Why it is necessary to try on a sock before knitting a second

The biggest sin is not trying on a project before it’s finished.   Trying on a sleeve.   Maybe pinning the pieces to a t-shirt.  Putting on a sock with dpns sticking out.

Maybe I was too confident.  After 10-20 pairs I was so sure that I knew my foot.  Every inch.  The width of my calf.  The diameter of my ankle.  Even down to the wiggle room around my toe.

Hehe.  This is what happens when I didn’t bother trying on the first sock.  When you shave your legs, pumice your heels, and lotion your foot and your leg for sock modeling socks -  a wash when I couldn’t get the damn socks on.   Well, I could but I don’t want to sprain my ankle every time I pull a sock on or tug a sock off.   Aren’t the socks lovely?

So I ripped back and reknitted the cuffs.  I didn’t want to bother with ribbing, 1×1, 2×2, 4×4 whatever.  I just wanted to finish the socks.  The quickest cuffs that I could think of -  stockinette!  So what if the cuffs roll?  The pattern, Spirited, is just ridged enough to prevent the cuffs from rolling more than .5 or 1 inch past the patterning.  Approved!

Beautiful!

So learn from my sad tale and always, always, always try on your first sock.

My Me Mosiac

This is fun!
1. What is your first name?
2. What is your favorite food? Nectarines
3. What high school did you go to? A school for the deaf.
4. What is your favorite color? Orange
5. Who is your celebrity crush? Javier. Javier. Javier.
6. Favorite drink? Mango Lassi
7. Dream vacation? Italy
8. Favorite dessert? Raspberry Lemon Cheesecake
9. What you want to be when you grow up? Photographer/World Traveler
10. What do you love most in life? Traveling
11. One Word to describe you. Serene
12. Your flickr name. Tiphanie

p.s. Link for the fun toy.

Them pesky nupps

So I was plowing through Swallowtail thinking what’s the big deal? This is an easy knit! Nupps I can take them! Purl 5. Nupp done. 12 done and 40-something to go. Nupp. Nupp. Another nupp.

This is so fun and easy. I don’t get what’s the big deal. On row 9 of the Lily of the Valley Border I realized that I did something…stupid. Totally stupid. A BIG blunder. The mistake that you curse for 3 plus hours and then contemplate frogging.

Then I curse myself because I didn’t include a lifeline. Never cared for lifeline. Too much of a bother to thread and then take it out. What? I’m lazy and it’s too much of a trouble! I self correct my mistakes when purling or every second row.

So what mistake did I not notice for 14 rows and 18 nupps? The Lily of the Valley Border I is divided into left and right charts with nupps fanning in the opposite direction. See? So what did I do? I knitted all the damn nupps based on the right chart. So…all of my little nupps are fanning in ONE FREAKING DIRECTION.

I did not do any of the following:

1. Stomp on the shawl.

2. Throw the shawl across the room.

3. Set it on fire.

4. Bury it in my chest.

5. Bind off and declare it a good enough shawl. I was very-very-tempted to do this.

So I sucked it up this morning and ripped back. No lifeline remember? Then got the shawl back on the needle and fixed dropped stitches and so on. I started again but going at a glacier speed- looking at each stitch and recounting. I tell you I was so happy when I finished the first row with nupps that I put it down and watched Skywalker whomp Jabba’s ass one more time.

This morning I kept on knitting. Nupps and Nupps.

Do not adjust your settings

Yes.  This pair is really bright.  I didn’t bother adjusting color settings.   Gorgeous, gorgeous colors.  Gorgeous, gorgeous colorway.

Would I buy Mountain Bearfoot again? Yes.  Wonderful to knit with.  Lovely colors.   Couldn’t put down the second sock for a week.   I think I broke my record-  I knitted the second sock in less than a week.  Normally it takes me two-three weeks for one sock.

I loved knitted the pair.  Tricky pattern but a fun one.  I will use the pattern again for someone with high arches.  This patter is really great-  very forgiving and very roomy around the ankles/instep.

Alas, the pair too warm for Los Angeles.   So I’m going to save the pair for snowy days.   While I may love Mountain Bearfoot I don’t think I’m going to order and knit 20 pairs with Mountain Bearfoot.   Not unless I move to New York City or something.

Spoiled rotten

Last Sunday a friend insisted on stopping by as he got something for me. Awwww. He got two skeins of Claudia Handpainted Yarns in colorway Purple Earth. Ahhh. Ohhh. Ahhh. I slept with the skeins tucked under my pillow.

The very next day I got a mysterious package from someone in Missouri. Do I know someone in Missouri? Did I order something from E-bay? Have I signed up for a club?

Look! A postcard from Natalia! I love getting postcards and this postcard is so going on my Happy Wall at work.

Look! Flowers! She drew flowers better than me…I knew I should have took up drawing instead of knitting…

AndandAND. She sent me two skeins of Panda Wool! I’m utterly gob smacked!

I’m touched that a stranger took the time to mail a stranger something lovely.  After a hard week at work,  it added a bright spot.   I smiled each time when I looked at the Panda skeins on the coffee table before I finally packed them away.  When I’m ready to knit with Panda Wool I’m going to remember the warm feeling.

I promise that I shall do the same thing one day.  Perhaps on my Birthday?

I really tried…

I really tried to like this sock. I photographed this sock on April 5, 2008. I probably finished this sock in March.

Yet I haven’t bothered knitting a second sock. I didn’t cast on for a second immediately. I started something else. Then I found an excuse to work on this and that.

I just didn’t like the sock. I kept on telling myself that it’s just a sock. Ugly sock yes. It looks like something a cat would throw up after eating a bouquet of purple and yellow flowers.

I also told myself that I’m silly for even thinking about frogging and restarting with a different pair. It’s MEMORIES come on! I hate to say this but socks knitted with KnitPicks Memories doesn’t last more than a year. I even reasoned with myself that once I finish the pair the socks will wear out within a year. So why bother?

Yesterday I finished a pair of socks. So I was digging around in my basket trying to decide what project to work on when I unearthed the i-don’t-like-this sock. It’s when I made a deal with myself that I’ll start a second sock with a different pattern. Screw the hole-in-a-year.

So I did. Broadripple Socks from Knitty.

I know that it’s silly to even think about restarting something with non-durable sock yarn. But you know what? I like this sock so much better.

Yep. I made the right call. I’m sorry that I will have to frog the slipped stitch sock as I’m proud of my first tubular cast on. Bummer.

Dreaming of gold

In middle of work chaos and surprises I managed to start 10 projects, abandoned 12 projects and dreamed about 21 projects. I also took a trip! We drove to Chico for my sister-in-law’s graduation from Chico State University. Spent the Memorial Day Weekend with my in-laws. One highlight: beating my father-in-law 121 times playing MarioKart. I rock.

We also drove and checked out sites in the Gold Rush Country. I didn’t know until the first day of driving on Route 49 that the route was named for the 49ers. By now you may have figured out that I am not a native Californian. Heh. I felt so dumb but I made it up by taking 300 plus photographs of the beautiful county.

The country was beautiful and serene considering what took place nearly 140 years ago. Scars are still visible with rocks unearthed in spots due to hydraulic mining and use of water to wash away earth to discover tiny specks of gold. We walked through the dead town of Coloma where it all started.

Enjoyed a drink at Hangman’s Tree in Placerville. No, that’s not a real body. It’s a mannequin. Worst whiskey sour ever. Should have ordered a beer instead. We slept at a hotel where Mark Twain supposedly slept. Loved Cary Hotel. Beautiful bedroom and not one of your cookie cutter 39.99 a night hotel.

Took photographs of dead symbols of the Gold Rush fever, including this one. Even stumbled across a county jail! Condemned alas or I could have played cops and robbers.

After our failure to unearth a gold nugget so we can pay off our loans, we decided to commune with Nature. So we took off for Sequoia National Park.

Found this gem: The tiniest flower. Size of my thumbnail.

Then another gem: an ancient breathing living organism.

We also spotted a baby bear but we took off as we didn’t want to say hey to Mama Bear. Beautiful park that I want to return for a week & stay in a cabin with 12 novels and a bag of knitting.

During our trip whenever I spot a LYS, we would stop there for a few minutes. I finally found something perfect to remember our trip at By Hand Knit. Mountain Colors Bearfoot in colorway Gold Rush.

I started the sock last night. Isn’t this gorgeous?

Cool stuff I did today (so far)

Today we went to a car show in Culver City.   I counted 10 1955 Chevrolet Bel Air.  Ohhed and Ahhed over several cars dating from 1920’s and 1930’s, including the Packard.  Also saw several creations by George Barris.  He’s the guy who created the Batmobile, the Munsters’ Koach, and so on.  I counted three lovely restored Woodys.  A Model T in its original condition.

A lovely restored Nash.   We stopped checking out each car after walking around each car-  after we passed 200 cars.  Too many Fords and Chevrolet Truck.

Then this car caught my eye…

What’s this?

A knitted dog sweater!  Cabled!  AHHH!  This is SOOO CUTE!  AHHH!   *seizewithlove* Ahhh!  A DOG SWEATER FOR A HOOD ORNAMENT!

No, I did not attempt to steal the sweater.

Then I picked up a cool souvenir: A spillproof coffee cup with RECYCLE stenciled on it.   Way cool!

First pair of socks and last (recent) pair of socks

A friend stopped by because he wanted to see my stash.  While showing off my stash he asked to see my first pair of socks.  So I dug out my first pair of socks.   Trekking XXL.  Colorway? No clue.  Either I lost the label or I threw it away while cleaning.

Two years later the socks still look good.  A bit worn and a bit fuzzy with muchwashinganddrying.  No holes. Well…sorta of.

Tension good.  Short-row heel bad.  I wrapped each stitch once instead of twice.  So I got a neat row of holes.  Oh well.  I messed up one toe.  No, I’m not going to post a picture of my messed up toe.   I don’t want anyone to laugh at me and my poor toe.  Nope. No No.

I started the pair in May 2006 and I finished the pair in September 2006.  Five freakin’ months to knit a pair.

Then? A pair of stockinette socks that I finished a week ago.   Did I say how much I love the socks? I wore them three times!  I heart them socks.  I heart Bellamoden yarns.  When I save up more yarnmoney me gonna buy one or two kits.  I wanna a pair with pink yarn (Lolita maybe…) with picot hem.   Something with pinks.

What a difference two years can make.  My short row heels lovely and double wrapped.  What holes? Ha!  My toes perfect.    Three weeks for a pair.

So what will I knit two years from now?

How did I manage to forget this?

While doing laundry I realized that I forgot to blog about this rug. Oops. It’s probably one of my favorite finished projects. I stand on the rug every day while doing dishes. No dishwasher so we are in the habit of doing dishes after our meals.

It can get tiring doing dishes after dishes especially on days when I cook eggs or something sticky or burn a pot. Ugh.

This rug? I love it. It looks complicated but it’s really very easy. After four months of standing on it and washing it, the rug stretched so it’s now larger and more spread-out. I wish that I knitted this rug on smaller needles (i.e. US 11 instead of US 15). Oh well.

How did I discover this pattern? I check out random knitting books from local libraries. Some books suck. Some books are interesting. Some books make me go WTF what are they doing are they stoned?

Some books can be inspiring. I got some mystery yarn in my stash that I have no clue as to what to do with. Knit scarves? Eh. Garter blankets? Ehhhh. Hats? Eh. Baby Blankets? Uh-huh. Not if it’s flammable.

So when my husband checked out The Knitted Rugs (Rav it!) by Donna Bruchunas, I got excited when I saw the Rope Cable Runner. Perfect! I can use up 4 huge balls of mystery acrylic yarns! Bonus! Doublebonus as it’s not a scarf/blanket/booties/slippers project.

I think that I knitted this in less than a week. It was a fast knit and yet a heavy project. On US 15 Needles, remember?

Four months later with the rug collecting dirty dish water and spilled coffee, I’m happy with the rug. I admit that I was wondering about whether the cables would hold its shape. So far the rug looks good, even after 15 washes and stretching.

I wouldn’t mind knitting another one but with cotton or with wool for the bathroom. Maybe…