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.