Sock Craze. . . .

Alright, so just yesterday I was saying "oh, I never knit anymore!" Well, that was early in the morning, before the sock bug came and bit me. And, holy crap, did it ever. Shortly after I blogged I flipped through the Sock Innovation book and picked a pattern. And, a day later I would like to introduce you to Rick:
Rick is the name of the pattern, you see. My Rick is a little girly, but that's the way I like it. The yarn is Zen Yarn Garden (it was from my yarn bouquet that Alex gave me awhile back). If you looked in the Sock Innovation book, you may have noticed that are crazy charts for these socks. But, do not fear, these socks really are not that hard. You can practically memorize the pattern!

In addition to making some serious headway on the Rick sock, I also finished my Leyburns, Part II yesterday:These were the second pair of Leyburns I did for the Socks That Rock KAL that was going on in the group on Ravelry. Lots of pretty of Leyburns to be seen there. If you are on Ravelry you should check out this thread. If you are not on Ravelry, why not?

Anyway to sum up my Leyburns:

The Pattern: Leyburn by Mintyfresh
The Yarn: Socks That Rock Mediumweight in the Panzanite colorway
The Needles: US Size 2 (duh, it's me knitting socks. Like I would use anything else!)
The Time to Knit: 2 months. Yikes! I was totally distracted by other knitting projects and my spinning wheel.
The Verdict: I am glad they are done so I can wear them to work tomorrow!

Well, that's it. In other random knitting news, I have signed up for Round 2 of the Office Swap on Ravelry (I love The Office and I love knitting swaps, so it's very good. You can join until Friday, April 3rd by going to The Office Swap group on Ravelry. Also, Wee Tiny Sock Swap III is going to be starting in April, so check out Yarn Miracle's blog for that goodness. I love me some wee tiny socks!

Happy sock knitting!

Someday I will knit again.

For some weird reason, I have not been knitting much these days. I have projects on the needles, even ones that I like (um, like my Leyburn socks. I love them, I want them, but alas, I do not knit them), but when I have time to sit down and be crafty, all I want to do is spin.

So, here is all the spinning I have been doing. First, I spun up the rest of my CJ Kopec Spin A-Long roving:
I only ended up with about 120 yards total. But, I really wanted to try Navajo plying (I used this YouTube video to learn...it's really good!) and that gives you a 3-ply, so that is some bulky yarn. I love it though. I never would have thought to put those colors together on my own. It turned out really great. I have no clue what I will knit with it; for now, I will just pet it.

Then over the last couple of days I spun up some alpaca roving I had dyed. One of my coworkers loves him some alpaca. So every year he goes to this alpaca show (which is like 5 minutes from my parent's house, so why I never go to the alpaca show is very weird, but I digress). Last year he got me a skein of lace weight alpaca yarn (which I used to make my Branching Out scarf). This year, he got me undyed roving. So, I dyed it up in my kitchen and turned it into this:I don't want to sound all full of myself, but this is the best spinning I have done yet. It's still got some thick and thin spots, but it's way more consistent then anything else I have done. And, I got 240 yards! I can totally see myself spinning up more alpaca. It was just too nice. This skein is so soft. I am very very pleased with the results.

So, like I said, there has been no knitting up in here really. Of course, that could all change today, as this arrived in the mail yesterday:Oh yes, my friends, that is Cookie A.'s new sock book! There was much squeeing when the box came (Amazon told me it wasn't going to arrive until Tuesday. And, I pre-ordered it in January, so it was like a fun little surprise in the mail that I paid for months ago). I skimmed through it last night and this book is amazing. It's not just the patterns, but all the information on how to design your own socks. If you are a sock knitter, you need to own this book. Don't borrow it from the library or a friend, just go buy it. It's worth it!

In other sock knitting news, did you see the new Sock Summit website? I spent a few minutes yesterday afternoon drooling over the classes and making a list of the ones I would be interested in taking. There are so many to choose from! I can't wait to go to Sock Summit. My coworkers think I am absolutely out of my mind for taking vacation to go to Portland for this, but I don't care. It's going to be great!

Now excuse me while I go knit a sock. :)

Happy knitting and spinning.

A Spin-A-Long

So, I was listening to a Lime & Violet podcast a couple weeks ago, and Violet was discussing the CJKopec Spin A Long that was going on in Ravelry. So, I checked it out, did further research, and about a week later I had this:
It's 4 oz. of some lovely merino loveliness in the Montana Moon colorway. I spun up the first half and then tried to give Navajo plying a try. This is what I got:So far so good. I think for my first try at Navajo plying, it turned out pretty nice. I ended up with about 70 yards. I have the other two ounces to spin, which hopefully I will work on this weekend.

Other than that, no knitting has been taking place really. I caught the ick. There was much sleeping on the couch and very little crafty going on here. But, I may have picked up a sock and started working on it again last night, so soon there could be some more sock pictures around here.

Happy knitting! And spinning!

Personal Pattern (not in Ravelry)

In trying to clear up the clutter that is my apartment, I have also been trying to make at least some effort to finish up old UFOs that I have.

So, here it is. My random trapezoid-ish shaped purse:The stuff for this project I got in a knitting related Yankee Swap this past Christmastime. I love the colors of the yarn and the handles are perfect. I want to Yankee Swap all year long!

The Specs:
The Pattern: I made it up. As Ravelry would say: Person Pattern (not in Ravelry)
The Needles: US Size 5
The Yarn: Debbie Mumm for Jo-Ann Traditions in the lovely colorway "03." - 2 skeins
The Time to Knit: 3 months. It sat in a corner for about 2 and a half of those though.
The Verdict: Cute. Easy to knit. Will likely hold knitting for trips to Panera and Starbucks and what not.

Hmm, other than that, not much knitting has been going on. I seem to have caught the plague (i.e. weird cold, that I am concerned is turning into a sinus infection). Mostly when I have been home in the last three days I have been sleeping, not knitting. Maybe by the weekend when I am not hopped up on Day Quil I will get the knitting mojo back. :)

Well, that's it for now. Happy knitting! And spinning!

Oh Sock, My Sock

How I love my new pair of socks.
Made of yarn called Socks That Rock.
With a stitch pattern like a cable that mocks.
On my feet these socks do block.
Oh, how I love my new pair of socks.


The Specs:
The Pattern: Nutkin Socks
The Yarn: STR Mediumweight in the KawKaw colorway (purchased at Stitches Midwest last year)
The Needles: Size 2, of course
The Verdict: Love them. They make me want to rhyme. And that is a good sign.

Other than that, there are some other things on the needles, but I don't have any pics of those yet. :)

But, hey! Look what my dear friend Mel gifted me yesterday!
Uh, a knitting related piggy bank to save my money for Sock Summit in? Yes, please!

Hey you! Fund my yarn habit!

Ok, the title of my post here certainly is a little demanding. And, not really true either. I don't need you to fund my yarn habit, I would just like you to fund my yarn habit. :)

Anyway, I have been listing things right and left on Amazon to sell, and I thought I would share the link with my tens of readers. Most of the stuff is not knitting relating (although there is one knitting book on there right now, and I might put a second one. Not that I want to part with knitting books or anything, but if they have never even been opened, maybe it's time to get rid of them)

You can find the stuff I have for sale here.

This is all part of my plan to get rid of the stuff that I don't need. It's weird. While the apartment is far from being neat and tidy, I have been having this weird urge to get rid of the clutter on the books shelves and random boxes in the storage closet.

I also have some yarn that I will be destashing. Hopefully later on during the weekend I will get some pics taken of it. That stuff you will be able to find on my trade/sell page on Ravelry.

In the land of knitting, I am almost done with some Nutkin socks, and I have one Mock Cable rib sock done as well. Man, have I caught the sock knitting bug again!

Happy knitting! And happy de-cluttering! And happy shopping!