oops I did it again (cast on socks that is!)

I have been thinking a lot about knitting lately. I know that seems to go without saying, but I have set myself some goals for this year. Although some of my goals are private (ooh, how intriguing!! What am I up to?), I am planning the following in the ‘public’ eye:

1. I will blog more often and comment more often, and generally be a better blogger. I like writing my blog, and I love reading comments and keeping in touch with the online knitting community. It allows me to be a better knitter!
2. I am going to endeavour to use quality materials and will go without yarn rather than settle for less.
3. I will continue to challenge myself as a knitter and will design at least three things myself this year.
4. I will publish these designs on my blog.
5. I will learn to say no (see previous post for reasons why!!).

I have been making plain old socks like a fiend lately. Here is one finished pair and some works in progress:

‘Barney socks’, Katt’s yarn in Water Lily

 

‘I Can’t Say No’ socks in Opal

 

‘Maybe for the SIL, maybe for the xmas stash socks’ in The Knittery Watercolours

 

‘RPM socks’ in The Knittery Forest Moss

 

I have been ordering books from the library like a thing possessed. I found a cardigan I will knit for the Tiny Madam, pink of course, and ordered some Jo Sharp cotton from  The Knittery for a very reasonable price. I have always been very happy with the service from this online store, and would recommend them highly to anyone! I have also almost decided to finish the second pair of socks that were meant for my sister in law and put them away for someone for Christmas, and make a doll for our niece to be from this book. I spied these dolls on the interknit some time ago and ordered the book somewhat blindly. I love them and want to make hundreds. I only wish they were my idea! The arms and legs are knit with few stitches in st st, which makes them roll. They aren’t even seamed! I might make i-cords instead, as this would probably go faster anyway. Now I am trawling for the right yarns. The unborn niece has a pink and mint nursery, so I will use those colours, with a bit of violet thrown in for good luck! I am a bit excited about knitting this. Mind you, I have knitted the body, arms and legs of another doll for the Tiny Madam and never finished it! I hate seaming!!

The RPM socks came about because I went to a barbecue last night and promptly left the ‘I Can’t Say No’ socks at my Dad’s house for the night. I was working on some fraternal Opal socks on these circs, but hated them intensely because they were laddered and hideous so I pulled them off (did not rip them back. You never know I might finish them one day. cough.) and cast on approximately 17 times to make these RPMs. You may remember I had knitted almost a sock with the green, then ripped it. I think the yarn may be unlucky. I could not for the life of me get this going last night. So I started one sock on two circs, did five rows ribbing, took it off onto two dpns, cast on the other sock, did five rows, then tried to get the two on the circs together. No go. By this time it was past midnight! So, I left one on the dpns, one on the circs and this morning discovered that the problem was one was inside out. Huh. Now, I am off like a prawn in the sun.

Speaking of ridiculous Australian sayings, Happy Australia Day (I am siding with 2paw a bit on this one. It makes me vaguely uncomfortable to celebrate on this day), but most importantly Happy Birthday to our cat, who is two! Here is her grin - cute if slightly pointy!

All photos today supplied by Little Purl, who HAS BEEN KNITTING!

we’re gonna sock around the clock

What is it about people who don’t knit? Or is it that I keep saying how easy it is to make things if you concentrate? I am presently dealing with two mother in law issues. Because I have two mothers in law. I think I have mentioned this before.

MIL1 loved her tea cosy so much! So much that she showed her friend who also loved it so much! So much that MIL1 volunteered me to knit another one for her! Without consulation with me. And this was relayed over the phone. Sheesh. I got a bit snaky. Because, I won’t just knit something out of the stash, I will need to go and buy something. If I am going to knit something, it is going to be worth looking at! I am not about to turn out some crap in the wrong colour for this friend’s kitchen! Yikes.

Today I received an SMS from MIL2. Again no face to face. “Special request from (insert name of cousin from England visiting at the moment). If she buys the wool could you knit her some sock like the ones you made for me?” I jumped on the phone and it just so happens that they have already visited the LYS and purchased some Opal, which would be perfect for golf socks! How can I say no to that?

I like knitting for people. I think we all do. But, I like to choose who I knit for and I like to choose what I knit. It is part of the fun. Now I am stuck with knitting two items for people I vaguely know, out of yarn and colours that I would not choose, for nothing but a warm fuzzy feeling. What is with that? If I wrote short stories, would people assume that I would write a story for their workmate? If I painted pictures, or played music, would it be expected I could just turn something out? What is it about knitting that allows people to believe it just happens? Man. Grr. Aaaaaargh.

So, now I am finishing my purple and green socks, and the SIL socks, and Pomatomus is no further, and BaudelaireII is not even cast on and I want to design my own sock and phhht.

Oh, I did buy some gorgeous yarn which I am waiting impatiently for. Some advice - stay away from etsy! Especially this store. Her yarns are gorgeous. I will show pictures the minute it arrives. So, it’s not all bad news. Now, I had better go and knit socks

.

cosy on the pot with flowers

First of all, I would like to thank you all for your positive comments on my new blog. I am still finding my way around WordPress, and find that at times it will not load properly and at other times seems to have a mind of its own. However, I will persevere, now that I have made the commitment to change blogs! 

Here is my tea cosy! Isn’t it cute? My mother in law was suitably thrilled with it, ensuring she will be receiving further goods. She tends to behave as if I am creating something supernatural when I knit. I tried to tell her it was really a couple of rectangles with some i-cord, she wouldn’t hear of it! I must say, I am really pleased with this.

Especially for Katt, here is a picture of my Elspiral Socks, which are so comfy.

 The yarn Katt dyes is really smooshy and soft - I cast on a purple and green sock with the other skein I bought from her, and have finished one sock. These are plain, from my Patons book, as they were intended for the sister in law, but upon consultation with mother in law I have decided pastels would be more fitting, so that is another pair on the go!Finally, I have included a picture of the pair of Fon Sox that I knitted some time ago. They are expertly modelled by the Tiny Madam, who demanded socks and then wanted them to have no toes so she could wear them with her Fons (thongs or flip flops!). Very cute.

let’s get socked

Well, I guess you found me! I have been blogging for a while now, and I am a little over blogger. I don’t know enough to be able to make it look as pretty as other people’s blogs, and I have been suffering from blog envy for a while, so I have made a move. Let’s see how we go! 

I have been listening, again, to podcast after podcast lately, and thanks to Julie I listened to Sticks and String, which is done by an Australian guy who knits and something he said resonated really well with me. He mentioned that knitting is for ‘me’, whether you intend on keeping the knitting or not. It is a chance to sit and just be. The process of knitting is something that I love very very much. It is something I love talking about, writing about, thinking about and doing. I guess if I felt like this about running, I would be a completely different shape! Hm.

Knitting to me is a meditative exercise. I like to look at knitting books. I like surfing knitting sites, both blogs and yarn stores and thanks to Lime and Violet I am starting to trawl through Etsy. At the moment, my issue is with socks, sock yarn, sock knitting, sock books, SOCKS SOCKS SOCKS! At the moment, I am knitting three pairs of socks, and I finished a pair last week out of some hand dyed yarn from Katt. They are yummy and based on this idea (scroll down!), but I made mine opposites so the holes swirl toward each other. I have knitted two other socks, both different and have cast on another red one. The purple one is Baudelaire, the red one is Pomatomus. The picture was taken on holiday at Bicheno, which was lots of fun and lovely and beachy and swimmy.

Then last night I decided I would knit some socks for my sister in law who is due to have a baby in four weeks. She thinks she does not like hand made gifts. I will allow her to learn the difference between home made and hand made. My socks are nice. She will like them. If I have enough yarn I will knit a pair of baby socks to match! Cute!

I have not finished the fraternal socks on two circs, and I don’t know when I will. I am not loving them a bit. Not even a little bit. I have to think of something else to do with those Addis. Hm.

I have been very busy thinking about a sock pattern that I have designed on paper, and am dying to knit. However, I need to stick with the socks I am doing, and then I will treat myself with some sticky knitting and maybe, just maybe some sock yarn. I am thinking about ordering INTERNATIONALLY!! Woo hoo. I have ordered tshirts from 80s tees, but not yarn. We really are yarn starved in Australia.

Last night and this morning I knitted a tea cosy for one of my Mothers in Law. I will attempt to photograph this tomorrow. With my new blog here I am going to attempt to make prettier pictures. The tea cosy idea came from somewhere out there. I just had to make one. Weird. It is so cute I almost want to drink tea. Almost.

Anyway, let me know what you think of the new blog!