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More FOs: Carolina.

• Pattern: Carolina (ravelry) by Gigi Silva
• Yarn: sKNITches Limited Edition sock yarn (60% superwash merino / 30% bamboo / 10% nylon), colorway “Cottage”
• Needles: 2.5 mm circular
• Mods: Toe-up, two-at-a-time on one circular, replaced the k3tog’s with a centered double decrease, eye-of-partridge-heel, added calf-shaping.

These socks were the May 2008 challenge in Sockdown: Ravelry. The first round of Sockdown continued in June and July as well, but after finishing this pair I got sucked into Sweater Land…

Time for another Sockdown challenge!

One of the May themes is Gigi Silva (also known as Momma Monkey). Gigi was a wonderfully talented and generous sock designer who sadly succumbed to an illness in February 2008. As a memorial to Gigi, SKA included the option of doing one of her many designs as part of the February challenge. But, since the Sockdown schedule was set up way back in Fall 2007, the intention was always to have her as one of the featured designers in May and no one wanted to change that. So, two chances of knitting one of her designs. Since I didn’t do that in February (I was too busy with the Bayerische and Firestarter Socks), I’m remembering her now.

This is Carolina, knitted in sKNITches Limited Edition sock yarn (60% superwash merino / 30% bamboo / 10% nylon), colorway “Cottage”.

I’m not usually big on pastels but this looks yummy knitted up! The yarn is very soft and shiny — I can’t believe it’s not silk but bamboo.

The weather’s finally getting warmer so it’s time to get out from under a pile of clothes and show some handknit socks. And I’ve got the shoes to go with!

• Pattern: Elegant Ribbed Stockings (Raverly) by Ann Budd (in Favorite Socks)
• Yarn: 384 yard (136 g) of Novita Nalle Colori (75% superwash wool/25% polyamide) in colorway #833 (olive tones/camouflage)
• Needles: 3.0 mm circular for foot, heel and ankle; 3.5 mm for leg and ribbing; 4.0 mm for upper leg (calf shaping)
• Mods: toe-up

The calf shaping is done by going up in needle size (twice!) so these are super easy to knit. I will say, though, that I’m not hugely fond of the resulting fabric. The 4.0 mm needles were a bit too large and the fabric looks loose. (But the socks fit quite nicely, no complaint there.)

And I finally got around getting buttons for Hannah.

Aaand another pair of socks finished. After the Bayerische, these seemed to fly off the needles. The pattern is wonderful and looks much more complicated than it really is to knit. And the fit is marvelous.

• Pattern: The Firestarter (Ravelry) by Yarnissima
• Yarn: Hot Socks Laola (75% superwash wool/25% polyamide) in colorway #655
• Needles: 2.5 mm (foot) and 3.0 mm (leg) circulars
• Mods: Turkish cast-on instead of the suggested provisional cast on and short-row toe; increased one extra stitch at each side for calf shaping; modified Russian bind-off instead of the suggested one

These are probably the best-fitting socks I’ve ever made. The foot is nice and snug, the heel is amazing, and the ribbing on the cuff is wonderfully stretchy.

And then something that’s not socks: Mystic Light (ravelry) mystery shawl by Anna Dalvi in The Knittery 4ply Merino Cashmere Sock (60% merino/20% cashmere/20% nylon, colorway “Midnight”)

The Toe Up Bayerische are done and I’m more than happy that this project is over.

• Pattern: Bayerische Socks (Ravelry) by Eunny Chang
• Yarn: 657 yards (3 skeins) of ONline Linie 2 Supersocke Silk (55% new wool/20% silk/25% polyamide) in colorway #0002 (ice blue)
• Needles: 2.5 mm circular
• Mods: Converted to toe-up and knee-high

I made a foldable ribbing in which you can thread an elastic through but I’m in two minds of whether I should actually sew it down or if I prefer the longer ribbing. And about the yarn… It’s wonderfully soft and smooth and really makes the cables pop but I did notice considerable pilling even before wearing the socks. All that stitch mangling is apparently pretty hard on the yarn too, not just the knitter.

As if that project wasn’t twisted enough, I’ve started another! Another theme in February 2008 Sockdown is new heel construction and these are certainly very unique.

The Firestarter (Ravelry) by Yarnissima

What a perfect colorway and pattern combination for Project Spectrum. These teeny, tiny cables are amazing.

Bayerische Socks have been in my queue for a long while. When I noticed that the February 2008 theme in Sockdown: Ravelry! is Eunny Chang, I figured it’d be a perfect chance to cast on this project.

On Raverly, there are lots of warnings of bent or broken needles or even sprained wrists. Apparently that’s not enough of a challenge cause what do I do? I up the ante by working the socks two-at-a-time on a circular while trying to convert them to toe-up. 

But they are very, very pretty.

I didn’t want the yarn to clash with the stitch pattern so I chose something really uncomplicated and light-colored. Supersocke Silk (55% new wool/20% silk/25% polyamide) was the perfect choice. It’s very soft but with a great twist and the silk gives a great sheen. The twisted stitches really pop up in this yarn!

Here’s two FO’s for Sockdown: Ravelry. Sockdown January 2008 theme was intarsia or Cookie A. and I chose the latter.

• Pattern: Baudelaire (ravelry) by Cookie A. from Summer 2006 Knitty
• Yarn: 315 yards (80 g) of Apleks Superwash in red
• Needles: 2.5 mm aluminum circular
• Mods: I substituted the heel in the pattern with my favorite heel construction, Revisited Widdershins Heel, and eye of partridge heel. The cuffs were quite snug for my feet so I increased 1 purl stitch between the lace pattern and the cables once every 8th row 5 times (total 10 increased sts), then decreased on the first round of ribbing on the back of leg back to 32 sts.

Next up: socks for Sockdown: October (Nancy Bush or cables). Yes, October. I did blog about these when I cast on but not when I finished.

• Pattern: Chausettes (ravelry) from Bergère de France. (The pattern is in French.) Click the pink “TELECHARGER” button to download the pattern in PDF format.
• Yarn: 607 yards (little over 3 skeins) of Hjertegarn Ciao Trunte, color #1380 (sage green)
• Needles: 2.5 mm aluminum circular needle

Mods: Lots!

• I made a hidden casing (pictured above) for elastic by casting on with long-tail provisional cast on, knitting in stockinette for 6 rounds, purl across 1 round, and then 6 rounds in k1, p1 ribbing. Then I unpicked the cast-on edge and knit it together with the live stitches.
• Followed the pattern for the cuff otherwise but made it custom-length (= started heel flap when the cuff seemed long enough for me).
• The pattern had a regular slip-stitch heel flap but I wanted to try the eye of partridge heel since I’d never used it before. It looks very nice with the moss stitch pattern! And you can tell I liked it because I used it on the Baudelaires, too. :)
• Next, decreased 5 stitches more on each side (10 total) than what the pattern called for in the gussets. And because I had fewer stitches remaining, I re-calculated the toe decreases… somehow.
• Ran out of yarn! I could only find 1 ball in the same dye lot so the other toe is a little off-colored. You can’t tell it in the pictures (and even I can’t find it in natural light) but fluorescent light makes it pop up. I loved the first batch of yarn I got (it’s very soft and sproingy) but I was surprised and disappointed that a commercially produced yarn would have such drastic differences in color (and even yarn thickness!) between dye lots. :/

The French socks are chugging along. They’re not super speedy but I’ve made some progress. The stitch pattern is starting to look more interesting the further I work on it. The cables either look like fountains…

… or waterfalls.

The yarn (Hjertegarn Ciao Trunte) is marvelous! It’s soft and sproingy with a great twist. No splittiness. Wonderful!

Clue #2 is out! Must. Knit.

And so begins another month of sock knitting. November challenge in Sockdown: Ravelry is a mystery! This month’s mystery sock pattern is designed by Mona Schmidt of Embossed Leaves fame (among others).

As if one pair wasn’t enough, I’m also working on my October challenge, cables. This is a French pattern from Bergère de France. Yes, it’s in French. No, I don’t speak French. :) The French Knitting Dictionary from Chez Plum is invaluable.

I’m a total toe-up convert and yet here I have not one but two cuff-down socks on the needles. What’s wrong with me?

With just 3 days to spare, I managed to finish my last pair for Summer of Socks 2007: the Radioactive Jaywalkers!

• Pattern: Jaywalker (ravelry) by Grumperina from September 2005 MagKnits
• Yarn: 2 x 50g of Novita Wool (100% merino)
• Needles: 3.0 mm 80 cm aluminum circular needle
• Mods: Knitted toe-up using sport/DK weight yarn in * k-f/b, k6, dd, k6, k-f/b * pattern (34 sts in instep, 28 sts in sole). Revisited Widdershins heel with the following numbers: B28, C44, D12, E20, F8. (They’ll make sense when you read the instructions. :) Increase to 34 sts on the heel/back needle, knit cuff in modded stitch pattern.
• Other: Sixth and final pair for Summer of Socks 2007, Sockdown: Ravelry September 2007 challenge (Grumperina or toe-up)

At the start of Summer of Socks 2007, one of the goals I set for myself was to knit some of the super famous and popular sock patterns that were published while I was away from knitting for a couple of years. I’ve done Monkey, I’ve done Pomatomus — now it’s time for Jaywalkers.

The yarn was dyed with food coloring. I can’t for the life of me get the photos to represent the colors the way they are in person. They’re sort of bright. Like see-from-space-bright. You know that color they use in The Simpsons for nuclear rods? Yeah, that bright. I’m surprised the socks don’t glow in the dark. :D

Minitomus anklets are done!

• Pattern: Pomatomus (ravelry) by Cookie A. from Knitty, Winter 2005
• Yarn: about 60 g of Novita Nalle Colori (75% wool / 25% polyamide), colorway #813 (aqua/light blue/denim)
• Needles: 3.5 mm 80 cm aluminum circular needle
• Other: Summer of Socks 2007 pair #5, Sockdown: Ravelry August 2007 challenge (Sockbug or lace) pair #2

Mods:

• Toe-up, ankle length.
• Revisited Widdershins heel in the k2tog tbl, p1 stitch pattern that was in the original pattern.
• The biggest mod is that I used sport/DK weight yarn so I had to downsize the pattern. In the instep, I had one less horizontal pattern repeat plus 1 st on each side (= 26 sts). 26 sts also on the sole so 52 sts in total.
• Decreased the extra 4 stitches after the heel so that I had 4 pattern repeats horizontally (= 48 sts).
• Continued in k2tog tbl, p1 ribbing on the heel needle until I reached row #1 in the stitch pattern.
• Made a cuff of one full pattern repeat, finished off with an applied I-cord edging.

The Zephyr Socks turned out, unintentionally, knee-highs! The pattern is stretchy and very economical as far as yarn consumption is concerned. I was able to crank out knee-high socks of just two 50 g balls. The yarn doesn’t even have exceptional yardage. In fact, it has less than the wool blends I used for the previous socks.

• Pattern: Zephyr Socks (ravelry) by Domesticat
• Yarn: 2 x 50 g Regia Cotton Jacquard Color (41% new wool / 34% cotton / 25% polyamide), colorway #5436 (blues and grays)
• Needles: 2.5mm 80cm aluminum circular needle
• Mods: Toe-up, Revisited Widdershins heel. Increased one pattern repeat (9 sts) on the back needle above heel to a total of 63 sts. This made the cuff slightly loose in the ankle (but also very easy to put on) but it evened out as I worked further on the cuff. The stitch pattern is very stretchy so I didn’t need to do any calf shaping. Ribbing according to pattern.
• Other: Summer of Socks 2007 pair #4, Sockdown: Ravelry August 2007 challenge (Sockbug or lace) pair #1

I worked diligently on the Zephyrs over the weekend because I wanted to cast on another pair of lacy socks for the Sockdown: Ravelry August challenge. (Poor MacPalmikkoneule must be feeling neglected.) This is Minitomus, Pomatomus anklets made of sport weight yarn. I have a small leftover skein (from Rainy Day Socks) of this variegated aqua that I think will make great Poms. It’s not enough for a full-size pair but worked toe-up might just make a pair of anklets. I’ve never done Pomatomus before but that doesn’t stop me from modding it on the first go. :D

New month, new knitalong and new projects!

August 1st was the kick-off date for Sockdown: Ravelry. I cast on for Zephyr Socks in Regia Cotton Jacquard Color. I’m really liking the stitch pattern: it’s fast, easy and the resulting effect is really interesting. No wonder the same stitch pattern has been used in several other sock patterns.

I’m also liking the yarn. I’ve never used sock yarn that has cotton it it before, but I’m finding it very smooth and sturdy to work with. I was a bit worried that the socks wouldn’t fit since you only cast on 54 sts for the Zephyrs. But the yarn is slightly thicker than the ones I’ve used before so no problem there. That and the lace pattern is stretchy. The only complaint I have is that the combination of the yarn and lace pattern makes to socks look a bit busy. It’d be better in solids or subtly variegated colors.

I also cast on for another project I’ve been ogling and drooling over for months now: a gorgeous Monarch of the Glen inspired MacPalmikkoneule cabled cardigan (ravelry). I want to wear this when the weather gets cool in the fall so I figure I’d better start working on it already. The pattern is written for flat knitting but I’m working the fronts and back in one piece. And that of course means that one row is miles long. So far, I’ve barely made it past the ribbing so nothing much to show yet.