabric that this yarn makes. It takes a bit of getting used to not stretching the yarn out as you knit so that it will have some elastic to the final product though. I think they will be really comfy in my work shoes and great for next summer. The yarn came with a pattern from my Sock of the Month kit but I was having enough trouble keeping the yarn at the right tension without throwing in a pattern stitch too!


I made these little socks for my granddaughter with some left over yarns. It's a great way to use up all those little balls and she loves to wear the socks that grandma makes for her.

Fish tank

I posted before about my new venture into keeping goldfish. This is my 55 gallon hexagonal tank now that it's all setup. It's got too many fish in it but I'll probably move some to my tropical tank once a few more of those ones go to the big fish tank in the sky.

I'm still working on the soy socks. I've been on vacation this week and hope to get them finished to wear to work when I go back on Tuesday. They're supposed to be good for perspiration so 10 hours in my work shoes should be a good test!

The Chain of Hearts tablecloth is within a few rows of being completed. I've already found my next project while cleaning out some dresser drawers. It's a pansy bedspread that I started for my daughter's bed from the Crochet Yearbook. I'm not getting it out until the tablecloth is done or I'll never finish the tablecloth at all.

Wicker Basket Socks

I finished this sock this week from my SOTM kit from theKnitter.com made with Wick yarn from KnitOne CrochetToo. It's 53% soy and 47% polypropylene. I wore it around the house a bit to see how it feels because the yarn feels very much like acrylic which I hate. It's supposed to have great "wicking" properties to keep feet dry. It's also a heavier weight yarn so the sock is quite thick. I'm not sure how it's going to feel in my shoe.

Otherwise, I've been continuing to work on my Chain of Hearts tablecloth and we're in the process of installing an outdoor wood furnace so that seems to be taking up a lot of time.

Chain of hearts

I kind of got back into crocheting when I finished my pineapple tablecloth so I decided to finish this Chain of Hearts tablecloth I started about 6 years ago as a tester for the pattern. The original idea was to use up all the odds and ends of balls of thread I had hanging around but now I'm not so sure I like the look. I started it for my old kitchen table that was considerably smaller than the one I have now but I'm about 1/2 way done so I guess I'll keep going! There's still about 4 banana boxes full of thread upstairs that needs something done with it. My obsession before sock yarn was thread!

Pineapple tablecloth finished!

After 8 years I finally finished this crocheted tablecloth! The pattern came from Craftown for free. I have no idea how much thread it took but I know I used at least 2 of the giant balls from Walmart. It really needs to be blocked properly but it's just been too hot here to even think about getting a steam iron out.

Sock monkey

I finished this sock at work this week. It's made with Scheepjes Invicta that I made an attempt at dyeing with spots of red to make it sort of "sock monkey" looking. I didn't really get the effect I was going for but they're alright.

Tablecloth revisited

It's been too hot here to hold wool yarn in my hands so I've switched back to working on my neverending tablecloth. It's going to be 76" across when/if I finish it and it's taking over an hour to go around it once now. I'd really like to finally finish it this summer so I've challenged myself to do a round a day on it.




A co-worker gave me a 55 gallon hexagonal aquarium that I set up for goldfish. This isn't my fish but it's the type I've put in it. They're called Oranda's and are almost round with a lumpy thing on their heads. They're really graceful swimmers and are supposed to live up to 10 years. We'll see how I manage with that!

New Footies

I decided I needed to make use of some of the yarn I've been collecting. I have a bunch of yarn on cones that someone gave me but I have no idea what the fiber content is on any of them except that most are natural fibers of some sort. I also have a lot of Bernat Hot Sox that I bought because it was cheap. That was before I discovered that wearing acrylic socks is like putting plastic bags on your feet!

This footie is a combination of some red Bernat Hot Sox and some blue yarn from a cone that has flecks of other colors in it. I added some pink woolly nylon to the heels and toes because I'm afraid it will wear through because it has no nylon content. I already washed it to see if it would shrink and I can't see that it changed at all. Next I'm on the the wear and comfort test. Hopefully it works out because I have a lot of this stuff!

Michigan trip

We went to Michigan International Speedway last weekend for the Nascar races. My husband wanted to go to the Arca race which I found totally boring so I amused myself by taking a picture of my Flickering Flames sock enjoying the race with the Nascar banner on the grass behind it. I embarrassed him to death but I now have proof that my sock went to the race!

I got some good knitting time in while we were away and finished sock number one of last months SOTM kit from theknitter.com. I didn't do the pattern as written because I kept getting the repeats messed up when I was knitting and talking so I just did a 2 row repeat. It looks nice and fits well so I'm happy.

We had Pit Passes so I was able to go down on pit road and get a picture of my favourite driver Kevin Harvick's car sitting on pit road before the race. We watched qualifying on Friday from the pits as well.
On the way back from Michigan we stopped at The Pinery to camp for a few days. This butterfly came and posed for me and it was such a brilliant blue I just couldn't resist taking its picture. I have no idea what kind it is but it was definitely pretty. I'd love to know what kind it is if anyone knows.

Footies

Well it's been a hectic month or so. My father-in-law passed away on April 2nd suddenly and left a lot of things to be looked after. Then my daughter moved home from university for the summer in the middle of April. She immediately decided that her old bedroom wasn't to her liking anymore and had to be changed. What started out as a coat of paint ended up being a re-do of everything including the flooring.

When we started cleaning out my father-in-laws house no one wanted his big oak table because it needed refinishing so I brought it home and started that project. It took a week of blood, sweat and tears but looks really great now. So great that I decided to re-do my cupboards too!

So knitting has been taking a back burner to all our home renovations but I have managed to finish a pair of footies using Sockotta Bold Stripes. I had no idea when I bought this yarn what it would look like when it was knit up and I am pleasantly surprised! I guess Bold Stripes should have been a tip off for me but I wasn't expecting the wide striping at all. These will make fun summer socks for work.

Kool-Aid Dyed socks

I finished the first sock with my Kool-Aid dyed yarn. The yarn came in a kit from the SOTM club at theknitter.com but the pattern is one I found on the web that I liked called Fluted Bannister Socks designed by Laura Gallagher. I really like the way the colors turned out and this yarn is great. It has a lot of stretch to it but unfortunately I threw away the wrappers when I dyed the yarn and have no idea what it is! This pattern has an easy repeat and gives a really nice texture to the sock.

Toddler Socks

I wanted to make a pair of socks for my 2 year old granddaughter but had trouble finding a pattern in her size that used sock yarn. I finally quit looking and adapted my old standby plain sock pattern to something her size. I haven't finished the second sock yet but I think the pair are only going to take about 25 grams of yarn. The best part is they take next to no time to make! The yarn is Bernat Hot Sox that I had left over from previous projects. Now I have a new way to use up all those little balls of yarn.


Toddler Socks

Fits Size 7 or 8 shoe

With Size 1 needles, cast on 44 sts. Arrange on 3 needles ( 12.20.12 ) and work 1 1/2" of K2, P2 ribbing. Continue in straight stitch until work measures 3".

To arrange heel stitches: Slip 2 sts off beginning of 3rd needle onto end of 2nd needle ( 12.22.10). Divide the 22 sts on 2nd needle onto 2 needles and leave for the instep. Work the 12 sts of 1st needle onto the end of the 3rd needle. 22 sts for the heel.
Next row: K1, P9, P2tog, P9, K1. 21 sts on the needle.

To make heel:
1st row: *K1, Sl1*, Repeat to the last st, K1.
2nd row: K1, Purl to last st, K1.

Repeat these 2 rows for 1 1/2" ending with 1st row.

To shape heel:
1st row: P10, P2tog, P1, turn.
2nd row: K3, Sl1, K1, psso, K1, turn.
3rd row: P4, P2tog, P1, turn.
4th row: K5, Sl1, K1, psso, K1, turn.
5th row: P6, P2tog, P1, turn.
6th row: K7, Sl1, K1, psso, K1, turn.
7th row: P8, P2tog, P1, turn.
8th row: K9, Sl1, K1, psso, K1, turn.
9th row: P10, P2tog, P1, turn.

To make instep:
Put the 22 sts for the instep onto one needle. 1st needle: Using the needle with the 11 heel sts pick up and knit 10 sts along side of heel. 2nd needle: Knit across. 3rd needle: Pick up and knit 10 sts along other side of heel, then knit 6 sts from 1st needle. Stitches are now divided 16.22.15

Gusset:
Round 1: Knit across all needles.
Round 2: 1st needle: Knit to last 3 sts. K2tog, K1. 2nd needle: Knit across. 3rd needle: K1, Sl1, K1, psso, knit to the end.

Repeat these 2 rounds until 43 sts in the round.

Continue knitting even until work measures 3" from where sts were picked up for instep. Knit one round decreasing 1 st on needle 2.

To shape toe:
1st rnd: 1st needle: Knit to last 3 sts. K2tog, K1. Needle 2: K1, Sl1, K1, psso, Knit to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1. Needle 3: K1, Sl1 , K1, psso, knit to end.
2nd rnd: Knit.

Repeat these 2 rnds to 14 sts. Knit the sts from the 1st needle onto the end of the 3rd needle. Kitchener stitch toe closed.

Day of Mourning

I'm sad to announce that when I went to feed my fish this morning I found Freaky Frog floating lifeless on the top of the aquarium. He seems to have passed away peacefully in his sleep. I guess I'm just not meant to have frogs.

Sockotta and Kool-Aid dyeing

I received my SOTM kid from theknitter.com and this months yarn was dye it yourself with Kool-Aid. It was fun to do and looks great. I had some other yarns here that I decided to give a try too. I think they turned out pretty well although the white yarn gives the most vibrant colors. One thing I do know is that I will never drink Kool-Aid again. Anything that will dye my socks permanent colors is not going in my stomach!

I finished these Sockotta short socks for my friend Pam's birthday. I like the feel of them better than 100% cotton yarns and I think I have enough yarn left to make another pair for myself so it was really an economical buy.

I hit the jackpot on Freecycle this week! Someone posted that they had received a box of knitting machine yarns on cones and that they were no good to them. I picked them up and most of them are some kind of wool blend and will be perfect for socks. I have enough to make socks for at least half the world but hey it was free!


Another great find. Last week at Dollarama I found eyelash yarn for 50¢ a ball but being a moron I decided I would need about 4 balls to make a decent scarf. There were very few colors that had more than 2 balls so I bought 4 gold and came home. Later I decided to knit the scarf. I found out that a ball and a half will do it so I hurried back to get more. It was all gone! Now I'm kicking myself for being so stupid. There were some really great colors there too. I could have had half my Christmas presents done already.


I ordered 2 balls of Sockotta yarn from theknitter.com came that came this week. I just love the color of this one. These are going to be ankle socks for my friend Pam's birthday. I'm not sure I like the tops yet but I really like the colors.

Back to socks

I finished the 4th lapghan for the nursing home last night and that's about enough crocheting for a bit. I had a basket of granny's daughters that I added onto an afghan I started making with them eons ago. It looks interesting but in order to have lots of color to it you have to have a lot of odds and ends of yarn. I make a few everytime I have some bits leftover but it's still a long term project. It takes longer to join them together than it would to just crochet a few rows on an afghan. You can find out more about Granny's Daughters or Circles of Hope at this link.

So I'm back to finishing up some socks I started about a year ago. They're made with laceweight Baby Alpaca and I decided to do a cable pattern on them so it's pretty slow going. I'm not totally sure about how they will wear after I do get them done but they sure are soft. They were supposed to be for St. Patrick's Day last year and I didn't make it and I doubt I will for this year either!

Moda Dea Sock done

I finished the first Moda Dea sock. It looks nice and fits well but I'm still not impressed with paying $5.09 a ball for acrylic yarn. They'll probably end up going to my daughter since she likes any handmade socks no matter what the yarn is.

Nothing much

I haven't accomplished much this week. I started another lapghan, then got sidetracked with making a shawl for my mom. I made her one a couple years ago and apparently it was getting past it's best so she presented me with a bag of yarn on Monday night and asked for a new one. It's made with Bernat Illusions and a big crochet hook but it's a boucle type yarn and it's impossible to work with. The "nubs" catch all the time and won't pull through the loops. It only takes 3 balls and I've just started the 3rd so the end is in site.

I've almost finished the first Moda Dea sock and it looks alright. I'm less impressed with the yarn now since I found a join in the ball and the stripes don't match up after the join. I should have pulled it out and fixed it to match but I was at work and it just didn't seem like an option at the time. So now I either have fraternal socks or I have to make the second one wrong too!

Another lapghan done

I finished another one of my stash buster lapghans for the nursing homes. I sure hope that they like green. I keep finding more of it everytime I open another cupboard or tote. It has to be multiplying in the dark because I don't remember ever getting this much of it!

I started a pair of sock with the Moda Dea that I "accidently" bought at Christmas time. It looks nice and is knitting up well but I'm still not happy about the price I paid for acrylic yarn.

Winter has finally settled in to Southern Ontario. Last week it felt like spring was here and now it's snowing everyday. So much for groundhog predictions!

New sock kit

I started my new sock kit from theKnitter.com this week. The yarn is called Bollicine Dolly from Cascade and the pattern is Pink Ladder Socks by Nancy Walsh. It's all done with slip stitches so the pattern is very easy and the yarn is lovely to work with. I still have a sock on the needles that I really need to finish up but I couldn't resist just starting this one to see how it would look!

I finished the glowy green lapghan and started this one. The yarn is named Victorian Christmas Ombre but it doesn't look very Christmasy to me! It's interesting how the color pools as I go giving it almost a tartan look.

My freaky frog is still alive. This is the original one that I bought first and he seems to be a survivor. It's grown quite a bit and has decided that attacking the fish is no longer the fun he thought it was. Everyone in the tank seems to have settled in to live together peacefully.

Paintbox socks

My daughter had a better idea of what to do with the glowy green yarn. My dog blanket turned into a laprobe that I'll give to the local nursing home. A friend of hers volunteers there and said some of the residents are close to blind and like bright colors because they can see them so these blankets should really fit the bill. I thought I had used up about 1/2 of the green yarn and then I found another bag of it in my craft cupboard. I'm starting to think it's some kind of alien lifeform that's reproducing when I'm not looking. I'm sure I didn't start out with that much of it!


I've been working on these socks at work. The yarn is Kroy Sock in Paintbox. It's an interesting color combination and reminds me of autumn more than a paintbox. I brought them home this weekend to finish because I'm getting bored with the color. Seems I've been knitting the same socks for months which actually I have since I only get a few minutes at lunch to work on them.

My freaky frog is still alive and has discovered that he can hide in the plants and jump out on the unsuspecting fish. I'm not sure that the fish are enjoying the game as much as he is.

First sock of 2006

I finished my first socks of 2006 this week. They're just a plain sock done with some yarn I bought on a cone at Value Village for a dollar a couple years ago. It says Cashmoulon on the inside of it in handwriting and no one seems to know what that is but I made a pair with it before that I gave away and it seemed to be fine. It's a bit heavy for ordinary socks but should be fine as a boot sock or to just wear around the house. The photo isn't great but there's not much to see anyway.
PS: Thanks to Emily I now know the name of the yarn is Cashmilon and it is an acrylic.


Over the holidays I realized that my stash had become way overgrown. I've saved every bit of yarn that's been left over from progects plus I used to be a Girl Guide leader and people would always give me craft things for the girls. I was the proud recipient of many balls of this lovely "green" yarn. I can't think of anything I'd want made with it so my daughter suggested making blankets for the dogs at the shelter. I've gotten started on that now and hopefully dogs really are colorblind!

My freaky frog is still going. The two tankmates I bought for him weren't so lucky. I think I'm just not meant to have frogs. This one is the original frog and he is wired. My granddaughter loves to watch him zipping around the tank so hopefully he'll last awhile.