Tag Archives: self striping

Date Night Knitting

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The Hubs and I scored a date night thanks to the grandparents and the glory is that pumped breast milk. We had some yummy mexican food and margaritas followed by a viewing of Ant Man and the Wasp. I had my Big Bang Vanilla Socks hanging out in my purse and I churned through some of the second tube.

I’m doing my best to make them them match….including the increases for some slight calf shaping I put in the first tube. I managed to catch myself just at the right stripe in the dark at the movies to put in the first set.

I managed to put the set in while PB was snoozing and take some sneaky photos on the bed. I’m loving having these easy tubes to knit on. But I’m not sure how or when I’ll manage to get the afterthought heels installed. Between being back at work and taking care of the house and two kids my knitting time is precious and I’m not left with many brain cells.

Maybe I can get the grandparents to come back?? Happy Knitting!

Big Bang Update

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My Big Bang Vanilla Sock has been growing quietly in the dark.

This is my post-bedtime knitting in the dark while the temperamental PB sleeps in the bassinet next to me. She still has finely tuned baby radar and can tell when she’s alone in the bedroom. Instead of feeling frustrated I take this as an opportunity to knit or honestly….go to sleep too. Babies are exhausting.

This TurtlePurl yarn has an interesting striping sequence. It’s two different two color stripe blocks each separated by a single red stripe. The colors emerge and are a complete surprise to me when I get this out in the daylight. I bought this yarn for the cute name and to be truthful, wasn’t entirely sold on the colors after I started knitting. But they are growing on me.

I have a TON of yarn in this sock set. I’m going to see how long I can stand knitting a plain tube. I am shooting for tall socks but I don’t think I will use up all the yarn. I don’t want to have to figure in calf shaping or too many increases over my standard mid-calf sock recipe. Time will tell!

Happy Knitting!!

Cast On: Big Bang Vanilla Socks

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My needles felt very naked after I finished the Electric Mayhem socks. And I totally NEEDED another self-striping project. My brain was just craving that popcorn knitting of “just one more stripe” type of project.

So I pulled some Turtlepurl Yarns Striped Turtle toes yarn from my stash in the Rock, Paper, Scissors, Lizard, Spock colorway. That is a reference to one of my favorite shows, the Big Bang Theory. And the dyer had already split the 100 grams into two matching 50 gram skeins. I got this wound up and cast on my usual 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock on US 1 needles. I plan to knit tubes again and add afterthought heels later. Based on the yarn….I’m thinking solid red heels. But I’ll see how the tubes turn out first.

Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Electric Mayhem Socks

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My nighttime bedside knitting has proved very fruitful! My Electric Mayhem Socks are in the finished pile!

Pattern: My own 68 stitch toe up vanilla sock with afterthought heel

Yarn: KnitCircus Greatest of East in Electric Mayhem colorway and some generic black sock yarn from Joann’s for the heel.

Needles: US 1 nine inch circular

I managed to use up almost every inch of the 75 grams of this gradient set. I have a tiny ball of the yellow left to save for repairs if needed in the future!

This self-striping gradient was SUPER addictive. Even in the dark I couldn’t see the colors shifting and it was always really cool to see what had appeared when I looked in the morning. The yarn is also substantial and yet soft. I would totally knit this base again!

My one possible hiccup was the heels. They heels were worked on separate occasions (in the light) and I took notes. But they are completely obvious they are two different sized heels! One is larger than the other. It doesn’t appear based on a cursory wearing that it affects the fit. But I should get a better idea when they get a full work out in the fall. I have a bunch left of the black yarn. It wouldn’t be terrible if I had to pull out and re-knit the smaller heel. I guess that’s the bonus of afterthought heels right?

Happy Knitting!!

It’s An Electric HO

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I don’t have any FOs this week, but I do have a HO! My first Electric Mayhem sock is completed. Okay, the tube is done and it still needs a heel in full disclosure. But that’s just a minor detail right?

But LOOK HOW PRETTY THIS IS!! I bow down to the prowess of indie dyers who can self-stripe and make gradients. This is a KnitCircus yarn for those who are curious. And I purchased a 75 gram set so I would make a me sized sock without wasting a precious inch of the wonderful color.

Jellybean is currently hunting Storm Troopers in the backyard before daycare. And so I treated myself to coffee and casting on the second sock on the back patio. Don’t you just love when your baby bump and knitting coordinate?

Happy Knitting!!

These Socks Are Electric

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My Electric Mayhem Socks are just downright addictive….

I have cruised through three of the five color changes and only have a teeny bit of yarn left. I find myself thinking, I’ll just get to the next color and then I can’t quit. This yarn just makes you look like a knitting genius and absolutely baffles the muggles. Not to mention it helps this knitter get through some interminable meetings and webinars.

I only have a few grams of yarn left. I think the plan will be to finish the green section in stockinette and when I hit the yellow I’ll switch to 2×2 ribbing for the cuff. As I said before, I’m just knitting a tube until I run out of yarn and I’ll just cut in an afterthought heel when it’s all said and done. Easy peasey and no complex thinking required….just what the knitting doctor ordered!

Happy Knitting!!

FO Friday: Smooth Operator Socks

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Unfortunately, my time at work turned out exactly as I knew it would…..sooooo many meetings. But I was able to finish my Smooth Operator Socks! Even the end are woven in!

Pattern: Smooth Operator Socks by Susan B Anderson

Needles: US 1 nine inch circs

Mods: none

Yarn: Fibernymph Dye Works Bounce Sock in Bam Zap Pow

Overall, I was very pleased with this project. The heels did in turn out to have no gaps and fit moderately well. (Full disclosure, I have devised my own personal afterthought heel recipe that I absolutely love the fit of…so there as a high bar to clear.) Both socks match remarkably well if I do say so myself! The yarn was extremely nice to work with and I think will stand up well to the abuse that socks tend to take. The pattern was helpful and well written, but what else do you expect from Susan B Anderson?

I did try these on…and my legs and feet are now 34 weeks pregnant. They don’t fit badly but they don’t make my feet feel head over heels in love. Like my Accidental Travel Socks, I think I will tuck these into my drawer for fall and test them again post-preggo legs. They are just a bit tight here and there. If I don’t end up liking them or their fit, well, they can just go in the Christmas box for my sister!

Happy Knitting!!

Now The Toes

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My web-ex and conference call work time continues apace. I literally spent all day yesterday and will have many hours today in meetings. The silver lining….I have one of my Smooth Operator Socks almost to the toe!

(Dex and I enjoyed some quiet time this morning before everyone else woke up this morning.) I’m really hoping to get the second sock to this point today and work on toe decreases! I only need a nine inch foot to fit my tootsies.

And because I’m working cuff-down, I used my Soxyzz ruler to measure my progress! The ruler fit nicely into the heel and tells me exactly where I am. I was suitably pleased and it was much easier than managing the sock with a traditional tape measure.

Wish me luck today….happy knitting!!

SOS Heels

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The heels were a success! Jellybean and the husband had some Lego adventures last night and I was able to work both heels on my Smooth Operator Socks!

The heel came out to roughly two inches which should be good fit for my robust heel and arch. But I have to knit the rest of the feet to find out. As you can tell, I went with the grey contrasting yarn. This was largely motivated by my pregnancy laziness that didn’t want to fuss with pulling from the outside of each ball. It was just much simpler to work from an already wound contrast skein, lol.

I worked the heel exactly as written and I have one reservation. This is a very ‘pointy’ heel for me. My heel is very wide and typically I Kitchener before I get this narrow so that points are not physically under my heel. But I wanted to give this pattern a true test and do it like I’m supposed to.

Now I have some foot knitting to do! Happy Knitting!!

First Smooth Operator Heels

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Working socks in tandem seems to be really working for me lately. I have been knitting my Smooth Operator Socks in tandem on two separate 9 inch circulars.

I split the skein into two balls and I’m working on trying to keep the socks matching. I think I’m maybe one or two rows off, but it’s close enough for me. I worked these socks for six inch legs and then knit the tube past that point a couple more inches. I went ahead used the scrap yarn instructions in the SOS pattern. Now I’ve gotten my needles installed and I’m ready to install the heels. I plan on doing the no gap heel variation from the pattern update that Susan B Anderson added.

I plan on doing some pondering today. Do I use the stripes for the heels….or do I use contrasting grey? Right now it’s a 50/50 tie!

Happy Knitting!!