3 dishcloths
A new thing for me, simple, brain dead knitting!
Rather than keep using a sponge in the kitchen and adding waste to landfills when I throw them out, I realized I could make dishcloths and WASH them. And have the satisfaction of using something I made, which gives me smiles.
Each of these took one evening, sitting on the couch with my cats. Relaxing and easy. And I’m using up cotton yarn bits.
Time to make more!
Finally, after 6 froggings and just getting really bored with these, they’re done!
I started them toe-up using a small square which I knit off of, increasing around to make the toe. As I got close to the instep, I added a small gusset of about 6 stitches total-3 each side, inserted a marker for the after-thought heel, and kept going.
Getting bored out of my mind, I went back and put the heel in then on the leg I decreased a few stitches, did some knit 2 purl 1 ribbing and used a simple crochet ruffle for the edging. I had tried several loose bind-off methods but didn’t like them. So tried a silly crochet edge, which I actually was surprised I like. And rather than weave in the 3 loose yarns, I just braided them and left them out.
At several places I had to rip back and adjust, so many times I actually got so it didn’t bother me anymore!
I learned a lot on these simple socks and look forward to starting a pair of short-row “Rainbow” socks from a free pattern I found on Ravelry.
Or maybe just do a plain cotton dishcloth as a breather from all this scratchy yarn.
OR finish my Blue Moon socks! They’re mostly done, will post a photo soon.
Over at Ravelry on the Socks That Rawk group, they started a “Once in a Blue Moon” cast on, taken from the Blue Moon fibers web site and sale. Started December 31, a blue moon day. 2 full moons on the same month. To be finished by the time the next blue moon comes around, August 2012.
So, since I am the proud owner of just 2 skeins of this yarn and their book (see previous post) I decided to join this KAL. Never done a KAL before, but it’s a great way to START a project and with others following, maybe I’ll finish before the deadline of 2012. Which is the next Blue Moon. Did I say that already?
I’m using the Fair Isl charts from the book but doing toe-up socks and will just knit them as I go, no pattern. I’d like to try a heel flap instead of my usual ‘after thought’ heels. Since I get bored easily, I thought I’d make these positive and negative of the same patterns. Which to keep my interest, will be decided as I go. ADD in action!
A side note, I really like the way this yarn handles, it’s soft and doesn’t fall off of the needles (Brittany Birch DPs size “0″)
So, along with other stuff, I’ll be posting about these as I get them done.
And Larry is coming along, will post some recent photos soon. He’s still skinny but getting full enough to turn his nose up at food he doesn’t like. Instead of eating 12 full meals a day.
I’d rather be a could-be if I cannot be an are; because a could-be is a maybe who is reaching for a star. I’d rather be a has-been than a might-have-been, by far; for a might have-been has never been, but a has was once an are.
Milton Berle
2 Skeins Strange Brew & Rocktober plus
Close up
So here are my first ever skeins of Blue Moon Socks That Rock, medium weight yarn. And their book ‘Fair Isling On Blue Moon’.
I’m going to do them, one pair on one circular needle, magic loop, toe up. I have to divide each skein into 2 balls and it took me a bit to figure out how to do it low tech. I counted the rounds of yarn in each skein, surprisingly they’re the same, 192 each. So divide that by half, 96, and I wound off the Strange Brew into to balls. I draped the skeins over my knees as I sat on the couch and every time I unwound a round, I counted out loud. Up to 96. Cut the yarn and wound the second ball. Much better than working from either end of the same ball. I’ve done that and while it might not be really noticeable that the pattern is opposite, I know it.
So this should work. I’ll have more news as I get them started.
Update on Larry, he had a couple days of not eating but is back to 5 meals a day. Down from the 12 he was eating. He still looks bad but his strength is coming back and he’s more active. And his eyes are filling up the sockets and you can see them in his profile, which you couldn’t before. He loves to be held and purrs and smiles at us. And he seems to be able to hear more than we thought, so that’s a plus.
I gotta get more photos of him and post them……
http://www.gvhg.org/fest.html
In Hemlock, NY at the Fair Grounds.
Here’s where we went on Saturday, Sept 19th. It was a prefect day for this Fiber Festival and I had a wonderful time!
As soon as my husband, KIm, got in the gate he took off for the sheep dog demos-I’ll have a video to add later- and I started just snooping the shops. Usually we putter around together and he grunts a bit so this was different. I had a wonderful time poking along. Kim used to knit a bit but not anymore….
We’ve been going to this festival most years since it started 15 years ago and it just gets better every year. I gotta say I do miss the bagpipes they used to have! But there are more vendors than ever and folks are so friendly. And they have a nice small variety of food vendors, if you want to eat….we did. Also there are potties in several places so you don’t have to walk miles.
I got some hand dyed yarn, Tencil/Merino in oranges for socks and from the same vendor, the very last skein of a dye lot of Corriedale Aubergine color. Much more purple than the photo.
And some porcelain buttons and a bit of stones for my jewelry making stash.
A very pleasant memory day! If you live in New York State and live any where near, this is a place to spend a day or both days of the festival.
Greedy me, I got 2 goodie boxes in the mail today!
First, 5 skeins of my favorite yarn, Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran. I got this on ebay and will use each color as the bands on the bottom of my husband’s two hats. More later on those hats.
And I got my stuff from Knitpicks, woohoo! 2 books that were 40% off and 4 packs of DP needles. 2 of the same size of each kind. Can’t wait to try them out and see if I need more, especially the wooden ones. Always I need more books, that goes without saying.
Socks Soar On Two Circular Needles (I can already knit this way but for the price, I had to have this classic) and The Eclectic Sole. Let’s see what I can add to my sock knitting arsenal.
OK back to work…..
Here are my tiny knitting needles from Brittany Birch, size #0. 5 to a set of DPs. 2 sets so I can do 2 socks at once, no second sock syndrome for me.
I started a pair of socks, toe-up and left them on the couch. Tweetie, my small cat walked on them and broke a needle. Never fear! Brittany offers free replacements for 5 years after purchase.
Since these are less than a year old, I emailed them and asked politely about a spare. They sent 3!
So this photo is the paper and mailing tube they came in plus the original 2 packs of needles I had bought.
I didn’t like the way the socks were coming out so I ripped them off the needles and started a hat for my bald husband. More on that later…..
