The Miseducation of January One

August 24, 2006 By

Yesterday was all about the learnin’. I will share.

~~ When you change a password, best check what that changed password will affect. The comments are working now.

~~ Spin all your singles up at once. Then ply everything up at once. It will make for a more consistent finished yarn – especially given my newbie status.

I finished spinning up the 8 oz I had of Moonstone, merino roving from Spunky Eclectic. I was so looking forward to finishing this stuff up because I had grand grand plans for it! I was going to make my first handspun project from this yarn. And now that it’s off the bobbins, I’ve got to say, I’m a bit disappointed. I should clarify – this has EVERYTHING to do with my spinning and NOTHING to do with the fiber. Of all the fiber I’ve spun (which is limited – I will admit) Spunky Eclectic is by far my favorite – for the color AND the prep. I was quite pleased with the first batch (see post here). I managed a nice tight ply and I liked that a lot. This time around, not so much.

Can you see the difference?

How about now?

NOW?!? New yarn on the left, old yarn on the right.

The new yarn is not as tight at ALL. And therefore I think it looks a little loosy and sloppy. It’s not as smooth. Although it looks a TON better now that it’s been washed and dried. It’s also a bit thinner. I finally see a reason for two wheels. Before you all either start laughing or groaning – how great would it be to have one wheel for plying – where I could keep the tension and everything JUST SO and then be spinning on another wheel where I could also keep the tension and everything JUST SO. As it is now, I’m going to have to spin up all of the singles and THEN start plying. Clearly I’m not good enough to go back and forth. I need the stability of keeping things JUST SO.

In the first batch I’ve got about 310 yds and the second batch I’ve got about 566 yds, so a decent amount. I had wanted to make a shawl with it – and I guess I still could – I could use the 310 yds at the top of the shawl – where it’s a bit bigger, and then use the rest as it gets to the point. Any and all suggestions for about 800 yds of fingering weight (I’m guessing here) would be great. I’d love a pattern that shows off the yarn – so something with a bit of stockinette to it would be great.

Eh. I’ll do better next time.

By the way – before I change topics – CJ asked me to mention a new swap she and Christina have put together: The Spinning Roving Swap. All information can be found at that link. I’m off swaps for a while now, but if I was going to get in on one – this looks really good. Different sign ups for people wanting to learn to spin, and for experienced spinners. Check it out.

~~ Don’t be afraid to try new things.

I’m very reluctant to show you this:


Yup. It’s a toe up sock – STR – Pebble Beach colorway – old put up. I had almost given up the other day when I had tried the Magic Cast On, Wendy’s short row method and Purly’s YO method. Then, yesterday in the comments (before I broke them), Rachel mentioned that I should try the Turkish Cast On. So I checked a couple tutorials and MY GOD. This is the most mind-blowingly easy thing I have ever tried. Just wrap the yarn around two needles and start knitting. Seriously. LOOK AT THIS TOE!


The top down knee high I just finished – kitchener stitch at the close – is on the left and the brand new toe up Turkish Cast On goodness is on the right. They barely look any different. All you toe up people – why would you use anything other than this cast on? Also, I love me some M1. I’ve mastered the right leaning M1 and the left leaning M1 and it’s so much nicer (TO ME) than short rows. So much nicer. Check it out!


Again, top down on the left, toe up on the right. You can barely tell the difference. Recently I’ve learned that I like a wider toe. I start my toe decreases very late – almost at the top of my pinky toe, and then I decrease four stitches every other row until I have fourteen on the top of the toe and the bottom of the toe (28 altogether.) Then I slip the stitch right inside the outer stitches over the outer stitch (I read it somewhere – makes the toe a bit rounder and not as pointy on the edges) then kitchener the 24 remaining stitches. Perfection!

So yesterday, I cast on 24 stitches – 12 on the top, 12 on the bottom) and knit a couple rows then started increasing four stitches every other round until I got to 64. DONE! Perfection
!

The jury is still out on these socks, though, because I really don’t like a short row heel. So if I can’t figure out the toe up heel flap – I don’t know. This might be a 325 yd STR prototype and then I’ll start knitting from the top down again. Question for anyone out there that has knit a toe up heel flap: When knitting from the top down, I generally have about 58 rows between my last gusset decrease and the start of my toe decreases. Is it the same when knitting toe up – should I start my gusset INCREASES at row 59 from the toe decreases? How do you know where to start the heel? THANK YOU!

Okay. I’m off to help my newbie again today. She’s finished the bottom of her bag – I’m so proud. Unfortunately the dog ate my homework. I’ve done like 20 rows out of 66 on my own bag.

Have a great day!

Filed Under: Spin, Toe Up

My Lips are Sealed

August 23, 2006 By

You know. What happens in Lawn Guyland, stays in Lawn Guyland. Not really, but I only took out the camera when there was work to be done (yes, it was a semi-working holiday) and everything’s more entertaining with pictures, don’t you think? I will say this: there was lots of discussion about tomatoes in season, Vicki’s pin-up choices, Jim Croce and The Lady in the Water. Fun times, as always.

Oh yeah. And right before I was leaving for the long trek home, I finished these:


Want to see the other side?


I love them.

DETAILS: Knit on Size #1 Addi Turbo circulars, I used this knee high pattern to figure out the increasing and decreasing. Eventually I made it down to my standard 64 stitch sock. The yarn is Socks That Rock, Jewel of the Nile colorway, two 325 yd skeins. I had 5/8ths of an oz remaining for each sock. Straight stockinette socks. I’m not sure what else there is to tell but ask in the comments if you think of something. [ETA: The shoes are Naot Sea. Very comfortable.]

This is how I would have envisioned wearing my fabulously fantastic new knee highs, if I was, say, ten years younger.


Alas, this is how I will probably be seen wearing the knee highs. (Well, only really seen by my husband and any unlucky neighbors that happen to catch me on the balcony checking the weather. Or peeping through the windows. Ew. Gross. Stop that!)



And, of course, no sock post is complete without the patent pending Sock Shot®. Everyone’s doing it.


(Just so you know, I flipped the picture. Liked it better this way.)

Alrighty. I’m off to finish the little bit of plying I have left and then I don’t know – I might try to do a toe-up cast on again because I’m really itching to try this toe up heel flap sock. I want to start knitting through my STR stash and I have a lot of 325 yd skeins so I don’t want to waste a single stitch. Or I could clean up my house. Decisions, decisions.

Filed Under: Knee Highs

Lawn Guyland is for Knitters

August 21, 2006 By

I’m off for a few days of sun, surf and knitty love. See you Wednesday! Knit well and prosper.

Filed Under: Vacations

Life’s a Beach

August 18, 2006 By

Yesterday, while at the beach, happily knitting away on my knee high sock while listening to Leonard Lopate on my Creative (I think I found my podcast of choice, by the way), I WAS ATTACKED!

Well, really, I was walking back from the water where I had gotten my feet wet. We were looking for our stuff and had just located it when I shifted my eyes to the right a little bit. I was attracted to a bright pink standing out against the sand. Something in a seagull’s beak…. MY KNITTING!!!!! THE FREAKING BIRD STOLE MY KNITTING!!!!!

I grabbed my boobs and ran as fast as I could in the hot sand screaming like a banshee (are we allowed to say banshee? Or is that not politically correct?) The bird sort of waddled away from me nonplussed and I scooped up my ziploc bag with the very edge of my fingernails. GROSS!!!!!

The people closest to us were laughing at me. They asked if there was food in the bag and I said no YARN! They mumbled something about the bird grabbing the bag a few times and I wanted to say to them WHY DIDN’T YOU GET OFF YOUR FAT ASS AND SCARE IT AWAY INSTEAD OF LAUGHING? There’s a hearty dose of respect for you.

Lest you think I left the bag out in the open, I didn’t. It was closed up tight IN MY BEACH BAG. And lest you think I had food in my bag, I didn’t. THERE WAS NO FOOD IN MY BAG. Not even food for thought, unless you count two issues of the New Yorker, Barbara Walker’s Knitting from the Top and three Soap Opera magazines.

Oh my god I was so pissed. The seagull that perpetrated this horrible attack was as big as a house. G said it was no wonder – that bird would eat anything.

Forget bears, I should’ve added birds to my list.

All’s well now and I’ve gotten over it sort of – I still hate birds – but the socks survived without any apparent trauma.


The pooling is pretty similar on both socks, but the new sock is a bit lighter than the first sock – the first sock had some really dark color running through it and the new sock doesn’t have any of that. I think they look good. I hope to have the second sock finished this weekend. I’ve done about nine decreases – so only eight more to go before I get to the regular sock part.

I’m off to spend the day with my newbie knitter. She’s an old old friend I used to work with and we recently reconnected over our knitting. She’s moving away from scarves and onto felted bags. I prefer felted bags as a newbie project because they can get the time in on the knitting and they don’t have to really worry about the stitches. It’s all going to disappear anyway. AND they have a beautiful functional piece. I’m not really a scarf person either. We’re going to knit a bag together – or we’re going to each knit a bag at the same time. So I’ll have some new stuff to report come Monday. I think I’m going to make the Elizabeth Bag from Black Sheep. In red Donegal Tweed. Nice.

Have a great weekend all!

Filed Under: Knee Highs

Sweet Dreams Are Made of This

August 17, 2006 By

NOT!

I woke up this morning from a bad, bad dream. I was writing bad checks all over the place. Fun times. Add that to the list of things I hate. I immediately went and paid all my bills.

Oh yeah and I found something even more boring than spinning the second 4oz of singles. PLYING the second 4oz of singles. But I know now that spinning really IS zen if you can get past the monkey brain. Have you ever tried meditation? I’ve only done it a few times, but I could never get past the spot where all the thoughts good bad and uglier than ugly just run around in your “empty” mind willy nilly causing trouble. I think I did it twice and realized NOT.FOR.ME! I need to be active in some way or else I’ll go crazy. My mind can never be empty – or emptiness leads to OCD which leads to insanity. Spinning is like meditation – not quite as bad because at least you are doing something physical, but once I hit that groove – right tension, right treadle speed, etc. I got the monkey mind. I think if I was able to get PAST that it might actually be zen like but for the time being it was a bit too much and I stopped.

And then I started to knit. I managed to knit the short row shoulders on the back of my BW Top Down Sweater and looking on in the directions I can visualize what I will have to do for the front as well. I’m quite excited about it. It only took me three tries to get the short rows right which is nothing short of embarrassing since not that long ago I was Short Row QUEEN. But alas, it is true: USE IT OR LOSE IT.

Today there will be LOTS of knitting. Mostly on the knee high which I hope to have finished by the weekend. Pictures tomorrow. I’m excited to see how the pooling does or does not match up.

Boring I know. Thanks for all the comments yesterday. I found it funny that a lot the comments were about the people who let their dogs off leash AND that those comments were mostly from dog owners. They say all you need is love but I’m not so sure about that. I think all you need is RESPECT. We’re sorely lacking that in today’s world. So go on out and respect someone today. Go ahead. I dare you!

Filed Under: Miscellaneous

Hate is just another four letter word.

August 16, 2006 By

Like L-O-V-E.

I’ve been accused of loving everything – actually becoming obsessed over everything – and it didn’t feel very loving when it was said – but I’m here to tell you that it’s just not true. I can hate blindly and deeply along with the rest of you.

To prove it, I’m giving you my very own Stephen Colbert ON NOTICE list that I originally saw over at Julia’s. I don’t think my post will match the brilliance of hers (and by the way, she stole all the things I hate) but I’m going to give it a go.

People who let their dogs off leash
See here. There are places where you are allowed to have your dog off a leash. Go there. I could give two shits that your dog is so well trained you taught him to shit on cue, keep him on a leash. Oh and my god there’s a special place in hell for those of you who HAVE the leash, in hand, but don’t put it on the dog. Poor little doggies. It must be just awful to live with you.

Slowpokes in the left lane
(Not to be confused with Snakes on a Plane. Those are okay.) PASS on the left. PASS. Not PASS OUT. Move the fuck over.

Islamojewchristianhindufascists
Orginally I had islamojewchristianhindubuddhistfascists but G said that was taking it a bit far. I mean, who ever heard of a buddhist fascist? (Richard Gere doesn’t count.) Also it didn’t fit. Here at January One, we’re all about equal opportunity hatred. I don’t care who you are and what god you might happen to subscribe to – if you kill, maim, disparage, torture, discriminate against, or do anything other than love and respect those that do not believe what you believe IN THE NAME OF YOUR GOD, then you don’t deserve a place on this fine planet. Nuff said.

Party Poopers
You know who these people are. They have something to say about everything and more likely than not it’s negative. You know what? My life isn’t so great all the time, but I CAN CHOOSE not to dwell on the negative. Or at least try not too. It’s going to rain (when the sun’s up in the sky.) You’re doing it wrong (my way or the highway.) She’s happy all the time (walk a minute in my shoes.) GET OVER YOURSELF. If you don’t have anything nice to say, then find another Party Pooper and go to it. There is so much negativity in this world why perpetrate it? And THERE IS SO MUCH DIVERSITY it’s paralyzing sometimes. SO IF YOU DON’T LIKE WHAT I/WE/THEM ARE DOING – GO FIND SOMETHING ELSE!!!

The smell of your cooking
Dude. It might be your favorite dish in the whole freaking world and your grandmother’s secret recipe from the old country and I’m happy for you that the recipe survived three wars, two marriages and a boat ride across the Atlantic BUT I DON’T WANT TO SMELL IT IN MY BEDROOM. Please turn the fan on in your kitchen. That’s why you have it.

Humidity
I’m rendered speechless by the hate.

Entitlement whores
Ah. One of my favorites. I should be able to drive any car/truck I want regardless of its damaging effects on the enviroment and the safety of others because THIS IS AMERICA GODDAMIT! My kid should be able to push your kid around in the sandbox without repercussions because kids will be kids and THIS IS A FREE COUNTRY GODDAMIT! My problems are the most important problems in the world and must be attended to this instant because THAT’S WHAT DEMOCRACY STANDS FOR! I want it NOW. I don’t want to wait. I don’t want to work for it. I WANT IT THE WAY I WANT IT BECAUSE THAT IS MY RIGHT UNDER THE GOOD OL RED WHITE AND BLUE. What happened to this fine country? I’m all for individual freedoms and rights and the pursuit of happiness but we all still have to live together. Whether we like it or not, sometimes that means doing things for the greater good. We’re not all perfect, but we can try a helluva lot harder to RESPECT. R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Find out what it means to me.

Pain
Emotional pain. Mental pain. Physical pain. Psychic pain. Pains in the ass. I’m against it all. But especially the pain that my love suffers through every single day. That pain I hate more than anything.

Whew! That felt good! I encourage you all to try it. Thanks person who was so judgemental towards me! I appreciate it!

Yesterday I spent all day fixing up things around here. If you’ll take a moment to notice – I cleaned up the sidebar. There is now a drop down hierarchical topic list for better navigation, as well as a search bar. I hope it makes your reading easier and more efficient. Also, I moved all of the Spin Out information over to its new home: SPIN-OUT.ORG! Getting things ready a bit early for Spin Out 2007. I had a bit of trouble though and accidentally erased the blog for Crossed In Translation. Eventually I will get it all back up – it’s been very very slow for awhile anyway, so I’m not going to kill myself, but BE CAREFUL. Back up your blogs and my god check like eighty times before you hit that delete button.

My back is feeling better – thanks for all the suggestions. I had a really weird episode with a chiro once (had nothing to do with back cracking and everything to do with being half naked in an exam room and being seriously creeped out) so I won’t be going back anytime soon. I’m sure you understand. Anyway, I rested it good yesterday (read: no knitting or spinning) and that seemed to work for me. The other night I did cast on for my BW top down sweater – which meant CROCHET. My god that provisional cast on is fiddly. But I did it and then started the short rows for the shoulders but didn’t like the way I was doing it on the purl side so I ripped and I have yet to go back. I did do some work on my STR Knee High number 2 – I’m past the ribbing so it’s SMOOTH sailing from here on out. Maybe some plying on tap for today. We’ll see.

Have a FANTASTIC DAY!
L, C

Filed Under: Miscellaneous

My Aching Back

August 14, 2006 By

G and I were sitting on the couch, both of us in pain, and he said how much it sucked to get old. Now he just had a birthday putting him in the EIGHT YEARS OLDER than me category and I said, “DUDE I am not old.” And he replied, “That’s what makes you all the more pathetic.”

Fucker. I hate it when he’s right.

I know I’ve talked about this before – god, it’s over ten years now – once upon a time G went away on a business trip and I slept funny in the bed and it got a little too cold that night and the muscles between my shoulder blades basically froze and I was in extraordinary pain for a couple of days. I remember going to work that morning and almost throwing up on the subway and when I took a car service home the jostling in the car almost made me pass out. I was able to function after a couple of days and it went away completely about a week later but it left me with a weak spot. Know what I mean? Whenever I sleep a little too deep or the temperature drops a bit or the sun transverses the moon at a 180° trajectory or some other such nonesense I get a nice crick in the muscles between my shoulders. See what happens when you wish for Fall and Summer’s not finished with you yet?

I woke up Saturday and true to rules of the universe, my funk seemed to have passed, but my back was killing me. I’ve never ever had it as bad as the first time, but it’s annoying nonetheless and I want to weep for my husband who is in physical pain on a pretty much constant basis. I probably would be better right now but I’m not because, you see, my husband was in more pain than usual this weekend and nothing tortures my sweet boy more than the weather being a shade better than perfect and him not being able to run around on the tennis court. A good indication as to how much pain he’s in: he asked ME to play tennis with him.

I was going to the tennis court anyway to sit and knit and enjoy the outdoors while he played but he said he might not be able to find anyone to play with so could I bring my stuff. Just in case. I said sure full well knowing he’d find someone. I mean it’s been AGES since I played with him. No such luck. You know what? I’m not bad. He even said I could be really good if I took lessons. You know why? Agression. I’ve got it in spades. I’m not kidding. One time we took a golf lesson out in Palm Springs and I could barely connect with the golf ball but the pro was really impressed. He told G that I had a lot of agression in my swing and “you can’t teach that.” The same applies to tennis. One guy that was there told G that I hit really hard. I do. And I love it when G hits hard back. (Go to it google freaks.)

About thirty seconds into playing I knew I was going to pay for it the rest of the weekend. It didn’t really hurt my back to play, but I knew that as soon as I cooled off I was going to be fucked.

Fucker. I hate it when I’m right.

My back has been awful ever since. And not just my back but pretty much every other muscle in my torso, and a couple in my legs and arms too. Although I have been able to wrangle quite a few BENGAY massages this weekend. Soooo sexxxy!

I did have fun though. I’m looking forward to playing again – sooner rather than later. I also did a lot of knitting and a lot of spinning, neither of which helped my body recover at all. BUT I finished spinning up the rest of the Blue Heaven singles. I think I’m going to wait a few days to ply it all because I want my back to be better not worse. And, of course, I finished the first of the STR Knee Highs. G, in particular, loves the sock. He’s already requested the outfit I’m to wear with it but honestly, these babies will be staying under cover. Like wearing sexy underwear – only you know it’s there but oh does it make you feel good. I’ve cast on for the next one and I’m about halfway through the ribbing. I can’t get a really comfy position to knit with though so I don’t know what I’m going to do. Request for stats on the sock: US #1 Addis. I started with 325 yds of STR (in the old put up) and I have a little more than 1/2 oz left. Not sure what the yardage on that would be. You probably need AT LEAST 500 yds depending on how high you want to go and how big your leg is. I start out with 88 stitches, increase up to 98, then head all the way back down to 64. Whee!

Before I called it a day fiber wise, I decided to turn my attention to the roving Teyani sent me to finish off my Sock Hop Knee Highs. Now that the Blue Heaven only has plying left, I can think ahead to spinning up the heel/toe yarn:

I quickly (read: sloppily – I was in pain and frankly tired of spinning) spun up about a tenth of an ounce of roving to see how it would look and to test run if I can get it thin enough. I think I did okay considering I was high off BENGAY fumes.

The colored yarn is a couple strands from each of the skeins I’m using for the sock bodies. My plan now is to spin it up (I’ve got enough for like five pairs of socks here – at least it seems that way) and do the heels and knit with the old stuff until I run out or I need to start decreasing for the toes. Then, I MIGHT, might – depending on how it looks, clip the cast on stitches and unravel the American Pie yarn down to the stockinette and then knit it back in stockinette and only then start the ribbing with the new blue stuff. Does that make sense? Would it work? I’ve only got like 20 rows of ribbing – then I can make them extra long. We’ll see. But I have a feeling it will work just fine.

Filed Under: Knee Highs, Sock Hop Socks, Spin

I love to knit!

August 13, 2006 By


Filed Under: Knee Highs

Ask and ye shall receive

August 11, 2006 By

You guys are worse than a thousand [insert ethnic group of choice here] mothers! Sheesh! Morgan‘s comment yesterday sent me over the edge though. The guilt was just too much and I pulled this baby off the couch:



I know it’s not the palette one or the green one but it IS a log cabin. That counts right? I finished binding off the latest red section then did the newest white section and then I’d had enough. I did actually do a few rows on the main piece of the palette blanket – I’ve only got like 2.5 strips to go on that one and the big piece is finished – but I couldn’t do it. It was late and I was sort of on fiber overload.

Here’s a picture of the back of the Chance Log Cabin:



People always ask to see the back. I don’t think it’s so bad really, but then I’ve successfully woven in the ends of Short Rows, so, this is a piece of cake.



Here are some stats to date in case you’re interested:

Yarn: Socks that Rock Heavyweight in the colorways Lover’s Leap (red), Earth (brown), Rock Salt (white), Cotton Candy (pink) and Black Onyx (black.)
Needles: US Size 5 Addi Turbos
Pattern: It’s RANDOM.

Currently, the piece is measuring 23.5″ x 27″ and according to the handy dandy spreadsheet I’m keeping of all the numbers, I’m through 28 sections. I plan on continuing until I run out of yarn. I’ve got a ways to go I’m afraid. I know I’ve said all this before, but people keep asking. And currently I don’t have a good way of searching the archives or a complete listing of categories, but I’m working on that. It’s in the queue.




This thing’s getting harder and harder to photograph in a pleasing kind of way, but I try. I have to say, the pictures don’t do it justice. It’s SO MUCH BETTER in real life.

Yesterday was a long day. G never made it in to the office, but it certainly didn’t feel like he was home. CNN was on the TV all day and I loathe cable news so I stayed in the bedroom doing what I do best. That is, not cleaning and doing fiber stuff. I spun some more and I decided that slow and steady wins the race. As much as I’d like to spin it all up in one day and get it over with, I’m better off taking my time and stopping when I get really bored. So that’s what I did and I much more pleased with the spinning results. I hope I didn’t fuck things up too bad the other day. Yesterday’s session went much easier as I spent the time daydreaming about what I’m going to knit with my fabulous yarn. A shawl of some sort. It really depends on how much I end up with.

And I continued on with my knee high.


The pooling took a rather drastic turn around 76-70 stitches! Check this out!



It’s starting to even out again now that I’m one decrease away from my beloved 64 stitches. I think it’s going to be pretty good and maybe I can start churning out plain stockinette STR socks. Wouldn’t that be cool? I’m a dork, yes I am! I find the whole hand dyed hand painted yarn and how it’s manipulated by the number of stitches very very fascinating. Anyway, the sock fits perfectly. Natch. I LOVE THIS PATTERN!!!

Today is a NEW DAY people!! This morning I opened the window as I often do, to smell the weather. Fortunately or unfortunately, depending of course, I have a very highly honed sense of smell. Forget doppler radar and all that shit – I can tell what the weather will be like by my nose. And today? Well today when I stuck my schnoz out there I squealed like a $2 whore!

“What?” said my husband. “What is it? I’m coming!” He ran to the balcony door.
“Shit, it’s cold out.”
“I know.” I sighed. “Isn’t it great?”

Filed Under: Chance v.1, Knee Highs

Wake Up Call

August 10, 2006 By

It’s been an exciting morning in the JanuaryOne household, and not in the good way. G’s work cell rang at 6AM this morning and I was up for good the second I heard him say WOW. When you are head of Travel in the Americas for a Global Bank – this is not a good thing. Not good at all. He’s been on the phone since 6AM – literally the phone has not stopped ringing. He’s home today, but not the way I want him home.

So I’ve been hiding out in the bedroom knitting on my new knee high.


Sorry to leave you hanging on the socks yesterday – dramatic license and all. You know how it is. The yarn is Socks That Rock in the Jewel of the Nile colorway. I have to say – it’s been a while since I knit with STR lightweight and OH MY how I’ve missed it. I just absolutely love knitting with this yarn: I love Tina’s colors, I love the fabric it creates, I love how it knits – the way the yarn feels between my fingers, the way it slides off the needles – EVERYTHING!

There’s a bit of pooling in the mid calf section where I’ve increased to the largest number of stitches, but I’m excited about it because I see it as kind of an experiment – I’m decreasing now and I can’t wait to see if it pools a bit more when the numbers get increasingly smaller. I’m not one of those people who really hates pooling or anything – it is what it is. I had a moment of wishing that I had alternated skeins, but I got over it quickly. There’s a pattern in the pooling – I’m not sure if you can see it in the pictures – but the blues seem to go through the reds and yellows as if they are striping. I like that.

It just so happens that I have two skeins of this colorway from the old put up – so 325 yds each. Just perfect for knee highs. I added about 8 extra rows before I started increasing for the calf and I probably could’ve added more but I decided to be safe rather than sorry. I can’t wait to get down to my regular 64 stitches – I’ve never knit just plain stockinette STR socks and I want to see how my 64 on 1s works with the yarn – will it pool away? Stripe? Do something else? Something completely unexpected? Stockinette is my best friend these days and I’m sticking with it. For socks at least.


Vicki asked me yesterday in the comments how I take pictures of my legs/feet when I photograph my socks. Very simple. I bend over.


Filed Under: Knee Highs
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