This Socktoberfest was all about the process for me. I thoroughly enjoyed working with all of the yarns, and I even managed to have a pretty good product; two and a half pairs is a new record!

Silk Garden Lite Socks

Autumnal Equinox Socks

…and one Green Macaw Anklet…

How did you fare during Socktoberfest 2007?

Did you achieve a goal by learning a new technique or by stashbusting? I still have plenty of yarns to work through, but I am happy to have a few sock yarns out of the stash and onto my feet!

Please share your thoughts about this year’s Socktoberfest. Yes, it was much more “laid back” than previous years… did you like that? Did you find it a tad boring and uneventful? I can take some criticism – please let me know what you thought!

 

 

 

*cough cough* Thank goodness colds are not contagious through the blogs. I am happy to see the end of this week, I must say. The week’s highlight was Tuesday night’s dinner with a friend and an amazing lecture at National Geographic Society; after that, the week is a blur of rainy weather, sitting in traffic, and coughing. (To spice things up a little on my long rainy commute home from work, I did a red light camera series of photos. It made the drive a little better.)

…enough of the kvetching! everyone has those kind of days (weeks)!

On to the socks!

Autumnal Equinox Socks
Yarn: Lang JaWoll Color
Source: All About Yarn
Needles: Size US 1 DPNs
Pattern: 68-stitch stockinette with Dutch heel

I enjoyed working with this Lang yarn, and would definitely do so again. Each ball of yarn comes with a reinforcement thread of yarn for the heel and toes. I actually forgot to knit those in, but I did go back and go over the toe, and run the thread through the heel flap for an extra lining. The colors are what obviously drew me to this yarn – I saw it at one of the local yarn shops last summer/fall. I knew I wanted something simple to show the stripes of color, and the basic stockinette was just right. Another pair for Socktoberfest – this is the first year that I have completed two socks in the time frame (well, almost… I started these the last week of September, but whose counting, right?) Do check out the lovely socks pouring in at the Socktoberfest Flickr group! I have enjoyed the low-key “fest” this year, and I hope you have too, and its not quite over!

This weekend is quiet and perfect. I will wear my new socks and curl up in my cozy green chair, catch up on my reading, and nurse my cough with some yummy tea. I am about half-way through Diane Ackerman’s An Alchemy of Mind: The Marvel and Mystery of the Brain and it is just as beautiful as her other books (although my favorite is still A Natural History of the Senses – the first one I read by her) … and I just got a copy of one of the new knitting books on the market, and from initial observations, it may be the best informational knitting book out there. Stay tuned to find out more about that!

As I finish up the second sock of the Autumnal Equinox pair, my mind wanders to the next potential sock project… I have so many patterns to consider, and even more yarn on top of that. I am in a steady stashbusting mode, and I am committed to whittling down my stash. Looking through my stash, I have rediscovered some of the beauties inside.

Possible color combination for Laila’s Socks (I love Terhi’s)

The yarn was originally slated for Hilja’s Mittens, but after an unfortunate accident with a passive-aggressive black lab mix with a yen for destruction (Kris’s words: “You shouldn’t have left it out for her to get to!”), the mitten was ripped and no permanent damage was done… I considered the mittens again, but the gauge was a little wonky anyway, so I may go with some socks – like the Snickets. Isel’s lovely pair convinced me that I needed some too, and into the queue they went. As for the other colors – I was thinking about some Charades?

This lovely Koigu really caught my eye. I loved the speckles in the yarn. I have no idea what to do with it. Of course, there are no shortage or patterns out there, maybe you have a suggestion? After seeing Theresa’s little wristlets this weekend in the same colorway (or one very close) I could easily be swayed in that direction!

…speaking of the weekend: Theresa, Eunny, and I had a great Saturday! We went to see the Pittsburgh Penguins/Washington Capitals hockey game. We had a minor scare by a security officer who wouldn’t allow our knitting needles into the arena, but once we explained that we were friendly folk who meant no harm, he let us go… if he hadn’t this (unfocused) photo would not have been possible.

Yeah, we are quite blurry (thanks stranger girl…) but we all have socks in hand! Knitting socks at a hockey game – the perfect way to celebrate Socktoberfest! (and the Penguins won 2-1! yea!) More photos from our fun night are here.

 

1. Yarn Pirate *hearts* Royal Elastics, 2. there’s no place like home,
3. bluebell, 4. sf_lace3

After you spend the time to make a fancy pair of handknit socks, how do you actually wear them? Do you show them off with a special pair of shoes? do you only wear them around your home? Are they you own little secret – tucked away for only you?

Some of my socks that I have made are perfect for wearing with a cute pair of shoes – others are the comfy house socks that chase the chill on the winter mornings.

I would love to see how you wear your socks – past and present! Please feel free to contribute your sock photographs to the Socktoberfest Flickr Group or the Socktoberfest Ravelry Group. If you decide to make a blog post about it, please leave a comment so I can look at your post! (and for some more socks + shoes entertainment, you have to see Sandra’s Flickr group: Handknit Socks + Shoes = Happiness Forever – it is a great group with lots of cute ideas!)

Wishing you a lovely weekend ~ I have some plans with some cool friends… tapas, hockey, and sock knitting…

Nancy had it all right when she wrote Knitting on the Road, socks are the perfect knit for travel. I took along two unfinished socks when Kris and I left Maryland on Friday – a few hours of driving and I now have three finished socks: one completed pair, and another finished anklet. Is it the the seemingly endless stretch of highway that spurs the knitting? or the hours of sing-along and knit-along with the CD player? Either way, finished socks are finished socks…

Stripey Silk Garden Lite Socks
Yarn: Noro Silk Garden Lite, colorway 2015 (2 skeins)
Source: Yarns on First, Napa, California
Needles: Size US 4 / 3.5mm DPNs
Pattern: Basic sport weight stockinette, ribbed cuff

I am just pleased as punch that the stripes actually matched up! I did a little manipulating to make this work, but sometimes Noro can be a craps shoot. Thankfully it worked out for me this time! The only difference is that the first skein had slightly shorter color repeats, so there is a small pink stripe on the top of the left sock, and the toe is fading into the yellow color. I am happy that it matched up around the heel and the gusset. That is the hardest part to ensure.

The yarn is typical Noro, which means you either love it or hate it. There is a lot of “vegetable matter” in the yarn, just like Silk Garden and Kuryeon, but if that doesn’t bother you, it is great yarn. There is no arguing with the amazing colors of Noro, and the striping fades into the next band so beautifully. The yarn is not itchy on the foot, and with wear and a nice soak, I am sure they will be even softer. The larger gauge makes them a little tricky to wear with some shoes – but they will be a nice fit for boots, sneakers, and house slippers. I will be wearing these a lot this winter.

 

…more of my trip to North Carolina tomorrow…