Five Little Monkeys

May 27, 2009 By

So it’s been awhile, and I feel badly about that, but things haven’t been so great and I’ve been taking the ostrich approach to life meaning I basically moved to my sister’s for a few weeks. The work they’ve been doing on our building made life here unbearable (the drilling noise was off the charts) and absolutely NO ONE is coming to see our house. Forget making offers, no one comes to see it even. At all. Which is super, super depressing. But when I’m not here I don’t think about how in a month we’ll have to pay two mortgages and I’ll basically be eating mac & cheese for the foreseeable future. I know that things could be much, much worse for us and I am thankful every day that we can survive in this situation (although Meli might want to think twice about college) but still it’s very scary and my stomach is in knots the minute I pull up to our parking space.

To combat these feelings of dread, I’ve been knitting. A lot. And I even have proof for you!


The Great Socks That Rock Monkey Experiment of 2009
L to R: My Blue Heaven, Firebird, Love In Idleness, G Rocks and Never On Sunday

Yup. Five Monkey Socks. The Love In Idleness one I started a little while ago but was unsure of it and then I went on this jag where I’d cast on and start a sock and decide the colorway wasn’t working the way I wanted. Then somehow I had the idea that when I hit on a color that was good I’d put it aside until I found another color I liked and I’d start a kind of assembly line. I actually have a sixth sock started somewhere but I lost it (again – I keep losing this sock!) So once I had the five socks on the needles I decided that I would knit the cuff on one and then stop and move onto the next color. To knit the cuff, I do six repeats of the pattern. Once I was finished all five cuffs, I started doing the heel flap. (Basically, I didn’t go any further because I had to consult the pattern to remember the math on turning the heel. It had been awhile.) Heel flaps done. Check. And then I picked up a sock – it was the Love In Idleness one – and turned the heel. Then I knit the gusset. And then I was all like oh my god I’ve knit the gusset the sock is practically finished! So that’s what I did. I finished the sock.

Then I became obsessed. I couldn’t stop knitting and finishing socks. Every time I finished a sock I immediately wove in the ends and then cast on for the second sock. I didn’t do the whole picot cuff, just cast on and knit a row or two. But the needles are full and that’s what counts.

Now that I’ve got five new socks, I’m ready to start all over again. My plan now is to knit the picot edge and one repeat before moving on to the next color and finishing the cuff. Rinse and repeat. I’m not so obsessed anymore, but Meli is getting pretty good at giving me a little bit of time during the day while she plays on her own, so I’m making sure a sock is nearby. And no, I’m not sick of monkey socks. This pattern is absolutely my stockinette sock. Way more than the Jaywalker even (does anyone even remember Jaywalkers anymore?! How crazy were those days!) I have at least three more monkeys in mind. They fit great, are easy to knit, and look fantastic with lots of colorways. What’s not to love?

Filed Under: Monkey Socks

V-Day

February 14, 2008 By

Yesterday afternoon I spent about 15-20 minutes on my hands and knees trying to decide if I was in labor or not. Clearly I wasn’t. Last night I kept dreaming that my water broke. Over and over it seemed. I’ve come to believe that pregnancy definitely comes full circle. At the beginning you’re paranoid about every twitch and cramp because you think it might be the end, and now, I’m paranoid about every twitch and cramp because OH MY GOD! It might be the END!

Then, this morning, I threw up.

But still, I’m not ready for it to be over. I find myself feeling a bit crampy here and there and suddenly I’m making deals with the baby. Don’t come out, PLEASE, don’t come out until X is done. Then you can come out anytime you like. Of course, the days continue to drag at a god awful slow pace, but yet the projects keep piling up and nothing seems to get done. Of course, I can’t work as hard as I’d like. I’m in the middle of going through all these boxes of papers that need to be piled and filed and after about an hour I have to get up and lay on the couch for like two hours. Then I can go back and work for another hour. Then I have to rest for THREE hours. So you see why nothing is getting done.

The pediatrician was great – we felt a very good vibe. She was excited for us and I just know she’ll be loving toward our kid. Philosophy wise we meshed well and the office was friendly and big and I’m confident. Also, at least one of their offices is open 365 days a year. Very nice.

The other day my mom told me she really wanted to see my nephews and niece on Thursday and I was like what’s Thursday? Valentine’s Day! It’s such NOT a big deal in our house. Kind of the way we feel about Thanksgiving – like if you need a day to remind yourself to thank all the people around you – that’s kind of lame. Same thing with love. I’d like to think that my husband and family and friends know how much I love them because I tell them and show them all the time, not because I gave them lots of candy on a particular day in February.

That said, when I got home from taking my husband to the train station this morning I found the sweetest box of Curious George chocolates on my desk chair. The box said, “I’m bananas for you!” I totally burst into tears. Many of you may think it about your own mates, but I KNOW I’m the luckiest girl in the world. My guy has taken such unbelievable care of me and our baby – there aren’t words to describe my gratitude. Not that I didn’t think he would, but he’s stepped up in ways that I couldn’t even imagine. Thank you my love! Thank you!

I started a new pair of socks. I wanted another pair of monkeys because garter stitch and monkeys are about all I can handle these days and I wanted to go in a different direction with the yarn. So far all of my monkeys have been heavily variegated, but I sort of fell in love with Claudia’s Chocolate Monkeys and I wanted to try more of a semi-solid. Then I decided that I wanted them to be red. And that they should be my going home from the hospital socks. My baby will be head to toe in red so why shouldn’t my feet be clad in red? (Of course, the way my luck is going it will be 90 degrees that day, but still!) So life-affirming. And seemingly a good color for labor, you know? Placenta socks, if you will. 😉

I went through my STR stash and pulled out all the semi-solid reds I had on hand. There were a lot of them, surprisingly and it was kind of hard to decide. Then I found this skein:


Mystery Monkeys

The only thing about this skein? I have no idea is what it is. I’m 99.9% sure it’s STR – it feels the same and looks the same and was in with all my other STR (yes, I do keep the STR separate from all the other sock yarns!) But there is no label. Or at least none that I could find. And I compared it to all the other red STRs and it’s definitely different. So don’t ask me the colorway, or if it’s available or anything because I have no idea. Mystery Monkeys. I’m thinking the yarn was some kind of stash gift and destined to be my birthing socks. [ETA: I’m fairly certain it’s not Ruby Slippers. I made a pair of jaywalkers from Ruby Slippers and the repeats are very long. The repeats in the mystery yarn are much shorter and there are more color variations.]

I’ve barely started them, but I’ll have some train time tomorrow as I’m going down to Philly for the weekend. This will most likely be my last trip down there before the baby comes and changes everything. We’re doing a belly cast this weekend! I’ve done one for my sister for all three of her kids, so it’s pay back. Pictures next week hopefully! Have a great weekend!

Filed Under: Baby? OH BABY!, Monkey Socks

A Prince of A Monkey

February 5, 2008 By

Even with all the excitement during the big game on Sunday, I managed to finish my Purple Rain monkey socks. I love them. ‘Natch.

For all of you who’ve been living under a rock, through no fault of your own I’m sure, I’ll give you the particulars. The pattern is Monkey by the genius that is Cookie A. All the credit for the Picot Edge mod should go to Margene because she’s the one who did it first. Wizard Woman Tina dyed the yarn – STR. Purple Rain colorway. Don’t ask me if it’s available. If it’s not on the website, it probably means the colorway’s not in the rotation at this time. Don’t hate me because I have a large stash of the stuff.

I am definitely NOT sick of this pattern yet. In fact, yesterday I cast on for a new pair, but I’m not loving the harmony between the colorway and the sock. I may go a completely different direction in colorways on the next pair. I have to go through my stash again and make some decisions.

Thanks for all the kind comments on Oblique – and on my belly! This pregnancy thing is so weird. All of a sudden, sort of like, you’re this completely different person. Not just mentally and emotionally – but PHYSICALLY! What happened to me? I don’t remember what it felt like to NOT be pregnant.

The drilling today is driving me nuts. BONKERS. C-A-R-A-Z-Y! So I think I’m going to eat some breakfast (or MORE breakfast) and take a walk in the fog wearing my new cozy sweater and new socks. My polling place is pretty close by so I think I can make it there and back without too many breaks. If you live in a primary state, I could care less who you vote for – that’s your personal business and just like I don’t think anyone should tell you who you should (or shouldn’t) marry or which god you should worship – I don’t think anyone should tell you how to vote. You should vote the way YOU believe is right for you and your family. But you should definitely VOTE.

That’s my public service message for the day. Have a good one!

Filed Under: Monkey Socks, Socks

Monkey Feet

January 25, 2008 By

Hey! Check it out! It’s a SOCK!

I finished my first purple monkey last night (STR Lightweight Purple Rain.) I honestly forgot how much I absolutely adore those tiny little sock stitches. They look so perfect. I’m so glad I’ve remembered!

So here’s the deal on why I haven’t worn any monkeys until recently (although now I haven’t taken them off.) I started knitting monkeys in May. The last pair I finished was in August and I started the first purple sock in August. I don’t think I need to tell you that May through August equals NO WOOL SOCKS. I’m a barefoot girl in general, but I do like to wear my handknit socks. I usually wear them all winter. But I also wear these shoes most of the winter. They have a very warm fleece lining which is perfect for bare feet. (I actually really like going out in the cold with bare feet and these shoes. It’s a little bit decadent and wrong.)

Also, this winter hadn’t been so cold until recently and I’M PREGNANT. Which means I’m 80 million degrees most of the time. And nothing makes you hotter faster than wool on your feet. Trust me.

There’s also a little secret weird thing I do with my socks. I don’t weave in the ends until I’m ready to wear them. I finish the sock, I photograph it for the blog, and then I stick it in my sock drawer. When I’m ready to wear them I take them out and weave in the ends. So strange. The real truth is that anytime I reached for a sock this winter I remembered I hadn’t woven in the ends and went for a Jaywalker instead. Sad but true. Now you know the whole story.

I can’t wait to cast on for the second sock and I’m already planning what I’m going to knit next! Jaywalkers and Monkeys are PERFECT for my beloved STR Variegated yarn – anyone have any other pattern they’ve had particular success with in terms of variegated yarns? I’d love to hear about it!

I’ve also finished the collar on Oblique.

Which means all I have left is some quicky ribbing on the sleeves and seams. I hope to have it finished by the weekend. This thing is HUGE. But I still love it.

I’ve got some yarn coming to me for a very special project that I’m chomping at the bit to start. Hopefully I’ll have it for next week! And I’ve got another project that I hope to get on the needles this weekend. At least cast on. If only I didn’t have all this cleaning to do. Or taxes. Or other work stuff I’d be KNITTING KNITTING KNITTING!

I’m also planning on a major fiber sale. Time to make room for baby. Stay tuned!
Have a great weekend!
L, C

Filed Under: Monkey Socks, Oblique, Socks

Dream Baby Dream

January 22, 2008 By

Last night I had an awful dream – I was injecting myself with something and I knew that injecting myself with this “stuff” was going to kill me, but I did it anyway.

Yeah. Not so much fun to wake up to a suicide dream. Although, I realize, that it has nothing to do with suicide and everything to do with being pregnant. I’m thinking that the injections symbolized the fertility drugs I had to take to get pregnant and the dying wasn’t so much a physical death but a METAphysical death. You know – like the death of my current identity being morphed into my NEW identity as a mother? Just my armchair psychology for the day, but it was spooky nonetheless. Took me awhile to fall back to sleep again.

I’ve pretty much escaped the crazy dreams of pregnancy. I have one every now and then but most of the time I’m pregnant in my “regular” dreams and I’m always telling people I can’t do this or that because DUH I’m pregnant. Tellingly I wasn’t pregnant in last night’s dream. Georgie, my poor sweet, has been shouldering the bulk of the nightmares this pregnancy. I think because I manage to work out my anxieties while I’m awake rather than asleep.

The identity dream fits well with all the work we’ve been doing around the house. Sunday we needed two cars to schlep the FIFTEEN bags we had filled to the Salvation Army. FIFTEEN and yet our house is still filled with crap and looks a mess. Georgie started moving things out of the room that will eventually be the baby’s which means I have to now SHARE the spaces I’ve called my own for the last ten years. Not too much resentment here. I walk into my closet and there’s all of his STUFF.

It’s okay. I’ll get used to it. And it’s not like we’re all freaked out that the room won’t be ready for the baby, per se. I mean, the furniture and stuff won’t be delivered until AFTER the baby’s born – it’s that we have 16 years of accumulated CRAP that needs to be weeded through and thrown out and the baby is just an excuse. I keep telling myself that this is a great exercise because hopefully sometime in the next year we will be moving and there won’t be as much to throw out when we do!

It is a daunting task though. Yesterday I actually got down on my hands and knees and vacuumed the base boards next to my bed and underneath my night stand. DISGUSTING. I told my sister and she said WOW – you really are nesting. Guess it’s true.

I also did some knitting!


Friday – when we had no heat or hot water – it turns out a transformer blew in our building. So in order to fix it they had to turn off all of our electricity. They did this at 2PM. I thought GREAT! I’ll get out my Creative (like an IPOD only BETTER) and listen to some podcasts and finish Oblique’s sleeves! Only the Creative was dead. So I knit to the tune of jackhammers (they had electricity, of course) until the sun went down. Then G came home and rescued me from the cold and the dark. Sometime while we were out, the lights went back on – as well as the heat and hot water.

I did manage to finish the sleeves. And I did the button bands on the body AND I seamed the raglans. All I need to do now is the collar, finish seaming and decide what to do with the bottom of the sleeves. I sort of draped it on my shoulders and this thing is HUGE! I think, it will get a bit smaller once it’s all seamed up, but still – it’s like a blanket coat! Which isn’t necessarily a bad thing at all. I hope to have it finished by the end of the week. There’s a chance I’m going to run out of yarn, but I have an angel helping me out. Margene has the yarn in her stash and she’s going to send me a skein. Although, I think, now, I might be okay. Fingers crossed!

I knit something else yesterday too!

Believe it or not, I wore my first pair of monkeys Sunday night! We had a party to go to and I wanted some fancy socks in case I took my shoes off and I pulled a pair of monkeys out of my sock drawer. I have never worn ANY of the monkey socks I knit! NONE! I mentioned that I’ve been thinking about socks a lot lately and wearing them was so fantastic that I took out the Purple Rain STR Monkey that I started a million years ago – actually it was back in August. Last I knit these I was on the heel flap. Yesterday I managed to finish the flap, turn the heel and knit the gusset! All night long I kept telling Georgie how good it felt to be knitting SOCKS! This was all punctuated by the fact that I went through my “pedestrian” sock drawer over the weekend and got rid of EVERYTHING. I told G – once you’ve gone handknit – you never go back.

Thank you all for all your encouragement and support about my last post. I’m much calmer now (although we do have childbirth class tonight) and I’m handling my fears pretty well. I’ve been reading some stuff – stuff that pisses me off and makes me feel VERY judged and stuff that assuages my fears and lets me know that whatever I want is truly fine. It seems to me that the baby will be coming out of my body – in some way shape or form and that’s NATURAL. Nothing about this pregnancy started out conventional – so who’s to say the end will be that way as well? I’m open. Truly open. And I think that can only be a good thing for my body as well as my mind. I have some very solid ideas about how I want things to go – and that really has more to do with how I want to be treated (with respect and honesty and intelligence) than the actual EVENTS that take place. I trust my husband implicitly that he will help me to have the best birth I can have. So thank you for your confidence in me. It means a lot.

Off to get rid of more stuff! It’s so FREEING!
L, C

Filed Under: Baby? OH BABY!, Monkey Socks, Oblique, Socks

Purple Rain

August 10, 2007 By

I started a new pair of monkeys yesterday. The yarn is STR Lightweight Purple Rain (it’s not on the website right now – I have no idea if it will be up anytime soon.) It’s got me thinking about my teenage movie memories: Class, the first R rated movie I was allowed to see IN the movies. It was such a big deal to get permission! And what an awful movie! Footloose! Oh my god – we actually DANCED in the AISLES! Crazy! Romancing The Stone – the first “date movie” I ever went on – and really – the first date. I’ve always loved that movie. Ghostbusters – I saw it like five times – IN the theater. There was the time I lied and told my mom there was a double feature, when actually we went to two movies back to back. It was one of the Friday the 13th movies and Against All Odds. My mom came into the theater looking for me with my baby sister (literally a toddler at the time) and possibly my other siblings. I remember realizing she was there right during the hot pyramid love scene with Jeff Bridges and Rachel Ward. Too much for this fourteen yr old to handle for sure! Man did I get in trouble! Now that I think back – 1984 was a HUGE movie year in my life. HUGE.

Purple Rain huge. I’ll never forget seeing this movie in the theater – we saw it at least twice. At the Orleans Theater. Did we take the bus there? It was summer and my boyfriend worked at Kinney shoes at the Roosevelt Mall and I remember walking over there after the movie – was it the first or second time my girlfriends and I saw it? And I think he was pissed because I liked it so much. It was a CRAZY movie. Unlike anything I had seen before. Morris Day and the Time totally stole the show too! I’ll never forget it. I’m not the biggest Prince fan in the world (although I’d LOVE to go to a concert – I’ve heard from Bruce fanatics that he rivals our beloved live performance wise) but Darling Nikki will always have a place in my heart.

What was your movie “year” so to speak? What movies changed your teen life forever?
See you next week! Have a good weekend!

Filed Under: Monkey Socks

Hot Sox

August 7, 2007 By

Not only is today my beloved’s birthday, but it’s ONE MILLION DEGREES OUTSIDE! What better way to celebrate than a new pair of socks!

At least they’re minis!

Yes, my friends, it’s another pair of monkeys off the needles. As I previously mentioned, this yarn is STR Seastone – a discontinued colorway in the OLD (325 yds) put up. PERFECT for mini-monkeys!

This is my FIFTH completed pair of monkey socks and as such, I thought a bit of a monkey parade was in order:

From left to right you’ve got: minimonkeys in STR Seastone, regular monkeys in STR Rare Gems; regular monkeys in STR Dutch Canyon; picot monkeys in STR Chicabiddy, and minimonkeys in STR Watermelon Tourmaline. I am in NO WAY FINISHED with monkeys! I will be choosing a new color to cast on today! And I can guarantee two things – no THREE things. 1) They will be knit with STR. 2) They will have a Picot Edge. And 3) They will be regular size. You’ll just have to wait and see what color I pick. SO MANY to choose from…. Hmmmm.

Thanks for all the anniversary wishes. Poor Georgie’s getting a bum deal on both the anniversary AND his birthday, as I’m still not up to par. I’ll make it up to him though – don’t you worry. And he’s planning on getting himself a new toy so that should ease things a bit.

Two things I want to put out there – Have you seen Norma’s NEW (old) cause? The Red Scarf Project has taken on a whole new dimension – one that I can get on board with for sure. Don’t feel like knitting a scarf (my most dreaded project honestly) then you can GIVE MONEY instead! Check it out!

Also, Eve needs editors for upcoming issues of YARNIVAL! It’s not that hard and you get great exposure to all kinds of new and interesting blogs. Plus it’s a great way to give your OWN blog exposure! Come on! What are you waiting for?

Filed Under: Monkey Socks

ChickaMonkey

July 25, 2007 By

Geez! I’m just posting later and later these days. I’m sorry. I would’ve posted earlier today but we had an Internet blip – you know the kind. Where you call your provider and they hang up on you because EVERYONE is calling to bitch them out. All is well though and I’m just so glad because I have a finished pair of socks to show you!

New monkeys! Yup, that’s right, monkey socks. Bored yet? I’m not! I love these socks! They might just be my favorite pair of Monkeys!

The yarn is Lightweight Socks That Rock in the Chickabiddy colorway. Tina told me that this yarn will be available in the Fall on the website – so if you like it, wait for it! I LOVE IT! It’s the perfect combination of pinks and browns and yellows and oranges and reds. PERFECT! And the picot, well, the picot is ALWAYS perfect. I knit these on two 2.5mm Addi Turbo circulars (US #1s.)

I was asked the other day my secret to getting my STR socks to rock so well – meaning – no obvious pooling. The secret is the number of stitches on the needles, needle size, pattern and I suspect a bit of kismet as well.

The best way to illustrate this is with a picture of a knee high I knit last year using ONE SKEIN of lightweight STR.

Click on it for a bigger version to open in a separate window. See that knee high – I used ONE SKEIN throughout. Never changed yarn ever – but look how it changes? And I never changed needles either – Addi Turbo US 1 – 2.5 mm – circular needles. The only thing that changed was the stitch count. I started off with (I think) 88 stitches, increased up to over 100 then decreased down all the way to 64 stitches, which is my personal sock stitch number. (You know – the pattern that you figure out after you’ve made a bunch of socks that you stick with – favorite toe, favorite heel, stitch count.) There’s pooling around the gusset because I added stitches, but then look at the pretty stripes on the foot – that’s the magic number 64.

Now that’s to say it’s MY magic number. I don’t know what your magic number is. Maybe, honestly, you don’t have one with Socks That Rock. I’ve never knit socks with Mediumweight STR (or Heavyweight STR for that matter) so I can ONLY speak to Lightweight STR. This is MY preferred sock yarn. It works for me. Once you add a pattern into the mix, it might change everything. Different patterns use different amounts of yarn and they may mess with your magic. If you love the pattern and the yarn doesn’t work, try a new yarn. If you love the yarn and the pattern’s not working, try a new pattern.

One other thing I’ve learned – with Monkeys at least – they look so much better with a REALLY variegated yarn. Lots of color changes. The STR I’ve used so far have had a least four different color changes. Anything less and they’re going to look really stripey. Unless you use a solid or semi-solid – that should look great too.

There are a MILLION sock yarns out there – new ones everyday from what I can see on the net. Find your yarn – your number – your passion. It’s out there. Just look for it!

Filed Under: Monkey Socks, Socks

KABUKI!

July 19, 2007 By

So Tuesday night we went to see Kabuki! with my sister and her boyfriend and OH MY GOD! It was THE MOST FUN EVER!!!! I was simply amazed from beginning to end!

First off, when we arrived at Lincoln Center, Midsummer Night Swing was in full swing, so to speak. Then there were all the wonderful Japanese ladies in full traditional dress: kimonos, obis – the works! They were all so beautiful!

We went in and got in line for translation headsets so we could figure out what was going on. G was concerned that they might be intrusive, but it was like having a funny little man whispering in your ear. Much appreciated. We had GREAT seats (third row orchestra center!) and as soon as we sat down I noticed that none other than James Lipton, from Inside The Actors Studio, was a few rows behind us. Or maybe it was Will Ferrell? No, I’m pretty sure it was Lipton. (If you know what’s good for you, you’ll watch the Will Ferrell link. It’s Ferrell and Baldwin at their scrumtralecent!)

There was a walkway or runway that came out into the audience and led to a doorway off stage in the middle of the theater. Lots of times actors would come in and out of the door and down the runway, so I was always looking to my left. I immediately noticed the actor who was Paul Buchman’s father on Mad About You, Louis Zorich. I pointed him out to my sister, who said it looked like Olympia Dukakis was sitting next to him. Turns out the two have been married since 1962! Olympia and I had a little tete-a-tete when we were returning our headsets. You had to give up some form of ID to get a headset and all these people were standing there describing their credit cards so they could get them back. We were shaking our heads at the chaos and talking about how easy we all just gave up our personal IDs. She has beautiful skin and gorgeous silver hair.

Anyway, back to the show – did I say it was FANTASTIC? It was unbelievably good. Better than good – great! The first two acts felt very much like a Shakespearean tragicomedy. It was VERY sexy and bawdy. Basically all these men are after the same woman, and they’re also after this scroll, and the main character is actually a rogue disguised as a priest. It gets really violent in the end of the second act – almost everyone dies – and limbs were literally flying! I think an arm landed on the seat directly in front of me. GREAT!

The last act, though, was spectacular. The dead priest comes out as a spirit disguised as the woman who everyone was in love with and the man who won her can’t decide which is the “real” woman (which is kind of funny because everyone on stage was male.) This part, I think, was more traditional Kabuki – there was a group of musicians on the stage and it was all very elaborate make-up and dancing and the priest’s spirit becomes more and more ominous and his face is constantly changing and the music is getting louder and louder and they’re throwing out streamers from the stage and cherry blossoms are dropping everywhere and I felt like it was July 4th and New Year’s wrapped up into one and I swear my mouth was open the whole time and the frenzy was incredible. At one point I turned to G and told him this was the most amazing thing EVER! WHEW!

On our way out of the theater, Japanese TV snagged my sister’s boyfriend and I and interviewed us like we just saw Cats or something. What did we think? Fabulous, AMAZING! First time at Kabuki? Yes! And so on. it was so much fun! The New York Times has a really nice review of the show here, and you can see some pictures as well. If you’re in the area and you can get over there, please do! It was an experience I won’t soon forget!

We didn’t have any time for Moth pictures, but it was perfect for the cool theater. And I felt special wearing it.

Okay – sock time! I finished my STR Chicabiddy Monkey sock and it might just be my favorite one yet!

I did a picot edge and six repeats on the cuff. I probably could’ve done seven, but I’m happy with the six. Seven it might be a bit snug at the top. I’ve had some questions about the picot edge – I talk about it here. Also, one thing I do – and I forget who taught me this – is that I cast on over two needles so my cast on is nice and loose. This helps a lot when picking up the picot edge.

I just love the way the colors come together on this sock – the oranges and reds and pinks and yellows and browns. I’m so happy with this yarn. Like I said before, STR Chicabiddy in Lightweight. It’s not on the Blue Moon website right now, but it should be available in the Fall.

You know what I like super best about this sock? It totally matches the gorgeous flowers my sister brought me to Kabuki. Even though the flowers will die eventually, the sock will remind me of Kabuki night and my sweet baby sister.

PS – I don’t know where my head is at these days! THANK YOU ALL SO MUCH for your good wishes for G’s continued good health. It means so much to us – now, of course, but especially when it was all going on. We won’t forget all the best wishes and prayers. Ever. Thank you!

Filed Under: Monkey Socks

Six Months

July 17, 2007 By

One of the things that made yesterday such a great day was that G had his six month cancer check and he’s ALL CLEAR! YAY!

It’s just so awful being back at that hospital and my heart goes out to everyone dealing with cancer – or any other illness that has the potential to rip your family apart. It’s such a scary place.

But we’re all good.

I promised you a finished sock today, but alas, I fell down on the job:

It’s an almost finished monkey. I’ve got about two repeats and the foot to do. I probably won’t be able to get it done today, though, because in just a few short hours Moth will make it’s debut! We’re going to Kabuki! The show is part of the Lincoln Center Festival and I’m really excited about it. My youngest sister and her boyfriend will be joining us – she just got back from Japan so it’s great timing. We figure we’ll celebrate our OTHER sister’s birthday today. Happy Birthday Sis! We love you!

PS – I’ll try to get a picture of me and the shawl together. No promises though!

Filed Under: Life, Monkey Socks
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