So a couple weeks ago I was very bad and did a lot of online yarn shopping. It's finally all arrived!
The three on the left are Socks that Rock in semisolid colorways. The pink on the end is for my secret pal. The two on the right are Louet and slated to be Eunny's
Endpaper Mitts someday when I tackle color work.
More Socks that Rock (I seriously love this stuff). The two on the left will become a Chevron scarf from Last Minute Knitted Knitted Gifts. The skein on the right is this month's club shipment. A whole new yarn people! It's called Silkie, is 19% silk, and is so wonderful. Even softer than their standard yarn - I didn't know it was possible. And the silk takes the dye differently and creates a pretty effect. Can't wait to knit it up, but I must wait. I'm still working on my Monsoon socks from the last shipment, and now I have these to work on.
For my Hogwarts Sock Swap partner. As you can see, she's in Hufflepuff. I'm knitting these in Louet Gems. It's my first time using this yarn and it is quite nice. It's knitting up very well at 9 st per inch on my US 1 DPNs, and I love the fabric that makes. I have to put my STR aside until I finish these so they get to my pal on time. And check out the snazzy
needle holders I bought. I love them! perfect to hold a sock in progress so the needles don't poke me when I reach in my bag and I don't lose the extra one.
Where is spring?
Seriously, this is getting ridiculous. The 30 degree Easter was crazy, but this is too much. April should not look like this!
So I'm going to spend the day sitting on my couch, drinking tea, watching Gilmore Girls, and working on my STR sock. It's coming along nicely, and if I spend the whole day working on it I should turn the heel today. I love the way the colors are pooling into perfect stripes.
I've also ordered the yarn to make my Harry Potter swap socks. I decided to try Louet sock yarn which I haven't used before. I couldn't decide on a pattern for the socks; I like the trapped bar design of the
Prisoner of Azkaban scarf but just wasn't feeling it. Then I saw
Eunny's socks and loved them. So that's the current plan. Especially since I love the toe up sock thing right now.
Hogwarts Swap
I found the coolest swap. It's a Hogwarts sock swap and you need to
go join. Get sorted into your Hogwarts house and your partner will make you house socks. This is a much better way to spend my waiting anxiously for the next book time. There's even ways to earn house points during the swap. This is going to be so much fun! I just need to find out what house my partner is in so I can go buy my yarn.
My questionnaire:
What Hogwarts house have you been sorted into?
Ravenclaw
Shoe size?
8.5 - 9 US
Foot Length?
9 in / 23 cm
Foot Circumference?
8.5 in / 22 cm
List your three favorite double-point needle brands, including size and length.
a. Clover bamboo 7 in
b. Colonial redwood 6 in
c. uh...those are all I've tried
Would you like to try a new brand needle? If so, which brand? Size? Length?
I would love to try a new needles. I've been wanting to try a non wood needles because I've had a bad run lately of snapping my 0 and 1 needles while knitting. I've heard the inox are great and the Knit Picks dpns look nice. I usually use 1 and 2 for my socks knitting and prefer a 7ish inch length.
If you are a RAVENCLAW, do you prefer the colors in the film or the book? Do you have a strong preference?
I prefer the movie colors. I already have all the supplies to make myself a house scarf.
Are you willing to have an international Hogwarts Sock Pal?
Sure!
I've been bad...
I've been yarn shopping.
Now don't get me wrong, I love Webs. It's big and has just about every yarn you could want. Definitely the place to go when you want to get 14 skeins for a sweater and use their discount. But there's something appealing about a little LYS with yarn tucked into little cubbies. As you go along and sift through the shelves you're sure to find something special. Which is why I've been wanting to go to Northampon Wools. It's actually two little shops side by side - one with all the wool, alpaca and such and the other with the cotton and baby yarn. But they close at 5:00 and I can never get home from work on time. Then yesterday as I was walking to get dinner I saw the lights were on... at 7:30! Seems they stay open late on Thursdays. My lucky day! First I came upon this.
It's Mountain Colors Mountain Goat, and this picture really doesn't do it justice. The colors are so rich and it's more blue than green in person. It's 45% wool and 55% mohair and oh so soft. A few hanks of this for my KTC swap partner; I hope she likes it!
Then I made my way to the sock yarn and found a cubby full of Claudia hand painted yarn. I've seen it all over people's blogs but haven't tried it myself. So squishy and I loved all the colors. I picked up two hanks in this pink colorway.
I love how the pink and grey look together.
I also used my 10% off coupon at Blue Moon Fiber Arts to stock up some Socks That Rock. (See? I knew this would happen!) I got a few skeins of the solid colorways to do some fun stitch patterns. And two skeins to shamelessly copy
Ashley. Now here's my dilemma. I'm putting together my first SP10 package; the theme is socks. So a book of sock patterns and some sock yarn plus assorted other goodies. My pal likes pink which is what I was thinking about when I picked up the Claudia yarn. But I also ordered a skein of pink STR. Which to give her? Maybe the STR since I don't think she has tried it yet.
Wow, am I lucky. My KTC swap package arrived and it's amazing.
I'm really looking forward to reading this book. I adore Arthurian legend novels. And check out that yarn! From dyers in Wales, they are so soft an the colors are wonderful. And quite possibly the cutest card ever. There are also some pretty stitch markers (in the little white bag in the corner) and some Cadbury chocolate (not pictured because, well, I just love chocolate...) Thanks, Sarah! I love everything!
And, by popular demand, my blurry sock.
It isn't this blurry in person. It's also a little longer. So my second attempt went better, or I at least was better at fixing my mistakes. The provisional cast on still didn't actually unzip, but the
Wendy method was easier than chaining and picking up stitches. I'm seriously loving Socks That Rock... it really does rock. I'm seeing a lot of this yarn in my future. I'm really enjoying this month's pattern too. The garter stich toe is so squishy; it's sure to be very comfy. And I can't wait to see how the ribbing feels. (For those not in the club, the instep and sole have different ribbing to create arch support.) We'll see if the love affair continues when I try my first short row heel and cables. I'll keep you posted.
