Yarn: Claudia Hand Painted Fingering Merino in Caribbean Blues
Needles: US2 (2.75mm) Clover DPNs
Pattern: Summer Socks
Date Started: 8.24.05
Date Finished: 9.05.05

Socks are like sisters, sometimes one of them is prettier or smarter, always knows the right things to say and do while the other is more comfortable in the shadows, tugging at her ill-fitting clothes. Can you tell which is which in the pic above?

I finally started the second sock on Sunday when the BF dragged me to see March of the Penguins, I figured all the ice would be enough light to knit by. (If you want to feel like you are back in elementary or middle school, then go see this movie) I finished the rest of the sock on our way home. Ah, the second sock! I managed to remember to decrease on both sides of the short rows (what a concenpt), picking up stitches was much faster, and my kitchenering was so much neater. I still hate the cable caston and I don't get how I'm supposed to get down to eight stitches total before grafting (I made it down to 24 before grafting). I also included one last round knit only on needle 1 to get the yarn away from the middle so I could graft (again, didn't know how else I was supposed to do this). Overall, I like sock knitting and who knew it was so easy. My next ones will be toe up and perhaps involve some magic looping; you can't say I never like a challenge.


60 second March of the Penguins:
Penguins walk, they have sex. Penguins walk, they eat. Penguins walk, they die. Penguins walk some more. New penguins are born.

Posted by bitter purl at 10:21 AM | Permalink | Comments (2)

I so wanted to blog about this on Saturday, but all of a sudden I had an unexpected (but very welcomed) house guest for the weekend. I had to run around and buy ingredients for dinner, clean up the apartment, and then actually make dinner. I guess I could have taken a quick pic, but I've found that non-knitters and non-bloggers don't really understand the random photographing of a sock. Well, here she is, the requisite one sock picture every newbie sock knitter posts.

Cute, no? Ignore the super skinny foot please! Somethings I've figured out thus far, I don't like the cable cast on method, it's just too loose for me. I'll have to use another method for the second sock. I was thinking of using smaller needles, but I can't seem to find US 1 Clovers. I know they are out there, it's just that my freaking A.C. Moore likes to skip certain sizes (I like to use my 40% off coupons on needles). I also figured out that I was saying the exact thing I was being told about short rows, but in a totally different ways. I think short rows are one of those things you need the other person there for. That said I found what my mistake was, at least what I think it was; I don't think I was doing the skp decrease on the knit side....oops.

Now I have a couple of questions. Where do you measure to when figuring out how long to make the sock? When you are decreasing for the toes and you are going to graft do you move around your stitches/needles to get the start of the around away from the middle?

Something totally unrelated, do you guys have any suggestions for vacation spots? The bf and I want to go away for a few days in October, but just can't decide where. I suggested San Francisco since I've never been out west and I think it would be fun to go there and maybe Napa Valley, but the boy isn't too sure if he wants to fly. The other suggestion I made was Providence, RI, another town I've never been to though I have no clue what we would do there. So, are there any cool towns that are big enough to explore for a few days, have good food, and aren't in Pennsylvania or New Jersey you could suggest? Or out of the two I suggested, which one would you vote for?

I know of a trip I'll be making in the next two weeks, thankfully the boy finds Alpacas really cute. Who knew I would find a farm I could buy yarn from less than an hour away?!

Posted by bitter purl at 12:04 AM | Permalink | Comments (11)

Ok, you sock masters, I need your help. I'm humming along liking this sock knitting business (there I admit it, I kinda like it!) and I start turning the heel, but then I made a mistake...I started to think! Now, I believe I'm doing something wrong, but am I? This is where you come in my dears...

First, isn't it cute?! I think it's adorable, but anywho. You see that bunched up thing in the middle? That's apparrently a heel, so they say. Here you see me about to turn the work to the wrong side and wrap that stitch on the left on the middle needle. This is what the pattern states:

·»For Large size only, change to 3mm needles. Using Main Colour, knit first 30 stitches. Slide remaining stitches onto a holder. Starting with a purl row, work 21 rows of stocking stitch, slipping the first stitch of every row. Right side is facing for next row.

· »RS: Knit 20 stitches, SKP, turn
· »WS: Slip 1, purl 10 stitches, p2tog, turn
· »RS: Slip 1, knit 10 stitches, SKP, turn
· »Repeat last two rows until all stitches have been worked. Ensure right side is facing for next row.

I've been doing this for a few rows now, but it's this "all stitches have been worked" business that is worrying me. The short rows are only worked on the stitches that are on the middle and right needles, so what happens to the lonely needle that is on the left right now? When do I work those? Do I start short rows with those stitches and those in the middle? I need help I tell ya!

This is just a gratuitous shot of another project I'm working on, the skinny scarf that for some reason I don't want to finish. The colors are just too pretty and the yarn too soft to stop!

Do I just knit across (and working all stitches) or did I mess up in my short rows and have to rip back?

Posted by bitter purl at 04:04 PM | Permalink | Comments (7)