Sock Progress!

I'm on track (at this point) to finish the Letterpress Socks before the July pattern is released!  These are the June pattern from The Handmade Sock Society Collection 6.  I'm finishing the second sock now and only have a few more rounds before I start the toe decreases.  The next pattern comes out next Thursday!

These are knit in Hue Loco Merino Sock in Ohana, but I added a little accent stripe at the top of the sock in white.  This was not in the pattern, and I can't take credit for it, because I got the idea from some other people's project, but it was just too cute not to add.  Basically, you work the cast on and the first round (in ribbing in this case) in the accent color.  Then start round two with your main color - but you just knit it (no ribbing).  Continue the ribbing on round three and onwards as necessary.  Working it this way gives you a clean line between the two colors.  The single knit round sinks into the ribbing and isn't visible at all.  I haven't double checked, but I'm remembering this as Elizabeth Zimmermann's Purl When You Can.  It's a great technique to know for color changes on ribbing!

A Little Lace

I finished the garter stitch section of my Londoner Shawl and have started the lace section!  The lace is simple and repetitive which tends to work well with multicolored yarns.  I've found that where the color changes in a yarn might distract from a lace pattern, if the pattern is fairly simple and geometric, you don't lose the stitch pattern like you would in a more complex, non repeating design.  I think our brains can fill in the gaps our eyes see when the colors change, but that's just my theory.

Speaking of colors, I'm still trying to get an accurate photo of the color of this yarn.  It's better in today's photos, but still not perfect.  I find myself stopping mid-row just to stare at the colors of the yarn!

In home news, yesterday I spent the morning vacuuming the house (those of you with Labradors understand the ongoing job that is).  Usually Obi barks at the vacuum cleaner - he's very much one of those dogs who deals with things he doesn't understand by wooooofing at them.  Yesterday, he followed me around almost the whole time squeaking one of his squeaky balls.  Towards the end though, he realized that if he'd put the ball in front of the vacuum cleaner, I would bump the ball and he could chase it.  I think that's better than being barked at the entire time.  It wasn't much quieter!

 

The Handmade Sock Society Season 6: Letterpress

As I mentioned last time, the June sock design - the second of the six - came out last week.  The Letterpress Socks are all about texture - no lace this time!  You're actually looking at the second try on this one, because I didn't like the way the yarn was working with the pattern the first time.  Sometimes that happens, so I frogged what I had and started with another yarn.  This is Merino Sock by Hue Loco in Ohana.  There's kind of a lot going on in the colorway, but I'm happy with how it's knitting up!

The Handmade Sock Society 6: Flourish

I've finished my May socks for the Handmade Sock Society 6!  These are the Flourish Socks and they are a really lovely mix of lace and simple stockinette stitch.  This is one of those designs where you get a lot of drama for very little work.  I knit them in Malabrigo Ultimate Sock in Arapey which is a muddle of blue, mauve, gray, and some purple tones.  The value (light/dark) of the colors is very close, so even though there are lots of colors involved, they don't overwhelm the stitch pattern.  This is definitely a sock pattern I will revisit in the future!

This morning the June sock design was released, so I will be picking my yarn soon!  This month's design is the Letterpress Socks. 

The Londoner

I've started a new wrap project.  This is the Londoner Shawl and I'm knitting it in Malabrigo Arroyo in the Wabi Sabi colorway.  It starts with the garter stitch section and then shifts to the lace for the second section.  This is one of those colorways that Malabrigo does that I just keep stopping to look at.  It's amazing and definitely worth a few minutes of staring!

Actually, I like the color so much that I bought two sweater quantities of it on this base.  I didn't remember that I already had it on the second purchase.  It's a nice problem to have, because now it means I can have a shawl and a sweater - and I've got enough to do a long, hooded sweater if that's what I want to do!  So many decisions to make...   

Linearity Shawl

I've been working on the Linearity Shawl this spring.  It was a Mystery Knit Along so I haven't been talking about it or showing pictures, but the final clue was released a couple weeks ago.  As the name indicates, this was all about lines: vertical, horizontal, textural, and colorful.  

I knit it in Malabrigo Ultimate Sock in Sabiduria, Whole Grain, and Natural.  Since there were no complex lace or stitches, it was a great TV watching project.  The finished wrap straddles the large scarf/stole sizing (I didn't actually measure it, and I just steam blocked it), which will be easy to wear either way.  I also think it could easily be a unisex accessory!

A New Pair of Socks

After finishing a pair of socks, I almost always cast on for a new pair of socks!  This is the start of Flourish, the first design for The Handmade Sock Society 6! I'm knitting them in Malabrigo Ultimate Sock in Arapey, which reminds me of a Mourning Dove, or a Lump Bird, as we call them.  When Caleb was little he noticed that the Mourning Doves would just sit in front of the bird feeder all afternoon.  Not really eating, just sitting and making it difficult for the other birds to get to the food.  He was watching them and said, "Mommy, those birdies are lumps!"  So they've been Lump Birds at our house ever since!

The socks are fun to knit, with the lace panel down the front and stockinette stitch around the back of the leg.  The lace stitch pattern is easy to memorize, so you get a lot of fancy for very little work on these.  I'm actually not going very fast on these because I've been working on the Linearity MKAL and I'm trying to get that shawl finished.  I'll show pictures next week, since the last clue was launched early this week!

Have a great weekend!