Ravelympics

So, I signed up to participate in the Ravelympics. As per usual, I got excited about the idea of something and acted long, long before I thought it through. I joined two events - two events. One is the Sock Put and I'm waiting to hear whether mom's slippers can count toward that. Otherwise, those puppies are on hold until the Olympic torch is extinguished in Beijing. Also, I am kinda itching to get to Mom's Surprise Socks and so would gladly work those instead. The other event is the Sweater Sprint. There I publicly declared I would attempt to create the Must Have Cardigan (MHC).

In. Seventeen. Days.

This is a picture of BrainyLady's MHC. Isn't it gorgeous?
(And complicated looking?)









Thankfully, I found another brave soul taking the project on as well. Hootsister, I love you.

Another Raveler, RenaissanceWoman, has provided some tips. Her MHC is gorgeous and her project honed my desire for the sweater. She's suggested I spend some time working through the sweater panels so I can learn the basic gist of the pattern pre-Ravelympics. I'll be doing just that all weekend.

In the meantime, I had a dream last night. I don't remember all the details, but it ended with me sitting in a huge-mongous pool of mostly knotted yarn, sobbing while my mother made a bisque. I've no idea what the bisque could possibly mean, but the sobbing in a pool of yarn is hard to misinterpret.

Hmmmm....Slippers, eh?

So my mom sent me a link today with some slippers she'd like me to knit right up for her.

Let me repeat that with proper edification:

So my mom sent me a link today (my mom who struggles with most internet-y things beyond answering her work email and playing games)

with some slippers (slippers?!?!? since when did i start knitting slippers? oh wait. I haven't. Riiiiight.)

she'd like me to knit right up for her. (ummmm, okay-dokey. I'm so really going to drop everything [read: socks] and get right on that. I mean, it's like she hasn't even noticed the sock addiction. Despite me showing her each and every one. Repeatedly. And extolling the virtues or curses of each one. Endlessly. But slippers, oh yeah - that's what I meant)

On the other hand, she did give me life and all.

Le sigh. Next project: apparently slippers.


And that's all I can say about that right now.

Broadripple Done! (and "the ick")

I finished the broadripples today with mixed feelings. I didn't want to be done. I kinda don't want to be parted from them. I'd been holding out on the last few rows, knowing the toe shaping would come and end our time together all too soon. That only deepens my love of this sock/pattern. I know all about Second Sock Syndrome. And what, with socks being new to me, it's all I can do to finish one before the next sock yarn or pattern catches my eye and entices me. So yep, got that whole SSS thing.

But, I have discovered something even more insidious: I have Foot Finishing Syndrome (FFS).

That is to say, for me, most of the excitement is in the leg (discovering the pattern or how a yarn stripes, etc), the still nail-biting turning of the heel and the zippy fun of the toe.

The inches between ending the gusset and decreasing for the toe are pure, almost unadulterated sock unfunness for me. It feels slow, monotonous, tortuous even. This portion of each sock I've knit thus far is when I grow ripe for the next. It is when I put the sock down. It is when I net-surf for new patterns. It is when I start fingering the other sock yarns. Sometimes (thankfully), it is when I pick up the last sock abandoned to FFS and work on it a bit, just to break things up.

I've wondered if this doesn't suggest I should learn to knit toe-up. Well, obviously I should. I want to learn all the ways of the sock. But maybe with toe-up knitting I could avoid FFS? On the other hand, I really dig learning the pattern without stockinette breaking things up. I like kicking it all off with the leg. I like it a lot even. In any case, each and every sock I've knit peters off somewhere around the arch in my foot...

...except my beloved broadripples. Thus far this is the only sock I've still truly loved knitting through the foot. I thought it was a fluke on the first sock, but having (grudgingly) finished off the second, I noted that had a nice knitter's high straight on through to the zippy toe action.

Clearly the intersection of Rob Matyska's pattern and this yarn is knitter's Shangri-la for me. I think I should probably always have this on needles - you know, just because access to Shangri-la gets kinda limited in the world.

To that end:



I'm flat broke and don't even feel guilty...

Oh no!

Today is my super sweet niece, Breanna's birthday. She's fifteenand a pretty excellent person. I love her dearly and can remember the first day I held her as an infant. The moment she was in my arms, she owned me for life.

When she first "became a woman" she called right away. I took her on her welcome-to-womanhood shopping/fun day as I had her older sister.

She didn't flinch even a little bit when I requested being her friend on Myspace. And she doesn't talk back or get huffy when I comment on the content of her page or comments. Sometimes, she even listens to my advice.

She calls (or texts) me every mother's day. Every year.

In the past few years, she's even remembered my birthday.

When I called her, she sounded off. Her friend who was supposed to take her for a manicure had flaked and so she had taken herself. I love, love that she took herself instead of sitting around dejected, but she did sound bummed. Then she reported her mother had not wished her happy birthday (it was early evening time) and did not appear to be throwing her the promised birthday party.

Not good.

I am five states away. I work more than fulltime. I am mostly broke. I am in the middle of a sock knitting obsession.

Wait - I am in the middle of a sock knitting obsession!!

I ask her favorite colors? She reports: reds mostly, maybe some pinks and oranges...

Holy mother of heck! Damn blast.

Goodbye, my beloved first Broadripples. You made me truly love socks. Your colors enchanted me. I even bled on you a little, through my finally broke through the skin Knitter's Stigmata. Just yesterday I pledged you to me, me, me....but well, I know how to listen when the universe hollers.

Happy Birthday, Bre - enjoy the socks.

Broadripple love

I am working on my 1st Broadripple socks. I say 1st because I love this pattern so deeply, it is clear I am going to make many, many, many more. I may never knit another pattern for socks.

This is the yarn I used:


It is one of the Cascade Fixations I picked up when the brightness of Mom's Crazy Socks rendered me unable to calculate color. But, guess what - I love it, too!


I'm about 75% through the 2nd sock and I am kinda... moved by them . This is the sock pattern that led to my "Knitter's Stigmata" and yet, I love it. It is the first sock I truly feel something strong about. I love the blazing color, I love the simple and yet, insanely wonderful pattern, I love the feel of the yarn (though I am not even the slightest bit sure I am knitting this elastic yarn 'correctly.'

It truly is my favorite - the one I most certainly will not give away. These are the oddly colored socks I will wear proudly on my own two feet. These socks I will pull from my feet and show others. I will proclaim, 'Admire these! I bled for these! I made these from brightly colored elastic string and metal sticks!'

These are the socks that truly passed me over into the "sock knitters" realm. I was sort of test driving this whole sock knitting thing - it's been pretty durned okay, I've felt satisfaction. But these socks? These make me want to knit more and more socks. Many more socks.

Woolly Ticks in July

Okay, my supervisor - who is a nature loving, adventure seeking kinda guy - got flippin' lyme disease.

That's so not okay.

I was moved to wrap up my First Socks Ever and gift them to him to wear during his recuperation.

Then I thought of two things:

-- it's July. No one, but no one is going to be thrilled by a gift of wool socks in Boston in July. I don't care if 1,000,000,000,000 ticks bit him - wool socks in July is just... uncool.

-- they're my First Socks Ever. I should hold on to these puppies, right? Mom always said, 'There's only ever one First.' Sure, she may have been referencing something else (who knows?) but, I'm sure she'd agree the adage applies to knitting as well as any other thing.

So...I needed other socks. Quick other socks. Not-wool other socks. But, I thought maybe he'd not get them right away...perhaps as Fall sets in (um, I do have to realize I am not going to complete a whole lot right now, what with the newness of socks thing going on).

I know lots of folks seem downright disdainful of acrylic yarns. I have many things I am a wee-bit snobby about. Part of me really wants to be a yarn snob. But really? Some of the newer acrylics are kinda lovely - some feel so good and are so farking inexpensive!

I'm not a yarn snob. But, I am a compulsive investigator. When it comes to something I am the slightest bit unsure on, I spend hours (many, many hours) asking about, researching online, etc. I usually feel pretty secure with the wools I buy from the LYS, but acrylics from the chain store not even dedicated in an exclusive way to fiber arts? Ahem, I'm gonna do a little research here...

And so it was that while visiting with mom, I accidentally touched some Bernat's Satin. This is about the yummiest acrylic I’ve touched in some time - maybe even ever. Sooo very soft, so smooth feeling. And it has sheen, for Pete's sake - sheen! I couldn't resist.

Umm, I bought 8 skeins, without doing any research at all!

I've settled on the pattern and now have a yarn. We'll see...

Band-aids/Knitter's Stigmata

So, I finally ventured to the Broadripple pattern for socks. I am knitting it up with my spiffy new knit picks needles and my pretty cascade yarn. I am in love with this pattern! For more experienced knitters, it may be a different experience, but for me - what’s happening with my yarn is something miraculous. There’s angling, rippling, darling little dots! I love, love it. My new favorite sock. If Rob Matsyka was here, I’d kiss him full on the lips.

About an hour or so ago (knitter's time, where does it go?), I noted that it was becoming painful to give the needle tip the little tap to go through. I remember reading somewhere someone asking about a type of thimble for knitters. I don't recall the message board, but there was an impressive array of suggestions for the original poster seeking a knitter's thimble-type thing. Band-aids were oft mentioned and I have them handy, so on they went. One on each index fingertip - right were I noticed I had developed a dark indentation.

Once adjusted to the weird numb effect, I have been happily moving along on the sock. I've been feeling pleased as punch that I was now able to give both needles a little tap when needed, without pain. It occurred to me the slight adjustment I'd made because of the pain in my near-to-punctured fingertips had been slowing me down considerably and I am tickled not to be hindered any longer.

Then the "I wonder" set it...

I wonder if coming *this* close to actual puncture points in my fingertips might be a sign I need a knitting break?

Conversely, I wonder if anyone who thinks so can possibly understand what it's like to be utterly in love with a yarn and pattern, and to be so committed to the magical outcome of these that knitter-stigmata seems a small price to pay?

Blue Magic

Secret person's socks...

? admired the yarn yesterday and I wanted to give the new needles a full-on spin, so I cast these on. The yarn has a roughish texture I’m not in love with but the needles are a dream! Cast on with US2 needles at first, but felt it was coming out too big, so I frogged it and re-started on US1.5 needles.

6/28 - I am in love with my knit picks needles! Truly. Finished the first sock.

Mom's Crazy Socks

Mom was impressed with my sock frenzy, so I offered her my first completed pair. We headed out to WoolWinders (great shop!) and she picked out the yarn she wanted. I tend toward sedate colors (okay, boring), but mom is a bold, colorful woman. She declared she wanted “fun socks” and selected a yarn to match her bold and colorful self.

I was a little scared…

Sadly, the first sock had to be frogged and re-knit as I was displeased with the color pooling after the second sock turned out such happy-making stripes. Mom insists she likes the mismatch, but I didn’t know if I could live with it.

It doesn’t show in the pictures, but I really like the rotating rib pattern I threw in. You know, cause the colors weren’t bright enough

I really tried to love the first round, but the pooling on the leg was driving me bonkers. I was ever so disinclined to frog the whole thing and tried any number of ideas to redo the leg only. But, socks are still new and mysterious to me. I wasn’t sure what to do.

Eventually, frustrated and tired and with nothing to lose except re-knitting the whole thing, I boldly took scissors to it. I cut the most offensive of the pooling away and knit up from there, making adjustments to the yarn every so often to ensure some type of stripes. There’s still two blotches, but I am learning to make peace with them (and well, they’re in the heel/gusset area, for pete’s sake - I’m not touching that).

So, it seemed like time for a fun little pattern , right?

6/16 - found the pattern. drop everything. cast on.

6/17 - 1st sock done. think i’m in love a little bit.

6/26 - my super fun nickel plated needles came in. they’re so shiny and pretty. cast on second sock immediately. probably unwise to change needles, but i can’t resist them…

6/28 - the new needles rock! can't wait to full on give them a go. i got side-tracked by blue socks, but completed this project tonight.

It is 4:08 am. I cannot stop knitting.

Actual email sent to my coworker/friends:

Dear coworker/friend,

It is 4:08 am.
I cannot stop knitting.

The mummy-sheet* has been calling from the other room for hours and hours, warning of bugs if I don't stop and wrap myself immediately. I've been unable to heed these warnings. I haven't eaten. I am literally weak with hunger. My hands are shaking from low blood sugar.

But still, I knit.

I haven't sipped my drink. I am dehydrated. Every now and again, I gasp in an attempt to suck moisture from the air. This has proven futile.

But still, I knit.

I have given in to the reality that I cannot smoke and knit simultaneously.
The surgeon general is pleased.

About an hour ago, I pondered how useful an adult diaper would be so I wouldn't have to keep getting up to pee.

On my last trip to the bathroom I did, in fact, bring my knitting. To pee. (Think I got four stitches in while I did this. They were clearly VERY IMPORTANT stitches.)
I was annoyed that I had to pause to engage in proper post-urinatory hygiene (i.e., wipe).

If/when you see me at the office later, please be kind.


But. I did finish the sock...



* oh, this needs its own post...explanation forthcoming.

Next!

So, after drooling over all the pictures of socks, I wanted stripes. But, I'm the shy sort. I thought I'd start kinda subtle-like...

6/12 - yarn arrives. drop everything and cast on.

6/15 - 1st sock done. I think i want to try nickel plated needles. These tiny woods needles feel like toothpicks.

First Socks Ever

1st sock done. And HUGE.

It’s not for me, though (thank goodness). I don’t think I’ve ever ripped back so much in my life. I think I re-knit it at least 5 times.

Apparently, I cannot count and heels are a mysterious & confounding thing.


Here is was in the beginning. Such a sweet lil thing. But look at all those needles! Hot dang!
Wow, all the knitting and I'm finally approaching the dreaded heel. Now, the nice lady at the Knittin' Kitten said most people knit to this point...

...and then come on for help. But, it's 2am and I don't think I'm capable of stopping...

Look mom! I made a heel! (and it ain't half bad, says...well, me..)


Finished! And egad, but that's a mighty big sock!

2nd sock finished 7/1. and yes...I made a bloody slide show. Of. The. Sock. Project... Somebody send help. Please.

Succumbing...

I’ve been knitting along ever so casually off and on for decades. But socks…? Well, socks have scared the dickens out of me. Cautionary tales of heel problems! Kitchener stitches! And all those needles! I barely manage two needles - never mind four or five! But, seduced by photos from Emma (best friend from grade school) and Stephanie McPhee, I found myself actually dreaming of socks about a week and a half ago. And so, i succumbed. With trepidation…

In The Beginning

Hmmm...okay, I've nothing really to say except that I've been bitten by the freakin' sock-knitting-bug. Argh!!! And it has taken me to a new world of wonderful bloggers, stash building and of course, sock knitting. So this will be my just-for-me space to record the madness I think is going to ensue...

Massive confession/reminder: I taught myself to knit 20 years ago for a boy! I was convinced he would make an ideal “2nd husband” at some point and thought knitting him a sweater was a surefire way to guarantee our future happiness.

Clearly, I hadn’t heard of The Curse.

But yeah, there it is: I taught myself to knit to impress a boy. I made him a cardigan. Since then, I have almost exclusively knit sweaters and almost always as gifts for people. In twenty years, I think there have been 15 sweaters, with maybe 1/2 dozen other projects tossed in. That is a pretty casual knitting life.

And then I was seduced by socks. I woke up one day determined to conquer my fear of socks. Suddenly, I am growing a stash. Who knows where this will lead?

ps. the boy in question did, in fact, grow into a wonderful man. a happily married - to someone else, no less - man. we are still friends.