Apple Pie a la mode

Yarn: Apple Laine Apple Pie Red Delicious
Pattern: Just my simple plain vanilla socks
Needles: Size 1 US Knit Picks socks

This yarn is SO yummy. It is 50% wool, 20% mohair, 20% silk, and 10% nylon. The socks are super soft and cushy but I know they'll wear like iron. I loved how the colors just randomly appeared. No striping, pooling or flashing. This could be my new favorite yarn (I say that a lot but I really mean it this time). Of course, I bought it from my favorite source - The Loopy Ewe.

This picture shows the color better:

I was hoping to finish these socks for my second May pair but just couldn't manage to finish until last night. It has been a very, very stressful week here and I am so glad to have had my knitting to see me through. It's hot and sticky here today but I can't wait for the next cool day so I can wear these socks.

First Mexicali Peppers sock

The first Mexicali Peppers sock is done!
I used the Gentleman's Fancy Sock pattern from Knitting Vintage Socks. For some reason it cracks me up that this is a Gentleman's Fancy Sock. I doubt that Nancy Bush imagined these socks in these colors. And yet, I love the yarn and pattern together. I followed most of the pattern. The socks are sized for a man and I don't have man sized legs so I started the legs with the number she had decreased down to. I also left out the purl stitch in the middle of the heel. I don't have a scale at home and I'm very nervous I won't have enough yarn to make the second sock. I cast on for the second sock right away and I'm hoping for the best. I didn't graft the toes of the first sock just in case I have to rip the toe back.

These socks will be my April entry for Socktopia for the Sunshine on My Shoulders theme. You can't imagine how much I miss the sunshine. Spring is coming very, very slowly to my part of the country. We still have 6 inches of snow on the ground. Baseball practices have had to be canceled and tryouts for the school team will have to take place in the parking lot. More snow is predicted for later in the week. I've had enough. Really.

Round 1 Project Spectrum Overview

A fresh start

I mentioned in my last post that I was bone tired of the icy cold colors of the Project Spectrum color triad of blue, gray and white. I am so excited to move on to the new triad of pink, yellow and green. Truthfully, I don't really care for pink, green or yellow. You won't find much of my home decor includes those colors and very, very little of my clothing. I have olive skin and yellow and green make me look ill. Pink has always been a little too "girlie" for me and I don't wear much of it either.

BUT ... I have been strangely attracted to all three of these colors as I've been stash enhancing this winter. I tried to get a picture of all my triad stash together but it's not fit to share right now. I'll have to gather my yarn and head outside with it. For now, I'm sharing a picture of the yarn I picked up during the Loopy Ewe update a couple of weeks ago. It's by Perchance to Knit and the colorway is Mexicali Peppers. It is SO bright and cheerful it almost hurts my eyes. I have great plans for it and will use one of the Socktopia April themes. The April themes are the best so far.

Stay tuned to see what this snowboarding ball of yarn turns into.

Cable Rib Socks

Pattern: Cable Rib from Interweave Press Favorite Socks
Yarn: Yarn Pirate's merino/tencel blend in Malamute
Needles: Size 1 & 2 Knit Picks circulars

I was so happy to finish the Cable Rib socks this morning that I went right outside in the below zero temps to try to get a good picture of them. I have found this colorway difficult to photograph and I wanted the pattern to show up too. I just parked my butt in my driveway and took some photos.

I don't usually worry about running out of yarn on my second sock but I started worrying as soon as I finished the first sock. I made these socks longer than my "normal" socks (a little over 7 inches from top to heel) and the ribbing and cabling use lots of yarn. Thankfully, the worrying was for naught as I had a nice ball of yarn left over.

When I first started knitting with the merino/tencel yarn I wasn't too fond of it. It felt kind of stringy. As I got used to it, however, I came to love it. I'm not sure what the purpose of the tencel is but the socks feel wonderful. The cables and ribbing make these very leg hugging socks - no worries about these puppies slipping down. I really enjoyed the pattern. It was simple to memorize by the first repeat. I love so many of the patterns in this book but I was looking for something that would work with this yarn. I think I made a good choice.

This will be my last Project Spectrum project for this triad of blue, gray and white. Truth be told, I am bone tired of these icy cold colors. I'm ready for SPRING and some new, brighter colors. My current sip is not very colorful but it is greenish in a khaki sort of way. I'm using Claudia Handpainted and going toe up because this time I know to be worried about the yardage. I'm almost to the heel of the first sock. I'm feeling confident that this short row heel will go much more smoothly than my last short row heel that had me pulling my hair out.

Just wait until you see my new yarn for my next project. I promise it's bright and cheerful and very, very springlike. It's made by Perchance to Knit - I bought it when The Loopy Ewe had their giant update a few weeks ago. It's certainly not like any yarn I've knit with before but I needed to make a drastic change to chase away these winter blues.

First Cable Rib

The first Cable Rib sock is finished. I really wish I had a better photo to share but it's WAY too cold to go outside to take a photo. I'll get a good shot when the pair is complete. Let me just say that I really like the pattern. It's quite simple with a 6 stitch cable on each side of the leg and the cables cross every 10 rows.

I have totally changed my mind about the yarn. I'm using Yarn Pirate's merino/tencel blend in a colorway called Malamute. If you had a Malamute dog you'd totally understand the naming of this yarn. I didn't care for the yarn at first but as I knit with it and got used to it I decided I really like it. This pattern pulls in quite a bit with the 2x1 ribbing and the cables but the yarn seems to have nice elasticity. It definitely has good stitch definition (even if the photo doesn't show the cables very well). I wish I had a digital scale because I'd like to weigh the remaining yarn and sock to compare them. I'm just hoping I have enough to complete the second sock.

Speaking of worrying about running out of yarn ... I want to start a pair of socks with some Claudia Handpainted that's been sitting in my stash. I tried to start a pair of socks a couple of weeks ago with it but had gauge issues. The yardage is also an issue with me (with my size 10s). I've decided to bite the bullet and do these socks toe up. I hated the last pair of socks I knit toe up and vowed never to do it again but this yarn is really calling for it. I'd prefer to do them toe up but with a heel flap and gusset. I just want a plain vanilla pattern, toe up, with heel flap and gusset. I'll be searching. I need pictures and very small simple words.

First Conwy finished

My first Conwy sock was finished this morning. I really wanted to share a picture but the temperature outside right now is 1 degree F. It's cold. Really cold. The funky winter lighting and the cold prevented me from being able to get a good photo. I'll try again later. The close up shot showing the detail on the leg came out much better. I really like the way the yarn works with this pattern. I don't think I would have liked this pattern in a totally solid colored yarn.

Here's what I think about the yarn and pattern:
Yarn - J. Knits yarn is very soft but has good memory. It produces a fabric with good stitch definition and good elasticity. The colors are very nice. The yarn could have a tighter twist and had tendency to split. There were also a few slubby areas. I was very glad I used my KP needles with this pattern and yarn - the pointy tips were definitely a necessity.

Pattern - Conwy makes a beautiful sock with twining cables all the way from the top to the bottom. The cables were easy to make once I got the hang of them and the 4 row repeat was easy to memorize. I've never done a sock with calf shaping before and I like how this sock fits. I knit it an inch shorter than the pattern called for but an inch longer than my usual sock. I wasn't sure I was doing the decreases down the back of the leg properly as the pattern only shows you how to do 3 out of 6. In the end I think I did fine because the back of the leg looks good. Again, I'm glad I was using a multi tonal yarn. As I was doing the gussets I kept the foot a bit bigger than called for in the pattern because it would have been too snug otherwise (I kept the foot at 64 stitches instead of 60 as called for in the pattern). It fits very nicely this way. I also did my own regular round toe that I always do. I just like it and don't see any need to change it.

Now I just need to get the second sock on the needles.

Mittens finished

Mittens knit with Cascade 220 in Heather Blue. Eric loves them.

When the boys were little I used to knit all their mittens. Cute little mittens with reindeer on them. Once I even knit black mittens with yellow lightning bolts for my Harry Potter loving son. As the boys got older, however, they started to prefer store bought ski mittens. I was very surprised by Eric's request for me to knit him a pair but I was happy to do so.

This is my first time knitting with Cascade 220. It's lovely yarn. I will certainly return to it again the next time I do some worsted weight knitting (which isn't very often). It's much less itchy than the Brown Sheep yarn I always used in the past for their mittens. The mitts were a quick knit and made for a happy boy. They are also my second completed project for Project Spectrum.

I have my third Project Spectrum knitting project on the needles now. A pair of Conwy socks using the J. Knits Boston yarn that I've shown here before. The yarn is wonderful and I'm enjoying the pattern. I got a little confused with the calf shaping decreases but I stayed with it and it all worked out in the end. I don't think this will be a quick knit but I like how they look so far.

Project Spectrum Knitting Goals

Project Spectrum has officially begun and I hardly know where to start. After two pictureless posts in a row, I have plenty of photos to share today. It seems like a good time to go over my Project Spectrum knitting goals for the blue, gray, white triad. After two pictureless posts in a row, I have plenty to share today. Remember you can click on any photo for a larger image.

1. Finish the stealth scarf in time for my husband's birthday in 5 days. It now measures 53 inches and I'd like to get to 64 inches if I don't run out of yarn first.

2. Finish Jared's Silja socks. I've got the first one complete and the second one just rows away from starting the heels. I'm having a good attitude about this duty knitting as Jared routinely checks my progress to tell me what a good job I'm doing.

3. Finish the barely started hat for Dulaan. I found this turquoise yarn in my stash. Although I never knit with bulky yarn and it hurts my hands if I knit with it for very long, I figured I could eek out a toddler hat. I'd like to complete one charity project for each PS triad.

4. Knit socks with these beautiful yarns. I've had enough of smelling them and touching them, I'd like to knit with them. I won't cast on with either, however, until numbers 1 and 2 above are completed. I still haven't decided what they'll be. The Yarn Pirate yarn may become Monkey socks or Conwy socks. Any thoughts? The J. Knits is tougher because I want a pattern that takes full advantage of the color - probably something cabley.

5. Knit at least one of the socks for the current Nancy Bush KALs. I'm not really terribly interested in either but I'm considering the Gentlemen's Plain Winter Sock (pictured on the right). Maybe if I find the perfect yarn at the yarn store sale this weekend. If I don't find the perfect yarn, I'll just knit a different Nancy Bush sock.

Tell me what to do

I'm bored. I need some inspiration.

I started January off with a bang. I was excited about the Mountain Colors Bearfoot yarn I got for Christmas and couldn't wait to finish the socks I started on Christmas Day. Then I discovered the Knitting Vintage Socks KAL and became very excited about the Fancy Silk Socks. Now both those pairs of socks are finished. I love them both but they're done.

Project Spectrum is right around the corner. The boys and I are gearing up. In fact, there is now a nice Flickr group for Project Spectrum Kids. If you're participating in Project Spectrum with your children please come join us. We'll still post the kids' creations to the adult group but this group should have smaller numbers of postings and the pictures will stay around longer.

I've got some great yarn to knit with for this triad. There's the J. Knits Boston yarn I bought right before Christmas. This yarn is yummy and I can't wait to try it. Then there's the amazing Yarn Pirate Malamute yarn I bought from Sheri at The Loopy Ewe. Oh my. It's perfect for this triad of colors - it's white, grays, and blues in a merino/tencel blend. I'm very anxious to try it out.



I even ordered a yarn swift today. I had a great weekend on ebay and my lovely husband agreed that a swift was a great idea if it means he won't have to hold yarn on his arms anymore.

I've got the stealth scarf to knit but it's been hard to find the time or motivation during the day. I also decided to start a pair of simple socks for my middle son who has been begging for wool socks. I'm using some Silja yarn that has been in my stash for years and I'm not enjoying even one minute of knitting with it. Thankfully, they're knitting up quickly. They're perfect for Project Spectrum also with gray cuffs, heels and toes and blue legs and feet. He'll love them when they're done.

I'm really looking for some inspiration. Something to be excited about. The new sock for the Knitting Vintage Socks KAL hasn't been decided yet. I haven't picked out patterns for either of the socks above. I want something that moves me. If you have any ideas for sock patterns for the yarns picture above please leave me a comment. I've got all the usual sock books - all the Nancy Bush books, Sensational Knitted Socks and many more. I just want someone to tell me what do do.

We're gearing up

We're getting reading for Project Spectrum. I went through my stash and flashed a picture a little while ago. I've been doing some thinking and planning and while I haven't made any final decisions I'm enjoying the planning.

Yesterday the younger boys and I were in the big city (you'd understand how funny that is if you lived here) for dentist appointments. I was explaining Project Spectrum to them and telling them that we'd be doing it together as part of our homeschooling. My middle son was pretty excited as he loves crafts. He has some fine motor problems that make many crafts difficult for him but he's always willing to try new things. My youngest son is going to be a little more difficult to include because he never likes to try new things. We brainstormed things they could do for the first triad of colors - blue, white and gray. We realized that we had pattern blocks and legos in those colors and the boys thought they could make some cool designs with those.

We stopped into A.C. Moore to have a look around and to see if we could come up with some affordable crafts for the boys to work on. I was shocked at how many things we found.

I had the Peg Loom sitting in a closet. I bought it ages ago at Goodwill - there's still a $1.95 price tag on the back - and we've never used it. I need to get out some white, gray and blue yarn from my stash and the boys and I will learn how to use it together. We picked up some cute little wooden birdhouses and a little wooden chest that the boys plan to paint. We also got a dolphin sun catcher and dolphin Perler bead set, a wooden cat shape that will be a picture frame, and some engraving art. Finally, we bought two big spools of gimp.

I haven't used gimp since I was a preteen but I'm pretty sure I can figure it out. I'm hoping I can teach the boys. I used to love this stuff when I was a kid. It brings back all kinds of warm, summery memories.

I think we have enough to keep the boys busy for a little while. I hope they enjoy themselves.