I love these monkey socks!
The pattern is engaging without requiring all my attention and the Oak Grove yarn is beautiful. I usually avoid anything but plain stockinette for my socks because I like to zombie-knit, so maybe I've turned a corner.
Now I have my 7 movies lined up and something to knit while I queue.
I like this long-weekend stuff.
Spend a day by a lake, watch the kids swim, eat lunch, drink beer and make socks.
Put socks on. Enjoy the perky picot hems and the almost perfect short row heels (me and short row heels are an emerging relationship. I like the fit, I still don't have picking up the wraps down pat).
Cavort with nature:
Yarn is Vesper Sock in a colour I can't remember. I believe Watermelon Stripe, but I could be completely wrong. The yarn was from a trade with Anmyriam and it's great to knit with stripey fun.
Next I'm going to Monkey around and try some patterned socks. I need something portable for all those film festival line ups.
Long holiday weekend, sunny days, a big lake, sand...
and socks. (Vesper sock yarn in a watermelon colourway)
Oh and beer, but that was after the beach.
This might be the fasted pair of socks I've made--from being gifted with the lovely Socks that Rock yarn from Amy to a pair of nifty socks in a few weeks.
I love them. Soft and squooshy and a fun pattern to knit. I had to rip back the toe on the first one because it was too short (I got anxious I guess) but now they fit perfect and look pretty spiffy.
The pattern was nicely written, error free and a nice space between mindless and challenging. I did a garter stitch heel because I like them better and made the toes a tad wider, but otherwise I followed the pattern (customization is important for socks). I have my eye on the much-blogged Monkey socks, but I think a pair of plain toe-ups using some Vesper I have stashed is next--I want to see this yarn in action.
Today we finished stuff. I finished marking my exams! I could get all philosophical about how I learned something about my own teaching and what needs more work for the next course, but I won't because I don't even want to think about teaching because I'm done! I just have a few bureaucratic things and then I'm done this contract (meaning I only have 3 jobs). Woo-fucking-hoo!
I also finished the first RPM sock:
I really like it. It's a big snug in the heel/instep area which is usually not a problem for me. I think the pattern torques a bit so it makes it snugger.
I have a case of second sock syndrome though. I would rather start a different sock than finish the second one. This has never happened to me before. I'll be casting on the second sock right after this to take on the subway tomorrow and nip that thing in the bud.
Someone else in the house also finished some knitting:
May I present Emma's first ever knit, a garter stitch scarf for her Curious George.
This 10 stitch scarf took about 3 years to finish. Oddly, Emma never forgot how to knit. She could leave it for months and just pick it up and start again, but she never really caught the bug and knit often.
Now that she has the chance to knit something for herself (likely another scarf since I can't purl holding the yarn in my right hand like she does and because she would like a scarf) she's getting it.
I'm so PROUD!
It's exam time in the degree mill, which means that I'm pretty cranky. My students wrote their exam on Monday and I have to get everything graded by the next Monday--3 days from today. 26 done. 51 to go. sigh.
The box of exams is right beside the couch and it's not only a convenient holder of paper, it's a receptacle for my crankiness.
No blogging: blame the box.
Lack of sleep: blame the box.
OhmygodhowcananyonethinkIwillpassthemwiththiscrap: you get the idea.
I did try to balance my mood by casting on an Exam sock this weekend. I'm using the Azurite STR that Amy bought me from The Fold. I'm using the RPM pattern and it makes me happy.
It's also exam marking motivation. I mark 5 exams and get to knit 5 rounds on the sock. It ain't much, but I have to take what I can get. You know what I blame.
We're at the cottage for the Easter weekend and while the weather completely SUCKS (it's been snowing), there's lots of time for relaxing and knitting. My plan was to get some things finished and I started the long weekend on a good foot, er, sock:
Uncle Ken's socks are done. I love them. The yarn is Regia Patch Antik (I don't know the colour because I lost the band). Manly, but interesting.
Unfortunately we have the same size feet and they look great on me:
Tough to give them away, but Uncle Ken totally deserves them. I'll just knit the next ones for me. Tonight's plan is to finish the body of Pimlico--only 16 rows to go.
Seanna Lea asked me an interesting question today and since I'm a bit light in the knitting content (ie I haven't touched yarn in 2 whole days and it isn't looking good for today) I thought I'd answer it here and ask you chime in as well:
What shoes do you wear your pretty socks in, or do you just wear them around the house?
I'm looking for something I can wear my pretty socks in ideally at work.
Well, until last week I was working in the free-dressing world of academia so I wore what I liked (I still can 3 days a week). I'm always cold so I wore my socks in my various pairs of winter boots and they didn't show. But that's okay because I knew I was wearing them.
If I want to shoe them off I like my Birks (several pairs) or I wear them in my Mag t-strap Mary Janes so they peek out the top. I find my socks don't fit into every pair of shoes and I have handknit sock shoes and other sock shoes which are mostly work and warm-weather shoes (I find my socks too warm after about April).
I think Mary Janes and Clogs are good for sock-flashing. Something a bit chunky to go with the slightly heavier texture of hand-knit socks.
What do you think?
Holy comments Batman! What an interesting discussion. I wanted to do a little content analysis to sum it all up (I'm currently in content analysis mode at work, so it seemed natural) but I just didn't have the time. I assure you I read and considered every comment and while I didn't respond to all of you, I did pop over and visit a few new blogs and I gained a solid understanding of people's take on blogging and blog commenting.
As I said before I love the interactivity blogging creates, and your thoughtful comments just went to prove my point. Thanks!
My personal life has been a bit topsy turvey lately which means that I've been really busy with work. I'm starting a 4th employment contract this Monday which just adds to the pile of stuff I need to do for pay. My teaching is winding down by the end of April and the Post-Doc is in the final stages, but I need to take what I can find when I find it so right now blogging, knitting and socializing may be on the low side for a bit. I did have a small triumph--my first, first-authored academic article was published on Wednesday. I have some more in the peer-review tubes but this is the first and I'm really happy about it.
Now to knitting. My parents have been visiting and my extra-super-Mom has been taking very good care of us. Laundry is done, meals are cooked, house is clean--which leaves lots of time for knitting.
Uncle Ken's second sock is coming along nicely:
I fear I'll run out of yarn. I even dug out my scale and it says I'll have just enough. The heels on these socks may not match, but I can live with that in the interest of not having to rip back. Next time I'm knitting toe-up socks (I usually do, so this is adding to the fear).
Pimlico is also cooking along. It's a beautiful garment but rather boring. A 32" rectangle is not exciting. I'm at 13" so it's getting less fun by the minute. It would be perfect for this time of year, so I need to get cracking.
Bohus, Collette and Colourwork Classic are marinating. I haven't got the mental energy to knit these (and with a house full of people it just isn't wise) but I'm thinking fondly of them.
Instead of just getting to knitting business, I started something else using Noro Iro that my super fabulous virtual pal Ann sent me. I love Iro and decided being wrapped in Sherbie--a nice knit jacket--would be the perfect thing. This one would be perfect for cool Spring mornings and I might even finish it before the weather is warm. The back is done:
It needs serious blocking to spread the ribs and get the 23.24" chest measurement. I'm blocking this part first to see if I'm knitting the correct size. I made myself do the XS because the small seemed a bit big, but I also don't want a body hugging chunky sweater.
I'm also planning a few summer knits. I don't do tanks because it's too hot to wear them in the height of summer and I never really wore the ones I've knit in the past. But I could use some cardigans. They're good for cooler mornings and a/c crazy offices and they can add a little something to a tee-shirt to make me look "professional" (as opposed to the schlumpy academic look that I tend to fall into). Right now I have a few things catching my attention:
Dune from Rowan 33. I've had the yarn stashed for this since it came out. I think it's time to continue my plan to knit from the stash.
I'm really liking Rowan 41 too. Particularly Maris and Spice (I know, not a cardigan, but it's Calmer in bold colours.
Right now the plan (ha!) is to finish something, anything that I have on the go now and then start Dune. Let's see how much resolve I have.
Anyway, the weekend was spent painting my upstairs hall. The only vestiges of green left are around the fireplace which will be our first spring project (power tools are best for outside). I need to paint the kitchen too, but it's yellow so it's not so horrible.
The other brown thing I finished was Uncle Ken's sock--the first one.
I used the Timberline sock pattern from Lucy Neatby's Cool Socks Warm Feet book. I love this book, it's full of great ideas for socks and good technical advice for doing heels (like doing the heel with a separate ball of yarn--even taking the yarn from the other end of the ball to make a nice clean heel and so the pattern continues on the instep).
I used the short-row garter stitch heel (my favourite) and garter stitch toes. I even started the second sock--the tubular cast on is *not* subway knitting.
And you may notice this sock fits me perfectly. We have the same size feet (I snuck a look at his boots when he was visiting). I love these socks, but Ken painted a good portion of my house; he deserves them more than me.
