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November 03, 2007
i'm just a sucker for a catchy title
Goodbye, Socktoberfest.
You see here the sum total of my October sock knitting. I got a little distracted by a handspun lace shawl. Oh, and that other thing, what's it called? Grad school.
On the left, one red lacy cuff ready to move on to the heel flap: Karen Baumer's Simply Lovely Lace Socks from spring 2006 Interweave, in C*eye*ber Fiber's "Glow".
On the floor, the paltry beginnings of a Jaywalker sock in Strings and Yarn's "Rhapsody in Blue". It's a good thing I didn't get any further on this, because even though I've heard everyone say that these socks are tight, I went ahead and made it smaller than I should have (I'm a smart one that way) and it'll have to be ripped. Still, I've gotten far enough to be able to see that this yarn and this pattern are perfect for each other.
On the right, a knee sock, closer to finished than it looks, in "Newspaper" by Spritely Goods. These are made from the toe up, but are going to have black toes, the yarn for which I forgot at home (ahem, Peter darling, did you mail my yarn yet?). There's a spot for an afterthought heel (which will also be black), and I'm within a few inches of being able to switch to black for a wide cuff in twisted rib.
And on the feet, the only finished pair, which you've already seen: footies in Strings and Yarn's "Flight of the Bumblebee".
Hello, Norovember!
Noro Silk Garden worked on 6.5mm needles should zip by fast enough not to get bogged down by all that pesky grad school stuff. In fact, I started this piece on October 31st and was nearly finished (mere minutes from binding off) when I tried it on and decided to give it a bit more ease. It's just a quick tube to throw around my shoulders over a sweater, inspired by this one worn by Nell at SAFF last weekend (that looked like Noro Kureyon).
Speaking of SAFF, I guess I never really gave a full report and frankly, I'm too tired to do so. Suffice it to say it was great fun and I met a lot of terrific people, whose links I'll try to get into the "bloggers I've verified to be flesh" sidebar list sometime in the next week or so. I have a small set of SAFF photos on Flickr, but as I refuse to use the flash, a lot of the pictures I took weren't good enough to post; you'll just have to take my word for it that everyone around me was having too much fun to stay still for a photo. But because I can't leave y'all with nothing, here's a bit of the spoils of the battle between my thrifty self and my spendy self (spendy self won big time but thrifty self still gets to enjoy the booty, why is that?):
The good people at Brooks Farm will benefit greatly when I win the 6/49 lottery someday, but for now I settled for just a taste. That long skein is a wool/silk blend that exactly matches my favourite blue etching ink. So whatever I decide to make with it, I'll be able to print a dress to match! The two skeins in the middle are Brooks Farm Acero, wool/silk/viscose, a generous gift from Grace (one of many new friends met over the weekend).
My practical self chimed in to remind me that I don't have a spinning wheel, but clearly I didn't listen. Clockwise from top left: the first roving I bought, fibre content forgotten, in gorgeous black-and-tan; green merino from Shepherd's Corner, a bit of which I spun up on Saturday night; creamy merino/alpaca blend that I offered to split with Grace, proving I can enable as good as I get since she sort of made me buy the green stuff; and the shiny shiny blue, merino and tussah silk, stuff of my dreams. I saw this on Friday but didn't buy it, then that night I dreamed about walking out of that booth as if on a cloud, cradling the dear, lovely roving to my breast like a soft baby kitty. That pretty much meant I had to have it, and I spent a good part of Saturday looking for it again in a bumbling comedy routine that saw me checking every single vendor at least three times before finally figuring out that my dream roving had been moved to a higher shelf and into a harsher lighting, causing me not to recognize it at first even though TWICE Grace and I looked at and talked about another roving that was right below it on the shelf. But whatever, I found it, and it's mine now. And if I can never afford that spinning wheel I'll just take my beloved shiny blue roving to bed with me and dream sweet, fluffy dreams.
Posted by jodi at November 3, 2007 12:45 PM | categories: sticks and string
Comments
Baby, you know that by this point Canada Post can't get that yarn to you any faster than I can.
Posted by: peter at November 3, 2007 04:21 PM
I kind of like the way all the Socktoberfest pieces look when worn together like that. It's coolness :)
Posted by: nstssj at November 3, 2007 04:43 PM
Uh...I mean "Soctoberfest." Ahem.
Posted by: nstssj at November 3, 2007 04:44 PM
No, Nastassja, you were right, it's me who spelled it wrong. I do it every time.
Posted by: jodi at November 3, 2007 04:48 PM
Re the spinning wheel: I am saving my pennies for one as well, In the interim, I joined my local spinning and weaving guild, they were kind enough to rent me a wheel for $15 a month. Anything like that around you?
Posted by: chris at November 4, 2007 11:40 AM
You appear to have sock knitter's ADD. Hmmm, although your chosen med (Nro and Brooke Farms) seem to be an effecacious choice for treatment!
Posted by: Carol at November 4, 2007 09:25 PM
I was so relieved when you finally found your dream roving. I had a feeling you'd be blogging about it for months lamenting the loss of that roving if you hadn't found it.
Posted by: grace at November 5, 2007 09:38 AM
Despite one finished pair, I find your Soctoberfest output to be pretty impressive. You've made good progress on quite a few socks, whereas I only finished one single sock, and I didn't work on too much else. Sigh...
Posted by: Jenna at November 5, 2007 04:45 PM
I'm feeling so much better now that I've seen your various stages of sockness. I'm not the only one!
Posted by: elizabeth at November 6, 2007 11:29 AM
What a great collection of semi-finished socks. I like the way you have presented them all half on and off your feet!
I'm with you on the very dark blue etching ink; it's a good one for printing with. I've never printed a dress...
...and for dealing with roving without a spinning wheel you can't beat a good drop spindle and a home-made lazy kate like the one my friend, Liz, made:
http://thomasinaknits.blogspot.com/2007/09/heres-one-i-made-earlier.html
...maybe of interest what with all that great roving!
Posted by: Felix at November 6, 2007 07:24 PM
Haha! I thought you weren't going to use the Rhapsody in Blue until spring! Glad to see in knit up though.
Posted by: Jodie at November 13, 2007 02:41 PM