Toe-up Socks!

So I finished my first Christmas present finally. (I know there is only 1 week left) It's a hell of a lot better than I did last year. Sheesh, why do I bother. Any way, I really really loved Ann Budd's Toe-up pattern from the Summer 2007 Interweave knits magazine. These socks are right to the pattern except I messed with the rib a little. Here is my twisted rib pattern:

Row 1: K4
Row 2: P1, K2, P1
Row 3: K1, K2tog but before you slip off the needle, K the first stitch again, slipping both sts to the right hand needle, K1
Row 4: P1, K2, P1

I think I'm going to give these to my mother. She bought a pair of really comfy Clark sandals for the summer and is still wearing them with socks (we call this Ithaca Snowboots, but usually the sandals are Birkenstocks. My mom is too cheap to buy Birks). She'll love these socks, they will look Irish to her.



So the toe-up method is great because, as a compulsive stash hound, I'm always trying to knit something without the right amount of yarn. With toeup you stop when the yarn runs out or preferred length whichever comes first! These socks were made with one skein of Patons Classic Wool, which has a mighty yardage of 223! This has to be my favorite industrial use yarn. The colors are great, too. I refuse to buy it for more than $3.50 a ball though, so I'm always looking for sales. Michael's came through this season with a 2/7 sale. Yeah! In Ann Bud's pattern, the most difficult section of the sock is the cast-on, but if you do it right, you will have a very sturdy toe and the rest of the sock is cake. See my toe here:



I think I will only make toe-up socks from now on. Call me on it if I change my mind!

take care, sue

PS I used #5 double pointed needles and #8 for the top half (Ann wants you to increase needle size as you go up the leg).

Back Blogging!

Hi,

I went on a hiatus for a while from blogging because I had to give up my laptop when I switched jobs. Now I've got a new laptop thanks to my patron, Jimmy, who is underwriting my many creative projects. God Bless you St. Jimbo! I've been busy knitting a pile of stuff, and even designing some pieces for the eventual launch of my design site.

My latest finished project is a stash creation made from some Berroco Cotton Twist I got on sale last year. The pattern is from the berroco site: Wren; but for my version I omitted the sleeves and made the V deeper. Below is my version and the picture from the berroco site:






That's actually Jimmy over my shoulder in the picture. Also, I bought a beautiful G clef rhinestone pin for the vest from my local vintage shop for $1.50. It has the double significance of being musical and looking like my initial "S."

Other events since the last posting is the birth of Bluey's kittens. Five beauties which I named after Joni songs: Hunter, Willie, Amelia, Hana and Marcie. After I took the kittens to the vet, I found out Marcie was a boy, so I had to re-name him Marky! Hunter and Hana were the purer siamese, while Amelia (who I called Mimi) was a little greyer with crossed eyes. Willie and Marky looked like their tiger daddy and had these cool ring tails. See my photo of them below. Unfortunately, they are all committed to new homes among my friends, so it will just be me and Bluey after this weekend. We had so much fun with the experience!



Take care, sue