Category Archives: Knitting

All my knitting adventures

Vanilla Maple For The Win

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After a lot of thinking and possibly flipping a coin the winner is…….vanilla maple socks!

  
I’ve knit and inserted scrap yarn for my afterthought heel. I also decided to do a 2×2 rib for the leg. This sock is on US 0s with 74 stitches total (I normally work 68/70 stitches on US 1s). I was trying to get my normal sock gauge with this Felici that feels a bit finer than other color ways I’ve worked with. So I hedged my bets and went with a ribbed leg that would be more forgiving and hug my leg without falling down.

I’m totally loving these stripes! They are kind of addicting….

Happy knitting!

Checkerboard Update

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I’ve made some tiny progress on my Checkerboard Socks.

  
I’m a HUGE fan of working the afterthought heel as soon as I have enough leg. I work with yarn from my second ball or the other end of the skein. I make sure to weigh the yarn to keep track of how much I used. This way I know how much to leave for the second one. But this is just my quirk about using all of the yarn of my toe up socks. My sock leftovers tend to be TINY or just enough to darn/repair later.

Now I just need to decide how long to make the leg before starting the cuff ribbing. Then of course start the second sock, lol!

Happy knitting

Epic Fail

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I had the most epic fail since becoming a mother. The hubby and I planned a last minute trip to see his family. So not a lot of time to pack that left us scrambling the morning we planned to leave. But we were only going to be gone 24 hours so we didn’t need much. Or so we thought…

We packed one bag of clothes, the toiletry bag, diaper bag, and my pump. I was nursing jellybean while the hubs packed the car. In the last second we tossed in my boppy, some hoodies, and my purse/knitting. And on down the road we went. We arrived safely three hours down the road only to find we left the bag of clothes on our bed (that also had the extra diapers). This meant no clothes for me, the hubs, or jellybean other than what was on our backs. Epic fail! We made a run to Walmart for jammies and an extra set of clothes for everyone (and diapers). Disaster averted.

But at least I didn’t forget my knitting!

  

Rainbow Vanilla Socks

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Shocker of shockers….I’m knitting more socks!

These are vanilla toe up socks in Knit Picks stroll handpaints in a rainbow mix. (I’ll have to check the official name later.)
This yarn is thicker to me than the felici so I’m looking forward to a nice dense sock over 70 stitches on a U.S. 1 needle. I’m already through the toe increases! These are going to be my bedside project. So little by little they should grow.

What’s your bedtime knitting?

Podcast Addicted

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Ok, I may be late to the party…but I’ve discovered the wonder of knitting podcasts. Why have I been missing these??? Seriously they make my work day better and commutes a breeze!

Right now I’m working my way through the Knitmore Girls from the beginning. They are hilarious and in the span of a couple of weeks I’ve chewed through 75 episodes. (Don’t tell the hubby lol). I’ve tried a few more but I’m not sold on them yet so I won’t mention then here. At least for now.

My burning question is do you do the podcast thing and if so who do you listen to?

Maple Vanilla or Vanilla Maple

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I can’t decide…

   
After my Geeky FO last week I’ve decided to cast on some straight vanilla socks. I pulled the maple leaves Felici out of the stash (that you all so graciously voted for) and got to work. I can’t however decide what to call them. They are just full of mapley goodness.

I am wanting a denser sock so I’ve gone down to US 0s and a total of 76 stitches. My gauge should put this in the right fit. Time will tell! Worst case scenario…I rip back and try again.

  
Chloe is helping with this one 😀! Now what to call them…..vanilla maples or maple vanillas???

Happy Knitting!

FO Friday: Geek Socks

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Here they are in all their geeky glory!

  

Pattern: Geek Socks by Wei S. Leong

Yarn: Knit Picks Felici in Lighthouse

Needles: US 1 8 inch circular

Size: 72 stitches

  
My Geek socks were 50% done last we chatted. I put my try hard pants on and packed this project for a recent road trip. With three solid days of knitting in between chasing Jellybean I finished sock #2.

  
My geeks are fraternal rather than identical and I love them! I didn’t follow the pattern exactly. The patternwas written cuff down and I modified it for toe up with an afterthought heel. I just used the pattern chart and adapted it to fit my basic vanilla type sock construction.

I highly recommend this pattern. Just make sure to mind your floats! I had to relax and let the yarn relax on my floats so as not to knit a tiny tight tube, lol.

Now I need to cast on more socks! Happy Knitting!!

Checkerboard Update

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I’ve managed to make some progress on my Checkerboard Socks!

 
I’ve knit the foot and a tiny bit up the leg. And then added the afterthought heel. I like to add my afterthought heels before I finish the leg. I knit the heel from the outside of the ball so all remaining yarn after the heel is done can go in the leg. It might be weird but it works for me and maximizes my yarn.

 

I’m totally digging the variegation in color. And the tiny bit of sparkle is delicious…

  
Now I just need more car knitting to be done! Happy Knitting!!

  

FO Friday: Husband Socks

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The Husband Socks are done!

 
Pattern: my own 3×1 ribbed improvisation 

Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll in Merlot

Needles: US 1

Size: 80 stitch sock for a men’s size 13 foot (at my tension)

  

These socks took forever! But that is the course you take when knitting for big feet. I made this up as I went (from the toe up). I wasn’t very happy with the cuffs. But they are….okay. They fit my husband and only used 75% of the two skeins. If nothing else I know now how to better knit for my husbands foot. The yarn (although very dark) is lovely to work with. These just didn’t get my knitting mojo going so I’m glad they are done.

On to more socks! Happy knitting!

What’s On My Needles #9

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My Checkerboard Socks have seen some dedicated knitting. This sock is how I’m coping with some stress that’s best left unsaid at this point. Don’t worry it’s good stress and specifically to my mother..no jellybean does not have a sibling bun in the oven. But I digress. I’m to the heel of the first sock!

 
This is again a pattern I’m making up as I go. I’ve got 70 stitches for sock but I may nip it in here and there to tailor it to my foot. The design part basically it’s a 5×5 checkerboard, meaning 5 stitches and five rows for each square. I did opt to leave the sole in stockinette.

  
The yarn is from Across The Yarniverse on etsy. It’s handpainted and the colors are lovely! I believe this is the cotton candy color way. Lots of pinks with just a hint of blues mixed in.

The stellina content doesn’t make for the softest feel/hand but I adore it enough I don’t care! At this rate I may have a sock by Saturday!

Happy Knitting!!