Land o’ Sunshine

The Quinn purse is almost complete!   I have finished the actual knitting and now comes the time for the finishing work.  What a phrase.   It sounds dreary to me.   Unfortunately, it is the finishing work that makes a project look the best.  Most often, my finishing work is sloppy and not thought out.  

This is the side panel, as viewed from the front.   How do I know?  Well, from the mistake(s), of course!    I’m sure you don’t notice those mistakes, though, right?   Ha!   It does need a blocking before I do the lining, but I’m an impatient sort of gal (hence my finishing work problems), and I don’t want to wait for it to dry. 

Speaking of the lining, I am currently trying to decide about the fabric I should use.   I have some scraps to use up (read, I’m too cheap and broke to buy new fabric for such a small project).   I’m leaning toward the green.   Or maybe the butterfly?   Or maybe the stripe.   Obviously, I am undecided, so I guess I better block it and that will give me some time.  What do you think?  

Here is my latest sock.   I ended up choosing Gentleman’s Fancy Sock from Vintage Socks by NB.  The yarn is a dream to knit, the pattern is cool and easy to knit.   The picture makes this look better than it really is.  Strange, its usually the other way around. 

I  looked at my sock collection this morning and it is amazing how many blue socks I have.   When I finish these, 50% of my socks will be in the blue family.   I think I had better branch out a little.   The LYS is getting a shipment of Lorna’s Laces soon, so my credit will be going toward more sock yarn.   Maybe I’ll let one of the kids pick. 

My sockapalooza 4 socks have arrived.   They are beautiful.  They were knit by Jennifer from TN.  

Here they are in the 90+ degree NC weather (ok, its really my living room which explains the crap pictures).  

The pictures don’t do the pattern or the yarn justice.   It is a blue-green-silver-grey color that is going to perfect for jeans or khakis.   The pattern is her first lacy one and it looks fabulous.   She did a great job keeping track of all those YO’s!!!  

Thank you for the wonderful socks.  

Today’s the big sockapalooza mail date!   Everything is packed, sealed, and postage done.  All that is left is for the mail pickup around 4pm.   Boy I hope the socks fit (is anyone else worried about that??).

There are some postcards, a few corny sock pictures from town, some goodies, the socks, and a new knitting bag.   Sock Pal, when you read this, don’t examine my seams to closely on the bag…I am a newbie seamtress.  The other important thing, put the cookie mix from The Old Mill in the refridgerator. 

I hurriedly put together a sock sleeve.   I wanted a contrasting color, but I don’t think the robin’s egg blue really works with the reds in the sock but I didn’t have any other cardstock that looked any better. 

Sockapalooza 4 was a great experience for me.   I enjoyed picking and buying a new yarn and finding a pattern that would look nice with it.   I loved working with Cider Moon (the yarn and the company are great!).   Before these socks, I hadn’t knit using a varigated/tonal yarn before.   I enjoyed traveling around town trying to find some postcards.  Who knew they would it would be a hunt to find a postcard?  If I had been more organized, I would have done a little information card about High Point, but time, life, and laziness got in the way of that one.   Besides, this isn’t the vacation swap, its a sock swap! 

I hope the socks fit! 

Since I have no socks on the needles right now, I am in sock limbo.   I have the yarn picked out, but the pattern is being elusive.  

The yarn is Apple Laine Apple Pie yarn in the Blueberry colorway.   It is great stuff, mohair and silk, yum.   I want a pattern that will show off the yarn, but after finishing Thuja, I’m a little sick of the rib-esque look.  

I have cast on for Monkey, by Cookie A.   Normally, I am not a follower, but this pattern seems great for the variagated yarns.   I have cast on THREE times.   Twice for the picot edge–disaster–and once more was user error.  I have forbidden myself to cast on anything after 9pm.   My brain turns to mush and I forget basic skills like reading and interpretation of said reading. 

Anyway, I am sick of the Monkey.   Any suggestions for patterns?   I have Knitting Vintage Socks and 25 Favorite Socks, so patterns from there would be great.   I don’t like pooling and I want to see the actually stitch pattern, so help a fellow knitter out. 

I finished a pair of languishing socks on Friday night. I cast on for these in April (?). They must have felt horribly neglected when the yarn from Cider Moon came and I immediately cast on and finished those socks, bought MORE sock yarn, and cast on for another pair.

Thuja Sock
Pattern: Thuja from Knitty

Yarn: Gloss Essential from Knitpicks, in Serengheti colorway.

Needles: Size 1 US (Boy did it feel strange to pick those little needles up after knitting the Wallaby on US 6 and the other socks on US4).

Modifications: Since Thuja calls for a worsted weight yarn, which I didn’t have, I used fingering and just cast on 64 stitches (per Ann Budd pattern). The heel and the toe were both from Knitting Vintage Socks. I don’t remember the heel, but the toe was a wide toe.

Misc: Originally I used a three needle bind off for the first sock, but it felt too cramped and weird, so I ripped that out and add another 1/2 inch in length. I redid the wide toe with the Kitchner.   When I was decreasing on the gusset, I stopped before I did on sock #1.   I counted and I thought it was the same, but when I was finishing the toe….it obviously wasn’t.   The wide toe on the left is much wider than the wide toe on the right.   I actually like the left one better, so it is something to remember….

Well, the new camera arrived Monday (a 4:25pm arrival with a guarantee delivery time of 4:30pm.   That stuff steams me.).  

Our new potholder rug.   The kids like to slide it around the kitchen and family room.   I like it in front of the kitchen sink.   It could have been a little longer, but I didn’t want a $11 rug, so we stuck with the one bag.   These were cotton loops and I would highly recommend those.   I’ll let you know how much it shrinks.  

These are the Sockapalooza 4 socks.   Proof that they are indeed finished.  

A little washcloth for my S4 pal.   It is done in the remains of Wick yarn.   I love this yarn, but it really reminds me of how much I need to moisturize my hands.   It is super soft.  I hope she uses it…(or at least doesn’t think it is stupid).  

The Wallaby is finished.    It is still a little snug in the shoulders.    I washed and blocked it and it helped a little.    Pictures tomorrow.   I don’t think there will be action shots though.

Knitting to Do/Done: 

1.  Mason-Dixon Potholder Rug.   I was checking out some yard sales two weekends ago and I came across a 16 oz bag of cotton potholder loops.   The loops and a hardcover coffee table book about America’s baseball stadiums was $2.00.   The bag of loops sells in Hobby Lobby for $3.50.     I came home and taught the kids how to link all the loops together and then rolled them into a gynormous ball of many colors.   I bought the size US 35 straight needles (and contemplated buying more loops, but didn’t) and started knitting.  It looks fabulous.   It would be better slightly longer, but it is so cute.  Right now it is by the kitchen sink.   

2.  Wallaby.   This is the bane of my existance.   I am almost finished with the hood and will commence the Kitchner to finish it up.   Weaving in the ends is a daunting task, but I need the size 6 needles for another project, so I MUST finish it today.    Then I will wash, block, and let dry and PRAY it somehow transforms to fit hubby’s shoulders.  

3.  Scarf.   Sunshine Son #1 has been bugging, begging, asking to learn how to knit.   We started yesterday.   US 8 needles with superwash wool in a green color.   He is making a scarf for his brother and announced he would make one for his sister as well (pink, if you please).

4.  Retro Rib Socks.  These are for hubby.  I am using the Cascade Fixation for them.  They are working up quickly, but he nubbly nature of the Cascade doesn’t really enhance the pattern of the retro rib.    I hope he likes them.  

5. Quinn Purse.   A cable purse that I am hoping to start tomorrow.   I will be using bamboo handles rather than the knit handle.   This is the project I need the size 6 needles for.   

 Non-knitting to do list.   I am going to try to do some sewing tonight.   I have the following I’d like to get done this weekend:

1.  Pajama pants for hubby.   They are a blue flame fabric.   Pretty basic, I just need to get cutting and sewing. 

2. Pillowcase dress for Sunshine daughter.   I don’t have any ribbon for the it yet, but I think if I can get it measured and sewn, then the ribbon should be a peice of cake.   Now, anyone have ideas on how to get her to wear the darn thing?  

3.  Bend the Rules Sewing.   I purchased this last night with some birthday money from my MIL.   I think a purse and some placemats and napkins are up first.   I am going to look through my limited piles and see what I can come up with for those projects.   If you haven’t checked out the book yet, GO DO IT.   It is a great book, especially for the novice sewer or sporadic sewer.  

That is all the news here.  Monday I should have some pictures of the list above!  Our new camera arrives on Monday.   Have a great weekend!

They are complete!   The Sockopalooza socks are done!     For a while they were winging along so fast and then halfway through the second thought, they came to a screeching halt.   It felt as if they would never end.    Something clicked and they magically finished.   The ends are woven in.   They aren’t washed and blocked…yet.    Don’t tell the knitting powers that be, but, I wonder, why block socks?  I just wear my socks right off the needles.   So do you block? 

Despite the picture of the socks incomplete, they are finished…now where did I put them?   Oh, a little confession too.  I have been emailing and writing the pal these socks are intended for and the last email I…sent her a sneak peak of her socks.   Normally I would post this on the Pligg, but b/c I have flashed the sock pal with a preview, I won’t do that. 

Here are the particulars:

Pattern: Campfire Socks from Cider Moon

Yarn: Matador colorway in Glacier

Needles: Size 4 DPNs

Modifications:  None. 

Time to Complete: About 2-3 weeks.  Man, I really need to keep better track of this. 

Thoughts:  I really liked working on these socks.  Not only did they knit up quickly, the pattern really kept the pattern interesting.   I’m sure that I will do another one of these socks again.    I am trying not to be too critical, but I am still finding imperfections.  

Let me tell you why I don’t have a  picture of the TWO socks.   Our Cannon Powershoot is winging its way back to the Cannon repair facility.    Hopefully (cross your fingers!),  Cannon will be replacing the CCD (I have no idea what that is) inside the camera and we will once again be able to take awesome decent pictures.   If the CCD is not broken (?), then who the hell knows what that means for our camera, our budget (ha), and our checkbook.  

So no new pictures for a few weeks.   Since there is no camera around I am sure there will be THOUSANDS of times I will be cursing Cannon.   I am almost tempted to go get a disposable camera for those camera moments.  

I wanted to share some of my latest sock yarn acquisitions.  

I am not really a stash kind of girl, but I couldn’t resist when I saw this lovely bit of goodness.   The best part?   The price!   Check out Good Yarn Karma and share some of your yarn that is unloved!

This is Apple Laine yarn in the colorway Blueberry pie.   I am “almost” ready to cast on for a new pair of socks.   This is such yummy yarn.   Any suggestions for patterns??   25 Favorite Socks is winging its way here, so maybe there are some ideas there.

Next up some yarn from A Piece of Vermont.   There is a ton of yarn in this skein.  

This is the Aloe colorway.   Another awesome yarn to love and touch.  It too needs a great pattern.  

In non related sock news, my sockapolooza socks are FINISHED!!!   Since the rain is gone, I will try and post a picture of them.   They are wonderful.   It is a good thing my pal has such longer feet than I do.  I might never send them off.   Now I am hard at work to find some frugal things to pack into her box.  

Those were the words I heard yesterday afternoon as I met the mailman at the box.   “My favorite kind of package, nice and light.”   Postmark?  Ohio.  O-hi-O means Cider Moon!   Yeah.  

So this is the beautiful yarn that so lightly arrived yesterday.   The colorway is perfect for my sock pal.   I do still love the “hot flash” colorway, but the yellow in it would have been a disappointment.   There will be lots of pinky-red goodness.   (Thanks to Cider Moon for winding the yarn into a ball for me before they sent it.)  

In addition to Matador, there were some samples of other colorways.  AWESOME!  

This samplese are great, especially the two semi-solid colorways.    It was great to see the weights of the yarn too.   I am excited to see how Matador knits up. 

Casting on begins tomorrow!