Sock Stress

Last night I finished sock one of the Girlfriend Socks (aka surprisingly tiny feet), and have some serious doubts.  The pattern is a huge modification to a pattern I already had.  Looking at the finished sock, the proportions look very odd.  The sole is slip-stitched to add a little cushioning, and the top is ribbed.  Both of those things contract the work.  But my finished sock looks like it would fit a Wii remote much better than a human foot.  The circumference is tiny!  I can expand it with my hand, but wonder if it will be too tight.  I can't try it on, because there is no way my size 9.5 feet will fit in the "tiny feet" sock. 

I've looked up a couple of shoe size/sock measurement conversion charts, and it's not consistent.  I'm either right on the money or off by about an inch in functional circumference.  I'd really like to know for sure so I can either rip this one back or start sock two. What is a knitting maven to do?  I'll let you know as soon as I do.

Inspiration

I went out to a diner for breakfast the other day.  It was close to a SUNY Buffalo campus well known for its high percentage of foreign students.  I liked people watching, and the international and multicultural scene playing out over coffee and eggs. 

I noticed was that most couples and groups were of mixed nationalities, and each kid was dressed in a unique way. There were sweats of various vintages and styles, and occassionally absurd numbers of layers, but mostly real individuality.  Why don't adults dress this way?

One Asian girl had a sweater that looked handmade, and it was a long-sleeved crew-necked sweater with built-in mittens!  The sleeves had sock style ends, with a hole for your hand to poke out for practical things, and poke back in for the cold.  The colorwork was at unlikely angles in random sizes.  Cute as heck.

A guy with a Slavic accent had one of the widest knitted scarves I've ever seen on a man, in a mix of very deep and vivid greens.  It was very long, and wrapped several times, and worn over a gorgeous grey sweater with deeply carved cables.  It was probably the warmest looking combo I saw.

Maybe the most fun were the knitted hats.  There were Andean caps with earflaps and tassels, slouchy tams, watch caps, stocking caps and newsboys.  There were stripes, solids, cables, lace, pom poms, tassels, and appliques.  There were skull and crossbones, flowers, and nordic designs.  The colors were fabulous.  More was more, and the effect was cool and unique. 

It would have made a great magazine shoot for a knitting mag.  (Where are the camera crews when you need them?)  It was great inspiration to design.  The possibilities are endless!  Leave it to the kids to teach an old dog new looks.

Fun and Free Lunch Bag Pattern

This adorable lunch bag is in a back issue of the computer mag, Knitty.  It's a felted bag made in the round on big fat needles.  Try it!

If you're new to the idea of knitting in the round, this is a good pattern for you.  The bottom is worked back and forth, and then the edge stitches are picked up to make the body of the bag.  The clasp keeps the bag closed and in shape, so the shaping is minimal.  Make it in crayon-bright colors or traditional brown; it's a great gift for just about anyone! (Apple optional)

I love knitting in the round now, but remember how intimidating I found it back when I started.  I wish I had started on a pattern like this one! There is no danger of twisting or messing up the join because you're picking up stitches. If you're new to picking up stitches, remember to pick them up on a needle at least two sizes smaller than your working needles. (You can pick up on straights.) It makes it a smooth and easy process, and leaves plenty of room in the stitches to be worked.

New to felting? There is absolutely nothing to worry about.  This felting project has great instructions right in it.  Further felting info can be found here, including history, needle felting, washer felting, and how to info.

Again with the Newsletter

The blog is suffering its monthly lag because my writing time is being taken up by the Karma Knitting newsletter, due out on the 30th.  I'm still in a turkey-induced coma, more than a little studied out for school, and the writing is going slowly.

Sock one on the surprisingly tiny feet gift is almost done, making me grateful my dear friend doesn't have BIG feet.  (How long would that have taken?)  I still think I'll make it in time, but it will be tighter than I thought or want.

I'm looking forward to a change in December class planning.  Colleen suggested a monthly Knitting 101 class, and she was right.  The first Sunday of every month we will be teaching the very basics of knitting, purling, and simple increases and decreases.  I love the basic classes.  It's so cool to see people's faces when they get it!

Also, there will be a straight needle glove class.  (Picture at left.  The embroidery was an afterthought, and further proof I can't embroider!) )  They're really easy, and a good precursor to making gloves in the round to get an understanding of construction and shaping. 

I have to get back to the newsletter.  I hope to see you in class!

Thankful

As a knitter, there are many things I'm very thankful for:

Alpaca, mercerized cotton, and superwash wool!

All the knitters for hundreds of years who have figured out the details of this craft and have written them down for me to understand.  (I would never have thought of this on my own!)

My LYS community, who keep me sane (ish), inspired, and plied with baked goods and yarn.

Knitting bloggers and Ravelry, who help me feel less alone when I can't write a pattern I like, or when I have to frog hours of work.  It's nice to know the "big kids" have these problems, too.

MaryAnn, Colleen, and Cecile, for our close-knit friendships.  I'd love you even if you didn't knit, but the knitting is so cool!

My family, who have loyally worn my work, no matter how strange or ill-fitting it may be.  They have heard "I'm almost finished with my row - I'll be right there" a million times, and only rarely roll their eyes.

All of you who read this.  Thanks for your comments, contributions, and talks in virtual and real life.  It's been a real enhancement to my knitting experience to hear from you.  Thank you.

Victory

I have conquered sock one of the holiday gift socks for the friend with surprisingly tiny feet.  I couldn't find the exact pattern I wanted, so I'm making a variation of one that I have and then adding the changes I want.  After no fewer than 7 attempts, the heel and sole are right where I want them and I'm steaming along toward sock two.  I hope I've made enough notes and accurate enough notes that I can successfully complete a sock two! Woo Hoo!

On a holiday note, I've been taking advantage of some quiet time at home this Thanksgiving week to get some heavy chores done, which means many trips to the basement.  Today, after one visit to the basement, I heard the dog whining (just a little).  I looked around, and he was closed in the basement.  Where his food is.  Where half of his food is.  The other half is in his tummy.  I can tell by the strange bulge in his abdomen (and the fact that the bag is a lot lighter). Max got his Thanksgiving feast a day early and without having to cook.  Genius!

Great and Cozy Quick Sock Pattern

The pattern for these beautiful socks can be found here.  It's amazing how such a simple (really, really simple) pattern can make such fabulous socks. 

Made in a DK weight (3), these knit up quickly and are a great addition to your gift knitting repetoire.  Somebody needs these as a holiday gift, care package, "because I love you", or charity project.  I've got mine.  I can't wait to see yours!

Mean People Suck

I spent the afternoon at Karma yesterday, and was the designated Knit Doctor. A customer came in with a small problem and a big attitude.  Angry Customer was angry about an error my free pattern in the newsletter.  Angry about the correction I published a week later.  She had started tha pattern, had made some mistakes not related to my error.  She wanted me to rip back and re-knit the 18 rows.  (I didn't.)  She explained to me I was "foolish" to have made any mistakes, and that I shouldn't publish original patterns.  I should copy other patterns and cut and paste them into the newsletter.  (???)

I'm sure this balanced the universe in some way, but I wish I knew how. (Pride and curiosity are two of my Karmic tasks to overcome.) I didn't take the bait and argue, though I was tempted.  ("Foolish"?)  I said, "I sincerely and deeply apologize for any trouble my error has caused you."  I meant it.  If a mistake in a pattern can cause this sort of vitriol and condescension to be spewed into the world, I hope I never make another error!

Later, a Mother-Daughter came with yarn from a dear and deceased grandmother, and wanted to work her yarn into their projects to commemorate her.  They were confused and happy, asking answerless questions. "I lost the pattern, started this project a year ago, and wonder what to do next.  I think it was gloves.  Or mittens.  How can I finish them?"  It was hard to meet their needs, but they were happy.  What a contrast to Angry Customer. 

On reflection,  I hope Karma Knitting offers Angry Customer some peace in her life.  I hope Mother-Daughter gets satisfaction out of their commemoration project.  And I'm really glad that Angry Customer was gone before Mother-Daughter came in.  It would have ruined their lovely gesture of respect.

A Swatch Journey

Swatches have such a strange reputation!  Some people look at them as a necessary evil, others a waste of time, and still others love them and see them as a resource.



Cascade 220 sampler afghan.  Pattern available.



My experiences with swatches have included all of the above.  And then I took a journey.  I had come back knitting after a hiatus of several years, and had knit quite a few projects.  I was worried, though, because I would read a pattern and not be able to remember how to do certain techniques I used to zip through with ease 20 years ago.  I very quickly felt boxed in with what I was able to do, and phobic that I might get into a project only to discover I didn't know how to finish it.  So I decided to swatch every skill I had any interest in or possible future need for.

It was just a notion until I saw a sampler afghan that a friend had crocheted.  Aha!  A possible use for all these swatches beyond a simple learning project!  Shortly after that I was off to the races.  I started simple with relearning stripes.  One swatch down.  Then intarsia blocks.  I probably worked and ripped two swatches for every one I finished in the beginning.  (My daughter ripped out a finished one early on because she had seen Mommy do it.  I cried.)  I was sure I was doomed.

I was also crazy busy during the day with work and four kids and a very sick mother in law, and a bunch of other madness.  When I wanted to knit, I only had a couple of minutes to maybe an hour.  I couldn't start a new project or take a class, so I kept cranking out swatches.  Cables...  Basketweaves...  Bobbles were nearly the end of me and my knitting career. 

Life settled down, and I had 19 swatches.  I realized I really had a shot at finishing this sampler afghan after all.  And as decided to repeat some of the blocks I was amazed at how much easier they were the second and then the third time.  The blanket ended up being 36 blocks large, and although I can tell which blocks were early swatches and which I did at the end, it looks pretty good, even now, 5 years later.  I'm grateful to my swatch journey for reinforcing (and sometimes inventing) my knitting skills.  And I'm very grateful when I see my kids cozied up under the finished afghan.  I made that!  I learned so much. Swatches and I are friends now.

LYS Yarn and Patterns Giveaway

Super cool giveaway from Classic Elite, approximately a $20 value.  A guest post from Classic Elite.  PASS IT ON TO YOUR FRIENDS!  Use the share links at the bottom of this post.


Do you Love Your Shop?

Classic Elite wants to give back to those who risk it all to follow their dreams, open yarn shops and keep them open in these changing and challenging times. In fact, we have so much faith in those dreams that we want to give everyone a present.
Spend $40 or more on yarn or books between now and December 15th, send us a copy of your itemized receipt and we’ll send you a recent pattern book and three mini-skeins of Classic Elite Yarn, just for buying local.
It's our "thank you" to all the knitters and crocheters who recognize the value of supporting our local knitting communities.
Find out more about the Love Your Shop giveaway on our blog and view complete rules and details on our web site.