FO Friday: UniZebraCorn Vanilla Socks

I win at deadline knitting! Even though it was a self imposed one, lol. My UniZebraCorn socks are COMPLETE!

Pattern: My own toe vanilla sock recipe with 68 stitches (Rav link)

Yarn: KirbyWirby Old Faithful Sock in the Uniexbracorn colorway

Needles: US 1s

I ended up using roughly 324 yards of yarn which is roughly 72 grams of the 100 gram skein. So I have a nice little ball leftover for my memory blanket and other scrappy project.

The fit worked out well and my “recipe” for the afterthought heel still fits. I add extra plain rows at the beginning of the heel before starting the decrease rows. I progressive use less plain rows between decrease rows until I work down to a traditional every other row.

I have these washed and sitting in my sock drawer for the next cold snap! Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Victorian Mauve Vanilla Socks

I was scheduled for not one but TWO four hour block meetings this week. That means my Victorian Mauve Socks are DONE!

Pattern: My own 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock recipe

Needles: US 1

Yarn: La Bien Aimee Tough Sock in Victorian Mauve colorway

I couldn’t be happier with the finished product on these socks. They fit great and the BFL really feels like its going to hold up well over time. I need to give them a good bath and get them tucked in my sock drawer for winter!

I used 62 grams or roughly 288 yards of the 400 yard skein. I have PLENTY of yarn leftover for my memory blanket and probably another scrappy project. This yarn was yummy to work with and the speckles are some of the bests I have worked with.

Now I need to plan my next pair of socks for next week’s four hour block. Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Catbells Cardigan

Hurrah! My Catbells Cardigan is done done done!

Pattern: Catbells Cardiagn by Megan Nodecker (Rav Link)

Yarn: Briggs and Little Regal 2-ply in Midnight Blue

Needles: US 8 and US 6

Mods: I added 2 inches of length to the body and modified the sleeve decreases to accommodate my strong upper arms.

This sweater was a labor of love and took way longer to make than it should have. I also made several mistakes in the lace that I just fudged back into place because NO ONE will ever notice, lol. This sweater crushed some major stash. I used almost 6 skeins of yarn that equates to 1,500 yards of yarn out of stash!

The finished sweater is super cozy and VERY warm. Briggs and Little Regal is not a next to skin soft yarn but should compensate by being hard wearing, especially on the bottom where I will sit on it. This pattern was well designed and gets high marks from me but I don’t think I would make it again. The all over patterning is just slow knitting for me and probably why it took over a year to finish.

It is starting to get cooler around here so I feel like this garment will come in very handy! Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Connections Beanie (Dark)

My Connections Beanie (Dark) is off the needles, washed and blocked. It turned out not too shabby!

Pattern: Connections Beanie by Susan Lobos Garcia (Rav Link)

Yarn: The Shepherd’s Mill 2-ply sport in Light Yellow and Aqua

Needles: US 4 and 5

Mods: One accidental error in the colorwork chart that I consciously chose not to go back and fix.

The crown decreases went fairly well. I had a few tension problems around the centered decreases. But after all the trials around this hat I just wanted to be done. This dark version of the pattern is the smaller size so this hat technically fits me it is definitely better suited for PB or Jellybean.

I would knit this pattern again, but I think I need a break to get over my frustrations around this version. Totally on me as the knitter and not an issue of the pattern. Happy Friday and Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Connections Beanie (Light)

As predicted my Connections Beanie (Light) quite literally fell off my needles. I even managed to wash and dry the beanie to even out the stitches!

Pattern: Connections Beanie (Light) – Ravelry link

Yarn: The Shepherd’s Mill 3 ply Sport in yellow and blue

Needles: US 4 and 5s

Mods: none

The slip stitch colorwork was a dream and I finished in one night. The decreases caused me a little more grief. I ended up with more stiches than I was supposed to in one of the sections. In my true fashion, I just fudged some extra decreases and made it work. You literally cannot tell!

I have quite a bit of yarn leftover so my plan is to cast on the second version in the pattern, the dark version. I just have to hype myself up for the 20 rounds of special ribbing first…

Happy Friday and Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Celebrate The Night Socks

I caught some hours in the natural daylight and managed to get my second afterthought heel installed in my Celebrate the Night socks. I was even a good knitter and have all the ends woven in!

Pattern: My own 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock “recipe”

Needles: US 1s

Yarn: Cozy Knitter Sock Set in “Celebrate The Night”

I used 265 yards or 72 grams of the 115 gram sock set. So I have plenty of leftovers to add to my memory blanket and other scrap projects. I am pretty happy with the overall fit. I did increase four stitches in the upper leg to add ease for my calves.

Now I just need to figure out what my next cast on for socks is going to be! Happy Knitting!!

FO Monday? GFOA Conference Hat

Happy 4th of July to all my American friends. The kiddos and I have plans to set off a few fireworks and make a TON of s’mores later. But for now I have Jellybean helping me model my latest finished object, my GFOA Conference Hat!

Pattern: My own 80 stitch beanie with an improvised pony tail hole

Yarn: Urth Uneek Worsted

Needles: US 8s

I didn’t use up the full skein. This hat only used 156 yards or just about 70% of the skein. So I have a pretty decent chunk leftover of this skein. Too much to throw away but not enough to make a hole project.

Now, Jellybean doesn’t exactly have a pony tail to model so you will have to use your imagination. But It’s a nice fit and I think this will be a keeper for our winter hat bin. The folded brim is keenly warm and the stripes make me happy.

Now I’m off to relax and celebrate. Happy Knitting!!

Catbells Reignited

I have a confession, its been a year since I have touched my Catbells cardigan. I just wasn’t feeling it but I have had the itch to have more sweaters for winter and my cold office.

Thanks to a little women’s college softball on TV, I have the first section of the upper back done. It took me a minute to get into the groove of the lace but I got there. DEFINITELY have some mistakes in there. But you know what? Dark navy yarn hides a lot of sins, lol.

Now I need to break out my Ott light and pick up stitches for the right front. My eyes aren’t what they used to be!

Happy Friday and Happy Knitting!

FO Friday: Stark Effect Socks

I did manage to clean my craft area just enough to find a plastic tapestry needle. Not my first choice but it got the job done and my Stark Effect Socks are complete!

Pattern: My own 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock “recipe”

Yarn: String Theory Colorwork Inertia Self Striping in the Stark Effect Colorway

Needles: US 1

Mods: none

They turned out fantastic and a great fit on my foot. As with all my afterthought heels I add in extra plain rounds to the heel to accommodate my high instep.

They are also almost a perfect match. Which I totally managed and did on purpose. It does mean I have to tiny balls of yarn left that aren’t in color sequence. I will still find something to do with them, probably my memory blanket?

In the meantime, I’m off to pick out my next sock project! Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Paintbox Socks, Take Two

The second heel breezed right along this week and now I have a FO to share! My Paintbox Socks, Take Two are done and ready for the sock drawer.

Pattern: A basic 64 stitch vanilla sock make a sock snake/tube

Yarn: Stranded Dyeworks OOAK Paintbox color

Needles: US 1s for cuffs, toes and heels

I used up almost every bit of the remaining sock snake that equated to roughly 195 yards of the main color. The contrast heels are from a Knitting Fever Teenie Weenie Wool mini where I used about 30 yards. So all in all, these shorties are just over 200 yards.

The fit is pretty good but like the first pair, I need to test these in some shoes to see how they perform. And in the meantime, I need to find my next pair of socks to start knitting! Happy Knitting!!