The socks were made for walking

And that's just what they'll do.

In orange shoes of course.

Epic Fail

So, I'm knitting socks.

These ones.

As part of a knit-a-long no less.

First sock - done. BUT.....doesn't fit. Too tight in the arch.

Second sock - just turned the heel and

FAIL.

I missed stupid gosh-darned Chart G. VITAL Chart G that is. Chart G that sets up the foot.

SO - frog back to where Chart G should be?
Or, frog both (as the first doesn't fit anyway) and start anew?
Or, another option??

Warm feet

I've heard that it can be "cold" in Australia during the winter. Whenever I've heard this before I've laughed and then said "have you ever lived in Edmonton?". Seriously - being a Canadian and living in one of the coldest cities in the world, you'd think it would have me prepared for any level of cold.

I was wrong.

I'm freezing here. Especially in the house at night. Freezing. There is no insulation and minimal heating. I haven't removed my socks since I arrived, and my Love is walking around the house at night in his coat. I am concerned my Canadian passport will be revoked by admitting this. FREEZING.

I'm a knitter though - so I can easily resolve this. I've cast on some Philosopher's House Socks (from Cat Bordhi) in a mohair blend. I started about 24hours ago and am making good headway (aran weight yarn socks are fast fast fast). I hope these do the trick - otherwise I'll have to layer them with some fuzzy slippers....this is what my world is coming to. Whatever it takes to stay warm.

Item #2

Again - I'll reiterate - I completed THREE things last week. Unheardof.

Item #2 - Socks with sparkles.


Knit with yarn from Andi and J. - they gave it to me when my oldest started kindergarten. It's from Zen Yarn Garden and it has silver in it (I of course can't find it on their website). They are perfectly plain socks - which I'm coming to realize, are truly my favorite kind of knit sock.

Next time - the Beast. Yes, you heard me. THE BEAST.

Ribbons

Last weekend I went to my hometown for a little small town fun and frivolity with the kids.

The town fair was going on and I knew the boys would love the parade, and I, well I would love the bench exhibits. Everything from best decorated cookie by a 5 year old to best poster of a science problem to best needlework by a senior. I came prepared with some handknits to enter. I paid my $2.75 ($2 to become a member of the Agricultural society and 25 cents per entry). I filled out my forms (with my maiden name so people would have some idea of who I was) and submitted my entries.

The next day I came and saw this....

And this...


And lastly this....
2 Firsts for the Ishbel and the FLS and a 3rd for my Kai-mei socks (I don't know if the judges could appreciate Cookie A's construction of the sock - it lost to a standard slipper in Phentex).

And - $7 in prize money!!

My mom thinks my goal for next year should be an entry in each knitting class - maybe I'll make enough money to take myself out for lunch (likely not enough to take anyone with me though)...

Cast off

The Rogue KAL has begun - and we know we have a few of you out there who have joined us in our sneaky endeavour.

I know Irene has already done one heel (and it's grafted??) and is already concerned about if she'll have enough yarn. (Just so you know, Irene is a friend of mine who has a stash that makes all our stashes look like nothing - like a small pile of insignificant yarn. This is the friend you want - that way you can say things like, "sure I have lots of yarn, but have you seen how much Irene has???? Anyway ... )

I too have cast on and once you see the yarn, you'll see why I don't really want to put this down.


ORANGE yarn. LOVE. I'm doing the small size on 2.5 mm needles because the yarn (Jitterbug) is a little bit heavier fingering.

In order to get these cast on during the weekend, I had to madly finish these....


My first finished socks from Cookie A's new book. And I think the have re-ignited my love of sock knitting.

AND don't forget to leave a comment here with your Rogue Knitter motto - you might win something.

It's not easy being tall

1. Tall girl = Big feet
This one is easy. My socks are approximately 1.5 inches longer than your socks (on average). If you do the math, and I have, that is about 2500 more stitches I have to knit for a pair of socks. If I plan on knitting 12 pairs for myself this year that is 30,000 more stitches I have to knit.

2. Tall girl = Long legs
I decided to knit myself some knee socks. I'd surmise that I have to knit 1.5 inches more on the foot of my knee socks and 1.5 inches more on the leg portion. We're approaching >5000 stitches more for me, compared to the average person, to knit those babies. (Who had the great idea of knitting knee socks???). And that's why they are stalled out...


3. Tall girl = Long torso
Not all tall people have long torsos. We come in a variety of tall sizes; some have longer legs and some have longer bodies, but in general, we are all somewhat longer in the body. I'm knitting a little vest right now and I started the neckline last night. It's short. I added length to the bottom but it's still short. The instructions were based on row numbers not inches and this is the problem. I always add length but it's generally a crapshoot. Do I add the length before the waist shaping or after? Do I add length in between the waist shaping and chest shaping? Or some combination of that? This is why top down sweaters are a tall girl's friend. I can see why Stefanie Japel has made her entire design career out of top down sweaters (she's as tall as me! she actually could look me in the eye).

I think I've sufficiently complained enough now. There are advantages to being tall, like never needing a stool, but in terms of knitting, there are few advantages to my size. If you're asking, I'm 6'2". In sock feet. Hand-knit socks of course.

UGH

1. I started a February Baby Sweater and about 3 inches in realized that I was using one 3.75mm needle and one 3mm needle. Because I'm smart like that. Ripped. Restarted. UGH.

2. Decided I wanted to work on my Lily of the Valley Scarf. Go to pull it out of my knitting basket and realized I pulled the scarf OFF the needles. Completely. I tried to put it back on the needles, and even perservered for a row or two. The nupps. They don't look so good when you've lost half of their stitches. UGH.

3. I wanted to finish up my travelling scarf, and decided possibly a crochet edge to even it all out. Forgot how much I hate crochet. Also forgot how unforgiving crochet is and how it "stabilizes" edges (read as - has no give). Ripped out. Now at a loss of how to finish. UGH.

There is one small highlight in my knitting. Yesterday, I started some stockings. I am loving the lace pattern and also how fast they're going. When you're only knitting on 40 some stitches around, you fly. I also hope that this is what this yarn is meant to be, because I don't think it can handle being frogged yet again.

March: In like a Fox?

So, one of my knitting goals for the year is to knit myself a pair of socks each month. It's like my own little sock club of one.

I've completed the January socks and recently the February ones as well.

(I know - they are lovely....)

So this brings us to March. I'm quite happy to keep making my way through New Pathways, so I'm thinking some Fountain Foxgloves. They are toe up and I have 2 skeins of Claudia Hand Painted in Boot Camp, imported last year from San Francisco by Miss Poot and Cubby. Toe ups are a great way to use up all 50 grams.

Any other toe up suggestions for T's March sock club?

Getting rid of the Knitting Blues

I'm back baby. My knitting mojo has returned and with it a flurry of knitting activity.

Socks...


A Valentine's day Hat....

(there are 2 mistakes....J.'s already found them...can you???)

And other various secret activities.

It feels good to feel like knitting. AHHHHH. I'm a much more easy to manage person when I knit. I think my husband is glad I got my mojo back too. My knitting mojo people (get your head out of the gutter).

Next up??? I feel like spring knitting. This is calling my name. Unfortunately I have no yarn in the stash for it. Lucky for me, Webs has a plethora of options. Like this and this and this and this. And we all know I don't need any of it.....

For me!

Thank you to everyone for all my birthday wishes - here, on Ravelry, on Facebook, by phone and email. Thank you thank you. I had an excellent day. Highlights included cake for breakfast, a short work day, a lunch with my Love, and decorated cupcakes from my boys.


I also finished these (one day late) as a special birthday present to myself. I got the yarn from the retreat in November and decided to make them plain old socks. I wanted the yarn to be the focal point on the socks, which it is. I will remember starting these socks while being surrounded by knitting greats.


Next up, some more Crazy Cat socks in some yarn I came across in the stash that is too darned nice to be collecting dust. KPPPM. I have decided that I want to knit myself a pair of socks each month of the year. Considering the size of my foot (10 inches long people - that's like 2-3 inches longer than most of your feet....that's approximately 3000 more stitches I need to knit per sock compared to the average foot) this is still a large undertaking. So, pair #2, Tall Tibetan Socks.

Coming up for air

Life has gotten the better of me the last few weeks. Nothing terrible, nothing bad. Just life. And to top it off, sicknesses of all sorts have ravaged our house. But we have survived like we always do, and mostly with smiles on our faces.

Given the challenge of the last little bit, I've lost my knitting mojo, making for rather dull knit-blogging. I think the main reason being that I have 2 projects on the needles that are in black yarn. Hate it. Love the projects hate the yarn.

So I've been entertaining myself with some plain old socks. However, these too have been a source of frustation. The colour of the first sock is completely different from the second. I'll still wear them and they'll look lovely, but it's just an annoyance. The first sock is nice though, right?

The Itch is Back

I got it again. That annoying and nagging itch. I was doing soooo well in controlling it. Taking appropriate precautions. Thinking the condition had relapsed.

Then

BAM.

It's back.

Startitis. Back to haunt me again.

I worked through my Christmas list well - got everything done on time. Heck, I even have a couple of extra projects in the gift basket that weren't given away. They're good for next year.

Then Christmas past.

And it started.

Innocently enough, as these things do. I brought out some socks from the retreat and restarted them. Then, I bought a new bright red coat and realized I had absolutely no scarf to wear with it (with all my orange and browns and greens, there was nothing in the red spectrum). Then I decided I needed mitts to go along with the new scarf and the new coat. Then I decided that I should really restart that sweater I had been working on in the fall.

Bam.

It's back. I got 47 things on the needles and they're all calling my name.

And don't forget all those January birthdays.

I'm a few days into the new year and already I'm drowning in projects. I guess there could be worse things.

Now where did I put my hydrocortisone cream?? I need to soothe this itch.

There are no losers here, only winners and heroes

Can we have a HOLLER for J., Metta and Catknip!! They did it - 24 pairs in 2008. Nice work ladies. Any of you sick of socks yet???

My final tally is 19.75. Maybe a little holler for me??

I was a winner in other ways, like knitting related Christmas goodies.


That's a Dumpling bag for me made by J, along with some knitting tags, and a knitting print from Ms. Poot and Cubby. I'm a lucky girl; not because of the gifts. It's the girls that gave me the gifts that are truly special. There's not a lot of people who get me. These girls get me.

And there are heroes in my life too. Guitar Heroes that is.



I can see some precious knitting time eaten up by this.

Here's to a winning 2009 to you all.

Delusional, again.

I have deluded myself in many ways. Mostly with regards to my children. I have told myself that things get easier as they get older. I've told myself they'll become more self-sufficient as they get older. And the biggest delusion, I've told myself I'll have more time for myself as they get older.



None of these things have come true. You can't wait till they're able to eat on their own so you don't have to feed them anymore. Then you just spend more time cleaning up after them because the post-dinner melee requires a cloth, a broom, a mop and a ton of patience. You can't wait till they start activities so you can see them run and jump and interact with other children, and then you are their taxi-driver, team snack-provider and cheerleader.



With every new stage, there is a new challenge. Them being able to talk, means them being able to talk back. Them being able to play with kids down the street, means them bringing kids down the street back to the house. And with all of this, my continued hope for alone time evaporates.



It's not that I wish away the time that they're little, because that's not it. I'm just continually hopeful that it gets "easier" and "more manageable" and it just doesn't seem to.



And with this denied hope, comes disappointment. Not with my children, but with myself. The state of my house. The state of my pantry and my laundry room. And, not surprisingly, the state of my knitting. I set lofty goals for myself - I'll get this done for mother's day. I'll get these done before the end of May. I'll get either this or this done for a wedding in July. And in the meantime catch up on my sock tally, because at the rate I'm going, I won't get 15 socks done this year, let alone 24, and they sure make good Christmas gifts!



Gahhhhh.



I just have to stop making lists of things to do. I have to appreciate the time I do have to do things I love, like play outside with a Punk and a Stink, and knit, and cook. I can't delude myself anymore. Time is passing, and I don't want it to pass me by.



Time is more valuable than money. You can get more money, but you cannot get more time.

Stripes!!

I decided to finally use my hand-dyed. J. and I had dyed some yarn a while ago and I was waiting for a lull in the knitting queue to use it. As I'm anxiously awaiting the 2nd STR shipment, I thought I'd do some quick socks for Punky. He saw the yarn and requested it. I wouldn't say that orange is his favorite color (it varies, somedays green and somedays blue. NEVER pink or purple though, those are, according to him "gurlz colorz"). But he saw this yarn and asked for some socks.

So I cast on some late last week and finished the first sock on Saturday.

Look at the stripe action I got going. The yarn is primarily neonic orange, with little runs of light brown and spots of white (basically to break up the neon and not give yourself a headache).

Here's a closer look at the leg. The tone is a little off in this picture, but you can actually see how nicely distributed the colors are, with the small runs of brown.

And finally the heel. Again, good color distribution to break up the orange.

Punky was so excited about the socks, he insisted on wearing the one finished sock to the birthday party he was going to. However, after taking a sharp corner at home whilst running on the laminate, he thought better of it. Good thing. His dad was having a heart attack about him going out into the world with different colored socks on. Seriously, if that's the worst thing he leaves the house in, I'm not too concerned.

Ya-da Ya-da Blah Blah Blah

I was going to blog today about the issues I'm having with my newest project (all sizing and gauge related) and then describe in grand detail my newest sock creation (a Baad Medicine Original - details coming soon)....

....but I just wasn't feeling it. Sorry - I don't have it in me today. I think it's related to 2 very early mornings, too many fevers in my house and too little coffee.

So, instead I leave you with this - my homage to 1970s fast food decor.

My goal for tonight - roll it into a ball.

Spring Fev-ah

I feel it. It's close.

Even though I look out the window and see the vast white of my backyard, I also see the patches of grass peaking out. It gives me hope that it isn't too far away. It's been cold. It's been snowy. It's been hard to get outside and entertain two monkeys. But the little bits of grass peaking out, the melting head of our snowman and the longer days are giving me, dare I say, hope.

With these thoughts of Spring being around the corner, it makes me want to knit something for spring. Something that isn't made of wool. Something made of a lightweight fabric (cotton, bamboo, linen....). Something that won't itch.

So, what are my possibilities?? I've been cruising the land of Ravelry and can't decide.

What about the new Aleita Shell from the Spring Interweave?

What about Eileen from No Sheep for You?

What's that? Is that my Cozy screaming at my? Or is it my newly cast-on Sunrise Circle Jacket?
Or these socks that I need to finish by next week?


What are they saying? I'm a two-timing ho??? Come on, that just isn't nice.

And quiet down already - I'm busy thinking....

(oh, I've figured out who it is...it's just J. saying that my old habits are hard to break.)

Inquiring minds want to know....

....what is next on my "to knit list"???

I have yarn (it's #4010).

I have a pattern.

And I'm so excited (and I just can't hide it. I know, I know, I know, I know, I know I want to -- Who doesn't love them some good Pointer Sisters?)

OK, back to reality, where I'm living in the year 2007, not 1982.

I'm more excited about this project than I've been for any project for a while now. I hope it lives up to my expectations. I've toyed with the idea of this project for a while now (J. says it's been years...) and once I put Cdnknitchick's on at SnB last week, I knew it was the next thing I needed to knit.

And since I just finished these....

...and these.....

I think a new undertaking is just what I need.

Bad Habits

This week is really kicking me in the ass. I'm not taking it so well. I've had many moments of near collapse, and moments of tears and meltdowns. It's been nothing terrible. It's only felt unmanageable at times. I'm glad that it's all over as of today. Well mostly all over (I still have to collate marks on 131 final exams....). But the worst of it is behind me.

This stress has brought out some of my bad habits. My quick temper has been festering all week. My incessant need for chocolate followed by chips has not been held in check. I also take everything out on my love (I know I'm not the only better half who does this right???). And with my knitting, any guesses??

I've been REALLY good lately. Really. Since the New Year and my knitting resolutions were made, I've been excellent. I have not been recklessly casting on new projects. This is a big step for me.

But with the stress of work and life in general, today I just needed to have something mindless. Some project that I didn't have to follow a pattern or even a open a book. So I caved - I cast on some socks. Some mindless, little effort required socks.


Notice exactly how lazy I am - so lazy I didn't want to get off the couch to get the real camera. I just played with the crop features so you can't tell (1) I'm in my pjs, and (2) how extraordinarily horrible (no - really - it's true) I look after this week of h-e-double hockey stick.

These socks feel relaxing and not stressful in anyway. My STR January socks need to get slightly ripped back and my Cozy requires me to look at a pattern. These socks require nothing other than throwing that yarn and pulling that loop. It's exactly what I need right now.