Monster socks

My basket of odd bits and balls of yarn has been growing again so I decided to create a pair of Monster socks. So far I have some navy of unknown origin for the cuffs and heels with Kroy for the leg and another ball of unknown origin for the gusset. Next will be Kroy in Denim for the foot or as far as it will go.

This is Moda Dea yarn that I bought last year by mistake not realizing that it was acrylic. The color is very pretty and they make great socks as long as you don't need the wool factor for warmth. I tried wearing the other pair I made when we went out to cut wood last weekend and my feet nearly froze.

I've been teaching 2 of my co-workers to knit socks since the first of the year. It's a slow and painful process! I'll have to get pictures of their finished product if and when they ever finish even a first sock. Both are using Kroy yarn, one in a bright turquoise and the other in the Crayon colorway. I hadn't realized how many ways there are to mess up a sock!

Raspberry Swirl

I started my new SOTM kit from theknitter for January yesterday. It's called Raspberry Swirl by Debbie O'Neill and the yarn is Lily Chin Chelsea which is 30% Merino Wool, 35% cotton and 35% acrylic. It's a bit heavier than sockweight but is knitting up nicely and looks like they won't be too thick to wear in shoes. I'm not sure that this yarn has great stretch to it so I hope the cotton content hasn't compromised it's memory.

I finished the socks in Mega Boots Stretch and they look fantastic. It is really a nice yarn and it blooms beautifully after the first wash. I'll give them the work shoe test on Monday!

Lots o' Socks

I finished my Kool-Aid dyed socks. The yarn was white Sisu that I dyed with 3 colors of Kool-Aid. I just washed them and the yarn really bloomed nicely.
These socks were from my SOTM kit at theknitter.com. I only have one finished and I just tossed it in with my sock wash to see how it comes out. I like the feel of the yarn, Mega Boots Stretch, and think that these will be a really comfy pair of socks.
Another pair of Kroy Country Jacquards on the way. Knitting 3 pairs for other people has left me with enough yarn to make a pair for myself!

I washed my Clematis Socks and they really turned out very soft. The yarn is Jaggerspun Superlamb and it felt quite stiff when I was knitting it. I really think I should have put some woolly nylon into the heels and toes but by the time I thought of it it was too late. The yarn came from a SOTM kit and didn't have any label so I had no idea what the content was when I started them. I have a lot left over and another ball set aside so I will definitely reinforce the next ones and only wear this pair for good and not in my work shoes.

More Country Jacquards

I finished Jane's socks with the Kroy Country Jacquard yarn and discovered that after making 3 pairs of socks with this colorway I have enough leftovers to complete a pair for myself. As much as I'm sick of this yarn now, I've cast on a pair for myself that are just plain knitting so they'll make a good take-a-long project and use up the little balls of this yarn that I have sitting around. Now all I have to do is dream up a project for all the other little balls I have in my leftovers basket.

We're expecting a major winter storm here so maybe I'll get snowed in and not have to go to work tomorrow! A whole day for knitting! Not likely to happen but I can dream.

SOTM Ripple socks

I got my new SOTM kit from theknitter yesterday and couldn't resist starting it. The yarn is Meilenweit Mega Boot Stretch and I'm really liking it. It's very soft and has a nice "spring" to it. The pattern is just called Ripple Socks and has an easy repeat once you get it in your head.

On the needles

All the gifts that I made for Xmas were hits with their new owners. My twin nieces loved their sweaters and everyone's socks fit!

I'm now making my 3rd pair of socks with Kroy Sock yarn in Country Jacquard. I made a pair for my daughter-in-law for Xmas and a co-worker loved the color and asked if I'd make her a pair. The "I don't have anymore of that yarn" trick didn't work because she surprised me by showing up at work with 2 balls of it that she got at a store in another town. I like Kroy yarns but I'm starting to really get sick of this colorway!

My new work project is this pair of socks that I'm making with some yarn that I Kool-Aid dyed last spring. The yarn is/was white Sisu that I got from theknitter and dyed with 3 colors of Kool-Aid. They're a refreshing change from the Country Jacquard. I'm using a stitch pattern called Little Ladders that is:
Rnd 1: K4, P2.
Rnd 2: Knit.
It gives the socks a little more stretch and is a bit more interesting than plain stockinette but doesn't get overwhelmed by the colors in the yarn.

The third pair on the needles are the socks from my last post. I got bogged down after the first one and have abandoned it in the ribbing stage. The yarn is very fine and it takes a lot of knitting to look like there is any progress at all. Maybe I'll get into the right mood again soon to work on it.

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.