WIP Wednesday: Diagonal Lace Socks & Fey Led Yet Again

Writing:
Fey Led (Working Title) - Rewrites
Previous Word Count: 16,662
Current Word Count: 18,386 (Up 1,659)


That's just today! Whoo! Now that the sinus issue and clouded thinking is fixed (crosses fingers) I can get work done. 


Knitting:
There are moments that I love these socks, such as every time I look at them and see the pretty colors and the way the strips work with the diagonal lace. There are moments I hate them, like when I was turning the heels. It was, I suspect, unnecessarily complicated and fussy. Also? Purling in the round? Still sucks. I finally took the socks off the circular needles and pulled out my DPN's just to do the heels. I finished up the second heel last night at gaming since was stuck with no other distractions for my hands for a couple hours. Now they're back on their circular needles, both heels turned and I'm ready to whip through the leg.









Also? Something I love about toe up socks? Once the sock is big enough and the yarn ball is small enough I can tuck the ball into the sock. No more wandering balls of yarn, no more tangled yarn when I'm switching between socks, and so much more portable! Complete win!

WIP Wednesday: Diagonal Lace Socks & Fey Led III

Writing:
Fey Led (Working Title) - Rewrites
Previous Word Count: 16,662
Current Word Count: 16,662 (Up 0)

Knitting:



While technically a day or two late on this, I did manage to make it on the correct day over on LJ. I blame the sinus infection and the subsequent guzzling of Nyquil that took place. There's only so much I can manage when the world's a haze around me.

WIP Wednesday: Diagonal Lace Socks & Fey Led: Electric Boogaloo

Writing:
Fey Led (Working Title) - Rewrites
Previous Word Count: 14,461
Current Word Count: 16,662 (Up 2,201)

Fantastic progress! I think I'm finally getting back into the groove of things with the story.

Knitting:
I don't know that it's noticeable progress, but I assure you there's been progress. Both feet are about halfway done, then I'll turn the heels and have the leg and cuff to finish.

Woven Diamonds and Learning

I find that with most of my yarn work I'm learning something. I've also learned to mostly just follow the pattern and all will turn out as expected.

On this last set of socks I followed the pattern, even when it made my brain hurt a bit. See, the poster assumes you have some experience with socks and sock construction. I've done 2 pair of socks before these but they were both toe up and these were top down which does cause a bit of differences at times.

The instructions at the heel read to knit across the heel stitches once in a knit 1 slip 1 pattern and then turn and purl back. I did that. The next line was to begin the decreasing for turning the heel. Okay, a bit odd but maybe I just have enough experience so I'll follow it. When I finished that it told me that I had to pick up 12 stitches on either side of the heel. Um ... where? I managed to do it but it was very tight in there and didn't look right at all. I stuck to it though and finished the sock, including learning the kitchner stitch to finish the toes. It was then that I figured out what had gone wrong.

Had their been one little line in the heel instructions I would have been fine. That line? Repeat these two rows for $length. It should have been in there before I began the decreasing for the heel.

So now I sit with a completed sock and a sock that I'm almost to the heel on. Do I do the second one correctly? Do I rip out the bind off and pick back over half the sock to fix it?

Well, if you're me you say to heck with it and do the second sock incorrectly so they match. After all, the other sock still fits, if a little weird, and they're being made for wearing with boots so nobody will see them anyhow. Plus a bit of it should be fixed after blocking.



I loved the pattern though and have a second color of yarn to use it again. However this time I'll be doing the heels correctly. They'll be perfect for wearing of the boots this autumn and winter, and still attractive should I have to remove my footwear at a friend's house.

Pattern: Woven Diamond Socks by Alexis Winslow
Yarn: Lily Sugar'n Cream Twists in Country Twists
Project Page: Ravelry

WIP Wednesday: Diagonal Lace Socks & Fey Led

Writing:
Fey Led (Working Title) - Rewrites
Previous Word Count: 13,468
Current Word Count:  14,461 (Up 993)

That seems like a really small number. But! I'm going to call it a victory. That's only two hours or so of work after having to try 'really' hard to get back into the feel of this world. It's also the only progress I've had in terms of writing in almost 2 months. Every step forward is progress and I'll take all I can get.

Knitting:
After finishing up my shrug on my super large needles I was ready for something smaller, delicate ... on sharp and pointy needles. So I grabbed this vibrant and gorgeous yarn that I'd set aside for socks and cast on for the diagonal lace socks I'd been thinking about. I cast on for it about 4 times. First it was just the one by it's lonesome and then I decided that I should do both at the same time, since I had such a long circular. At first I was okay with them being completely different on the strips and how the colors lined up but the longer I looked at it the more I wasn't happy with it. So Lynn helped me find where the colors matched closer and we rewound the yarn into balls. And then, after all that I realized that I'd been casting on the for the smaller of the two sizes and wanted the larger size. *sigh* On the plus side I never got more than 5 or 6 rows in before changing my mind. *laugh*



Even with all the fussing with the starts and stops of it all I think it's very, very pretty. They'll make lovely socks.



The colors are still a bit off, at least two rows worth. At this point though they're close enough to be obvious and off enough to be interesting. And I think the pattern itself with be perfect with this yarn.

Finished Baby Things

 I finally got pictures of my recently finished things.

First up was another of those awesome hooded blankets. Man those just fly off the needles now.



I love how they're constructed from the center out and the alternating knit and purl stitches not only give visual interest but mental interest as I'm working on it.



Mr. Bunny just had to get in on the picture taking. I love how it folds all around the wearer and I've heard that the hood is awesome since it stays on the baby's head rather than slipping off like a normal square blanket does when it's folded over.

Pattern: Sweet Lullaby Seamless Hooded Blanket
Project Page: Edisyn's Blanket

As a companion piece I also whipped up a small sweater to go along with the blanket. This was my first clothing piece and it was more simple than I'd thought it would be. I'm not positive I did the i-cord edging correctly but I think it's close enough and cute enough that it works.



I even managed to get the buttons to line up with their respective button holes! And I did a lot of tugging on the buttons to make sure they were on there securely too. Can't have them coming off.

Pattern: Hello Baby Cardigan
Project Page: Baby Cardigan"

Now to figure out what else I'm going to do with all this yarn I still have left over.