I had to cast on. .
You know the drill. There's already plenty of WIP's. Some mere minutes from completion.
Oh well.
I'm happy.
My Pink-edera's
I'm not a pink girl, but these are going to be so pretty.
Irresistible to my happiness seeking feet.
The pattern: Hedera by Cookie A.
The yarn:Hazel Knits Artisan Sock in Tulip
Gorgeous fun.
They've escaped the needles....
Finally! Firestarters in Wollmeise 100% Superwash Sockenwolle Raku Regenbogen Dark.
I'm quite pleased with the socks. Hey, don't worry...they may look like a sacrifice to the Sock Gods, lying there on a pile of wood chips to be set afire. They are safe on my feet.
'The Wollmeise softened up incredibly after washing and blocking (did you know I love this yarn?). Some may consider the colors too dark to ideally show off cabling, but I like it.
The gusset was...fun. I can't think of a better word to use. It is a different type of construction and I wasn't sure how it would "come together" (of course...I don't sweat it out trying too hard trying to figure this stuff out. I just let it happen).
(Just showing off my toe--still lovin' that Judy Becker's Magic Cast On)
The traveling stitches (a.k.a. cables) seemed tricky at first but once I figured it out it was smoother sailing. Not smooth...but smoother. I "cheated" and did not read the chart. I knit the pattern using "words" (ravelry link) that Trishshack (blog link) on Ravelry provided.
It was a lifesaver. I probably would have thrown in the towel without it. Oh yeah, I should probably confess to using a cable needle also. Hey, does it matter? No. In the end, I enjoyed knitting them and made a great pair of socks, cheating or no. However, after finishing these socks Friday night I was so excited that I cast on a.s.a. p. Saturday for the Very Terhi fingerless gloves. That Yarnissima, sure can design.
This chart looked intimidating. Really scary. Two charts with traveling stitches: one with a 4 row repeat, the other with a 20 row repeat. But I am so in love with these gloves I forged ahead. I'm brave like that. Yeah, right. I was preparing to "cheat" again. When I had written out the words all the way to row 10, the charts all of a sudden just clicked. I swear the click was audible.
I got it. I could read these charts. I didn't need the words. OMG!!!!! And then I started to knit and whoa...
Guess what? I didn't need the cable needle. Another OMG! I am so smart. I am thinking the smartest, most intuitive knitter in the world (sorry guys, it's me...not you). How in the world did I wake up so incredibly smart? And sexy? Don't forget the sexy.
Presenting:
Wolltrunken's "Rhubarb Patch" Socks
I wanted to wait for a sunny day to take a picture that wold do justice to this gorgeous yarn, Wollmeise in Rhabarber Sockenwolle (dark intensity). But the sun won't shine. Today is downright blustery and I am too excited too wait!
I will attempt to take a clever picture in the summer when my "heirloom rhubarb patch" is in all its splendor. Heirloom rhubarb patch? After my grandpa passed away and his house was going to be sold, my little brother took his tree spade and dug out four patches of my grandpa's beloved rhubarb (actually it was everyone's-it was something much loved in his garden when visiting him) and transplanted it at my dad's. Agreat central location since my brother and sister are his neighbors on each side and I live 1 mile away. Now the rhubarb is being enjoyed by a fourth generation. I'll have to be very stealthy in attempting this photo shoot. The habit is too take a stroll, pick a piece, wipe it off and eat it johnny on the spot. It may not be appreciated by some to have my feet rubbing around in the patch!
I first saw a similar pair of socks on Wolltrunken's Ravelry project page . I fell in love with them and knew that this is what my prized Rhabarber sockenwolle was destined for. Birgit , a sweet and seriously fast German knitter, generously offered to send me her pattern.
Yay!!!
A week or so later I excitedly ripped open the envelope to study my pattern. Except, it wasn't a pattern in the same sense as Fratello's, Nutkin's ,Diamondy or the Keyhole Cable socks . It was just a photo copy of a stitch pattern.
Have no fear Bandit! You can do this!
Of course they would be toe up--the smartest way to knit a sock. This would also allow me to use every precious inch of my yarn.
I started with my favorite cast on: Judy Beckers Magic Cast On (if you have not learned this cast on, try it again, it's wonderful) and off I went. But after a couple of inches of knitting, the foot it felt too loose. Hmmm...I consulted with Wolltrunken who admitted that, yes, her socks, too, were a little big. She had no advice for this novice.
I studied the stitch pattern. It is an 18 stitch repeat. There is just no way to alter it. I was stuck at four repeats giving me 72 stitches. That's big. I was also, foolishly stuck on the idea that they must be knit with 2.5mm. In hind site, I don't know why I was stubborn about this. I decided to do a k1 p1 rib on the sole. This ribbing did help pull in the sock a little. I started the heel a little earlier than I normally would have, hoping that this "shortness" would pull the sock tighter and make it fit better--without jeopardizing comfort (it worked...perfect fit). I continued up through the gusset with my happy 2.5's and then folowing of my own sock knitting rules, once I get through the gusset I must stop knitting the first sock and start the second sock and knit that to the same point, before I can continue up the leg (it works--I proudly declare that I have never once been inflicted with the dreaded SSS).
Grease Monkey saw me knitting these and insisted he loved them and wanted them for his own. "NO!" I screamed inside. "These are mine, all mine!" On the outside, sweet mom said, "Sure honey, I'd love to knit them for you." But guess what? The evil mom in me was quickly able to convince him that the Franz color would be so much better, especially after older, cruel brother insisted they didn't look manly. Yay! He gave up the Rhubarb Patch socks in exchange for the Snowboardin' Franzies that I posted about last month. Whew! That was close!
I approached the heel of sock number #2, I reconsidered the heel of sock #1, it was pretty loosey goosey. I didn't like it. I decided to knit heel #2 on 1.75. If you're familiar with toe up gusset and heels, you'll know that I am also knitting the instep or top of ankle, actually, in the stitch pattern at the same time. I was quite pleased to see that the 1.75mm didn't do any harm to the stitch pattern. I, of course, smiled as I ripped the heel and gusset from sock #1 and re knit it. Finally, I was on my way up both legs! I stayed with 1.75mm for a few inches and then switched back to 2.5mm for a better fit. The needle change wasn't even noticeable in the pattern.
I love to knit until the very last possible inch of yarn is left,it's like a sickness, but I shocked even myself and stopped short on this pair. I love this yarn and want to enjoy it year round. My hope is that I have just enough yarn left over for a pair of short socks for summer "workouts". (Workouts? Who do I think I'm foolin'?)
I obviously have uneven balls. Sound's like a medical problem, I know. I think it's my ball winder. It's wound a lot of balls. What's the life expectancy? It's getting cranky. Sometimes the center just flies right off! I sure do have trouble with it lately. I invested in one of those yardage meters and it doesn't always get the job done either. I question it's accuracy so much that I always wind and then rewind my ball before I then rewind it a third time to split it in half. It's feels like quite a process. I'm wondering how a digital scale works for consistent same sized balls.
I will say it again...this color of this yarn is gorgeous!
I hope to someday get my little Knitting Bandit hands on more of this same color.
I desperately want to knit with the elusive Merino lambsca booble das woolle bolle--
I don't know how to spell these German words (poor German school children, they must dread spelling tests)! I'd love to get the heavier wool or even the laceweight , but now that Wollmeise has become incredibly popular and unattainable I may be waiting a long time. Three cheers for stash!
Next up?
Finishing my Firestarters!
Here's the skinny:
(I found some funky TV Antennas that I used to model these so please ignore the weird a*ss niPpL*s mid calf)
Grease Monkey's Snowboardin' Franzie's are done, just in time for one more swoosh down the hill (no mountains here in Michigan).
Knit with Wollmeise Wild Thing (in Franz), a new sock yarn Claudia dyes specifically to produce gorgeous pools of color. I think that mission was accomplished. My sweet boy looked pleased when I showed him how it pooled into a heart shape on his foot. I think he thinks I did it on purpose. Aren't I cool?
He loves these socks. They are crazy long and skinny when off his foot. I knit a men's size 10.5 and knit them ribbed until about two inches from his knee and I still have leftover yarn. That's amazing!
The sad part of this story? He doesn't want the socks to show! Loves 'em, there's no doubt, but nobody should see them! I think they look cute with his jeans. 
But what 14 year old boy wants his socks to look "cute" with his jeans? he just wants to know his momma loved him enough to spend hours knitting him something with precious yarn shipped directly from far, far away.
I could have called these my There Will Be Blood in the the Old Country for Roscoe Jenkins Socks.
But I didn't want to over do the whole movie thing. Here's the movies I enjoyed while making Snowboardin' Franzies.
My dad and I saw There Will Be Blood while I started knitting these.
(His question? Isn't that something old ladies do?).
He didn't like the movie much. I loved it. It's one of those movies, the more you
contemplate it, the better it gets. I'd like to see it again, I think it'll be much better the second time around.
So our next movie together, my dad wanted something lighter.
Welcome Home Roscoe Jenkins. It was funny enough. I was entertained and got to hang with my dad and knit a little. Life is good.
No Country for Old Men. I saw this with Gorilla Boy and his buddy.
(His buddies question? You even knit at the movies?)
We all loved it. It was really good (what a "good" reviewer I am. It was good.Go see it. A real word smith.) We all agree this would be a movie that would only get better the second time. The boys went for the all the guns they heard were in it, I went for Tommy Lee Jones. But we all enjoyed a post movie attempt at a body count. It wasn't until the cool music at the ending credits that I realized there was NO music in this movie. Kinda cool effect.
Did I use the word cool too many times in this long "short"story?
Can you guess what movies I saw while knitting these socks?
A Bucket of Enchanted Sweeney Juno Knee Highs
Easy knitting in the dark yields fun, comfy socks almost to my knees.
I tell you, Socks That Rock Heavy Weight makes a great pair of socks. I love this stuff. It's my favorite STR. It's yardage goes a long, long way. This color is Banded Agate. Very soft colors.
Knit toe up on size #3 circ's (there goes my resolution to only talk metric when referring to needle sizes).
Why did I suffer chilly, wet buns for a photo of these simple socks?
My first "photo shoot" wasn't a success.
Here's a few shots with an accommodating Monkey Boy:
Here he is bravely holding up my heavy legs (there's a lot of cookies and bread and cheese and pizza and ... in these legs).
Here's a back shot. We tried this when we saw the front shots were crappy.
After about 10 or twelve attempts, he'd had enough!
Opps! I mean Heeeeere's Franz...
All Blue and Green Goodness.
Wollmeise Wild Thing in Franz Medium
Here he is chillin' like Paul:
Pointless Shot:
Knit up into 'Franzie Socks" for Grease Monkey's 14th Birthday.
Not knit in time--but enough done that he could at least try them on for his B-day.
I was so mad last night after I finished blubbering like a baby. This cry made me feel silly. Crazy Bandit. Stuffy nose, red eyes. What could do that you ask? Many things actually...
#1. Was it because I cast on the 104 stitches for the Koolhaas Hat for a sixth time, only to realize at the end of the first row I had twisted yet again? I guess twisted three times is in a sense a charm...good night Koolhaas. To bed you go. I'll try again with a different yarn. Maybe next month. Disgusted, but...
THIS DID NOT MAKE ME CRY.
2. Was is because my first simple striped mitten is now being referred to as the Ssasm Mitten and may very well meet the fate of the frog pond?
(Ssasm= Super Skinny Assed Striped).
I've never made mittens. I don't ever wear mittens because I don't like them. But I am knitting a pair anyway, This are long and super skinny. And tight. Is that right? Mittens aren't supposed to be sock tight are they? I may wack an inch or so off the top and give them to the first person I see with tiny little hands. 
Why does it veer to the left like that? Kinda odd.
Ewww...this photo makes it look really ugly. The cuff looks much cuter "on person". Hmmm...I have already cast on for the second mitt. I'll keep you posted on what my fickle self does next.
THIS DID NOT MAKE ME CRY.
#3 My yet to post about travels down the New Pathways of sock knitting continues to test me. It is frustrating me. Making me mad even. But...
THIS DID NOT MAKE ME CRY.
#4 In my quest for the last minute "quick" Christmas knits that I swore I would not knit, I abandoned my Purple Salt Peanut Sweater that I was making great progress on and thoroughly enjoying. I also put aside my finally conquered Firestarter. I made it just past the gusset on both socks. The trouble is...these project were hastily abandoned. No notes taken that say "You are here." So needless to say, I don't know where I am. As much I want to....
THIS DID NOT MAKE ME CRY.
#5 I've put back on 10 of the 18 pounds I struggled so hard to lose. The realization has pushed me to eat another piece of chocolate to go with me caramel latte, but...
THIS DID NOT MAKE ME CRY.
#5 Remember, way back when, my mindless movie theater socks that were knit in the dark? Knit blissfully unaware of the fact that one side was knit with 2.25mm the other a 2.5mm. Remeber my foolish thought after recognizing my error? It would be okay, I stubbornly knit on. It wasn't okay. Of course, I ripped it back and started over on the 2.25. I made it to the heel flap. On BOTH socks. Men's size 11.
Progress. A lot of knitting.
Yeah, right. I must have been inhaling some pretty strong wool, because I knit this medium weight STR on 2.25. The fabric is so tight I bet water couldn't get through. Compression socks.
So I ripped. Took my socks back to the movies last night and started over with a 3.0mm. Knit close to an inch and a half, only to decide YUCK!!! This fabric stinks. It's uneven and too loose. So I'll rip again. This sucks and yet...
THIS DID NOT MAKE ME CRY.
#6 The crappy movie I saw while foolishly knitting those simple stockinette socks is the guilty culprit. I went to the movies for a laugh...an escape from a stressful week. Thought I was going to a comedy. I was not. Not really anyway. There are so many good movies I want to see right now, but instead I choose "light and fluffy". Wrong. Worse yet, it was a bad movie. I can accept crying in a good movie, but geez...this movie was not Oscar material for sure and I cried all the way through. I sniffled my way through P.S. I Love You . I love Hillary Swank. She was good and so was Kathy Bates. Could either of them act poorly? But the rest...yikes. (Though both of the hunky Irish guys were enjoyable to watch). I noticed it was based on a book. A book I didn't read. The book must have been so much better and it just didn't translate well on screen. I think there was probably more to the characters than what they could fit into an hour and a half. Let's hope anyway. I feel bad saying it was a "bad" movie. I guess it just wasn't what I was looking for last night. But I'll say one thing for sure...
THIS DID MAKE ME CRY!!
If he wears it in the dark, he'll never know I knit it in the dark:
I can't sit still. Actually, I can sit very still, maybe I should say I just can't stand to have idle hands (if only it were idle feet and that I couldn't stand to have...man would I be hot!)
Before I knit, I cross stitched. Only finished two wall hangings. Gave them away. If I had known that I'd discover knitting I'd a kept 'em...they were cute. I have several wall hangings 3/4 of the way done. Hours and hours of work. Ughh...I'll never go back. Before that I read constantly, instead of a sock in my hand whenever I was in line or waiting, it was a book. Knitting is much more social.
Anyway, I digress. When I decided to escape all the ugly moods at my house this weekend and hide out at the movies I had to "quick' find some movie theater knitting. I grabbed the Socks That Rock in Obsidian yarn I had waiting to become socks for a man--my dad or Monkey Boy (I can't decide). Grabbed my needles and was off.
I did the toe up cast on that I am now in love with:
Judy Becker's Magic Cast On as seen demonstrated by the interesting Cat Bordhi. As confusing as this seems at first, this is only my third time using it and I did it from memory. So once you figure out the mechanics of it, it is a breeze. It is so neat and clean. No gaps. No unsightly end bulges. No headaches. Go ahead. Try It.. You know you want to. Just remember "Tick Tock, Tick Tock"
My goal was to cast on the toe and increase to some unknown number of stitches before the movie started so that I could simply knit round and round, stitch after stitch in the dark. I didn't meet my goal. Almost did. The last few increase rows were done in the dark (as well as a quick trying on of said sock to see if the fit was right) All would be okay if...well, it is okay really. I'm knitting with an odd number of stitches. I just need to do a decrease sometime. Take away the extra one I put in watching Darjeeling Limited. Easy Peasy as sweet Peaknit says.
Plus, I figured out that I cast on eleven stitches--actually 22 on my Magic Toe Cast On. That's okay. I've counted wrong before. I will again. At least both needles had 11. Now that's saying something! I must admit, that mistake didn't come in the dark...neither did the next one.
The real stinker of a mistake: It happened in the daylight. In fact right in my kitchen. With my eyes wide open.
I grabbed a 2.5mm and a 3.0mm needle and happily knit away. It was actually once I was in the dark of the movie with nothing else to think about that I actually felt the difference. Couldn't see it. But I knew one was bigger than the other. At that point, pretty early in my knitting, I could've said, forget it. Just relax, enjoy the movie, give your aching wrist a break for a couple of hours. But could I do that? Noooo....I would rather knit to rip, than not knit at all. That's sick, people. I have a problem!
But happily, there is no problem with my new sock. It has two different sides. But will it be noticeable to the wearer? Probably not. He will probably not even see the difference. I CAN see it. One side is slightly longer than the other and it won't lay completely flat. There's a little pucker. Maybe I should call my sock the Little Pucker F*cker. (Okay. I love to swear. Sorry. It's that damn teenage boy in me).
I have one decision to make. Okay two.
#1 Which side is top, which side is bottom? I know it should be the tighter 2.5 mm on bottom for better wear, less chance that those Pucker F*ckers will get *gasp* holes! But maybe the 3.0mm side would make the slight length difference less noticeable when I transition into the heel flap? But would the extra width for the 3.0mm be better on the top?
#2 Should I switch immediatley to one size needle? Or go all the way to the heel flap? Right know it would just cover the ball of his foot.
Uh Oh... I lied. I have 3 questions.
#3 Do I knit the second sock the exact same way? I think I will. Now my error is a design feature. Not to mention both feet will feel the same happiness, not different happiness. I know, happiness is happiness.
Uh oh... I can't think straight tonight. It's late, past my bedtime.
#4 Should I knit the tighter, neater fabric of the 2.5 or go with the acceptable fabric from the 3.0. Really, what are the chances that the sock will wear out? It'll probably be forgoteen or eaten by the wsahing machine before it earns a hole from too much wear. I'll go with the 3.0mm if for no other reason than a change. I knit most of my socks on a 2.5.
Considering I answered my last two questions, I probably didn't need to ask them. But I'll still ask a final question, though that too, will be answered by the time you read this.
#5 Should I risk another illicit title to catch your eye like I did last week with my n*pples in the title? Try to titilate you a little? It could be "Little Pucker F*cker Trouble" or "Danger in the Dark with Pucker F*cker". Bummer. Nothing clever is coming to me.
I think I should try to convince you that I am a respectable knitter with good taste and manners.
Is it working?
Lovely Lenore has made me change my mind....
I just couldn't decide if I could really splurge and sign up for next year's Rockin Sock Club. But after getting this in the mail, I almost have to. This was fun to open just days before Halloween. Spiders everywhere. The socks pattern is very cool. The yarn colors are perfect together. I need some dark hand knit socks for winter. I can't wait to start these.
I feel like one of the contestants on Survivor. I've been given the flint, so to speak, Firestarter a great pattern by Yarnissima. I've been given the kindling, sweet yarn from Neighborhood Knits. I keep trying to get the fire going and I can't. I just need a spark!
A spark of inteligence! A spark of "Ah Ha! I've got it!"
First, I struggled with the short row toe. I did the first one and it was all holey and just plain yucky. I've done short row toe before, but never very well. But then, I found a link on the Firestarter KAL to this cool magic cast on.
But then, I couldn't figure it out. I need a visual. I get lost in the words. Then I found this video by Cat Bohrdi. Wow. Way cool. (Note: You may want to turn the volume down. My kids were looking at me wondering what kind of weird stuff I was listening too. It's a little "out there" especially for non-knitters.) I love the cast on. Awesome, Awesome easy cast on. Thank you Judy. Thank you Cat.
I love toe up socks and I don't think I'll ever use another cast on again if I don't have to. It looks so much better than my short row. My toe all nice and tight and good.
So my toe is good to go. My Firestarters should be started, right? Wrong. I struggled a little with the stitch palcement and chart. After a couple of trys, I got a spark. I think I correctly lined up my stritches.
But my spark turned to smoke. Now I am stuck on the traveling stitches. I can't figure them out.
Is a Traveling stitch just a cabled stitch? Pretty much?
The detailed, well written pattern directed me HERE for extra help. Why am I having a hard time with this if it's a cable? I have certainly knit enough cables the last few weeks, I should know how to do it.
I wanna scream!
