Halfway There

For this Friday, I only have a HO. My 2023 Christmas Eve Socks are halfway done.

I did split the ball in yarn by weight. And I was actually surprised by how tall these socks turned out to be. I ended up adding 4 stitches in the leg to accommodate my calves. This sock barely fits on my sock blocker but does fit my foot.

The foot is a little long and that tells me I could have started the heel sooner. But this is still a wearable product so I will I am going to continue. The second sock is cast on my DPNs, but only just barely. Have to try to beat SSS!

Happy Knitting!!

Smaller Was Better

I finished the second and smaller mitt. And as predicted, smaller was better. The 40 stitch mitt was a better fit than the 44 stitch mitt. So I ripped back the bigger one and started it over again. Sometimes, I hate when I am right.

I fortified myself with a strong cup of coffee in my favorite Ted Lasso mug to work the now third mitt. The silver lining? The handspun did rip out fairly well and the re-knitting isn’t terrible. This has alpaca in it so I was worried about felting. So far so good!

Now I just need to finish a third mitt to make a finished pair. Happy Knitting!!

Very Slow Hat Progress

We are still basking in Christmas glow, mostly because I love the lights and we have been too busy to undecorate. My teal dreams hat finally saw some knitting time. I have the brim turned and working up the main hat.

A coworker asked for a ponytail hat and I am considering turning this hat into one of those. I haven’t made one in this construction method but I feel like it wouldn’t be hard. I might even try to incorporate a hair tie for the closure to add stability.

I have much pondering to do. Happy Knitting!!

Car Socks

A recent car trip allowed me to finish the gusset heel on my first 2023 Christmas Eve Cast On socks. Added some color to the rather brown and bland landscape of winter in Kansas.

I will plan to weigh my sock and my ball of yarn to find the total weight. I will pull out the yarn to find halfway and make two (hopefully) equal socks by weight. I don’t use this weight of yarn to make anything scrappy so using all of the yarn is preferable.

Goals: Finish this first sock by week end! Happy Knitting!!

Christmas Eve Socks Progress

I kinda forgot how fast sport weight yarn will go after working so many socks in fingering weight. I have already completed the first foot of my 2023 Christmas Eve Cast On Socks!

Bonus points for them matching my softest and most comfy emotional support leggings. For the socks I need to take some official measurements and then start working my go to gusset heel from Wendy B Johnson. Her patterns/blog are no longer available but you can find them using the Wayback internet thingy.

I don’t know who these socks will be for. They are thicker yarn and more like a boot sock but I am also making them to my measurements. Just flowing with the knitting and I will work out the rest later.

Happy Knitting!!

A Bulky Warm Mitt

Happy New Year!! I am starting 2024 off with some handspun. Hoping this year brings me joy and different challenges than 2023.

I finished most of my first Handspun Mitts and cast on the second. I ended up using a 48 stitch count for the first mitt and it is pretty bulky and loose. It’s not horrible but not what I intended. So I have not yet added the thumb.

For the second mitt, I switched to 40 stitches to see if the smaller mitt is a better fit. When I get both done and figure out which one I like better I plan to frog the loser and reknit to that matching stitch count.

It really didn’t take me long to make this mitt after the holiday hubbub died down. And this handspun is super nice so I won’t mind knitting this again. I’m excited to have super fun handspun mitts that coordinate with my new dress coat!

Happy Knitting!!

A Festive Glove

I am running this knit to the wire but I am getting there! My Teacher gloves are almost done for pair #1. I have been distracted by finishing socks and hats. These will become my next priority!

These are an adult size medium and fit/stretch nicely. So finger crossed (hehehehe) that they fit the kid’s teachers. Oh, and I can crank out a second pair of these yet this week.

The mate has been started so as to avoid SSS (Second sock syndrom) so let’s warm up the hot chocolate and get to knitting!!

2023 Advent Update

A little toasty update to my 2023 advent socks!

The pair on the left are my Cozy Knitter advent and are for sure coming out in a rainbow. Its beyond gorgeous but sometimes late in the evening the subtle fade is hard to detect. Still so happy with it and wouldn’t change a thing!

The pair on the right are my KirbyWirby advent and its Friends themed. These stripes are random but still cohesive. These stripes are smaller than the other advent and will result in shorter socks. And that’s okay, I’m fine with executing the dyers vision

I will try to sneak in one more update before Christmas on these. I’m so stoked to have two new socks for the season!

George And A Little Knitting

The boys had evening events this week so I grabbed PB and took her to the local Children’s Center to see the Curious George exhibit. This place is indoors and full of fun, science, art and lots of room to run. We spent almost 3 hours running around and I CRUSHED the rest of my Chocolate Musselburgh hat.

PB got some solo mommy time and I got lots of steps and stitches complete as well. Can’t ask for more during this hectic season! I am afraid that I am not going to have enough yarn to make this an adult medium hat. I do have some K-Zip Knits scraps of this same base laying around.

I think I will pull those out and use to close up the inside of the beanie like I did with my handspun Musselburgh. Bonus of this time, it will be like weight and wool type. I think I might be able to crank this out after my advent socks tonight!

Happy Knitting!!

Advent Progress

This photo is a few days old but I wanted to show off this gorgeous advent yarn. I think this is day 5? I have also increased both sets of socks from my standard 68 stitches to 72 stiches as my gauge has tightened a bit this year.

The pair on the left is the 2023 KirbyWirby advent skein that is Friends themed. Each day comes with a quote from a character that lines up with the shade. I find them exceptionally fun and its nice to have a chuckle every evening.

The pair on the right is the 2023 Coxy Knitter advent skein. This one has slightly thicker stripes even though I am using the same stitch count and the same size needles. I am betting these will be taller socks. The back to back greens did get my old eyes. I knit these at night and it can be hard to see when the new color starts. But I LOVE the project they are making.

Happy Knitting!!