Gox Socks are finally finished!

I started my Gox Socks as a test knit back in August of last year.

Now do you say why I say I'm a slow knitter?

But due to snowstorms (and here I was hoping winter was done!) I had the spare time today to finish up the toe and weave in the ends.

So here we go, another project finished!  They're nice and warm, since they're a bit denser with all the twists and cables; and I'm hoping they'll keep my feet warm over the days to come.

And, despite my initial worries that I would need a second skein of yarn, I actually have a small bit left of the Blue Label.  I don't know if I could have gotten the large size out of one skein, but the small had some yarn left over. 

Pretty Yarn

I realized I'm behind!

For those who remember my post about Tanis Fiber Art's ETSY shop update?

Well, my yarn came a while ago (late Febuary), and I realized that I've been neglecting my readers and didn't put up pictures of my new yarn.

So:

Tanis Fiber Arts Purple Label in Periwinkle.  I plan for this to be a second pair of Mercury Socks.

Tanis Fiber Arts Purple Label in Fjord.  I want to do a second pair of Flying Hearts Socks (with a longer cuff) with this.

Tanis Fiber Arts Amber Label in Aurora.  This was a new base that Tanis created for this update, it's a Merino/Cashmere/Silk blend that's wonderfully squishy.    I want to use this as the contrast colour for a pair of Snowfling Mittens (I still have to get my hands on the pattern, but that can sit for now!)

And last but not least, Tanis Fiber Arts Green Label, also in Aurora.  It the same colourway as the Amber Label, above, but it looks quite different in the skein.  These are going to be an attempt to make aran-weight socks two-at-a-time. 

I haven't yet broken my attempt at not buying yarn (I'm still being good, I promise), but I did realize that I hadn't posted these pretty things.  

An (almost) Yarnless Lent.

So, I was puzzling over what to give up for Lent. I always like to try something that I know I can do, but that will also be a challenge.

Then it hit me.

So, my challenge for Lent is to not buy yarn.   I've bought more yarn then I've intended to over the last little while, with sales and such, I'm finding it a bit too easy to justify 'oh, it was on sale!' and I don't want to do that any more.   My cupboard of yarn is completely full too,  and I don't like having the extra yarn about my room.

That, and I want to save up for the Toronto Knitter's Frolic in April, so this is something that I can do.

However, I did still get more yarn.   I just didn't buy it.

See, my father's been going through the stuff in storage, and he came across all of my mother's old fiber stuff, including yarn.  Since a lot of that yarn is still perfectly good, he brought some to me today.

It's all acrylic, which isn't my first choice, but some of the colours are really nice, and acrylic does make for good gifts because it's such easy-care.  And none of it so far is the super-scratchy annoying acrylic.    That, and the colours I don't think anyone I know would like (hello hot pink!) can be donated to the local Humane Society, to make blankets for the animals, which is where some of these are going.

It was kind of funny, going back through this old yarn, with most of the ball bands still on, and seeing if they brands were on Ravelry, (and if not, updating the Rav database!).  It was also kind of neat just to think that I will be using the same yarns my mother used to work with when I was a kid.  There's a definitely nostalgia value there, I completely admit.

Laceweight is hard. . .

It is.  It's hard to work with, even if it is beautiful.

How do I know this?  Well, the Yarn Attic is running a KAL for the months of March and April (sign up and details are here, for the curious)

It's for shawl/shawlette knitting, and the only other requirement is that you use Malabrigo yarn.

So, I'm finally getting some use out of the Malabrigo Silkpaca I bought last year at the Toronto Knitter's Frolic!

Even if it is light-weight and very fiddly, it's still very pretty, and the texture is -wonderful-.

I'm hoping it will work up well in an Ethereal Shawl, and so far, it does quite well.

The Birthday Socks, take two:

Well, since last years Birthday Socks were so very well received, I'm trying again this year, (though I'm starting even earlier!)

I'm working on a pair of Business Casual Socks, which are coming along quite well.

I hadn't intended to start them quite so early, but I found on Ravelry yet another KAL group, this time hosting a "Sock it To Me" Sock Knit Along.   I figured that 'why not, it will hopefully get these done well before the actual birth date rolls around this year!

 The pictures a bit dated, actually, I am further along then that.  More pictures, well, whenever I get around to it, I admit!

Birthday Knitting Done Early!

Usually, I find most knitters writing horror stories of knitting the day of someone's birthday, or frantically knitting presents on Christmas day.

And I admit to doing that myself.

But not this time.

I finished the River Runs Through It Mittens.

They're for a birthday in December, so I finished with lots of extra time.   No frantic knitting on this project!

Also, they're for the Sweet Georgia Knit-Along on Ravelry -- for which I've started a third project, the Vancouver Fog Fingerless Gloves.  These are also a December Gift, though in this case, they are a Christmas gift.

See, I'm really trying to be good about my knitting this year!  And even better yet, so far it's working!

I even assembled a big list of all the things I want to knit for Christmas/Birthdays this year here, on Ravelry.  (I'm glad that pretty much no one on that list has a Rav account, and those that do don't know who they are on the list!)   Anyway, I'll see how well I do!

. . . So it helps if you read the pattern. . .

It really, really does.

Remember my tension fail I wrote about last week?

Well, it's not so much that my tension got screwed up, it's that I didn't actually read the pattern.   I thought it was supposed to be 6 repeats of the colour-work chart.

No, it's 1 repeat of the chart all the way around with the rest of the sock in the stripe pattern.

. . . .

Well, don't I feel stupid.

On the plus side, I've frogged right back on this sock, and I'm taking the opportunity to learn two-at-a-time socks. I tried once before, but Magic Loop left me with a headache and a horrible tangle. 

But, as usual, with so many tutorials out there, finally something 'clicked.'   In this case, it was Silver's Sock Class' Two Toe-Up Socks on One Circular Needle Tutorial, which has been absurdly helpful, and finally made sense to my head. 

I'm hoping doing my socks (and sleeves, and gloves) two-at-a-time, will eliminate second sock/mitten/sleeve syndrome, which I have in spades.  I have very few finished socks and many socks without mates. 

I'm actually really excited about the idea two-at-a-time.  So far it's been really interesting.