More December

It's been an interesting month for socks. After the test-knit, then on to the cable socks I've been working on.

This is STR Mediumweight in Wonderful Goodness. This is a dye technique that I've never seen Tina of Blue Moon use before -



I like the speckle - and I've nothing but good things to say about Blue Moon yarn. This sock is full of cables, and Blue Moon works well for cabling without a needle. The stitches stay where they're supposed to be, are easy to pick up and have excellent stitch definition.



The skein. I'm hoping Tina does more of these.

December knitting

Not a bad month for knitting, but not even close to a good month for blogging.

Here's the progress on this month's sock yarn:



So far, a very nice yarn. It's smooth, well-plied, knits into a firm fabric and has no slubs or loosely plied spots - other than that cut in the skein. I've knit past that, and it seems to be an aberration, so I'll not criticize the yarn for that. It could have been a cut when someone opened a box of yarn. (It could even have been me, but I don't think so.)

I have been busy with some other knitting - in particular, this test-knit for a new pattern for Hunter Hammersen. She calls it Truckle Socks and it's a simple, intriguing knit. There is a scallop pattern on one side of the front, one side of the back. The back set of scallops continues onto the heel flap, while the front continues down the instep. What I really liked about this pattern was the gusset decrease.



The gusset decreases on either side of the scallop pattern. For one side this is the usual position, but the other side creates an interesting pattern across the front of the sock.

I'm enjoying this. Hunter posted on Ravelry that she expects to have the final pattern available in the new year.

December Sock Yarn Review

December's sock yarn is one I got through a Ravelry swap - Black Bunny Fibers. The Yarn Harlot had mentioned it on her blog and when I saw it come up in a destash, figured this couldn't hurt.



I really like these colours - intense blue, black and green. The yarn is fine, with a very nice sheen, but not too tightly twisted.

My only complaint: when I was winding it, I discovered a cut in the yarn.



One big ball. One small ball. Cut through. I doubt this came from Black Bunny this way, since it would have made skeining a right royal pain in the you-know-where, so I suspect it's an accident of some kind.

I'm going to overlook this as a defect.

Sock Yarn of the Month - Mountain Colors Bearfeet

They're finished. Well, actually, they were finished some time ago, but this has not been a good month for writing about yarn and knitting.

I like this yarn a lot, although I'm not sure I would use it for socks again - not that it's not good for socks, but because it would be so nice for other things.



These are relatively thick socks, but make a nice firm fabric, with good stitch definitions. The socks feel nice on the feet. There is nylon, but I'm not sure how well these will wear.

Stats: Mountain Colors Bearfoot
Gauge: 8 sts per inch
Needles: 2.25 mm
Pattern: Toffee Sock

Mountain Colors has brought in another sock yarn, but this one is still offered.

progress

Not a good month to be writing about knitting, although it hasn't been a bad month for knitting itself. The weather here has finally turned, gone from being unseasonably warm to what we might expect for mid-November. Not a lot of snow yet, but it's coming. Our days are grey and dull, the way Remembrance Day is supposed to be.

Here's progress on my Sock Yarn Review sock - the Mountain Colors Bearfoot:



Almost done the first sock. So far the yarn lives up to its reputation, but I can also see where the mohair in a sock yarn would drive me crazy. I'm more inclined to knit a really nice scarf out of this, or maybe a shawlette.

My fun knitting for the beginning of the month has been this: a test knit for Lucy Hilton - Pirates Pearls. This isn't a great picture, because it really does look better on the foot rather than off, but with the deep purple yarn and the gold beads, it is rather sparkly.



I'll get better photos, because this pattern really does deserve another look.

November Sock Yarn Review

November's sock yarn is one that (unfortunately) is discontinued. I didn't plan it that way, but that's what got pulled from the bin.

Mountain Colors Bearfoot in Juniper.



This yarn is a mixture of 60% wool, 25% mohair and 15% nylon. The mohair gives it a halo not ordinarily found in sock yarns.

Casting on tomorrow morning.

October Sock Yarn - Tanis Fiber Arts

The final stats for my Toffee Sock

Yarn: Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label
Colour: Sea Breeze
Needles: 2.25 mm
Gauge: 8.5 sts per inch

Composition:
80% superwash merino
20% nylon
4 oz skein (115 g) is 420 yards (385 m)

Tanis has 31 semi-solid colourways - the best selection of blues I've seen - and 8 multi-colours. This yarn would be wonderful for cabled or textured socks. This is a Canadian company; her website is www.tanisfiberarts.com

They're finished

My sock yarn review socks are finished. This is Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label. I like this yarn a lot because the socks have good heft and are very soft.

No knots in the skein and the colour is saturated and consistent. What else could I want?

I like this yarn

I like this yarn. It's easy to knit, shows great stitch definition, and if like me, you like socks that are on the thicker side of thin, makes a sock that feels nice on your feet.

Of course, I'm not quite there yet, but that's what progress feels like so far.



Up the leg, over the heel and into the gusset. Some days I think I can do this sock in my sleep. (I'd think of giving up except: a) they fit me perfectly and b) I like knitting socks.

Not quite sure about this sock

This is my contribution to October's sockdown for Sock Knitters' Anonymous.



The category is under appreciated patterns - patterns where there are fifteen or fewer projects listed on Ravelry. I'm #6, which I found surprizing, considering this was the sock of the month for February 2009.

The yarn is Malabrigo in Impressionist Sky. This is the first time for me knitting with Malabrigo Sock - so far it's very soft, quite fine and slippery. I've gone down two needle sizes in the sock because I don't think I'll get a 72 stitch sock to fit using 2.75 mm needles.

The start is the cuff - knit sideways and then picked up for the leg.

Cast - on

My socks are cast-on. First impressions: there's not a lot of shine to this yarn, but it is soft and it makes a fairly dense fabric on 2.25 mm needles. When I say not a lot of shine, I would compare it to Koigu, which is similarly dense, but quite shiny.

This is a semi-solid, with small areas of blue that are more sky blue than turquoise.



The photo is not true to colour. It was taken outdoors in the shade and appears to be more blue than it is.

October Sock Yarn

October's sock yarn is Tanis Fibre Art's Blue Label, in the Seabreeze colourway.

Blue Label is her fingering weight - 80% superwash merino, 20% nylon.



This is a soft yarn, with a good heft for a fingering weight, so I am anticipating a dense fabric.

Where did September go?

Where did September go? One minute it was August, then the first of September and I cast on my Koigu, and then suddenly, our leaves are almost gone and we're staring down the barrel of October.

I guess the only good news is that with winter comes easier knitting, because it's not quite so hot.



These are my gorgeous Koigus. The short repeats in the yarn make for an overall look of being hand-dyed without either pooling or striping. (I prefer pooling, but that's me.) This yarn had no slubs, no rough spots and no knots. That is exactly what I have come to expect from Koigu.

If I had a complaint (and I don't), it would be that I'd love to have names rather than numbers for the colourways. This is P515. Now, seriously, who can remember P515? (I mean, other than me for the purpose of knitting this yarn and writing about it. ) I don't even know what the P means, or whether there's a 500 series that this is a part of.

Koigu is a Canadian yarn, dyed in Ontario. It's sold in 50g skeins, so you will need two for a pair of socks. The skeins aren't overly long, so if you have large feet, or you're knitting for a man, you'll need three.

Koigu - what's not to like?

What is there not to like?

Progress so far:



The lighting isn't perfect - it was a cloudy day and the photo is taken on our new deck, but you get a good idea of how the yarn looks.

It knit like a dream - good tight twist, doesn't split, gives a firm fabric and feels good in the hand. As I said, what's not to like?

Minotaurs - frogged

I don't frog an entire project very often. The same part of me that thinks a book started should be a book finished thinks that once I've knit a few rows, I should complete the project.

A little bit of maturity tells me that if I'm never going to wear it, and I know I'll never wear it, then it's best to start on the way back.

I did a test knit for a pattern for Minotaurs socks. It's a great concept, but without really looking at the grid I chose, I've ended up with a swastika.



The technique is called labyrinth knitting, and I'd like to try it again (although not with this yarn, and maybe not for socks), but the swastika got to me.

So they're gone.

In their place, I'm knitting up the Mini Mochi to a plain sock with some slipped stitches on the leg for texture.



The Mini Mochi is a roving type sock yarn (I couldn't use it to sew together the labyrinth, because a tug would pull the yarn apart). I haven't used it before and I have no idea how it will wash.

September Sock Yarn Review

What came out of the basket (okay, Rubbermaid Tub, but basket sounds nicer) was Koigu KPPPM. It hardly seems fair to review a yarn I know I'll like in advance, but eyes closed is eyes closed.



The colour is P515. The numbers don't mean anything to me, but if I had to describe the colour, it would be Autumn Twilight. The colours are rich fall colours (no bright orange), but there is also a streak of almost navy that reminds me of the sky just before sunset.

August 2010 Sock Yarn Review

August's sock yarn was a bit of a no brainer: Trekking HandArt Flame. This is a European 75% 25% superwash wool/nylon mix with a contrast strand to give the yarn a ragg look. Zitron makes many other very good sock yarns, including the standard HandArt (no contrast strand) and the other lines of Trekking.

It goes without saying that the yarn is consistent, even and at least for my socks, without knots.

My only disappointment (and it's a small one) is that the yarn is not as soft as I might like for knitting, although I expect that will mean that it wears well. This is not a high twist yarn. If you have problems with stitches splitting, this might be a sock yarn to avoid.



Summary:

Yarn: Zitron Trekking HandArt Flame
Colour: 551 - Sansibar
Needles: 2.25 mm
Pattern: Toffee Sock
Gauge: 8.5 sts per inch

A good European source for this yarn is astridsdutchobsessions.com in the Netherlands. She has good service at very reasonable prices.

Next month: a yarn I know already is a favourite.

Vacation gets in the way

Not a lot of knitting - too much needing time off to recharge. Knitting is relaxing, but it's not the same as watching the prairie roll by and wondering what it must have been like for the first people to come to the great white flat.

I did get a few pair finished this month:



Hunter's test knit - we called it Lacy Socks, but it will have another name. Well written pattern and you'll enjoy it. The yarn was Zen Yarn Garden's superwash fingering in Garnet. Good pattern; good yarn; good experience.

This is another test-knit:



Pat Bishop's Bee's Knees. The yarn is Lorna's Laces in SSYC - a custom colourway for Simply Sock Yarn Company's anniversary.

And finally, almost done: Trekking XXL - Simple Ribbed Socks. These are about as easy as you can get - the interesting part is watching the yarn change colour - and watching the prairies go by. I cast on during the drive to Moose Jaw and knit much of it on the way home. There is nothing like Saskatchewan for making your mind wander over all the possibilities of life.



After all that knitting, it's time to do more quilting and writing.

Having fun with a test knit

I volunteered to do a test knit for Hunter Hammersen on Ravelry. It's a quick, good-looking lacy sock pattern that took only a few days of knitting to produce the first sock.



This is done in Zen Yarn Garden's Superwash in the Garnet colourway. It's part of Roxanne's Harmony Semi-Solid club, a monthly offering. I've had some excellent yarns from Roxanne and they work well for lace or cable knitting.

Back to Hunter. This pattern will be a good, easy knit for a summer sock. Her directions were clear. The real name of the sock is probably not going to be Lacy Socks, but that will do for me for now.

Progress

Well, we're off. So far, just about what I expected. The yarn is even and predictable, tightly enough plied to not split and and similar to Trekking HandArt, but with that extra ply.



I"m also going to use this for a test knit for a Hunter Hammersen sock. Zen Yarn Garden is a Canadian yarnie who has a great line of semi-solids.



This is the Harmony Semi-Solid yarn for July 2010 - Garnet. It's redder than it looks in the photo and will knit will for lace socks. Progress will be posted on Ravelry and also in this blog.

August Sock Yarn

The August yarn for the review is Zitron Trekking's HandArt Flamme - in Sansibar.



This yarn is made in Germany by the same people who bring you Trekking and Trekking HandArt. The difference in the Flamme is a ply of (mostly) white that gives the yarn a ragg appearance.

I've always had good luck with Trekking, whether in the skein or in the ball, and I anticipate this one won't be much difference.

Why is this so late? Alex Klein's minotaurs. I volunteered to test-knit them, and so I conscientiously worked away to make them a reality. This is a very different way of knitting socks (or any piece of flat fabric for that matter) and all I can say is that without the stitch markers these would have been an unholy mess.

This is the leg of the sock after knitting but before seaming:



And this is the seamed leg.

July Sock Yarn Review

Both socks done (actually they've been done for a while).



The base yarn for the Claudia is Louet Gems. I don't think I have ever knit a yarn with a Gems base that I have not liked. In this case, the dying is very well done. The colours are saturated and are consistent throughout the skein. No knots, no slubs. The knit fabric is firm. My gauge is a little tighter than what she states on her website, but I like firm socks.

Yarn: Claudia Hand Painted Fingering
Composition: 100% superwash merino
Pattern: Toffee Sock
Needles: 2.25 mm
Gauge: 8 sts per inch

There is a website: www.claudiaco.com - but it's not a retail mailorder site. She gives a list of bricks and mortar shops and on-line shops. I bought mine at Monterey Yarns in Green Bay, Wisconsin. I did a google search and there are many more than she lists for sources.

Claudia Hand Painted

So here's my progress - first sock finished - not that I should be surprised, given that it's a very simple sock and this is a very nice yarn to knit. The tight twist keeps the stitches even and means the stitches don't split when knitting quickly.



The colour is nicely saturated and even throughout the skein. The repeats are short, so there is no striping and no noticeable pooling, even around the gusset - not that I mind pooling, but I know some do.

No knots. I like that.

July Sock Yarn Review

This month' sock yarn was decided some time ago, but given the workload of early July, (I hate summer sometimes), this is it.

Claudia's Handpainted - on a Louet Gems base. I know already I'll like this yarn, because I like Louet Gems. It's a tight twist and holds up well for socks, gives good stitch definition and stands up to the manipulation required for cables or any other intricate stitch.

I'll need to add the photos later, because I'm working on my husband's Mac and haven't the faintest idea how to re-open Firefox so I can get to my photos without getting away from this post.

I'm the person who loves the Mac commercials and can't stand the machines.

June Sock Yarn Review - and Happy Canada Day

Finished. Finally. Not that it is so difficult a sock to do, but June can really be the silly month. Thank goodness for sleeping in on Canada Day.

Here's a photo of the finished sock.



The colourway is Franklin's Panopticon, one of the Color Commentary series honouring knitwear designers. This colourway grew on me as I knit it - I confess to not having been thrilled about it in the skein.

The yarn lived up to Lorna's reputation - smooth and consistent. There were no knots. The yarn is a little finer than I like, but the sock feels dense enough to wear well. I could go down a needle size, but I don't think it would be necessary.

One thing I was amazed at was how good the yardage was. Now, I confess this sock is five rounds shorter than my usual plain sock, but check this out: this is the second sock and I had just started the toe decreases.



That's pretty good value.

Stats:

Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd sock
Composition: 80% superwash merino, 20% nylon, put up in 50 g skeins
Needles: 2.25 mm
Pattern: Butterscotch Sock

Koigu. I love Koigu

Here are my Waterfall Cable Socks. This is a design I first worked out three summers ago when I was first knitting socks. I don't even remember where I got the stitch pattern (probably Vogue Knitting), but when I first knit it, it looked to me to be water tumbling over rocks - hence the name.

The yarn is the wonderful Koigu KPPPM, colour 703 - a pale purple with flecks of both purple and the occasional orange.



I like this yarn. I really like this yarn. It has a great hand, feels good on the feet, and so far (knock wood), wears really well. I like the way the yarn is dyed - almost too much colour for a cabled design, but not quite. If I have a complaint (and it's a small one), it's that the skeins are small and I wasn't sure I'd have enough yarn for a cabled pattern, even for my short feet. (I did - crisis averted.)

My only other complaint - and it's really not a complaint, it's an observation - why is it so hard to find this yarn in Canada? It's Canadian yarn!! I have nothing against buying from Americans, but why should I?

June Sock Yarn Review (yes, again)

Still Lorna's, but a different colour. Franklin's Panopticon is the first in Lorna's Color Commentary Series. These aren't colours I'd necessarily choose myself (good thing we're all different), but so far I'm liking this one.

I've done a Toffee Sock in Lorna's earlier, so I chose another simple sock - a Butterscotch Sock to show off the yarn. The Butterscotch Sock has a 2x1 rib for the leg, then five rounds of plain before an Eye of Peacock heel flap. The 2x1 rib is good and stretchy, with a little less purling than a straight 2x2.



You can see from the finished sock that it's easy to see how the yarn will work up, even on the ribbed leg.

The best laid plans

I had planned to do Red Rover, but because I have already made a Toffee Sock in Lorna's, thought I'd do something different.

This is as far as I got before I decided it wasn't going to work.



It's a seed stitch rib - nice enough and I liked the leg, but thought it was getting a bit more complicated than I like for a review - I want the yarn to show itself off, not the design. And then, I made the mistake of forgetting I was working over 72 stitches, so by the time I did a heel flap over 40, I was too far gone to change my mind. Stubborn isn't my middle name for nothing. (My friends used to say that I should use the word "determined", not stubborn. I believe my kid's version was "pig-headed".

So this is what I did instead. I changed colours to Franklin's Panopticon. I like the colours - maybe not my favourites, but so far, the yarn hasn't let me down. Soft, no knots - perhaps a little finer than I would prefer, but it knits like a dream.



Hard to go wrong with Lorna's. The only thing I don't like is there are simply too many colours.


The Red Rover was too complicated, so this is a plain 2 x 1 rib sock - not quite vanilla - that's why it's butterscotch.

June Sock Yarn Review

I'm not finished reporting on May's socks (they're done - they're just not photographed), but here is June's yarn for review - one of my old favourites - Lorna's Laces. I know already this is a tried and true yarn - the colours are good, the yarn is very high quality, and I have never had a pair of socks turn out bad.



I almost put it back in the box when I pulled it, but then changed my mind. When I started doing this, the idea was that I would pull from my yarn box with my eyes closed - the only time I would put back a yarn would be if I had already reviewed it. I have knit with Lorna's before, but I haven't reviewed it, so this will be the month.

Lorna's, don't let me down.

Progress - almost done

Almost done. Almost done. Knit, Knit, Knit. We'll get there yet.

May disappeared. I am certain that yesterday was Mother's Day and here we are, halfway to Christmas. Well, perhaps I exaggerate - halfway to winter and I'm not even out of my winter clothes from last season. We had one hot dry spell and now we have had nothing but rain and more rain. I refuse to complain, however: we could be in Louisiana, watching our livelihoods disappear before the onslaught of oil.

This is progress to date:



It's not quite the easiest set of socks to see. The kettle-dying process Nancy uses creates a very mottled look - I quite like it, as it gives a lot of dimension to a pretty ordinary sock. This won't work for lace or cables, because the pattern will be lost.

Fireweed Dyeworks - first sock done

I can't believe it's the long weekend already !! And, because it's May long, it's raining - no - make that pouring. Anyone who has dreams of getting the bedding plants in might as well have stayed in bed.

This is the first sock from Fireweed Dyeworks Kettle Dyed Fingering in Northern Lights:



The sock itself looks a little off - that's because I have learned the hard way that when I rotate photos, the program compresses them. The leg isn't quite that fat.

The yarn, however, is plump and very easy to work. No knots, no slubby bits, no ply tears. The dye pattern creates what I call a mosaic look - variegated without striping at all. Some parts of the dye are saturated, some not so, but this is a look I like, so I am very pleased.

A slight change in plans

It's Fireweed Dyeworks, but not the same yarn. This is alaskannancy's superwash merino in Northern Lights.



This is Nancy's Kettle-dyed Sock Yarn and yes, it's on the needles, and no, I'm not quite as slow a knitter as I am a blogger.



What I am very slow at is taking photographs. This is the cast-on post. I predict that magically, within a day or two, this first sock will be finished.

May Sock Yarn Review - Fireweed Dyeworks

I said I was going to do Francis Patrick's yarn, but I can't find anywhere that the vendor is still active, so it seems, not pointless, but perhaps not what I had intended when I decided to blog about a sock yarn of the month.

Fireweed Dyworks is very much still in business.



On Ravelry she's Alaskannancy, and that's how you find her on Etsy. The yarn base is Cherry Tree Hill's Supersock Select.

April sock yarn review

Both socks are finished - Sara's Colorwave Yarns. I bought this yarn two years ago, and from what I can tell from the website, this exact yarn is no longer available. It came without a label, so I have little information, except that it is 100% merino. I am assuming it is not superwash. It doesn't feel like superwash, and I would think that if it was, Sara would have said so.



Yarn: Sara's Colorwave Yarns - 100 % merino, fingering weight
Needles: 2.25 mm
Gauge 9.0 sts per inch
Notes: These will be too small for me, so I will give them to my sister. If I were making them for myself, I would need to add more rounds to the foot. I think I would prefer this yarn for knitting lace scarves, or even for fingering weight garments. It reminds me most of shetland jumper yarn. Lest it sound as if I don't like it, the colour is superb. I didn't get pooling, as Sara predicted, but then, I didn't get her 8 stitches to the inch gauge, either.

Next yarn: Francis Patrick

The real SKA challenge

SKA is Sock Knitters Anonymous on Ravelry. If you're a member of Rav, you know how it can suck you and your knitting into a great vortex of imagined over-achievement. Sometimes it's the same as a double-dog-dare - if you can, I can.

So it was with the January challenge - beads and texture. There was a mystery sock (beads and texture) that I finished. And then, because I can't resist the challenge of designing my own socks, I designed my own beaded texture sock based on the King Charles Brocade stitch pattern. That one I finished. But then I got adventurous - another beaded sock with a variation and then a second textured sock - no beads. And one more textured sock that had nothing to do with King Charles.

I finished one of these on time. And did I finish the others then? Nope. Started the February challenge - and then the March challenge.

So I figure the real challenge of SKA is not finishing in time for the draw - it's finishing the single socks when a new challenge is calling and you'd really rather move on.

So tonight I pat myself on the back: here is the King Charles Brocade Cuffed version - in all its glory. The yarn is The Painted Tiger's Silver Lynx in the Jelly Beans Colourway.



These were the greatest pain to knit - what with starting the cuff on straights and joining it, but when they're all said and done, I quite like them.

Isn't there a special prize for people like us?

Not quite a pair

These are my lace socks for the Sock Knitters' Anonymous Challenge for March 2010 - lace. I used my trusty Harmony Guides and selected a stitch pattern I thought wouldn't be too hard, given that I was leaving shortly to go to Ottawa to visit my daughter. The problem is I took everything on the plane but the Harmony Guide and I had to try to remember the stitch pattern. Let's just say I sort of did.

After one repeat, I knew it wasn't right, but I was too lazy to frog, so I modified the pattern and kept going. The mod was actually the correct version and once I got going, I really liked it.

The yarn is Colinette's Jitterbug and I love it. Firm, squooshy (is that a word?), easy to work and .... short skeins. One toe is Simply Sock Yarn's solid in purple, left over from my Ripple Socks.



Which you can see better, here:



Actually, I really like them. And the cuffs aren't the same either, since I didn't want to do the same messed up version twice.

My challenge now is to find a skein of yarn that will be long enough to chart and test the pattern. Much as I love it, it won't be Jitterbug.

Does that mean I can't call the pattern Jitterbug Jive?

Some progress

The leg is finished. This is a finer yarn than I am used to working, so I suspect these will be gifted to someone with smaller feet than mine. It is not a strong yarn and when I caught it on a chair leg, a tug broke it. Good news is it's easy to splice back together.



Mine isn't quite pooling. I've got broad, soft barber pole stripes that I quite like.