Socks From Dragon

Looking at the brightly colored yarn that was my birthday present from my boyfriend I knew exactly what pattern I would use for the socks he wanted me to make for myself.



The colors changed so fast that I knew most patterns would produce a multicolored mess. I hoped that the pattern I had in mind would play nicely with the colors. I was thrilled to watch the stripes and columns line up as I knit through the pattern.



The interesting heel construction is a bit snug as I pull it over my heel but within seconds I find it to be one of the most comfortable socks that I've ever worn. The paired increases and decreases throughout the foot and leg create the most interesting shape but it fits like a dream. Though you know what I love the most? They're not identical but they create a picture when put together.



Pattern: Skew by Lana Holden
Yarn: Yarn Bee Walk Away Sock in Kicky
Project page: Ravelry
Modifications: None

WIP Wednesday: A Plea and Gloves

Knitting:
The chocolate socks seems stalled, perhaps permanently in this iteration. I did indeed find more yarn, ordered it, and gleefully began knitting with it. In the poorly lit room I knit it I could tell it was a little lighter but that didn't seem to be too much of a problem. The next day I took it with me to fighter practice where I could work in the sun. There I realized just how light the new yarn was. Even Lynn commented on it. He also pointed out, as I sat there contemplating, that I needed to be happy with the final result. I realized I wouldn't be happy with the color change, and I'd probably never wear the socks, so I ripped back all the new yarn and set it aside. I do have various plans for the new yarn as I 2 skeins of that and thus plenty of yarn to make a pair of socks. In my mind though, the cubes pattern, for me, really needs to be in a dark brown. You know how it is when your heart is set on something.

So ... I have a request for my friends that have knitting stores somewhat close to them. Would you be willing to call them and see if they 'happen' to have Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Chocolate, Dye Lot 6094? You can contact me via ShadowsKnits@gmail.com. I'll pay the cost for somebody to purchase the yarn and ship it to me. I'm well aware it's a last ditch hope and that it may not pan out. But I've contacted Lorna's Laces and the yarn stores here that carry it and none of them have that color. If this doesn't work then I'll pull the socks out and set the yarn aside for gloves for me or something and move on.


(The finished sock, the half done sock, the lighter yarn)

So since I can't work on that I've been working on other things that have been patiently waiting for me to have time for them. Case in point, a pair of wrist / arm warmers for myself. These are working up super fast, just a couple days for the first one to be finished.



Writing:
Fey Led - More Edits.
Thanks to Kathy and her incredible notes as well as a bit of help from Kara, I've got some really good feedback and I'm working my way through those.

National Novel Writing Month (NaNo) is coming up and at first I wasn't sure about participating this year. I was considering focusing on my editing and getting my current stories cleaned up. And then a voice pipped up in the back of my mind with a question ... so I may have an idea after all. We'll see. If nothing else I do have a fantastic background that will surely inspire me to write courtesy of  Dragon.

Reading:


World War Z: An Oral History of the Zombie War by Max Brooks. I'm 'really' not a fan of zombies, honestly can't stand them. I'm a fan of cerebral horror, not the blood, guts, and gore horror. But, this was one of those books that was a big hit and I like to grab those and read them when I can. So far, and I'm about halfway through, it's not focused on the ew factor. Between the writing style, the layout, and the focus of the subject matter, it's more about the collapse of society, how it happened, and the aftermath. It makes it a story of humanity and how humans deal with everything falling apart. Certainly there is the ew factor there, as the zombies are described, but with it being a sharing of other people's stories it's not an immediate feeling with the guts shoved in your face, so to speak. I'm really enjoying this book, which is a happy surprise.

Spring Socks

I've been working a lot lately on projects for me ... in colors I wouldn't normally wear. It's been interesting.



I've always gravitated more toward dark colors, black, dark purple (purple being my favorite color), dark blue. There's a reason my Nanny used to say I looked like a walking bruise. She on the other hand looked stunning in pastels.

I remember getting dressed for Kindergarten one morning and she pulled out a pair of yellow pants. (It was the 80's, they were actually in style.) "I don't want to wear yellow." Nanny looked at me for a moment, shrugged, and told me to pick my own clothes from then on.



I think in a way these socks remind me of her, the cotton up to a bit harder treatment than a lot of wool paired with the delicate lace  and all in her beloved pastels.

I'm really glad this yarn fell into my basket and Lynn picked it out for my next project.

Pattern: Curvy Lace Socks by Kathy Wesley
Yarn: Patons Grace in Lavender
Project Page: Springy Lace Socks
Modifications: None intended

WIP Wednesday: Colorfully Skewed Socks Part 2

Knitting:
That tiny little toe I had last week? It's all done with and has been put aside for it's sibling. Between the construction and the desire to see how it affected the colors the knitting on these has just flown by.



Reading:

Dune by Frank Herbert. Progress on this hasn't been quite as fast. I'm past the halfway point and still very much in love with the story. There just needs to be more hours in a day.

Writing:
Fey Led - another round of edits. Of the 5 or 6 people that said they'd gladly read it and make editing suggestions, only 1 ever replied with anything. So, I'm going through and working with their suggestions to make things more readable.

WIP Wednesday: Colorfully Skewed Socks

Knitting:
I was happily knitting along on my chocolate socks, fairly certain that I'd finish them by Friday since I'd just started the foot on the second sock. And then the end of my yarn popped out of the bag. :( Apparently going up a needle size and losing a repeat from the leg does affect the amount of yarn used that much. *sigh* So I've hit up Ravelry to see if anybody there that has it marked as "willing to sell / trade" will reply. If you happen to have Lornas Laces Shepard Sock in Chocolate and are willing to sell, I'd be interested.

So, yesterday when I had my little yarn disappointment I was frustrated. Nothing else in my stash really appealed. I didn't want to start a new project, I wanted to finish the one I had. But picking through my stash I finally came across the yarn that Dragon bought me for my birthday last year. Seeing it made me remember the smile he had when he handed it to me. "Yarn, lots of colors, colorful socks for you." So I pulled the yarn out of stash and started a pair of Skew socks.



They shall be 'very' colorful socks,

Reading:

Dune by Frank Herbert. This would be a delightful story if I could give it more time. I've been so distracted with other things lately that I just haven't had a whole lot of time to sit and read like I'd like to. I did end up taking it to the bath with me one day just so I could relax and read. I need to get a move on though because the rest of my to read list is getting antsy. Plus I 'might' have fallen down and bought 2 more books last night ... I submit that it's not my fault since I 'had' to buy one since the author was there to sign it and since it was the second in the series I needed to get the first one as well, for completeness sake.

Writing:
Nothing just yet. But, after a good talk with a friend yesterday .. and the realization that I've let a rude, mean person stop me from something I enjoy ... I will start again. So this is a note to say that if I don't have something going in the writing section next week you should offer, and follow through, with beatings.

WIP Wednesday: Chocolate Socks

Knitting:
With my Knitting for Other People queue currently empty I'm working on a pair of socks, all for me! I picked up the yarn nearly a year ago and knew that it had to be socks for me. It's been patiently waiting in my stash for me. I grabbed it as soon as I cast off the last project I was working on.



Book:

Dune by Frank Herbert. I passed that magical point of the story were things start making sense and the new words he uses finally mean something to me. I'm getting drawn into the story more each time I sit down to read a bit. I'm very glad I stuck it out through the rough beginning.

WIP Wednesday: Think Spring

Knitting:
The Piano Scarf is still in the works. It doesn't look much different from last week, other than being longer. I'm over halfway done with repeat 5 of 6 so it should be done fairly soon. So instead of showing pictures of that again I'll share my current traveling socks.



These are the socks that are worked on in the car or in line. I've about an inch left before I begin the toe. I tried them on last night and I'm thrilled to report that they fit me. *grin* I probably wouldn't have started these now but when I finished my last travel project I pointed Lynn at the stash and said pick my next project. He sifted through things a bit and came up with one of the skeins of Paton's Grace. The other skein is sitting in my purse waiting to be called for the second sock.

Reading:

Left Behind by Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. I'm not sure how I feel about this one. I knew going into it that I probably wouldn't agree with parts of it but it's been sitting on the shelf for a few years now. Lynn and I collect various religious books, though generally not of this type. While cleaning out our shelves I decided to finally read the first book of the collection, particularly since we've managed to collect the first 6 or so of this series, all through free boxes of books. I don't know if reading this will change my religious views .. but at least it's readable and I'm not feeling beat about the head and shoulders with religious ideology as I have in a couple other books.

Circles ... Going in Circles

I finished my travel socks! These have traveled with me to various stores, 2 seperate geeky conventions, a movie, and 3 plays, not to mention uncountable hours in lines, doctor's waiting rooms, and driving around town (I was the passenger, promise).



The second one simply flew by as I worked Space City Con and ran around helping my amazing volunteers out as they assisted patrons with directions and played tour guide a couple of times. I even managed to get the stripes to line up almost exactly!



You can tell on the heels and toes that it was a bit off but I think that's partially because on the second heel I was trying to go by memory and didn't start the turning at exactly the same spot. Either way I don't care, I think they're perfect!



I don't think I'm a huge fan of the star toe, but I had to at least try it. The heels are eye of partridge and that doesn't really bother me, though I didn't get the slightly raised diagonals I read should appear .. perhaps I did it wrong. If I do this pattern again, which is a possibility, I'll change the numbers a bit and only add one repeat at cast on, decrease a bit before doing the heel, and do a different toe. This pair though? I'm in love! 

Pattern - Circle Socks by Anne Campbell
Yarn - Knit Picks Felici in Caprica
Ravelry Project Page
Modifications - Added 16 stiches to the cast on as the original was way too tight for me.

WIP Wednesday: Head and Feet

Writing:

Magic Balance (Working Title) - Rewrites

Previous Word Count: 21,391

Current Word Count: 21,391 (Up 0)

Two weeks in a row ... the brain is just not having it. I think I'm going to take a break from this and do some of the suggested edits on Fey Led instead. Perhaps then my mind will be more willing to go back to this world.

Reading:

From Dead To Worse by Charlaine Harris Over halfway on this one and still enjoying it. I love her writing style and it's nice to see Sookie again. I'm gleefully looking forward to the return of True Blood soon. I also managed to catch the Q&A Panel with Kristin Bauer at Comicpalooza this past weekend. It was a very ... amusing time as she shared what she could with us about story lines and antics on set.

Knitting:
Not a Decepticon Scarf!!! I almost finished it at Comicpalooza but had left half of it at home (no sense in carrying it around after all). So earlier today I finished that up and grafted it together (would have 'never' been able to do that at con). Final pictures of it soon! However ... that meant I needed something to work on. Naturally I'd planned ahead and grabbed the yarn and stuff for Fi's beret that she's ordered. Except I didn't have her measurements. Doh! Ever the over planner I also had sock yarn and I happily cast on a pair of socks.

Caprica Circles


I think they're incredible! I'm in serious love with them. They'll be moved to my travel project since I managed to get Fi's measurement today and started on her beret.

Fi's Beret


Such a simple looking thing .. and yet it took me 2.5 hours to cast on and knit the first row. Insanity I tell you. I'd started with a circular like the pattern called for but all of my stitches fit easily on one needle because my needles are far too long. I love my interchangeable set but the tips are quite long and not at all suited to smaller projects. Good thing I had DPN's on hand.

Secret Socks

I always have a travel project. Sometimes it's my main project too ... sometimes not. It depends on if I have the means to carry it around. This project lived in a crown royal bag hanging from my purse for many months as I worked on them, a row here and there.

I almost felt guilty working on them at times because they were a personal thing, a gift for later in the year. But that was always when my main project was way too complicated or large to carry with me and quickly set aside while out walking around. I got over the guilt pretty quickly.



I think I love everything about these socks. I love the little mock cables. I love the seed stitch up the leg. I love how the pattern crosses over across the foot. I love how it's reversed on each sock.



These are off to the gift box. I can't wait to give them to my friend but I'll have to. I think she'll love them.

Pattern: Bubble Stream by Cailyn Meyer
Yarn: Knit Picks Stroll Tonal in Deep Waters
Ravelry Page
Mods: None

WIP Wednesday: Blue All Around

Writing:

Magic Balance (Working Title) - Rewrites

Previous Word Count: 3,285

Current Word Count: 3,285 (Up 0)

Between OwlCon and yarn loveliness I've not had much spare time. I'm finding that balance though and should be back at it tomorrow.

Reading:

Just After Sunset by Stephen King. On a continuing theme ... I've not had a lot of time to read either. The book is living in the bathroom and I get a couple pages in at a time. I'm still loving the stories though and finding them fun. At the moment I'm on N which I also have as a graphic novel, though I haven't read it yet. I'm really looking forward to checking that out after finishing the book to see how they compare.

Knitting:
So much going on these days! It's fantastic! I'm currently on the second sock for a friend, but those aren't "due" until November, so I've got plenty of time. Which is good since they're about to be put aside to work on a pair of commissioned wrist warmers. First though, socks!



And the beginning of the wrist warmers!


Also in terms of WIP: My first dyeing attempt! I took the left over yarn from the Fireworks Wrist Warmers and added blue food dye. The water looks clear because it's sat all night and now the yarn's sucked it all up like a sponge! *glee*

WIP Wednesday: Gift Shawl, Gift Socks & Fey Led

Writing:
Fey Led (Working Title) - Rewrites
Previous Word Count: 45,475
Current Word Count: 45,475 (Up 0)

Yeah, yeah, I know, I'm a slacker. I took the last week off from most writing to simply give my brain a chance to reset back into Fey Led. I'll be getting back to work on Fey Led in the next day or two.

Knitting:
I have secret knitting ... kinda. I don't think either of the recipients read the blog but just in case I won't mention names. First up is a pair (well, ok, just one of the pair) of socks. I'm in love with the pattern and the yarn and I simply adore how the two are playing together. I started these socks for a friend and haven't gotten very far on them but they're already on hold a bit.



They're on hold for this shawl that actually has a due date and I really need it to be done first. I started the socks because I didn't have the yarn for the shawl. It came in while I was in Austin. I had to play with the numbers a bit (i.e. stared at it confused until Husband Man stepped in and handled the scary math for me) since I'm using smaller needles and thinner yarn than recommended. I still wanted it to be decent size though so I think this will work out.



Both projects are in Knit Picks yarn which I'm seriously beginning to love for every project. The socks are Stroll Tonal in Deep Waters and the shawl is Shimmer in Bayou. Sorry for the iffy pictures but it's cold outside and my heat isn't working (guy should be by today to look at it). Rather than brave the cold for the sunshine in the pictures I'm staying inside and trying to conserve the warmth I've got.

Covering Hands and Feet

  I generally don't think about gauge on my knitting projects because I'm usually so close it's not a concern. Despite almost never using the suggested yarn for a project I usually am pretty good at matching the weight of the yarn so it's still not a problem. I got a bit overconfident. See, when it's for a friend I check the weight of yarn versus what is called for about a million times. I have to be sure before I start because I want it to be the best. But this was a glove that I'd done four times before, it was going to be a breeze. It didn't even occur to me that the yarn was a thicker weight than asked for, this was what I had and what I wanted to use. It's no wonder at all that the fingers came out a titch too long.



  Luckily Lynn wanted them that way anyhow. He says they'll be perfect for the maybe 4 really cold days we have here in Texas and for the rest of the semi chilly weather he has the black ones I made that are a little lighter. What tickles me is that I used the left over yarn from Dragon's scarf,

  And speaking of experiments that work out wonderfully, (at least this time I knew it was an experiment) I finally finished my socks!



  I think it's the first pair of socks that I did correctly, as per the pattern. I love the striping and how they fit and the heel and everything! The pattern did call for a solid or slightly variegated yarn. I figured the stripes with the pattern would actually look really awesome. It's fantastic when I'm right!



  I think these are my favorite socks yet! I did get a lot of funny looks before I got the heel turned on them as at that point, since I'm doing toe up, they're just narrow tubes that are possibly have another purpose if you have a dirty mind. Though it was fun to see just how many people tend to jump to the sexy fun time conclusions. (laugh)

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: 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.