south by southwest

it takes me a flipping long time to knit a pair of socks. i just can't seem to stay devoted to a single pair long enough to have them done rapidly. there is always a side project dividing my time... or other socks. the good news is that i finally finished this pair, and almost all of the distracting knitting along the way was holiday gifts. okay, okay... i knit myself a sweater too, but.... shh. i can't do a lacy pattern in the dark.

the details.....

Southwestern Socks
designed by Wendy Johnson
pattern available at The Loopy Ewe

knit in Mountain Colors Bearfoot (1 skein of the "Sun River" colorway, 60% superwash wool, 25% mohair, 15% nylon) purchased at Knit+Stitch=Bliss on size US 2 5" Brittany Birch double point needles.

started: august 13, 2007
finished: october 3, 2007

i love these socks. the pattern was fun. the yarn is a yummy color, and i survived doing my first pair of toe-up. woo!

as usual, these socks are slightly fraternal. my cast-on toe was different for each sock. the first one, i used the figure 8 toe, and i was never entirely pleased with the results. for the second i decided to make-up my own toe that is a combination of the provisional cast on using a crochet chain and the knitting circularly of the figure 8 toe. i wanted it to not have holes, so i did a little trickery with my first round of knitting. what i did was sort of a combination of all three techniques wendy details in this knitty article.

am i a convert, you ask? maybe. i like toe-up and i like top down. i'm happy to build my socks either way. as a change of pace, i like the way the heel without a flap looks on this sock, but i can also in enjoy a good heel flap (i.e. the cabled flap on the log cabin socks).

i will say that i like grafting. i just think it is fun. i know some people hate to graft, so they prefer toe-up socks, but i would rather graft 16 stitches together than execute a stretchy bind off over 52 stitches.

anyway.... i mentioned the fraternal nature of the socks, and it goes beyond the cast on. i have 4 extra rows in the second sock. i know, i know, i am a fool, and i should have torn back, but i realized it one full pattern repeat before i began the ribbing... which is to say about 30 minutes before the sock would be bound off. i'm not sure if the extra rows came about by starting the gusset increases too late, or by forgetting to increase on some rounds, hence making more rounds of knitting go by before i reached the correct number of stitches.

either way, i tried the socks both on before deciding to proceed or tear out 60% of the completed sock back to the 2nd repeat before the gusset. what i discovered was that the +4 sock is actually great on my left foot, which is larger than my right foot. so i decided to make lemons into lemonade (be lazy) and leave the socks as is. fortunately the 2nd sock had some odd color pooling that helps identify it as meant for the left. yes!

on thursday i leave for my cousin's wedding. there will obviously be no updates in the later half of the week. i am hoping to be able to post a picture of the Manos Crochet Beanie i did up as a model for the store, and i would like to do this week's Fall Into Autumn topic. we shall see if i make it.

in mixed news.... i am taking no knitting with me to ohio. i refuse to risk my needles and sanity being stolen by an ego tripping TSA agent. i have heard too many horror stories at the store of agents who don't give knitters the option to mail the needles back to themself or put the project on waste yarn. the problem is that the TSA doesn't address knitting needles on their list of banned or restricted items. when you call them, they say it is up to the discretion of the agent.

they do, however, assure travelers that they can wear a gel padded bra through security or carry less than 3oz of personal lubricant on a flight. so i guess the mile high club is in, but knitting at 30,000 feet it out.

instead i plan to bring crochet projects. it is a good thing i am happily bi-craft-ual.