FO Friday- Endpapers at last

One of the earliest patterns I favourited on Ravelry was the endpaper mittens. It is one of those amazing free patterns that has done whatever the knitting equivalent of going viral is, so many people have made these and I wanted some too.

I had a go at some colourwork socks about eighteen months ago, they were less than successful and still sit, half done, in a bag lurking deep in my stash.

This year I decided I was going to crack colourwork. I set aside a weekend I knew I would have the house to myself and bought yarn. This was one of those projects that gets finished by obsessive knitting.

Pattern: Endpaper mitts

Yarn: Cygnet wool rich 4 ply.

Needles 3mm dpns

The pattern is great, simple but effective. It is an ideal introduction to colourwork. The fact it is mitts means there is less of a problem with fit and short floats do not require trapping to avoid snags (one skill at a time people).

I picked up a few extra stitches for the thumb ribbing and reduced them on the following round. The thumb is actually a little tight so more stiches would have been better.

I did the first round working both yarns with my left hand, dropping the one that was needed. That got old fast! I am not great at continental knitting, I struggle with getting a decent tension, making very loose stitches but figured I would try two handed. It worked well as the tension problems actually stopped me pulling the floats too tight. I still find it awkward and can't purl easily the way I do it so I am unlikely to switch styles for regular knitting. I will work out how to purl in the second colour of colourwork when the issue comes up. Which may well be never, no point worrying about it :).

In the picture above the mitts look a bit wide. I figured since I had defeated the colourwork demons I should be a good knitter and block the finished object. In particular to even out where the needles met. Unfortunately I overestimated my arm size and blocked them over a drinking glass. They fit but are loose rather than snug. They will be reblocked and hopefully revert to a better size.

The wool was a pleasant suprise, it is not overly expensive but fairly soft. It fluffs up somewhat  on washing, but really no more than you would expect from a wool yarn. The price is good and there is a wide range of colours, it is ideal for this sort of project. I have lots leftover so will give it a whirl as a sock yarn. The nylon content should make it wear well.

Colourwork close up!

It is possibly I have the start of a new obsession here. There are so many amazing colourwork patterns, I may even dig those sock back out and start them over again.

FO Friday- Plaited cowl

Somewhere in my house there is clearly a black hole that eats time. I will try to find it, because I could really do with time to stop randomly disappearing so I can do all the things I want to.

I have still been knitting though, just less. Finished objects are being achieved by either making small projects or by obsessive knitting when I have the house to myself (see next week's FO Friday for details).

This is one of the former, and for once I remembered to take the photo last weekend, when there was actual daylight!

Pattern: Clara cowl by by Gretchen Ronnevik

Yarn: Debbie Bliss cashmerino chunky, 100g

Needles: 9.0mm

The yarn was leftover from making a cardigan. Actually this is not strictly true, I bought twelve balls in a destash sale, but two balls were a different dye lot. The seller was honest about this, but I didn't want to use it in the cardigan. I kept it separate and finally found a use for it.

The yarn is beautifully soft. It might be made from kittens and clouds and the like. Unfortunately I think it is going to fuzz up quite a lot with wear. Using thick yarn and chunky needles was a nice change, I think it is good for my hands too.

The pattern is simple, basically a wide stand alone cable. I had not realised it was a cable when I started, I assumed it was three strips plaited together. The cable method is much more sensible as plaited strips would roll and have gaps whereas this gives a beautiful squishy cowl with no spaces. It is worked in rib, which adds extra squishiness and warmth but does mean it takes longer to knit than expected.

There is an interesting technique of Kitchener rib in the pattern. This makes it totally reversible. I have to be honest I did not do the neatest job of it. I got in a mess with the provisional cast on and twisted some of the stitches. It looks passable so I am not redoing it, but it could be neater. It is a little more fiddly than standard Kitchener, but not any more difficult, the pattern builds it up to be a bigger deal than it really is. 

FO Friday- Little sun hat

I did a better job of picking my project last weekend, it used up a ball of stash yarn and I managed to get it done in the weekend so it was not around to distract me from work (yes, I know, I should learn to have self control!). 

Pattern: Strawberries and peaches hat by Kasia Borsani

Yarn: Rowan silk cotton

Needles: 4mm dpns for top of hat, 3.5mm circular for brim

This is a lovely pattern, very simple and quick to make. I ran out of yarn on the brim, so finished at 4 rounds and did a plain cast off, it looks ok so I am going with it.

I can't honestly say I am a fan of the yarn, in fact I suspect I don't really like cotton yarns but I might give them one more try, perhaps see what the dishcloth thing is all about. Once knitted up it is ok, but it is somewhat splitty and crunchy in the ball.

The decreases make a cute spiral to the top of the crown.

This pattern requires a provisional cast on. I have done this once before so it was good to try it out again. I found the crochet chain the easiest method by far. Trying to do loops onto a second needle or scrap yarn ended up with odd sized loops that were really quite messy.

The crochet chain makes nice neat loops, maybe even a tiny bit too tight, but they seem ok once worked from the other direction.

The online tutorial I used as a refresher suggests tying a knot at the end of the scrap yarn once the chain is worked so you know which end will unzip easily when it comes to picking up the provisional stitches. This is a genius tip! Oh, I found the link, here it is, lovely and clear with plenty of photos.

I have to say, this week I REALLY want to do all the crafty things. I am in the mood to spin and knit lots of patterns in pretty yarns. I especially want to knit some socks as I have not done that for a while. We shall see if the will power holds out, I do have a single skein pattern picked out that should be my weekend knitting. 

FO Friday- Little Owl

I did make a project last weekend that I had hoped to share today, although I was not good at choosing something that could be finished in two days so it took a little longer. It is almost done, just the ends to weave in but I am somewhat undecided about it and might end up frogging it. If I keep it I will show it next Friday.

I don't think I have shared this on a FO Friday, I had a quick check and can't see a post about it, but if I have please just look at the cute.

Pattern: Owl Puffs by Jenna Krupar
Yarn: Wendy Sorrento, leftovers from stash, just a tiny amount in each colour
Needles: 2.5mm dpns

A lovely simple pattern, quick to make with a very cute outcome.

I am not great at embroidery, especially on knitted surfaces so if I made the pattern again I would maybe make a felt beak, if the base yarn was wool you could needle felt the beak and eyes on.

FO Friday- Slippers

I have a new plan for choosing projects. For a few months I am going to try to pick small projects that use stash yarn and can be made during weekends. This should help clear up the odd balls and scraps and means I don't get distracted by wanting to knit when I should be working during the week.

The first project to get this treatment was a WIP. I bought some Regia slipper soles and had started to use the free pattern that came with them to make slippers. I was using two lots of handspun from the tour de fleece. Baby alpaca and a beautiful alpaca/merino blend from the Wonder Why Gal.

They were coming out a funny shape and I was going to run out of yarn so I frogged the alpaca blend section and restarted the foot using some Debbie Bliss chunky cashmerino from my stash. Instead of following the Regia pattern I worked a basic short row heel sock with a ribbed top to the foot.

I think I need to look at a photo or video tutorial for short row heels the next time I do them, they come out ok, but I think there is something a little odd, maybe I am twisting some of the stitches or getting the wraps wrong.

Sewing the soles on is not the easiest task. The first one I put on and sewed while I was wearing it. This requires rather more yoga style moves than I am really capable of so I had to take it off to finish it. The second one was not so bad, I pinned it all the way round using dressmaking pins while I was wearing it, then took it off to sew. 

I think I would have been a little happier with slightly longer cuffs. If I was redoing them I would work toe up to use all the blue yarn, then finish off with the handspun on the cuff.

Mmmmm, cosy. Because the only thing better than wearing a pair of handknit socks is finding a way to wear two pairs at once.

I have been wearing these every evening since I finished them. They are super cosy and the ribbing holds them nicely in place. The soles felt a little narrow when I first wore them, but they seem to have settled in and are a good fit. I may be making some of these for Christmas this year (see, planning early!)

FO Friday- Birdie mobile

Two weeks before Christmas I decided to make an extra gift. I had been all smug about getting my gift knitting done really early, and then I decide to add extra presents. It is possible I am a little insane and next year I am most definitely not doing that.

Oh, yes, and the extra present was crochet, which I used to be able to do but have since forgotten. Fortunately a super pattern and some how to books meant I could make this:

One very cute little birdie (even if I say so myself). I used the Birdie Decoration pattern by Lucy of Attic24 (well know and very awesome crochet blog) and leftover yarn scraps from other projects. I didn't do legs on my birds. The tail coming out of the back was sewn in, I was not sure if I needed the tail when I took the photo.

The pattern is very well written, it has a full photo tutorial so even my shaky crochet skills could cope.

I made some more, a whole flock of little birds. These are so good for using up leftovers and scraps as you only need a tiny amount for each part. Match the hook to your yarn thickness and you get different sized birds. They are quick to make too.

Some string, wooden dowelling and a little knot know how (borrowed) and tada! A mobile:

Not the best photo, but you get the idea, birds on strings. They would look good on a horizontal string too, or hanging on individual loops.

I read through this post to check for spelling and general odd bits of text and have realised it sounds a bit "yay me, I'm awesome". I didn't mean it to, really it is the pattern that is awesome, I am just pleased with how they came out :)

FO Friday- Z socks

And so here ends the socky alphabet

Pattern: Zokni by Mintyfresh

Yarn: Dream in colour smooshy

Needles: 2.5mm dpns

Love this pattern, aside from the super name it makes some gorgeous socks. A lace pattern makes leaves from top to bottom. It does need a bit of concentration, I tried working on it at knit night and had to give up in favour of a K1P1 hat as it was too complicated fro knitting and chatting. There were too many rows for me to remember the whole chart, although by the end a quick glance was enough to remind me what I should be doing.

The yarn is delicious. I received it in a swap and have to say I am very jealous of the lovely sock yarns available in the US. I may have to visit with an empty suitcase! It is lovely to work with and has gorgeous stitch definition which is perfect for the lace pattern. The colourway is lovely and goes well with the leafy pattern. As an extra bonus it is 4oz rather than the standard 100g the UK sock yarns come in so I have lots left to play with.

Stitch pattern close up showing the super leaves:

Tomorrow I will do a round up of all 26 pairs if I can work out how to do the pictures as a slideshow rather than 26 individual photos.

I think next year there may not be quite so many socks, time for some different challenges I think! (Fear not, there will be some socks)

FO Friday- Gifting mitts

I ummed and ahhed whether to knit my boss a gift for Christmas. I don't think she really "gets" knitting, but I wanted to make a little something. So I whipped these up from some stash yarn.

Pattern: Made up as I went along based on various mitts I have made in the past. I will write up the pattern in the new year.

Yarn: Lion brand woolease

Needles: 3.75mm dpns

These were a really quick make, the pair probably took less than 6 hours of "TV knitting" time. They are very simple but good for last minute panic gift knitting.

They have come out nicely squishy and should be machine washable. I hope she likes them, but if not at least it was stash busting and speedy knitting. I think I might make some for myself from the rest of the yarn.

FO Friday- Y socks

I now have just one pair of socks to knit to have made it through the alphabet. Presenting my Y socks:

Pattern: Yukon Leaves

Yarn: Regia 4 ply in Galaxy for the main part, solid red and green for cuffs, heels and toes.

Needles: 2.5mm dpns

Mods: Afterthought heel worked as I think the squared heel looks better than a heel flap when using a different colour for the heels. Five plain rounds before toe decreases.

I enjoyed making these, the pattern was clear and easy to follow but challenging enough that it does not get boring. It is not really a beginners sock pattern but is fairly simple if you know the basics of sock construction.

The stitch pattern is written not charted. I found six patterned rows was too much to remember so had to keep the instructions in front of me throughout. Maybe if I had charted the pattern I would have found it easier to picture the next row to work from the previous row of knitting.

There is an option for increasing the circumference of the sock by four stitches, I went for the larger size although I probably could have got away without the extra stitches.

I have talked about Regia yarn before, it is a good sock knitting choice. Affordable and hard wearing with a decent stitch definition. There is a good range of solid and self patterning choices.

I had one ball of the self patterning Galaxy yarn picked up from a bargain bin. I worked the cuffs, heels and toes in leftovers from other projects. I worked until I had used a little under 25g of the yarn then did a couple of plain rounds in the toe colour to make up the length. There was a little of the Galaxy yarn leftover, toe up are probably best for making the most of a single ball.

Yarnovers and decreases make a lace pattern down the leg and foot.  

Proof I made a sock with no heel. Look a tube!

You can see the orange row where I stored the heel stitches. I took quite a few photos so will do a separate post about the heel on another day.

FO Friday- Little mittens

Mittens with thumbs were requested by my small niece. Although I am not too keen on knitting kids things as they grow so quickly I agreed to these, they are a nice quick knit after all.

Pattern: Heart Strings Mittens by Crystal Guistinello

The purple yarn was supplied (part of the deal), it was chosen by my niece, although I suspect my sister had some input. I can't find the ball band at the minute so can't do a proper review. It is a nice 4 ply in a lovely shade of purple though. The blue sparkly mitten was some leftover Regia 4 ply. I figured mittens don't have to match.

The pattern is super, simple but effective. These are are very quick to make. I did work the whole mitten including cuff on 3mm needles though rather than starting on smaller needles and increasing. I also did five rounds before the thumb gusset rather than three. I suspect the i-cord will be sewn on rather than attached with buttons, I think it would keep coming apart if you just button it on. I left that for my sister to do as she can check the cords are the right length.

They fitted and my niece seemed happy with them, so a win there I think.

FO Friday- X socks

These have been a challenge, but they are finally finished. Apologies for the lousy photos, there is an absence of daylight when I am home to take pictures at the minute.

Pattern: XOX Socks- Hugs and Kisses by Wollhuhn

Yarn: Four seasons Grundl Hot socks

Needles: 2.5mm

These socks were really hard work, in fact it was possibly the least I have enjoyed knitting a pair of socks ever!

I am going to sound like something of a moo face here, because the pattern is free so I should not complain about it, but I want to give you an honest opinion. There are good points as well as bits I would change. It is also probably the yarn's fault that I did not get on with it very well, more on that in a minute.

I do like the XO cable, I would probably give it a less cutesy name, but that is just me. And if you look at the FOs on Ravelry it does knit up nicely, especially if you use a yarn with good stitch definition (which I didn't, oops). The pattern is easy to follow and once you have done a couple of the cables is not too bad to memorise.

I would work about an inch of k1p1 rib at the top instead of the suggested ribbing, the sections are just too wide and it gets curly and floppy at the top. I found the plain rounds a little awkward as the stitch numbers change (k4,p2,k4,p4,k12 etc), it made it hard to get into a rhythm, so I would make all the purl sections the same width . I would also work an additional cable down the plain section at the back of the foot, or work the cable chart twice around the whole leg, this would require 64sts or you could add a little extra ribbing in the purl sections for a better fit as the cables reduce the stretch somewhat.

As you may have guessed I have more griping to do about the yarn. I bought this ages ago and have tried to make two scarves with it, both have ended up being frogged. It is a loosely spun single, so it is very splitty, you have to watch every stitch you make to avoid poking the needle through the yarn. There are also a lot of thick and thin bits, I suspect this will not wear well as a sock but it is a wool/nylon blend so it may be ok. Unsurprisingly as it is a single the stitch definition is not great.

It is not all bad, once you have got the pesky stuff knitted up it is nice and soft and it has long colour changes the blend gradually which I like in a sock. In spite of this I would not buy it again, the negatives just far outweigh the positives.

The X O cable pattern.

Ok, I apologise for all the negativity this week, I promise to be back to my cheery self next week :)

FO Friday- Koolhaas hat

I wanted to try Knitpicks Wool of the Andes to see if it would be any good for a jumper. I bought two balls and used them to make a hat. There is probably enough left to make some short mitts.

Pattern: Koolhaas by Jared Flood
Yarn: Knitpicks Wool of the Andes in currant
Needles: 5mm circular, magic loop style

I have had this pattern in my Ravelry favourites for ages and finally got my hands on it when I purchased the Interweave accessories e book when they had a special offer (it cost about 10 cents!). Since it used worsted weight it seemed like the perfect pattern for trying out the yarn.

It is a lovely pattern, the cables do slow it down somewhat. I tried a few rounds of cabling without a needle but still find it easier to just use a spare dpn as a cable needle. The most effective way of not using one seems to be to move the stitches for the cable around and then knit them as a second action. Doing it all in one go just leads to dropped stitches.

The reason this pattern would be worth the purchase has to be the decreases, they make the pattern flow nicely to the top of the hat.

I do like the yarn but have not decided if it will be good for a sweater yet. It is very affordable and 100% wool. It is also softer than I expected although obviously not the softest yarn I have ever used. The stitch definition is pretty good, the cables stand out nicely on the hat. I think I need to make a cuff or mitts out of the leftovers to see how it is when worn next to the skin for a while and to see how much it pills. 

Stitch pattern close up, it opens out when it is being worn.

FO Friday- W socks

Not the World's greatest photo, dark evenings are making it harder to get decent pictures, but enough to see the patterning made by the yarnovers.

Pattern: Wanida by Cookie a
Yarn: Regia 4 ply in burgundy
Needles: 3.5mm dpns

The pattern uses decreases and yarnovers to make a diamond pattern on the socks. The pattern is easy to follow but I did need to have the book open all the time, even by the end I couldn't be sure I had remembered it correctly so it was safer to look at the chart. The pattern is charted, there are no written instructions so if that is your not thing you would need to convert the instructions.

There is a mistake in the heel set up. Ravelry solved this for me, you need to work one less stitch on the final leg round to make the patterning line up after the heel, move the extra stitch to be stored while you work the heel. Not a huge mistake, but somewhat annoying in a purchased book.

I have used this yarn before to make my T socks so I will not go too deeply into the details again. It is nice and smooth and should be machine washable. It is also an affordable sock yarn option with a good range of colours available.

FO Friday- Ice cream cosies

Not to keep the ice cream cold, because then it would not get all melty and delicious around the edges. These are to keep your hand from freezing up so you can eat more ice cream. I have made a felted cosy before, but this is a different pattern to make a ribbed version (snort, sorry am immature on a Friday morning).

Pattern: Ben and Jerry's Cozy by Jessica Bechard
Needles: 4mm
Yarn: Noro silk garden

The pattern is superb in its simplicity but also functionality. I am always a little suprised when I make things that fit what they are supposed to and these are perfect. The ribbing means they would fit slightly different tub sizes so you could put them on Hagen daz or store brand or any ice cream that you like that comes in a small round tub.

Yarn wise I used leftover stash yarn, I should have weighed the yarn to be more exact but it really doesn't take a lot, perfecta sa stash buster. I know noro is a contentious issue in the knitting world. I think it is fine, it has anoying things like knots, unspun sections that break and bits of tree but also lovely colours. I probably would buy other yarn in preference to it but I would not turn my nose up at a big bag of the stuff for free.

Ice cream for breakfast? (it is 7am here)

FO Friday- T socks

These socks were almost a pair of three socks, but more on that later. Presenting the T socks for the A-Z challenge.

Pattern: Tern by Pam Allen

Yarn: Regia 4 ply

Needles: 2.5mm

This pattern imitates a smocked effect with the use of cabling. I have had it on my list to make for months, so it seemed like an excellent choice for my T sock.

The pattern is easy to follow, as long as you actually read it. I didn't and had to tink a chunk at the start of the first sock. It is worked toe up, with a new-to-me YO heel. I did have an issue with the needle sizes, it wants you to use 3.5mm/3.75mm needles with what is listed as a sport weight but appears to be a sock weight yarn (410m per 100g). I think this would give a very loose fabric, although might compensate a little for the tightness from the cables. 

I am not keen on the heel method, even once I got the hang of it I got hole at the top on one side, as you can see in the photo. I think I will stick with a normal short row heel.

The reason there were almost three of these; I tried the first one on and it was pretty tight, it goes on but getting it over the heel is a bit of a battle. For the second sock I added a few extra stitches to the sole, with the plan that if it fitted better I would do a third sock then rip out the first one. On trying the second sock it is still tight over the heel, the problem is the cabled round immediately above the heel, obviously it has much less stretch due to the cabling. Since they go on and fit nicely once they are on I have called them done, but I suspect I will not wear them as frequently as some of my better fitting socks.

I do like the finished object, and it was a nice knit, with mostly ribbing rounds and a little cabling to keep you interested. However, I wouldn't make this as a gift, you need to have the foot handy when you are making it to avoid giving something that will never be worn.

The stitch pattern in close up, you can see how the cabled stitches go all the way across to imitate the smocked effect.

On an unrelated note, it seems autumn has arrived after an odd and most unseasonal heatwave. I shall be digging out my hand knits and lighting the fire tonight, hot chocolate ahoy!

FO Friday- S socks

Th first pattern I picked for my S socks was the Sideways socks from the Sock Yarn one skein wonders book, notice that word first? Remember that, it is important.

I have had the book and yarn for this since Christmas, just waiting for S to roll around so I could make them.

The general idea is you knit a flat piece of knitting, using a provisional cast on in the centre with some increases for the heel, then kitchener the two edges together to make a tube, like this:

Picking up around the edges means you can work a toe and some ribbing for the top and tada! A magic vertical stripe sock.

Except I didn't have the right size needle, or make gauge (when counted on the work, I didn't do a gauge swatch, because, well I never do). So I added a few rows in each section to make a wider bit of fabric before the kitchener bit.

It did seem rather wide when the knitting was done, but I was stuck somewhere with no other knitting and nothing else to do, so I kitchenered it together anyway, that's 300 stitches, or 150 pairs, yup, a lot of kitchener, good job I like it!

Something I like less is this:

That's right, possibly the World's baggiest sock!

I think if I had not added the extra rows it would have been ok, but I didn't have time to pull it apart and rework it for my S socks. This tube of ugh is sitting in time out until I pull it to bits. Unless I NEED the yarn for my A-Z challenge I will have another go at this pattern with the same yarn when I find some time.

I raided my stash bin and Ravelry favourites list to find a second S sock.

Pattern: Shur'tugal by Alice Yu

Yarn: Crazy Zauberball

Needles: 2.5mm

I like this pattern, but not really in this yarn, You can't see the stitch pattern unless you are right up close. In a solid or semisolid these would be some super socks. It is even non fancy enough that you could use it as a man sock.

The stitch pattern itself is easy to work, twisted stitches are used rather than cabling, which is much faster. I did struggle to memorise the pattern, it is not complicated, but I did need to glance at it at the start of each row to remind me what was needed, this might just be me having a tiny brain fail.

There is a different heel on these, it is a typical flap and gusset (snigger here) but with slipped stitches which make three vertical ridges down the flap. I like it as a technique, but would not do it on a heel, it would be better as a leg design feature. I would just do a normal slipped stitch heel if I made the pattern again. 

My attempt at showing you the stitch pattern, see what I mean about the bad pattern/yarn combo choice?

The yarn I love, a lot. In fact it is in the running for my favourite yarn of my A-Z socks. It is much less fluffy that a standard Zauberball, I suspect this is because it is plied, but it makes it much nicer to work with.

The colours are great. Fairly long colour changes and the handspun candy stripe effect are some of my favourites. As mentioned above it is not really ideal for complicated patterns. It might be ok on something lacy but it would be best for a plain vanilla sock, maybe with some ribbing for fit. The colours can do all the work of making an interesting sock with simple knitting.

It should be machine washable, but my macihne is a destroyer of socks so I will not be testing this, I imagine it would be fine in a normal machine that does not have a taste for felting.

Pricewise it is ok, a little more expensive than a standard Zauberball, but cheaper than a lot of sock yarn. I think I paid about £9 and have made socks with lots left for my sock yarn blanket or something else small. 

The only downside is that there are the odd fluffy unspun bits, a few thinner sections and one or two bits that are not quite evenly plied so it feels like one plied is wrapped around the other (does that make sense?). This makes it feel more like handspun and is not really an issue, you just knit past it and it all seems to work out in the end.

I have my T socks picked out, they have been in my favourites for ages and hopefully they will be more straightforward than the S socks as I want to get some slipper made too before it gets too cold.

FO Friday- The socks of indecision

More socks, it really is all about the feet around here, although I am feeling urgings to knit something different, but I have a number of socky related plans to finish first.

I am glad to have these finished as they have been hanging around for ages.

Yarn: Regia 6 ply in fairly dull brown
Needles: 3mm
Pattern: K3p2 rib with short row heel

I started these ages ago, and blogged about whether I should frog them and change the heel to a flap and gusset (snort, that sounds sooooo rude). They were meant to be a Christmas present for my dad but after a trial run on a similar sized foot (a clean one) I decided they would be too tight on the portion opposite the heel. In the end I finished them for a smaller sized foot, so now I either have socks for me or can put them in the knitted gift pile.

My S socks have been causing me problems, but hopefully they will be done for next week and I can tell you all about it.

FO Friday- R socks

Friday seems to sneak around so quickly, fortunately some car knitting last weekend meant I had these done before the last minute this week.

Pattern: Rick by Cookie A from Sock Innovation

Yarn: Regia World Circus

Needles: 2.25

The pattern is interesting, rounds of decreases and yarnovers give a spiralling pattern around the leg and top of the foot.

I have to be honest, I don't love it as much as I thought I would. All the decreases take a lot of stretch out of the fabric, so it is a tight fit to get on, I think it would have been better worked on 2.25mm needles over 72 stitches. It would not be a good choice as a gift as you need the foot around to try it on as you go. It does go on, and fits ok when it is on so I did not bother ripping it out and restarting.

The pattern is fairly slow to work but the changes on the foot make it a little more interesting at the point where you would be getting bored. You need to keep an eye on the book for changes of direction as they sneak up on you! So don't take the project when you are returning a car rental and sitting around for an hour without the book then merrily knit away, missing the direction change and having to tink back, um, not that I did that.

I am also a little worried about how robust all the little yarnovers will be during wear.

There is, of course, good things about the pattern. It is well written and an interesting design concept, I like the spiralling nature, I just think I would find another way to do it. The pattern is quite easy to memorise once you have done a few rounds, although the change from left to right confused my brain a little and I kept working past the decrease poitn and having to go back (tiny brain issue rather than pattern fault).

I like the yarn a lot more than I like the pattern, I would use it again happily. It seems softer than standard Regia 4 ply, but in most other ways is the same (weight, smoothness). It is a little more expensive but I would not mind paying the extra as I am really happy with the self striping of this colourway. The stripes are not obtrusive, so you can use it to work a textured or lace pattern without losing the stitch work in the colours, but it is a little more interesting than a solid colourway. I suspect it would wash ok in the machine, however since mine is a "Destroyer of Socks" (like a "Destroyer of Worlds" but more socky) they will have to be handwashed, plus with the tight fit I can't risk shrinkage or they will never fit back on my feet.

Pattern close up:

Next up will be the S sock, I am excited about this as I have had the pattern and yarn since Christmas and have been saving them.

FO Friday- Blanket squares

FO Friday has officially become an obsession, I had a little panic on Wednesday when I realised I didn't have anything to share!

However, I found these photos lurking in my crafting photos folder and although I thought I had shared them before I checked through my past post list and can't find them, so hopefully they are new to you. If not I am a rubbish blogger and full of fail, but never mind :D

I took part in a group project on Ravelry to make a blanket for a lady (hmm, seems wrong, she is about 25, lady? girl? young woman?, anyway) who had lost her husband to cancer. Each of us made two eight inch squares and a wonderful volunteer sewed them together. I seriously think she is wonderful, and maybe a little mad, because I hate the sewing up bits.

I started trying to adjust and follow some square patterns from Ravelry, but in the end I cast on the right number of stitches and chose two stitches from by stitch dictionary (Field Guide to Knitting by Jackie Pawlowski). I found the long tail cast on handy here as the cast on is the actual length of the work, with a cable cast on the cast on stitches are much narrower and you don't get an accurate width until you knit the first row.

 Clover eyelet stitch

Wildflower knot stitch pattern

For my squares I used Wendy Sorento yarn, it feels lovely, smooth with a sort of cottony feel, but softer. I have to admit is a very good price, each square used less than half a ball so it would be quite reasonable for a big project.. It is a little splitty though and sewing the ends in was a bit of a pain. 

I am feeling the urge to make a brightly coloured blanket for myself, I have seen lots of beautiful rainbow ones recently and think they would be super in the manky British winter for brightening the place up. However, I REALLY don't need another big project so I think I will muse on it for a bit and hopefully get distracted by something else. If not I might request the yarn for Christmas and make it in January when things should be a bit quieter.

FO Friday- Q socks

Another Friday, and some more socks. I think by the end of this challenge I will not need to knit any more socks, my sock drawer will overfloweth! That is a good thing though and I suspect I will always have some kind of sock on the go since they make good travelling knitting, I just won't be trying to get them done in a fortnight.

Anyway, this time it is the turn of the Q socks and some beautiful yarn I won on the Playful Day podcast giveaway.

Pattern: Quartzonite by Rose Hiver

Yarn: Knitting goddess superwash merino and nylon in Forest Green

Needles 2.5mm

The pattern gives lots of detail and the stitch pattern is complicated enough to keep you interested, but still easy enough to memorise after a few repeats. There is an interesting heel band feature which actually makes a lot of sense as it means you have a smooth stocking stitch section where your shoe sits, rather than a patterned lacy bit which would be more likely to rub and harder to darn when it wears through, I will be repeating the heel band section on other short row heel socks. 

The pattern is well written and would be suitable for a sock beginner apart from needing to follow a link for the cast on, which means you need to start when you are near a computer unless you know how to do it or have another source for the information.

I may also now be a toe up, wedge toe, short row heel convert as apart from feeling these could be a little more snug around (a few less stitches, smaller needles or a pattern with a little ribbing) they are one of my best fitting pairs of socks. A big change from my top down, heel flap preference at the start of the year.

For some reason I got a little bored as I was working on the second leg (these are toe up), I don't know if it was the pattern or if I am reaching a point of being socked out and ready to work on something different, I will see how the next pair goes.

Once they were finished I was back to loving them, it was just the last little bit of knitting, so I have strong suspicions it was not the pattern's fault at all.

The yarn is lovely and smooth, knits nicely and tinks well. The smoothness give great stitch definition which combined with the semi solid colour makes it good for lace or other patterns which rely on teh stitches for interest. It is very much a sock yarn. Some 4 ply/sock/fingering weight yarns are not really sock yarns at all, they are wonderful and contain fibres possibly stolen from a unicorn on a moonlit night and are really for making shawls, scarves and other non foot based lovliness. This is not one of those, but that is good, because socks are what I wanted, and it is a super sock yarn. More important than the yarn base is the heavenly colour, which I am very much in love with, I will be putting every leftover scrap of this to use becasue it is truely lovely (I like the colour, can you tell?).

Close up to show the stitch pattern and the super stitch definition of this yarn.

I have my R socks pattern and yarn ready to go, I just need to track down a little more sock mojo, perhaps it is under the sofa.