Aesthetic Entanglementz

Stalled

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sun, 05 Jun 2011 06:46:00 +0000

Despite having enough needles to make an army's worth of socks at once, it's long been an unwritten rule of mine to have only one pair of socks on the needles at any given time. (A notable exception is the Get Smart Socks I had abandoned to frog a couple years ago and finally finished back in February.) But I'm about to break that rule.

Why? These:

There's absolutely nothing wrong with them. They're pretty. The DragonFibers Superwash Sock yarn gives me nothing to complain about.

But I'm bored. Or I'm something. I don't know.

I cast on April 16, blasted through the toe increases, started a decorative stitch that I ended up not liking on the yarn, and ripped back to the toes. Let them sit a few days. Picked them back up and got them to the gusset fairly quickly, then stopped knitting again. Picked them up again and blew through the gusset. Then they sat again. (It's not entirely uncommon for me to let socks sit a few days before launching into the heels, but all this other sitting is really unusual!) Picked them up to get the heels going. Knit a couple rows. Let them sit. Picked up the heel flap stitches. Let them sit. Knit a couple rows more. And they've been sitting since.

Is it the colorway? It's called Shy -- and it is -- and maybe that's part of it but not any big part.

Is it the yarn? It's a hand-dyed superwash merino and feels nice enough. I was so happy to buy it back in April 2008 at the Village Yarn & Tea -- before they moved -- before they closed. Come to find out that DragonFibers discontinued this yarn back in 2008. The price sticker indicates I got it on sale, and that's probably why.

Is it the pattern? Nope. Although I must express some disappointment that the all-over decorative stitch I had been planning ended up not being a good fit for the yarn. I had believed the color changes were subtle enough to work on a more complicated pattern, but they're actually just distinct enough for the pattern to get more lost than I wanted.

Nothing's really wrong with the socks. Nothing's quite right, either.

So I'm going to let them sit a little longer. And I'm breaking my unwritten rule and starting another pair of socks. The yarn...

...Indie Dyer's Very Veggie colorway, added to my stash as part of the giant yarn purchase my mom and sister and I indulged in two winters ago. This colorway really appealed to me the moment I saw it -- even though I was viewing a web image. It didn't surprise me when it appealed to my mother-in-law, too, earlier this spring when I told her to look through my stash for yarn she'd like me to knit into socks for her.

Here's hoping it helps get my needles humming again!

Knitting with Roving, Part 1 ~ A Guest Blog Tutorial by Elizabeth

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Tue, 31 May 2011 21:24:00 +0000

Zhenya here for a brief intro: When my sister told me she was thinking about knitting with roving, I dove into our Olympic Fiber Arts inventory and emerged with the perfect fiber and an assignment: write a guest blog for Aesthetic Entanglementz! I write about my sister often enough that it’s high time you got a chance to meet her, too. So without further adieu, I give you...

Knitting with Roving, Part 1 ~ A Guest Blog Tutorial

by Elizabeth

Like so many fiber enthusiasts, I always have a list of projects I’m dying to start even -- I must confess -- when feeling overwhelmed by my myriad projects already in-the-works. The fact that my crafting interests are so varied only complicates things. I have multiple projects at different stages of completion for each hobby: sewing, knitting, cross-stitch, spinning, and weaving -- just to name a few.

My current favorite? Fiber, of course! I especially love hand-dyeing wool. My favorite part is when I first place the fiber in water to presoak. The lanolin smell of the wet wool is so clean and earthy! Not that I’m yearning to huddle with a flock of sheep in a downpour, but then again I’ve never had the opportunity. If I ever do get the chance (or have the misfortune), I’ll be sure to guest blog it for Aesthetic Entanglementz.

Enough of me and back to fiber; in particular, roving. I realize not everyone cares to try spinning -- in truth, it’s not been that many years since Zhenya scoffed at the idea when I first gave it a whirl. But surely even non-spinning fiber lovers must, when standing before a fluffly fleece or a lusciously hand-dyed batt, sliver, or roving, pause to wonder, “What could I do with this?”

For some the answer is needle felting. Zhenya and her family have experimented with that, and maybe she’ll blog about it someday. I understand that her mother-in-law made an amazing sheep! In my opinion, though, if you’re not going to spin with fiber -- or cuddle it -- the next best thing is to knit with it. Even so, my own desire to spin fiber is always greater than my inclination to knit it. I did say "next best thing," right?!

Look at the roving Z selected for me: Olympic Fiber Arts' Sunset on the Sound.

It’s so pretty, with its muted tones of pinks, greys, and smoky plums. It’s almost a neutral. I can only imagine how beautifully the colors would have blended together once spun. Alas, my assignment was to knit it. Zhenya thought this would make great knitting roving because the muted tones would remain more distinct if knit than if spun and because the colors already harmonize (which is a glorious product of the spinning in more clashingly colored rovings). Plus, it's a durable superwash wool that's next-to-the-skin soft.

If you’ve never knit with roving before, the idea of it is kind of scary -- a bit like the first time you cut into the steek on a cardigan you spent two years knitting. Set aside all those images of fiber just pulling apart like wisps in your hands; you needn’t worry.

Here’s how it works:

Start by unbraiding the roving.

Zhenya puts up the OFA roving using crochet-like chains, which makes them really easy to “un-zip” (carefully) from the bottom!

Next, separate the roving lengthwise (yes, that means the long, skinny-wise) into 4 or 5 thinner strips, each approximately the diameter of a No. 2 pencil. The roving pulls apart very easily.

This thinner roving is aptly named pencil roving because, ideally... well, you get it.

Now, if you’re an extreme perfectionist (like me), you might find yourself getting frustrated that you can’t get each length to be exactly the same diameter. Indulge your perfectionism for no more than a few seconds; then accept that, as usual, you’re over-thinking it. It will be fine if it’s close.

This is the pencil roving I made. It’s been separated, but nothing else has been done to it yet:

Once you’ve separated the roving into four or five thinner strips that are as close to the same diameter as possible, draft them a tiny bit to even everything out.

Drafting, which simply lengthens and straightens the individual fibers so they all lay nicely together in the same direction, is easy. Hold the fiber gently with your hands a few inches apart; slowly and carefully pull your hands ever so slightly further apart and watch as the fiber straightens itself out. Be careful: If you hold your hands too far apart, or pull too hard or too fast, you will separate the roving completely. When your plan is to spin the roving, that’s no big deal; but if your plan is to knit it, you really want to avoid this!

So how do you know how far apart to put your hands and how far is too far to pull? Staple length. Yes, it’s jargon, but this, too, is a cinch to figure out. Before you start drafting the roving, pinch a tiny tuft at the end and pull it away from the rest. You’ll notice that it came off in little strands of about the same length. That’s your magic distance! We'll call it "MD." It translates in practice like this:

Place your hands farther apart than MD (so the fiber will slip easily) but don’t pull the fiber as far apart as MD or the roving will separate.

Here you see my pencil roving has been drafted:

Here you see the difference between my pencil roving in its pre-drafted state (bottom) and as drafted (top):

How much should you predraft? That’s your call. I choose to err on the side of caution and leave the fiber thicker. It’s always possible to draft a bit more as you’re knitting, if necessary -- but it’s not possible to un-separate the fiber if you pulled it apart completely.

Once you’ve drafted all your fiber, you may want to check grist. It’s not necessary since you’ll swatch for gauge anyways, but if you’re curious (or, as some of us have already confessed, a compulsive perfectionist), it’s not such a bad thing to do. You’re aiming for the pencil roving to be about the same gauge as a bulky (12 ply) yarn -- about 5 or 6 wraps per inch.

I wrap roving tighter than I normally would with yarn because the fiber is so squishy and pulls just a hair thinner as I knit with it.

While you’re drafting (or knitting), you may come across slubs. Slubs are little bits where the fiber hasn’t fully aligned. They feel like bumps in the fiber. Here's one:

Slubs are not a big issue. I take care of them like this:

I pinch them out!

Once you've pre-drafted the fiber strips, gather them together for safe-keeping. I wind them into balls like this:

If you opt to do the same, please, please, please do not make the balls center-pull! Just imagine the disaster that would cause!

That’s all there is to prepping your fiber for knitting. And, really, that is the hardest part of knitting with roving.

Stay tuned for my next guest-blog entry, when I walk through steps for prepping your pattern and knitting a simple hat with all that lovely, pre-drafted roving!

If you’re dying to try this but don’t have any roving in your stash, why not give our hand-dyed Olympic Fiber Arts roving a try?

Speaking of Mermaids

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Mon, 23 May 2011 06:58:00 +0000

Those Mermaid With Golden Hair challenge socks reminded me of something: Back in February 2010, I dyed 4 ounces of wool/mohair roving that I described in a blog post at the time as having mermaid-like colors. Into my roving stash I dove to find it.

Things started innocently enough. I just wanted to look at it and pet it... but I guess I lost control. Things got heated... and one thing led to another... and...

Yes! I spun it!

It all happened so fast!

It's love, really. I mean, look at all those gorgeous colors that combine to make the beautiful, subtle, harmonious whole!

The singles looked so amazing on the bobbins that I decided to abandon my initial impulse to ply it. The yarn is a bit over-spun in places, which is deliberate since I had expected to ply it, which would have backed out some of the twist. See that little kink in the purplish strand near the bottom-right part of the image above? There are a few more like it. I can work with that, though! I just worried that if I plied this one it would knock down the colors just a little too far -- plus, it has such lovely sheen as a singles yarn.

My work yielded two skeins: one 144 yards; the other 148.5. I didn't weigh the two halves of the roving when I split it, and I haven't weighed them since spinning, so I'm not sure if the nominal difference is due to having slightly more fiber in one of the halves or due to a slightly different grist in the spinning. But I spun both halves in a single day, and I'm pretty confident in the consistency of the spin.

Fiber: Wool/Mohair Blend (80/20)
Hand-Dyed from commercially prepared top on February 20, 2010
Spun short-draw into singles on May 14, 2011
Total Yardage: 292.5
WPI: 14
Weight: Fingering

Now I just need to figure out what to make with it. Something that won't be subjected to much friction when worn. Something for the neck or head?

Perhaps what I need is somebody else's perspective?

If you have a great pattern idea, please send it my way! Nothing I've seen online this week has called out to me as a candidate for this yarn.

Or I could design something... but that will take longer, and I'm in the mood for a more instant gratification...

Challenge Socks #6: Mermaid With Golden Hair

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sun, 15 May 2011 18:40:00 +0000

I can't believe it's May, let alone mid May!!! April practically flew by, with C's big birthday party, a lovely and long visit from my mother-in-law, the start of a wonderful new job, and more bouts of viruses running through the family than we ever imagined possible in a mere thirty days! May, too, is flying, with Mother's Day last Sunday, my birthday last Monday, and J's birthday today. These are busy, busy times! And in case you were wondering about whether I was still making progress on My So-Called Sock Challenge, I do have something to show for my long-finished March efforts:

I call them Mermaid With Golden Hair because the first line of "Mermaid Song" from Andrew Lloyd-Webber's Aspects of Love ran through my head practically the entire time I knit them. I can't remember the last time I even thought about that musical -- maybe a decade ago?

With these socks, the story is all about the yarn. Oh... My... Goodness! I can't say enough about how I love it!

It's Lollipop Cabin's organic, single-ply sock yarn, from right here in the Pacific Northwest. From their own PR: "Organic Wool Sock Yarn, individually hand-dyed using rain water collected from a wee little cabin located in the Pacific Northwest Cascade Mountains."

Quaint, no?! Makes me want to go cuddle up with my knitting in that wee little cabin and listen to the rhythm of the rain beating on what I imagine to be a perfectly musical little tin roof before it tumbles into a rain barrel to be collected for dyeing!

I stumbled upon this yarn back in January, when my Mom was visiting. We spent a few days driving around to yarn stores, hitting not only our old favorites but also spreading out to catch some we'd never been to before.

The biggest score happened January 7 at Country Yarn in Snohomish. The shop doesn't have a website, but here's a link to the basic business info. Country Yarn is a real treat for the spinner, as well as the knitter, with a more extensive spinning selection than I've seen locally anywhere but at The Weaving Works -- and certainly a larger and more interesting selection of hand-dyed spinning fibers!

Among other things, I picked up enough Lollipop Cabin yarn for two pairs of socks (the other will be in lovely peaches), and my Mom picked up enough for a pair, herself.

You can get a visual inkling of just how cushiony, springy, densely wonderful this yarn is by looking at the bind-off edge of my socks. See how nice and round and tall the edge stands up? That's all the yarn's doing -- no photo styling!

Compare to the pursed-lip bind-off edge on the Jealous Zigzag socks my sister sent me last month (Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Superwash) -- which are still getting heavy wear in my sock rotation -- or the similarly flat Fascine-ation socks (Koigu PPM) finished in February -- these socks are positively bursting with body!

Plus they are soft, soft, soft. And as I knit, I enjoyed the slight stretch sensation. A thoroughly enjoyable knitting experience!

Be forewarned if you're a fan of the highly processed: you will encounter little bits of VM in your Lollipop Cabin yarn. No biggie. It's not enough to be a nuisance. Just pick it off as you go.

The angle of this picture really highlights the golden tones:

I love this stitch pattern. You've seen it before on Aesthetic Entanglementz with my Pink Pagewood socks back in December 2008. It's a simple, 1-row, twisted knit rib worked over a multiple of 6 stitches, and I know you'll love it, too, so here it is:

Twisted Rib: K3, P1, K1tbl, P1

You'll notice that although it's made up of a completely symmetrical stitch pattern, the rib looks asymmetrical in the fabric. This is because the twist effectively nudges its stitch to the left a bit. I think it elevates the interest of the humble rib to a greater sophistication. It works equally nicely in a sleek trouser sock or a thick jeans sock. And if you're not a fan of swatching, you don't need to swatch the rib separately from stockinette to be assured of fit!

As you know, I never tire of the Eye of Partridge stitch on my heels. It's so pretty, and the stitch feels even in the back of my socks rather than ridged, like you get with the slipped rib stitch.

I realized in putting this blog together, though, that my sister and I do our heels slightly differently -- even though she also uses my MUMTU pattern. Here's the link to a picture of the heels she put on my Jealous Zigzag socks. Can you tell what's different?

That's right: I put Eye of Partridge on the heel extension (that little triangle-shaped area on the bottom), in addition to the heel flap; she doesn't. There's no right or wrong here -- it's just an example of how people develop their individual ways of doing things. She wears her hand-knit socks every bit as often and hard as I wear mine, and as far as I know she's never had to darn a heel, either.

One last thing about the Lollipop Cabin. Our County Yarn shopkeeper, who knows the dyer, said this yarn is guaranteed not too pool. You can be sure my ears perked up at that! Now, I am realistic. I know that pooling in socks is as much a factor of gauge and stitch count as it is of some property inherent in the dye work (although I also think hand-dyers can do a better job mathematically predicting probable round-repeats so as to avoid the most unsightly pooling for the majority of sock knitters). I know that some pooling is bound to creep in. I just hope that it's not obnoxious. How did Lolllipop Cabin do?

Pretty darned well! The patterning remains even -- without being icky-stripy -- in all but one area: the gusset. That's the only spot of pooling ... and it's not surprising that the color would sit differently in this area since it's where stitches get increased.

So a big thumbs-up to Lollipop Cabin!

Best of all, I think there's enough yarn left to make a follow-up pair for C, my own little mermaid with golden hair. She'll be thrilled!

My So-Called Sock Challenge Tally (through 4.14.11):

December (1): Marshlands for My Sister
January (2): Twin Ribs for Mom, Fascine-ation for Me
February (2): Sleep Socks for C, Get Smart Socks for Me
March (1): Mermaid With Golden Hair for Me

Total: 6 pairs in 4 months

The Details:

Pattern: Mash-Up Magic Toe-Up Socks (designed by me)

Started: March 1, 2011

Completed: April 14, 2011

Materials: Lollipop Cabin Softsock, 2 240-yard skeins, colorway 1804i

Needles: US 2 / 2.75 mm

Gauge: 7.5 st/in

Primary Stitch Count: 60

Another Good Turn

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 04:47:00 +0000

Remember the Marshlands Lace Rib socks I knit, intending them for myself but realizing after they were done that they were better suited to my sister? I shipped them off to her in New Orleans, and despite the fact that temperatures there were on the verge of rocketing out of the comfort range for closed-toe shoes and wool socks, she's gotten some good wear out of them.

In a funny twist of fate, she found herself in a similar situation. This time it was me who lucked out because these beauties

arrived in my mailbox as a result!

On April 2, as she had just finished the toes of her April challenge socks, Beth called me to talk about my toe-up adaptation of Cookie A's Monkey pattern, which she intended to use. You'll note from the picture that these are not Monkey socks. We talked about the decorative stitch and the particular qualities of her yarn for awhile, and she decided to switch to the decorative stitch used by Christine Walker in her Zigzag socks (published in Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Sock Book). It's a lovely pattern -- wonderful stitch movement but very light, without the usual density of cables.

Three days later I received the following text:

"I'll be sending u the socks I'm making now. Seem too small for me. Funny. The yarn is better suited for u anyway."

And she's right. The yarn is better suited for me. What's funny is that I never would have selected it myself if I were treasure hunting at the yarn store, but the finished socks undeniably look more like something I would wear than she would.

It's a Brown Sheep Lamb's Pride Superwash in sport weight. The colorway, SWS162 Green Envy, inspired her to name the socks Jealous Zigzag -- which I love! (Before I knew the name of the colorway, I thought she called them that because she was jealous they ended up being more right for me than for her -- which is, admittedly, how I felt about sending off the Marshlands.)

You'd think that a yarn called Green Envy would be more . . . green. This yarn is a mix of very pale green and very pale lavender -- and the effect, overall, in the finished socks is silvery. But it's not flat color. It's very, very cool.

She worked the entire day after sending that text. And just five days after casting on had the socks off the needles and blocked. What's more, she had them in the mail the next day! I don't know about you, but it can take me weeks to package up an item and actually deliver it to the post office. She'll deny being an over-achiever, but I can't think of what else to call it!

Best of all, these are the mushiest, softest, most deliciously wearable socks. They spent the entire last weekend on my feet. I have declared them the best jeans socks ever. Honest to goodness!

And having shared my adoration of them with Beth, I'm pretty sure she actually is jealous now.

I need to reevaluate my sock yarn purchasing choices. Left to my own devices, I wouldn't have had a clue how wonderful this Brown Sheep yarn is.

Ravelers can link to the project page here.

C's Springtime Birthday Cake

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 21:05:00 +0000

It's not knitting. Not by a long shot. But it's how my mother-in-law and I occupied the better part of a week, and it definitely qualifies as an aesthetic entanglement! This is my kiddo's birthday cake:

Sharon has a long history of amazing cake creations -- just one of the many talents she shares with family and friends -- and when The Girlio's birthday rolls around each April 13, I get to join her in the fun. We've made cakes themed on rainbows, unicorns, and horse corrals, among other things.

This year C asked for a springtime cake with a field of flowers, a lamb, and a bluebird of happiness. She and Sharon sketched out the basics. I held on for the ride as the vision was fleshed out and expanded in Sharon's imagination, supplies were assembled, and the build was completed.

The base is a 14-1/2" round white cake made from mix (no, I'm not too proud to admit when I use a mix!). It takes 2-1/2 mixes to fill the pan, so the rest was used for cupcakes and a cake-batter cookie experiment I tried (not pictured, but the cookies were yummy, too).

Aside from all the driving around for shopping, the lamb cake is my big contribution to the project. It's an homage to a family tradition from my own childhood. My Grandma Catherine brought lamb cakes for all the kids' birthdays. My cousins and siblings and I would clamor for the head. Ironically, with this year's cake, nobody could bear to cut into the head, which is now among the last bits to be eaten. It's so cute!

When my grandma died, her cast iron lamb mold went to my Uncle Grant's family. For nearly 20 years I thought it had gone to my cousin, Brad, and I was only just corrected of my misunderstanding last year. The important thing is that it did not come to me, and I really really wanted it. Periodically over the years I'd looked for them, but I'd not gotten one. About two years ago I asked Sharon to see if she could find one for me. Because these molds are no longer made, it took her some doing, but for Christmas 2009, Sharon sent me a beautiful Griswold mold just like Grandma's.

The lamb cake recipe -- which is made from scratch -- is also from the Griwsold company. It's a heavier pound cake, and it's super tasty! Unfortunately, I wasn't on my best baking game and had to make the cake twice to get it right. I ruined the first attempt when I didn't turn off the mixer before adding the milk ... and then spectacularly sprayed it all over the kitchen when I nicked the measuring cup on a beater. I couldn't really tell how much milk actually made it into the batter, and I guess I overcompensated by adding too much because the finished first cake didn't hold together well enough to come out of the pan in one piece. It tasted fine -- and we ended up eating it -- but the great milk disaster required that I do it again if the lamb was to have a head at all.

The field is covered with 44 fondant tulips. Sharon spent two days on them. Each has a marshmallow center, a molded leaf, and painstakingly hand-formed petals. Hand mixing the colors, alone, was a labor of love! (In the image below, do you see how some have more than one color?) We originally thought we'd use gum paste for the flowers, but after investigating all our options at Home Cake Decorating Supply Co and chatting with some other patrons of the store, fondant won out.

Encircling the cake are birds nests and blue marshmallow Peeps. Lots of them.

The birds nests are one of Sharon's signature treats. We also had them at the baby shower when I was pregnant with C. Normally she uses potato sticks, but apparently potato sticks haven't caught on in the Pacific Northwest like they did in Ohio. We searched several stores but never found them. In lieu of potato sticks, Sharon used pretzel sticks this time. So the birds nests are chocolate-covered pretzels, shaped into little nests, and topped with speckled malt balls.

And did you notice the Sour Patch earthworm visible just about the Peep in the green coconut grass?! C insisted. Did I mention that she's 11 as of shortly after 2pm today?

The two bluebirds of happiness, which were also hand-shaped by Sharon, are solid fondant. One of the girls at C's slumber party ate the big one. The other is now drying and will hang as an ornament in C's room for awhile.

Eight excited girls dug into the cake at C's slumber party last Friday night. It was a great success. They made a serious dent in it, and we sent some home with parents, but there's still plenty left!

No April Foolin' Here ... Great Blog Review!

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Thu, 07 Apr 2011 02:10:00 +0000

Imagine my surprise when I discovered a spike in Aesthetic Entanglementz readership on April 1 ... and then discovered the reason: AE received a blog review on the Simply Knitting website!

Read the complete review here.

I'm thoroughly flattered and humbled by this review -- especially considering how few blog reviews they've done and that Aesthetic Entanglementz is featured in the company of such high-impact blogs as Yarn Harlot and Wendy Knits. Thanks to Simply Knitting and reviewer Judy Darley for highlighting my work!

Simply Knitting is a United Kingdom-based magazine that has a great accompanying website with new features posted every weekday, great resources and knitting guides, and an awesome section called "The Making Place" that's loaded with free patterns and craft instructions.

I'm particularly smitten by the timely flurry of "Knit the Royal Wedding" activity. Simply Knitting has made these awesome Will and Kate patterns available for free:

This image belongs to Simply Knitting. I can take no
credit for either the photography or the cool project!

If you haven't ever checked out the magazine or its site, I encourage you to do so! Ravelers can join the Simply Knitting group.

Challenge Socks #5: Get Smart Socks

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 09 Mar 2011 00:00:00 +0000

Every time I look at these socks, all I can think is, "Missed it by that much!" Maxwell Smart eat your heart out. I'm considering starting a gallery of Get Smart Socks -- or even branching out with an entire Get Smart line of projects that just don't quite hit the mark.

Behold:

That's right -- they don't match properly. I had the hardest time splitting this skein! Right around the half-way mark the colors were variations on pinks, purple-pinks, pink-purples, etc, and without a hard line delineating the color changes... well... I messed up. If they weren't so clearly capable of having been matched better, it wouldn't bother me so much. These, though, pretty much scream, "So close and yet so far away!"

I actually bought this yarn in late February 2007. I remember vividly because I made J stop at Acorn Street Shop on the way home from UW Medical Center, where I'd just had surgery for kidney stones. You know how sometimes you think you're doing just fine but you're really totally looped out and it's a good thing they made you bring someone else to drive you home? Well that was me that day! I'd never worked with Noro yarn before. Didn't even have any in my stash. So when I saw this skein of Noro Kureyon Sock on sale, I bought it -- despite the fact that it really didn't look or feel like anything I would enjoy knitting.

And I didn't enjoy knitting them. Not one single moment. The yarn is miserable to work with! It's rough and scratchy. I actually developed callouses on the parts of my fingers and hands that made contact! Moreover, my hands were strained and achey every time I worked on these socks. Every stitch required extra effort. Turning the needles took extra effort. They seemed interminable! I don't know how many times I called my sister to say, "I really hate this yarn."

I found the inconsistencies in grist irritating more than charming. See that bit pooking out weird just below the yellow?

It's an ugh in my book. Pooking is definitely the right word for what it's doing, too. (Sorry I didn't bother to color-correct that picture.)

The parts I liked?

I appreciated the way the colors transitioned. It was interesting to watch as I knit... even as I ground my teeth at the mis-match. I also liked the heels.

For some reason, I really enjoyed the stitch definition and the way the reinforcing thread worked in with the Noro.

I used my beloved Eye of Partridge stitch. This time I put 2 stitches of garter on either side of the heel flap. It's a neat look.

I really like the fact that they're done, too!

It may be debatable whether my Get Smart Socks can rightfully be counted towards My So-Called Sock Challenge, though. I started them quite some time ago and had worked them up to the point where the gusset starts before I set them aside for a long hibernation. When I pulled the partially knit pair out of my sock yarn stash on February 24 and decided I'd soldier on and finish them rather than frogging them and giving away the yarn, I honestly thought they'd only been hibernating since winter 2010. However, if my notes are correct -- and I'd bet money they are -- I actually cast these on back in February 2009. Read that again: 2009 -- TWO years ago!!! I rarely leave WIPS to languish like that. I did mention that I really hated knitting these socks, right?!

February 24 I picked them back up again. I blasted through the gusset, debated working the faster short-row heel but stuck with my trusted one to ensure these miserable things at least fit, stacked a 3 x 1 rib on top, and knit until I found a stopping point that had a color on the bind-off edge that at least was close if not a match.

So half the socks were done a long time ago. But even though I hadn't frogged them, they basically moved back into my thinking as stash yarn rather than WIP. I'm not playing my sock challenge by any rules other than that I need to use stash yarn and I need to knit at least 12 pairs in a 12-month period, so I've decided to count them.

My So-Called Sock Challenge Tally (as of 2.28.11):

December (1): Marshlands for My Sister
January (2): Twin Ribs for Mom, Fascine-ation for Me
February (2): Sleep Socks for C, Get Smart Socks for Me

Total: 5 pairs in 3 months

The Details:

Pattern: Mash-Up Magic Toe-Up Socks (designed by me)

Started: February 2009

Completed: February 28, 2011

Materials: Noro Kureyon Sock yarn in a Mork's suspenders-style colorway

Needles: US 1-1/2 / 2.5 mm

Gauge: 8 st/in

Primary Stitch Count: 64

The big question now is whether I'll wear them. They haven't been on my feet yet. I'm told the Noro softens with wearing and that I'll probably end up loving them more than the rest. Wouldn't that be something?! I'm open to that possibility so will keep an open mind. I'm also curious to see how the yarn holds up to wearing since it's not plied. Time will tell!

Challenge Socks #4: Sleeping Socks For C, No. 2

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sun, 06 Mar 2011 20:50:00 +0000

When last we met the fourth installment of My So-Called Sock Challenge (a.k.a. Sleeping Socks for C, No. 2), I was second-guessing my yarn choice. As you may recall, I'd completed the toes before I realized that I was working with a thick-thin yarn that might not be sock-comfy.

On the advice of Shannon and some of my off-line knit compadres, I stopped second-guessing myself and just plain went for it. A mere four days from start to finish, my fourth challenge socks -- made to fit a child size 4 (that's 8 inches long and only an inch shorter than my own size) -- came screaming off the needles:

I had decided to call the handspun, of which I had just shy of 185 yards, Poisoned Apple as a nod to the fact that this project had seemed like it would be such a simple, quick, no-brainer but then I was zapped -- surprised by the reminder that I'd used this yarn to experiment with inconsistent grist. The other thing about this yarn is that I don't have a clue whether the wool is superwash or not. I'd purchased the roving from A New Yarn shortly before the shop went out of business, and it had come in as a donation with no label.

Of course, once I got past my hesitation of whether to continue using the Poisoned Apple handspun for sock, they really were a speedy knit. I didn't analyze yarn weight, but it's probably somewhere between Aran and worsted in the thick areas and between fingering and DK in the thin ones.

I stuck with simple stockinette and let the handspun do its thing. Ironically, the major color shift happened the same place on both socks. The yellow and dark green variations all landed in the space from the toe to the heel, and the brighter greens landed from the heel to the cuff. They're fraternal yet matched in an interesting way.

You may have noticed already that I veered from my standard sock preferences and put in a short-row heel rather than my favored turned heel with gusset.

What persuaded me to do such a thing?!

A reality check: These socks are meant for sleeping in; they're not being worn inside shoes or even on a person who will be upright much of the time they're on. Moreover, I had no intention of spending a lot of time on these socks -- especially considering that fact that if they aren't superwash, they might not have been the best choice for a sleep sock -- and short-row heels knit up more quickly than the heel-flap/gusset variety. The double-wrapped diagonal line is super thick in some places, but it did work quite nicely.

Finished off with a simple 2 x 2 rib cuff at ankle length, they now make a nightly appearance on the Girlio's feet.

Thanks to everyone who encouraged me to soldier on!

Pattern: Mash-Up Magic Toe-Up Socks (designed by Zhenya Lavy)
Materials: Poisoned Apple Thick-Thin Handspun, 183 yds, spun at my Mom's house in Ohio
Skein 1, 93 yds, spun and plied on my sister's Ashford Traditional, 1/27-28/10
Skein 2, 90 yds, spun on my sister's wheel and plied on my Spencer Parasol dropspindle, 1/29/10
Needles: US 4 / 3.5 mm
Gauge: 5 st/in
Primary Stitch Count: 36
Started: February 2, 2011
Completed: February 5, 2011

Challenge Socks #3: Fascine-ation

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 02 Mar 2011 05:19:00 +0000

I can't tell you exactly why it took me so long to post these socks; I can tell you that I absolutely adore them! I completed them exactly one month ago today and call them my Fascine-ation socks. A pattern is forthcoming.

The decorative stitch on these socks is quite wonderful. From a distance, it looks like a cabled braid:

But take a closer look and you discover that there's no cabling involved whatsoever!

The diagonal lines that your eye reads as crossed stitches have been created using the simple technique of slipping stitches that then get passed over newly knit stitches. It's ingenious, quick to work, and easy to execute without those pesky errors that creep in with some stitches just because you can't quite remember -- or figure out -- what row you're on.

To be clear, I'm not the clever knitter responsible for developing the Fascine stitch. As with so many other wonderful stitches, we have Barbara Walker to thank for bringing it to our attention. I think it's an absolutely perfect stitch to try with hand-dyed yarns that don't have long color repeats. The diagonal slip/passover breaks color lines and enhances the visual interest without overpowering the dyer's work.

The Fascine stitch's comparison to cables doesn't stop at resemblance. The stitch draws the fabric of the sock in for a nice, dense, foot-hugging fit. They're so comfortable that they may just be my favorite hand-knit socks to-date!

The basic sock construction follows the MUMTU recipe. The decorative stitch begins on the top of the foot and extends up the leg for a long, lean look. As is my usual preference, I worked a traditional, turned heel with the Eye of Partridge on the heel flap.

I used Koigu PPM in browns and couldn't be happier with the results. This particular yarn is one of Koigu's more subtle in the nuances of its colorwork, with some areas containing delicate speckling that leaves me puzzled as to the dye technique. Whenever I buy Koigu, I look for colorways with this quality -- as far as I'm concerned, there is no more wonderful dye work done today. (My Monkey socks were knit from a similarly scrumptious Koigu.) My only disappointment with this yarn was that there were two knots in one of the skeins. I'd not experienced that with Koigu before and was surprised to find the first, let alone a second.

After a 3/4-inch rib, I finished with Jenny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off:

In this application, the bind-off created an almost ruffled edge. This is because the bind-off's expansiveness gets doubly emphasized by the Fascine stitch's denseness. I imagine the bind-off would have the same impact coming off a cable. The ruffle disappears during wearing, though, so it's not something that could work as a design element.

Specs:

Pattern: Mash-Up Magic Toe-Up Socks (MUMTUS) by Zhenya Lavy
Decorative Stitch: Fascine Stitch worked over a 6-stitch repeat
Materials: Koigu PPM browns with a hint of orange
Needles: US 2 / 2.75mm
Gauge in Stockinette: 7.5 st/in
Primary Stitch Count: 60
Started: January 19, 2011
Finished: February 1, 2011

On Blocking My Bridgewater

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Mon, 28 Feb 2011 02:03:00 +0000

If ever there were a bad time to come down with the flu, it would be now. Here I am, two days into a terrible bout of blechghs that (if Mancub's progress is any indication) will stick around at least a week... and I am supposed to start back to work Wednesday after four months of parental leave. I'm not on my feet much right now, we'll see how I'm doing in a few days.

In my desperation to fully finish Bridgewater before returning to work, I blocked it today. Illness be damned!

Allow me to share a few truths and thoughts culled from this experience:

My study is narrow; my Bridgewater is not.
Finished dimensions: center garter section, 36" x 36"; total piece, 54" x 54"

Yes, my study is that narrow! In fairness, it's lined on one side
by a wall of bookcases and on the other by a wall of deep cabinets.

Blocking a large lace piece on the floor while suffering a flu that includes impacted sinuses is painful and exhausting and decidedly not recommended.
Lace blocking wires are little miracles. It may take awhile to thread them onto the shawl, but it's nothing compared to the time you would spend pinning the whole thing!
When blocking on the floor, it's best to have more than six inches of walking space around the item, not only so you can move your body but so you can manipulate the wires.
If your edge is longer than a single wire and you need to use two, don't bother with any of the tricks recommended to connect the wires (such as taping them). It just makes the stitches move less easily along the wire and doesn't yield enough benefit to be worth the aggravation.
Turn off that space heater! Otherwise the lace dries lickety-split before you get the wires set. You need all that wonderful dampness you spent 20 minutes soaking into it to hang around awhile.
A little lavender essential oil in the spray bottle when you re-moisten is heavenly!
Block in a space where it's possible to close the door and have everyone -- cats, dogs, kids, etc. -- forget it exists for at least 24 hours.
Insanity is not the answer. Leave your inner perfectionist at the door and allow that not every single line will be perfectly parallel/square/perpendicular/straight/whatever. Get the dimensions right; make it look good; do your best; be happy with your work. Remember that when the fabric's on your shoulders, you want it to move fluidly and defy the rigidity of the lines.

Someday soon I'll give Bridgewater a proper photographing. The beach towels and rug don't do it justice!

Off The Needles!

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Fri, 25 Feb 2011 07:31:00 +0000

Bridgewater is finished!

Actually, it was finished late Tuesday night, but I've had no opportunity to block or photograph thanks to the pleasant little virus that's held Mancub in its grips the last two days. By way of a teaser: It's oh-so pretty!

In other news, I'm in the process of writing up the pattern for Challenge Socks #3 and will blog and post the pattern for these amazingly cable-y non-cabled lovelies as soon as possible.

For now, back to my sick little guy and pleasant dreams for a better tomorrow.

Hubris

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sat, 19 Feb 2011 09:16:00 +0000

Bridgewater "should" have been done three days ago. After having flown through the horseshoe lace section, which I completed Sunday night, and based upon my round speed at the largest perimeter, I figured I'd just need two days to crank out that cute little 13-stitch edging.

Right.

I'm five solid, heavy-knitting days (4+ hours each, with one double) into it.

It's kicking my butt.

Each side has 188 live stitches by the end of the horseshoe lace section. The edging section incorporates 1 edge stitch for every 2 rows knit. That means 376 rows per side. And taking into consideration the 16 rows at each corner, this "cute little edging" adds up to 1,568 rows... knit flat.

20,384 stitches in short little burst of rows. Very challenging to create the momentum that fosters stitch rhythm.

flip flop flip flop flip flop

It'll be beautiful when finished, but the way things look now -- at just one-third of the way through the third side -- I've got another three or four days to go. (If I can carve enough knitting time.)

Rounding Up The Reinforcements

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Thu, 17 Feb 2011 05:53:00 +0000

Today I had a nice exchange with Mingo08 on Ravelry. She wrote to ask about the Russian wool I mentioned using as reinforcing thread in yesterday's post about the Marshlands Lace Rib Socks. I've been meaning to blog about reinforcing thread, so I'm grateful to Mingo08 for her nudge!

I reinforce heels and toes in all socks I knit. "Always" -- which means it's my rule (but exceptions can be found).

Back when I first started knitting socks, I considered it mission critical to buy the little cards of reinforcing thread sold in a range of colors to match most yarns. I was in graduate school when the passion for sock knitting really took hold of me. And with a grad student's income, it wasn't long before I decided that, relatively speaking, reinforcing thread was expensive. Too expensive.

Pictured above are just the cards I have left. The sticker prices range from $2.50 to $3.50 per card (the last I bought would have been at least four years ago, so those are old prices). At two cards per pair of socks, reinforcing thread tacked an additional $10-$14 onto the cost of my "affordable little projects."

About four years ago, I picked up several skeins of Moscow Yarn Company's wool in two lace weights Ksenia (cobweb) and Lydia (even finer cobweb). I found them at A New Yarn, the non-profit yarn store I adored which sold both new and donated yarns -- you could find amazing things there until they closed in Spring 2009. I didn't have a project in mind, but at $1 per skein figured I'd come up with a nice shawl pattern someday. The wool went into my stash, where it sat for awhile.

One day I wanted to start a pair of socks but didn’t have matching reinforcing thread on hand. I was looking around for somethind else that might work and remembered the Moscow Yarn Company wool. At such a light weight and with a nice twist, it held up in comparison to the cards I did have on-hand and seemed like a good substitute.

I've never looked back. The darker, Lydia, is my favorite. In fact, I use it pretty much exclusively now. And whenever I teach sock classes, I invite my students to wind off enough for their projects, too. It’s performed really really well and saved me a ton of money. I haven't even finished off one skein's worth yet. Plus, because it’s already put-up in a center-pull format, it’s really convenient for me to pack two skeins in with my sock project pack and just knit off what I need.

The darker grey color works equally well when in contrast to the base yarn...

On Stripes of Sunshine I experimented with reinforcing toes only

so I could see how well the Eye of Partridge heel stitch

holds up on its own. (The answer is "very well.")

On the Pagewood Farms' Butterfly colorway,

I expected it to show up more and was surprised

by how little contrast it ended up having.

On the Twin Rib socks I made my Mom in December,

the contrast is more apparent yet still looked

as if it had been designed expressly to go with the Regia Bamboo.

... as when in harmony with the base yarn....

I can't even see it on the Country Garden socks, can you?

The only thing giving it away on the Marshlands Lace Rib is the denser fabric

where the reinforcing wool is used. I suppose you can see a hint

as if outlining some of the lighter colored stitches on the heel.

It wears like iron. I haven't worn through any of the toes or heels on socks reinforced with it yet -- and unless I'm wearing gym shoes, the only socks that go on my feet are handknits. I may have mentioned before that as a die-hard fan of heeled boots, I'm pretty hard on my socks. Toes, especially.

But there’s nothing particularly special about the Moscow Yarn Company wool for reinforcing except that it's what I have in my knitting bag at all times and that the dark grey truly does blend nicely with everything I’ve made. I don't even bother to take this yarn out of my bag. It's always at-the-ready.

As far as I'm concerned, you could use just about any nice lace-weight wool and be happy with it. You probably have something sitting in your stash already that’s left-over from another project and more-than-enough to keep you in toes and heels for awhile.

In fact, I have another couple of wools that I also picked up from A New Yarn once I figured out this little trick.

As you can guess, I haven't felt the need to use them yet, so I can't say how the 2/20 weaving worsted performs. I can say that the mustard one held up remarkably well to the playful assault of my cardboard-chewing cat, Mouse, when the tube skidded under the bed during the week of our move... although it did lose its label!

Challenge Socks #1: Marshland / A Bit Of A Rant About Pooling

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 16 Feb 2011 05:56:00 +0000

Warning: I'm opinionated about pooling in yarn. Although I don't normally get crabby in my blog, I do in this one. If you just want to know about the socks, skip way down to "About The Socks."

On January 1 of last year, my sister, mother, and I went in together on a rather large purchase of sock yarns from DBNY. The girls at DBNY were hosting the 10th Annual Cherry Tree Hill Yarn January Sale and with free shipping on orders over $100, what better time to stock up? I picked up the usual Cherry Tree Hill deals found at DBNY and also tried some stuff from Indie Dyer and even-newer-comers Ivy Brambles and 2DI4 (a hand-dyed co-op). I won't go into all the inter-relatedness of the dyers and the retailers. Suffice it to say they're all related by blood or by virtue of having been trained/mentored by Cheryl of Cherry Tree Hill.

2DI4's Marshlands Duo colorway had seemed so promising. If you look really closely at the sock below, you'll see that it really does contain a lovely array of color:

When you take a wide view, though, less-than-desireable results in the yarn practically scream at you. For example, there's a dominant color split almost exactly dividing the top from the bottom of the foot. See how the green's on top and the brown's below?

It's only a problem on the foot; the leg looks lovely. The foot and leg are the same stitch count. The only difference is that I didn't do decorative stitch on the bottom.

Here's another aspect of the same problem:

Looking from the top you see that the sock on the left has a big swooping S-shape in brown; on the right is the same swooping S-shape, this time in green/yellow.

Ugh!

Pooling is unsightly and displeases me. It's the aesthetic equivalent of nails on a chalkboard. When the same shape of pooling appears in two different colors within the same hank of yarn, I question not only the dyers' sophistication and attentiveness but also their very goal. Are they serious about making a quality product? It seems to me that unless a dyer is deliberately aiming for a self-striping effect, a clearly repeated pattern of color, or long color changes, pooling of the kind seen above just plain shouldn't happen. Period.

It doesn't matter how beautiful the color combinations are -- and this color combination is quite pretty -- if the end results look like lazy hack work. This is what you get from simplistic space dyeing techniques -- the kind of stuff anyone can shlop together in their kitchen. It's not artistry, it's mindless pouring that lends itself well to what has, perhaps, become its own genre of fiber dyeing: mass small batch production (lay out 4 hanks, pour color A "here," pour color B "here," etc.). The reality of that laziness is disguised when the yarn is re-skeined (often at a slightly different swift diameter), so buyers can't tell what they're really getting.

The whole "one-of-a-kind colorway," "done in small batches," "never to be repeated" exclusivity rhetoric is great when the product is great. (Think about Koigu PPPM: That's artistry... colorwork of the highest order.) But this product isn't great. The reason it can't be repeated has less to do with the dyeing process or any artistic inspiration than with the technical mixing of the colors.

It may be hand-made, but I'm not convinced it earns the descriptor "hand-crafted." It's priced more in line with the boutique yarns. (The $15.99 I paid for my 100g was a sale price.) For me, it's either a step just above or a step just below early incarnations of commercially produced variegation.

If you've been following my blog, you know that this isn't the first time I've mentioned my disappointment over pooling. 2DI4 is my example of-the-moment and certainly not alone in such criticism. Perhaps it's the rest of their PR that exacerbated my frustration:

From the 2DI4 PR: "'2DI4 Duo' starts as one 450 yard hank of yarn. Then it is divided in half and tied together with a gift tag. This enables the knitter to knit both socks, mittens, or gloves at once as desired while also ensuring that each pair will look similar and that one sock, mitten or glove can be knit from one duo. Plus, it allows for convenient portability."

Fancy language for "dyed in 100g hanks and split at the shop so sock knitters don't have to do it at home." As for "convenient portability," doesn't that come with the territory of small yardage? It's not like they wind it into center-pull balls. The description is so over-thought as to be almost insulting to the intelligence of the knitters they seek to woo.

Thus endeth the rant. I have one final comment to make on the performance of this yarn within the sock description, but I promise not to go on at-length!

About The Socks

Pattern: Mash-Up Magic Toe-Up Socks (MUMTUS) by Zhenya Lavy

Decorative Stitch: Lace Rib Stitch

Started: December 5, 2010

Completed: December 25, 2010

Materials: 2DI4 Duo, Marshlands colorway, 2 skeins (450 yards), 80/20 superwash wool/nylon

Needles: US 2 / 2.75 mm

Primary Stitch Count: 68

Gauge in Stockinette: 8.5 st/in

These socks are for my sister and will be sent to NOLA shortly. I hadn't set out to knit them for Beth, originally. I even wore them twice myself already. But when I washed and reblocked them, I looked at them on the sock blockers and realized that these socks practically screamed at me to send them to her. They look as if they were made for her -- and because the decorative stitch pattern is so forgiving, I'm pretty sure they'll fit her, too.

The decorative stitch, which starts at the toe, is the Lace Rib Stitch. I like it and will definitely use it again! As with the Mock Cable from my handspun, handknit socks, it's a simple 4-row repeat (multiple of 6 + 2, make sure to swatch for gauge/fit):

1 & 3 (WS): *P2, K1* repeat; end P2
2: *K2, P1, YO, SSK, P1* repeat; end K2
4: *K2, P1, K2tog, YO, P1* repeat; end K2

I love the serpentine effect of the line between the major ribs!

To finish off, I used Jenny's Surprisingly Stretchy Bind-Off, which has become my first-choice bind-off for toe-up socks. I like to shoot pictures of the top edge because this particular bind-off follows the line of the stitches you're binding off -- which means it always looks different. With these socks, I shifted from the decorative stitch to a simple 2x2 rib for the last 3/4 inch.

As I mentioned, I did wear these socks twice before the first wash. I thought you'd be interested in seeing how the yarn has performed so far:

See how the heel is fuzzy and lacking stitch definition? That's not a depth-of-focus issue, it's the yarn. I was shocked! This, after just two wearings, is worse than most of my handknit socks look after six months. Fortunately, the heels are reinforced with my favorite, Russian reinforcing wool -- and that yarn is still in fine shape, it's the 2DI4 that's fuzzing out around it. So for performance, too, I have to call this another strike for 2DI4.

My sister and I had a long chat about these socks. She knows my frustration with the yarn. She's also really excited that she's being gifted a handknit pair. As I've mentioned before, she's usually the one gifting to everyone else.

Next time she gets a pair from me, I'll have set out with her in mind from the beginning. I feel bad for having missed out on that wonderful experience when I'm knitting something for someone else of spending the duration of the project thinking about that person, imagining how much enjoyment s/he'll get out of the gift, envisioning her/him wearing the gift, imbuing every stitch with love.

Confession 2.13.11

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Mon, 14 Feb 2011 04:56:00 +0000

Like a dieter deliberately withholding from friends and loved ones any indication that s/he is dieting until she's had some success and is sure she's committed, I've been keeping a secret. Today I go public.

My So-Called Sock Challenge:

December 2010 through November 2011,

I will knit no fewer than twelve pairs of socks.

It's self-imposed. I need to knit down my stash.

Historically I've prided myself on having a very small and tidy stash, purchasing new yarn only as-needed for a new project and rarely having more than one or two extra projects' worth on hand. After coming down from the euphoria of a few indiscriminate buying binges in 2008 and 2009, I now have a luxury of beautiful yarns (especially sock yarns) that, frankly, borders on the obscene. The magnitude became all-too-apparent when we moved last spring and I gathered all the skeins that used to be scattered around our old, much-smaller house into a single location at the new house. Too much... way too much.

The rules of the challenge are simple: Produce at least one pair per month of the challenge. That's it. Nothing rigid like "must begin and end during the same month" or "must cast on a new pair the first of the month." Twelve months equals twelve pairs (minimum). If I get ahead and finish twelve pairs early, great! I'll consider my challenge successful. In that case, I may or may not stop early. We'll see how I feel about it if that happens.

My only confidant about the challenge was my sister, and she decided to participate in solidarity -- which I love! She created a more rigid challenge schema for herself, though, so we're not doing exactly the same thing. And á la the Yarn Harlot, she also already picked out what yarn's she's using, selected patterns for each, and set up monthly kits. Not me! No, I'm winging it all loosey goosey on-the-fly.

My So-Called Sock Challenge Tally (as of 2.11.10):

December (1): Marshlands for My Sister
January (2): Twin Ribs for Mom*, Fantastic Fascine Socks for Me
February (1 so far): Sleep Socks for C

Total: 4 pairs in 3 months

I already blogged about the Twin Rib socks for Mom. I decided to count these in my challenge, even though they didn't use yarn from my stash, because they use yarn from my mom's ample stash -- which aligns them with my goals for the challenge. My challenge, my loose rules!

You also already saw a bit about my conundrum (now resolved) with the Sleep Socks for C.

Postings about socks already completed are on their way. A new pair will hit the needles as soon as I finish my Bridgewater Shawl (which may... may... happen as early as tomorrow).

Mind you: This challenge won't completely deplete my sock yarn stash. It will make a good dent, though!

Anyone who wants to join us in our So-Called Sock Challenge is welcome -- no application necessary.

Fast And Loose (or) How I Escaped The Inferno By Free-Skeining

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sat, 12 Feb 2011 02:09:00 +0000

Back in early March I decided to give Brooklyn Tweed Jared Flood's Bridgewater Shawl (from the pamphlet Classic Elite #9108, Made in Brooklyn) a go. The biggest obstacle to my committing to this project was the laceweight yarn -- not because I don't like it or don't like knitting it but because skeining that much fine yarn into a center-pull ball is the quickest way to what surely must have appeared in Dante's in early drafts of The Inferno as the tenth circle of hell.

Visions of a center-pull ball collapsing in upon itself over time and my gorgeous, vintage Jaggerspun Seafoam Zephyr 50/50 wool/silk (2/18) turning into a hopeless, #%*@&!-ish pile of knots, never to be saved from the tangled abyss, all but paralyzed me.

But desperate times call for desperate measures. I turned to free-skeining. Before you accuse me of having gone over the edge with this one, it's not a drug-induced state! It's this:

I'm more than 3/4 done with my Bridgewater, so that gorgeous round of fiber draped over the arm of the chair doesn't look nearly as daunting as it used to. What you see is about 350 wraps of yarn wound on my 1-1/2 yard niddy noddy. Back when I started, the hank consisted of 921 wraps (1,387 yards)!

To prepare the fiber, I segmented the skein into 9 sections of 100 wraps each and 1 section of 21 wraps. Ties were placed at each of the compass points, and then a larger tie bundled all the segments together at each of the compass points. Here's what it looks like with the few segments remaining:

That unbound bit at the top of the image is the segment I'm currently knitting from.

So how does it work in practice? I drape the ring over the arm of a chair or just put my arm through it and wear it draped over my elbow if there aren't any good arms on my seat. I untie the segment I'm currently knitting from, allowing the yarn to flow off the ring as I work. (Some people advocate wearing the yarn across the body like a pageant sash, but that just didn't do it for me.) If I'm knitting while mostly reclined -- like sitting up in bed or laying on the couch -- I'll bend my right leg and pop the ring over my knee.

I discovered an inexpensive little tool to keep it all straight: a pipe cleaner!

The pipe cleaner lets me easily see my beginning of ring area, wrap up the segments not currently in use, and partition off the segment in use for easy release. Here it's wrapped for storage:

Here it's unwrapped for knitting:

The pipe cleaner is also a good anchor for winding the ring back into a neatly twisted hank at the end of the day. I just hold the pipe cleaner end in one hand, twist into a hank, and insert the other end back through the pipe cleaner end. (Sorry there's no picture of that, but I bet you can figure it out just fine.)

Free-skeining has worked brilliantly for me. Consider me your free-skeining pusher for projects when center-pull balls just won't cut it. I would totally do this again and can't think of anything I'd do to improve upon my system. If you're considering this technique, just know that the careful and methodical tie-up really is key to its success -- and to keeping you from panicking yourself into wearing a funky fiber pageant sash just to be doubly certain you avoid catastrophe.

In fast, after having worked on my free-skeining project this long, I've become so comfortable and casual about it all that on occasion I don't do due diligence in twisting my yarn back up at the end of the night and leave it looking like a spaghetti jumble on the side table!

I have absolute faith that all is well -- and I haven't been wrong yet.

The shawl is coming along nicely, too! I completed the garter square center and am halfway through the horseshoe lace. I'm gunning to finish in the next five days.

How To Extend The Life Of Handknit Socks

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Thu, 10 Feb 2011 22:25:00 +0000

Why do I crank out multitudes of socks?

Because I adore knitting but have a scarcity of time and their diminutive palatte holds infinite possibility for the exploration of design and technique. Every stitch is a precious thing.

For my mother, who forges on despite disability, it takes an entire year to make a single pair of socks. Every stitch is a precious thing.

My sister believes everybody in the extended family -- and even extended circle of friends -- deserves not just one but two pairs of handknit socks. So strong is her conviction that she has committed to being a one-woman go-to source for fiber love. She moves them out at breakneck speed -- and still, every stitch is a precious thing.

Rather than frame our work behind archival glass or limit their rotation in our wear cycle, we firmly believe we (or our loved ones) ought to be able to wear the heck out of our handknit socks well into the next millenium.

But socks pay a steep price for the privilege of being among our beloved pairs. Worn patches appear on the best of them, and none can escape the assault of toes and their insidious toenails pressing upon them from within a heeled boot. Sooner or later, something's gonna give!

Here's a little tip that can help delay the inevitable:

Before washing, turn your socks wrong side out!

Washing your handknit socks wrong-side-out increases likelihood that any fuzzy halos accumulating over time will appear on the insides rather than the outsides.

Turning the foot-sweaty side out when you wash encourages dirt to move more freely out into the wash water rather than staying trapped within the sock itself -- and less dirt equates to less wear.

I know, I know... somewhere out there is a scientist who can produce research demonstrating that those of us inclined to knit socks by hand are also, nine times out of ten, inclined to turn our clothes right side out before tossing them in the hamper. But muster the strength to move past your compulsion and give this tip a try. Can't hurt, and your socks might thank you!

Goal!

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 18:41:00 +0000

Early last spring, just before things got crazy with my job and the move, I achieved a milestone: I spun singles that were both fine enough and consistent enough for me to ply into a viable, fingerweight sock yarn! The fact that I'm only just now writing about it should be some indication of just how fantastically life intervened.

The story:

When my Aunt Mae died late last January, I flew back to Ohio, and my sister and mom (who still lives in Ohio but had been visiting my sister) drove up from New Orleans. They picked me up at the Cleveland airport on their way into town. No sooner had we finished our hugs than we started plotting which yarn stores we could hit on the way to Mom's house. Mind you, Beth had been driving for 20 solid hours, proving two things: our compulsion for fiber borders on the masochistic and, apparently, is also genetic.

We landed at KNOTS (Knitting on the Square) in Chardon, the quaint little town where my husband grew up which is, conveniently, just a 20-minute drive south of my mom's current home. At KNOTS we chatted with the wonderful owner, Kate Jackson, and found so many great things. We were surprised to find spinning fiber at all, let alone her healthy stock of indie-dyed beauties. Kate was flabbergasted that we went straight to her shop before even getting to our destination! We picked up several kinds of fibers and colorways. More on my purchase in the future -- the subject of today's post is this lovely:

Dancing Feet Roving by TomBoy Yarns.
4oz or superwash Blue Faced Leicester.
Colorway: Jewel Tones.

They may be common colors, but they spoke to me that day... and the BFL was just so luscious.

Jump forward to April. Joseph and I had just signed a contract to purchase our new home. With the pressure to pack and move within six weeks crushing down upon me, I made what seemed then to be a logical choice: I spun the entire 4 ounces on April 5 and Navajo/chain plied it the next day. The whole time, I was thinking, "This could be socks," and behold:

380 yards. Sock yarn!

I cast on and madly knit the toes, foot, and gusset before I had to get serious about moving.

Flash forward to November. With four glorious months of parental leave stretching out before me, sanity and space returned and I found my creative energy restored. Out came the socks!

Pattern: Mash-Up Magic Toe-Up Socks (MUMTUS) by Zhenya Lavy (workshop pictorial, Ravelry page, downloadable PDF of the condensed pattern)
Primary Stitch Count: 52
Started: April 28, 2010
Completed: November 28, 2010
Materials: My Navajo-plied handspun from Superwash BFL, Jewel Tones (Dancing Feet Roving by TomBoy Yarns)
Needles: US 2 / 3.00 mm

I used a mock cable stitch with alternating twists for the leg:

This Mock Cable has a simple, four-row repeat:

1: *MT, P2, K2, P2* repeat

2 & 4: K2, P2
3: K2, P2, *MT, P2, K2, P2* repeat

(MT = Make Twist. K2tog but don't slip off needle. Insert needle back into the 1st stitch and knit. Slip both off needle.)

Blocked

My handspun was a joy to knit. I found myself stopping to admire my work much more frequently than usual!

I have 26 grams of the handspun left -- that's about 23% of my starting quantity. I only used 77% of my fiber... about 266 yards. This confuses me. The yarn looks and feels like fingerweight, but it knit up like a higher grist. Hmmm... Thoughts?

Doesn't the color flow beautifully through the fabric? I didn't do any special spinning techniques to manipulate the color. I just let things fall where they may in the spinning and Navajo plying processes.

Before blocking. Squishy and luxurious!

They're definitely a fraternal pair, which would drive my sister crazy, but I'm good with it! It's most obvious here:

I know it's generally preferable to block before photographing, but sometimes I feel like the blocking renders a "sterile" picture. In their pre-blocked state, they shine with all the charisma of the kinesthetic experience they have to offer!

When all was said and done, they didn't take all that much touch time to spin and knit... but they ended up being a seven-month project. Yikes!

Sadly, last week Kate announced that she's selling KNOTS to spend more time with her two little ones and prepare for the arrival of a third. Congratulations, Kate! I've really appreciated your approach and your fun voice in the newsletters.

I'm praying someone wonderful buys the shop. As my mother-in-law says, "It's such a nice addition to Chardon Square." As I see it, a yarn store is perfect for a serene, historical setting. I'd be all over it if we still lived in Ohio!

Getting A Grip On (En)Tangle(ment)z

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sat, 05 Feb 2011 08:35:00 +0000

Did I mention I had joined the Girl Scouts last fall?

I innocently took The Girlio to a meeting and ended up a collateral registrant, and... well... now we're up to our ears in cookie sales, pursuing the Bronze Award, and fundraising for an early May trip to San Francisco. There, C and seven other Seattle Juniors from her troop are joining 5,000 Girl Scouts to walk across the Golden Gate Bridge for their Bridging Ceremony. Our girls are working as a team to raise the $745 travel cost per person. They made great progress doing holiday gift-wrapping at Barnes & Noble. Today they're selling home-made or -baked items at the region's Annual Meeting.

C and I are very proud of our contribution to the fundraising efforts:

That's right, we designed and made those cute little hair ribbon things otherwise known as

Feast your eyes on the fruits of our labor. Three days of my life, to be exact. Thursday through Saturday of last week. Thursday went something like this: Woke up at 4am stressing about what we would make. Tossed. Turned. Tossed some more.

Got out of bed at 6:30am to surf the web for inspiration before the kids woke up. Having been a Girl Scout fewer than six months, I didn't have a clue what was done or not done or cool or not cool. The heat was on!

Then I discovered that the Girl Scouts licensed cute fabrics designed by Robert Kaufman. I could do something with that! But what?

Four ideas emerged based upon my research: Sit-Upons, Pledge Money Purses, String Backpacks, and Pony O's. Pony O's seemed the most manageable and the most salable -- and I hadn't seen anything like them out there specific to Girl Scouts. Yes!

Teachers at C's school were to have a professional development day on Friday. Since that meant she would be home with me the next day, I thought it would be the perfect opportunity for us to assemble everything. I located the closest local store carrying the fabric and ran over to pick up supplies so we could start working as early as possible the next day.

I also had to pull out both of my sewing machines and open them up for repairs. Neither was working, and I knew it. I diagnosed the older one and ordered some parts for repair. Fortunately, I was able to put the newer one back into working order so we could use it right away. And use it we did!

Captains of the Industrial Revolution would have been impressed by the brilliance of the mass-production assembly line we set up in our living room.

Even though the cute little beads are hidden by the way I've secured all the bands, I love how these Pony O's look en masse!

It took a day longer than I had hoped, but by Saturday evening we had cranked out a total of 36 C & Z Original Girl Scout Pony O's. Wooo - hoooo! Of course C selected two to keep, so we're actually selling 34.

These are some seriously well-crafted Pony O's, too. We used the sewing machine to stitch fabric tubes from the Girl Scouts fabric, which we then turned right-side-out. She was a miracle of fiddly fabric-turning stamina! Catherine carefully assessed which color ribbons went with which color fabric... then which color band... then which color bead. The ribbon ends were neatly trimmed and sealed. And the whole was assembled and finish stitched by hand.

If you think that was the hard part, think again. We still had to figure out how to display them! The girls have about 20 different types of items to sell on a single little table, so space would be at a premium. We knew we had to go vertical. Six days passed before we figured out a simple, doable solution:

If you guessed "shoe tree," you're correct! C made a great sign. I figured out how to rig it to stand up nicely.

C practiced assembling and disassembling it all so things will go smoothly at the sale. Then she practiced her sales pitch and her best "How could you possibly say no to me?" look. Again, success:

She has every reason to be proud of all her work! We got out of a fundraising idea tangle, and we can help 34 lucky girls keep their hair tangle-free stylishly while participating in all their Girl Scout activities!

My fingers are super-duper crossed. These fundraisers are challenging in so many ways, and it would be nice to make another big step toward the girls' goal. Anyone want to order some for their own little Girl Scouts? Let me know! Leftovers will be posted for sale on Etsy Sunday, and we'd be happy to make more if they all sell at today's meeting.

What Was I Thinking?! (What Do You Think?)

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Thu, 03 Feb 2011 18:57:00 +0000

Last night I threw caution to the wind and cast on a pair of sleep socks for The Girlio without checking gauge first.

Here was my thinking:

The number of stitches cast on at the toe is somewhat irrelevant since I just need a handful, and to be off by one or two would not make or break the socks' fit.
The toe increase section itself would become my gauge swatch! The sock would be knit in stockinette, and because it's a sleep sock that won't be getting hard wear, I wouldn't reinforce the toes or heels. Conditions were right!
I knew I wouldn't overshoot the right stitch count for circumference before having knit plenty of fabric to test gauge.
I really wanted to knit up some handspun I'd made on my trip back to Ohio and Pennsylvania late last January for my Aunt Mae's funeral. It's been a year, and I've been thinking about her a lot.
The handspun had been languishing and needed just this kind of inspired moment to get it on the needles. Back when I made it, C was wearing an orange coat, so these 185 yards of yarn would have made a great little hat or skinny scarf. Now she wears a light purple coat. Not so good. But for sleep socks? Wonderful!
It's a heavier yarn -- mostly worsted -- so they'd knit up lickety split!
C would love them. This is a girl who uses three of those grain-filled foot-warmer things you heat in the microwave each night.

I cast on while watching old episodes of Nip/Tuck on Netflix before bed (my current guilty pleasure... I had turned my nose up at it when it was in syndication, but I'm loving it now). Semi-dark room... a wickedly delicious absinthe cocktail at-the-ready... an equally wickedly delicious episode to watch... and I was in heaven, zipping blissfully along on my US 4 needles without really looking at what was going on.

It all seemed so perfect!

But this morning, when I picked up the socks to admire my handiwork and (I thought) celebrate my great success with this seat-of-the-pants cast on, I saw it:

I'd spun the yarn thick-thin.

Fergus!

I guess I have two choices:

Frog them and come up with a different project for the handspun, or
Keep going and call it a worthy experiment. It's not a severe thick-thin and doesn't seem awful so far. And since they're sleep socks, she won't be putting them in shoes or putting her weight on them enough to be irritated by the irregularity of the fabric.

What do you think?

Pattern Now Available: Basic Instincts Shawl

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Wed, 02 Feb 2011 20:58:00 +0000

The Basic Instincts Shawl pattern is now available as a free download!

You can download a PDF via Ravelry or get it on Flickr by clicking the photo above.

NOTE: The pattern is 4 pages long. The Ravelry link is to a single, comprehensive document, but if you get it through Flickr you will need to download 4 separate pages.

More updates on all my various aesthetic entanglements to come soon -- including a big confession!

Aran You Glad I Did?

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Sat, 29 Jan 2011 09:23:00 +0000

I know I'm a little behind the rest of the knitting community on this one, but I'm sharing anyways because I'm so excited that my copy of the new and revised edition of Alice Starmore's Aran Knitting has arrived!

First published in 1997, it's been out-of-print for a decade, and I have thought more than a couple times of biting the bullet and paying the scarcity going rates on ebay. Happily, I didn't have to -- I found the new edition on sale for just $17.

It got me thinking about one of the projects of my youth: my first Aran.

I started this sweater in the summer of 1986 on Martha's Vineyard. My family had a home and spent summer months there from the time I was in kindergarten. Little did I know then that 1986 would be the last summer we spent there together: my parents split up the following October. I've only been to the house twice since then.

Each year from the time I was in 7th grade until that summer before my senior year, I would look forward to our trip to the Island in no small part because I would get to pick yarn and start a new sweater. This one was especially exciting. A few years before, I had watched my mom knit an Aran cardigan and practically salivated over every stitch she made. This, then, was my first Aran knit. In fact, it was my first cable project at all, and with it I felt like I'd arrived at the apex of knitting.

I can't recall the name of the yarn store in Edgartown where I made my annual fiber and pattern purchases. A quick search of the internet indicates there isn't a yarn store in Edgartown any longer... although I find that hard to believe. Anyone know for sure? The only fiber arts-related store name I can remember right now is the Silver Needle -- and even that seems to have transformed from a brick-and-mortar retail to an online shop. Ugh! Oh how I loved to browse their gorgeous hand-painted needlepoint canvases! While on my honeymoon in 1991, I picked up the wonderful Benjamin Bunny for my mother, to go with the Peter Rabbit she'd already stitched for a pillow. But I digress...

My Aran, started in summer 1986 and finished in winter 1988 (I lost a year dealing with my parents' divorce and heading off to college, but I did finish during winter break of my freshman year), was completed nearly a decade before Starmore's book even came out!

I tried to locate the pattern I knit this from so I could give design credit where it is due, but I no longer have it. Anyone recognize the design?

(Yes, that's my shadow creating the discoloration in this picture and the following.

I can't believe I made such a rookie mistake... but I'm also not going to re-shoot.)

I remember being especially pleased with the bold and flat geometry of the center panel checkerboard. It was different than other Arans I'd seen because it didn't feature some kind of open cable in this position.

And I adored the cabled knots,

which created a visual line along the vertical without extending, themselves, as solid vertical lines. I'd never seen cables handled quite like this before, and I loved it. They almost look Asian -- like Chinese glyphs.

The sweater was knit in flat pieces, and features a saddle shoulder construction that seamlessly extends the knot line to the neck. This is in line with the conventional post-World War II construction. I had thought the bobbles flanking the panels were a more (then-) contemporary touch, but according to Starmore's research, the bobbles have been an Aran fixture for about as long as this sweater genre has been around.

It's held up remarkably well these 23 years, don't you think? My mother always allowed me to work with the best wool. She viewed handknit projects as heirlooms in-the-making that we would want to last, and she was right. There's absolutely no pilling. I didn't even re-block the sweater before shooting these pictures today, and it still looks great.

I'm quite proud that at 17 years old, I already was a veteran knitter of numerous complicated sweaters and had such advanced techniques under my belt. I owe this to my mother, who didn't futz around with teaching me on dull repetitive projects like dishcloths or scarves. I probably would have put the thing down out of boredom and never finished if she had. Instead, she threw me into the deep end: I learned how to knit on a beautiful cardigan pattern with bobbles and smocking and buttonholes and set-in sleeves with puffed caps -- and I wore that sweater for years. She never once let me think that I wasn't ready for a new technique, and I know this made me the fearless knitter I am today.

Of course, since our move to Seattle from Ohio eleven years ago, my first Aran has gotten much less wear than it used to. We simply don't have cold enough weather here for a sweater so thick and warm.

If you've never knit an Aran, you should! And if you haven't checked out the Starmore book, you should! Not only are her designs gorgeous, she presents wonderful scholarship -- both artistic and historical -- about the art of Aran knitting. Anyone out there who thinks these sweaters originated any time before the 20th century is in for a big surprise!

Basic Instincts Shawl

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Mon, 24 Jan 2011 08:14:00 +0000

This is a story about yarn and instinct.

When I bought two 50-gram skeins of Cherry Tree Hill's Fingering Alpaca in the Spring Frost colorway in Spring 2008, I had every intention of knitting them up into a cozy pair of socks.

Then I lost my interest in the yarn, and it sat in my stash until January 2010, when I wound it into cakes and took it with me to Orcas Island -- again, intending to make socks.

While on the island, I knit up a gauge swatch. A pretty little thing: so light and delicate and beautiful. I caressed it. Showed it to my mom. Caressed it some more. But I couldn't bring myself to cast on. The swatch was beautiful, yes... but there wasn't a chance I was going to use this yarn for socks. Despite CTH's recommendation that it would make a fine choice for socks because of the 1% nylon binder, I didn't trust it would wear well enough for socks for me.

Rather than end up with the heartbreak of discovering such an error only after having spent precious knitting time completing an ill-fated pair, I left the yarn to linger for yet another year -- this time in the bottom of my wip knitting bag. From there it would needle me with constant reminders that I needed to find it a suitable project.

This January 1, I threw caution to the wind and with little more than a vague idea of what I was doing, I cast on and just started knitting. The result is my Basic Instinct Shawl:

With just two 50-gram yarn cakes and a desire to make them go as far as possible, I decided on a basic triangle construction, knit side-to-side. (Truth be told, another reason I took this approach rather than starting from the bottom, center-back and working my way up is because I can't stomach knitting those interminable long edges along the tops of shawls in one go.)

Starting at one side corner, I knit with increases every second row until my first yarn cake ran out; then I used the second skein to decrease every second row until I reached the far corner. This way I could use every last bit of yarn and trust I would have enough to get me through both sides. Thoroughly stressless!

One important criteria for me was that the finished shawl be fully reversible. Nothing's worse than fiddling with a shawl or scarf to keep the right side facing out on a non-reversible piece!

I had no desire to either make or wear a skimpy little bandana-sized shawlette, as I've seen done with so many sock yarns on Ravelry. To maximize my 100 grams, I found myself drawn to one of the most basic of stitches -- an airy faggot stitch turned almost into a whisper by using a larger needle than normally called for with fingering-weight yarn.

Please forgive the less-than-aesthetic background on the image below, but my strategy worked so well that I had difficulty finding a well-lit space in my house large enough to spread out the finished piece for a picture!

To avoid creating a shawl with just a big sea of unbounded openwork, I inserted five garter-stitch dividers along the way: one at center back, one at each shoulder, and one to be visible in each corner of the front. Because the shawl is knit sideways, these bands of garter form pretty vertical lines and add textural and visual interest.

The garter bands have more density than the faggot stitch, but they are bordered on each side by slightly larger eyelets formed by the yarn over that is, otherwise, drawn into decrease through the faggot stitch. I find this very pleasing.

A four-stitch garter edging on all sides completes the piece.

It was a relatively quick knit, taking just about 10 days of actual knitting, done mostly in couple-hour-increments after the kids went to bed at night. I also took a break from this project to knit up the fingerless mitts for my mom before she left.

I simply adore the way this shawl turned out! The fabric is warm around my shoulders, but it's also so light and airy that it can be folded and bunched without creating bulk.

This gives the piece wonderful flexibility because I can also wear it around my neck as a cozy cowl...

... if I can pry it away from my daughter!

Pattern: Basic Instincts Shawl (designed by me, pattern to come)

Started: January 2, 2011

Completed: January 17, 2011

Materials: Cherry Tree Hill's Fingering Alpaca, 2 skeins, 100 total grams, Spring Frost colorway

Needles: US 6 - 4.0 mm

Right Place Right Time

noreply@blogger.com (Zhenya) — Fri, 14 Jan 2011 23:55:00 +0000

I love cables, and I love how they flow across the fingerless mitt pattern that used to be available on Chavi's Mashpits blog (Original URL: mashpitsknits.blogspot.com/2007/09/cabled-fingerless-mittens.html.)

The pattern was pulled from the website shortly after the first time I made it. I contacted Chavi to find out if it would go back up or what had happened and received a very short response that the pattern would not be reposted but no explanation as to why. It's still my favorite fingerless mitt pattern, so I consider myself lucky for having gotten to it before it disappeared.

During my mom's visit this winter, she fell in love with the design, too. Her right hand, especially, gets very cold since the stroke. After testing out my pair one chilly afternoon, she became fixated on the idea of making a pair for herself. I agreed to let her use the pattern, and we picked up some yarn to match a necklet she's currently working on.

But if I sent Mom off to work these out for herself, it would be sometime during next year's visit before she got them done. So I asked if I could knit them up for her before she left, and four days later they were done. She's happy with them, and I love the way you can lose yourself in the design.

Pattern: Chavi's Fingerless Mittens
Started: January 9, 2011

Completed: January 12, 2011
Materials: Cascade 220 Wool
Needles: US 6 / 4.0 mm