Frakkin' Smegy Socks

So, to conclude the SSS saga. I washed them in hot water and tossed them into the dryer and that shrunk them up some. I think they will still be house socks though. The felici is incredibly warm and snuggly. Maybe the next go round with it will be better.

So, my new project are my Frakkin' Smeggy Socks. So named as it is Gothsocks gothling Frakkin' Toaster, on her Ricin' base. Ricin' is a merino, bamboo, nylon mix. I expect it'll last forever. It's got a gorgeous bit of shine to it, some nice stitch definition and a still a bit of stretch. The coolest part about the shine is that it makes the grey look silver. I'm really in love with this yarn and her use of colors. I don't generally like variegated yarns, but the way this is knitting up, I just might be a convert. So the second part of the name is a reference to Red Dwarf, which is a BBC comedy sci-fi series from the late 80's and 90's. It is really very hilarious and if you haven't seen it, I highly recommend you do you. It's available on Netflix instant streaming. The reason for this reference, is the pattern I am using is Cristi H. Brockway's, Red Dwarf Socks. So, there you have a long winded explanation of my project name.

So far I am really enjoying the pattern. I have gotten to the heel turn at this point. I am substituting the fleegle heel instead of what she has in her pattern. I had a good experience with the fleegle, so I am going to continue to use it for now to get more sock knitting experience under my belt. Now, don't get the wrong idea. I am not going to be knitting nothing but socks. There were just a few KAL's I wanted to participate in the last couple of month. I plan to one day soon finish my hoodie, start a cardigan and a skirt. I want to have some nice things to show off at Sock Summit in July.

The conclusion of the sockasode or the sock saga continues?

So, the no wrap short rows didn't go anywhere. I still ended up with holes. So after talking to some awesome people on Ravelry in the sock knitters and knit freedom forums, I was introduce to the fleegle heel. This is nothing short of brilliant! I managed to knit is and I am still not sure how it came out so well. It is a no wrap, no guesset heel flap and gusset sort of heel. Liat Gat of Knit Freedom has some fantastic YouTube videos on how to do the fleegle heel. Her video ebook "Learn to Knit Toe Up Socks" also uses the fleegle heel. My only regret is I didn't watch her video on when to start working the heel and I instead used fleegle's formula. So, my sock ended up a bit long. Having already frogged it 6 times, I wasn't about to do it again. Especially, since it didn't have any holes!! From there I started a lace pattern I picked out of Vougue Knitting: Stichionary 5 called pigtails. It patterned up quite nicely if I do say so myself! So, the next error I made was my selection of the aristocrat cuff from Socks Ala Carte 2: Toes Up. This turned out to be a rather pretty, but not very stretchy cuff.  As the socks ended at the base of my large calves, this was a bad combination. To finish it all up I used my favorite sock bind off, Jenny's Suprisingly Stretchy bind off. So, they are a bit long in the foot and a bit snug in the calf. They also grew a bit with washing and blocking.

 I wore them for the first time on Tuesday. They were incredibly comfortable and I got lots of compliments on them! Tonight I am (at the suggestion of some lovely folks on Ravelry) trying to shrink them with the aid of the washer and dryer. We'll see how it goes. You can find my socks on Ravelry as SSS (Sabrina's Sorceery Socks). Also, here are some pictures for you.

Madrona Fiber Arts

Today I went to my first fiber festival! It was a good time. I mostly went to get some Rainy Days Wooly Dogs gothsocks.  If you haven't seen it, it is beautiful self striping and variegated hand dyed yarn. I had fund shopping for myself and a few other people. When the show floor opened everyone walked briskly toward her booth and by the time I got around the corner I couldn't even fit in her booth. Sadly, that means I missed out on TARDIS which is the one color I really and truly wanted. I probably spent way more money than I ever should have. *sigh* Such is my problem. I did manage to net several lovely colors though. At least I get my tax return at the end of the month! I also got myself some Blue Moon Fiber Arts socks that rock medium weight in a rare gem colorway. It was actually funny when I went to check out Tina, the owner/dyer eyed my skein and threatened to keep it because she liked it so much. I also had a really great time hanging out with some lovely knitters and spinners. I learned a little bit about spinning, fiber and had a great time checking out everyone's projects.

This is the GothSocks booth after everyone emptied it out. It looks so sad and lonely. There were some pretty gothlings and sparklies whe I left though. You can also see the lovely Stephanie (the gothsocks creator) in front.



In other news, Joe and I just celebrated our 6th anniversary! He made a lovely dinner and we had a great night hanging out.

Sock knitting is also going well. I will write more on that when I finish it though.

Anime, knitting and more

So, I started watching some new (to me) anime series a bit ago, Soul Eater and Darker Than Black. Now that both are available on instant streaming through Netflix, it's been easier to watch them. I've been mostly watching Soul Eater and I have been really enjoying it. While some of the characters are a little flat, I do enjoy how unique the story is. I wonder how people come up with these ideas. I mean a school for weapons and weapon trainers that serve Death. I plan to finish Darker than Black once I am done with Soul Eater.

I started my toe up socks 2 at a time using magic loop class yesterday at Renaissance Yarns. So far, so good. I have finished doing my toe increases and now need to knit until I get to the heel turn. This is a nice reinforcement of the first class as we are using the same methods for toes and heels. So far, I am liking this a lot more than 1 at a time. It seems faster and if nothing else is more gratifying. When I bind off, I will have a pair of socks, not one more sock to cast on and knit.

Planning for Sakura-Con 2011 is going well. We just announced two new guests, Chris Bevins and Tiffany Grant. I am excited to about both of them. I think we will really have a good line up for this year.

expanding the old knowledge base

So, my LYS, Renaissance Yarns, is finally offering a couple of classes I have been wanting to take. The first one starts on the 13th and is toe up socks two at once using magic loop. I took the toe up magic loop class a while back, but I think I now understand why people go with 2 at once as I have yet to finish my second sock. It is in time out after making me very angry and has been sitting there for a while. The second class starts in December and is a stranded color work class. I have been fascinated by Fair Isle since I started knitting. So I am really excited about adding this trick to my knitting collection. In the class I'll learn to make a 2 color tam using traditional Shetland wool. I can't wait!

In other news I hope to finish the brioche scarf this weekend so I can start on the vineyard scarf and try and get that done. I just have to decide how much knitting is really feasible to get done in time for Christmas. I guess we shall see how the next couple of weeks go.