Depressing

It's so depressing when I get two lovely new yarn packages, but don't even have enough time to take a quick photo of them. Just that much: my order from elann arrived (yarn for the zombie wristlets) and I'm very happy with how soft it is. Peruvian Baby Silk... yum. I can't wait to find out how this knits up. IMO the raspberry could be a bit more pink and less red, but I still think this'll look very good. :D

And I got another package from a German online shop with enough yarn for 4 more pairs of socks. All cotton or cotton-blends and I only ordered them because they were on sale and not because I have a project for them or anything. Among them Schachemayr Catania (from which I made the Tipsy Knitter Socks), but this time in two multicoloured colourways. Then some Lana Grossa and GGH. Simply breathtaking.

I'm going to try and be abstinent from knitting for the next 1 1/2 weeks as well. Important exam on the 8th... but after that nothing will stop me from finally finising the Pomatomus (I turned the heel on both of them last Friday) and getting on with some other stuff, including updating the sidebar...

Holiday Pair #2 Done

I really have been knitting too much in the last days. I'm supposed to be studying for an exam at the beginning of May... well... at least I got some things finished. First of all my Tipsy Knitter Socks from Socks, Socks, Socks. Excuse the crappy photos, but it's difficult to take good photos of your own feet.



And two details of the pattern:


Yarn: Schachenmayr Catania, pink, 2 skeins and a bit
Needles: 7 3mm DPNs
Gauge: Eh... bit bigger than what was suggested in the book
Started: February 2006
Finished: Apr 16, 2006

Then I finally worked again on my Pomatomus socks. I decided to work both of them at the same time, so hopefully I can evade SSS.



And I finally got the chance to take a photo of the present I gave my parents for Christmas.



This blanket is about 1.60mx1.30m (5'4"x4'4") (You can just see my mum standing behind it :D), knit with 4mm needles and about 1.5kg of (50/50 wool/acrylic) yarn. Three colours, millions of colour changes, 150,000 stitches, done in about 3 months. Pattern is adapted from here. The initials are actually more symmetrical than they look in the picture. I worked with provisional cast-ons so the blanket would look as if it was made from 3 pieces, but in fact it was 6 pieces + the lighter areas in the middle to join the pieces. (I got really good at grafting after doing that for 600 stitches)

And I have been on the lookout for yarn for a few new projects. Come Spetember I'm going to be in Scotland for 10 months, so I need warm things. :D I'm thinking a scarf/mittens/hat combination to start with. With cables. The hat is going to be Coronet from Knitty and the mittens Broadstreet Mittens from Knitty with the Coronet cable down the upper side. I'm probably going to make up the scarf pattern with the same cable and some others to frame it.

The only problem so far is finding the right yarn. I know I want a cranberry colour. I also know I don't want 100% wool. I was thinking merino wool, but then decided that my experience with it so far means it's too elastic. So perhaps a merino wool/silk blend? At about 80m/50g. I've had no luck at my LYS and online I'm a bit iffy, because I've been disappointed in the colours before. And all the great online shops are in the US, so I'll either have to pay exorbitant shipping or can't order there at all because they don't ship internationally (Knitpicks... grrr...).

Strangely my mum found it weird that I wanted to know when my uncle from the US visited us again, so I could have an order sent to him and he could bring it with him. That's not weird, is it? ... Didn't think so. ;)

Holiday Pair #1 done

I've worked on these socks for the last few months (think I started them some time in October) and they're finally, finally done. In the end I gave them to my mum. They're a bit long, but she didn't want me to undo the grafting on the first one and make it a bit shorter, so she's just getting them as they are.



And I also cast on for the socks on two circulars. Have to say, I like it more than I thought I would. I usually don't like knitting with circulars, but I think the benefits of getting no SSS have pretty much cured me of that, at least for socks. :)



Not much progress yet, but I haven't had a lot of time for knitting yet.

And finally, my mum and I drove to our LYS here and I bought some more sock yarn. :) Yarn for three more pairs. I still have enough for 3 pairs with me. Ordered some for another 4 pairs and still have more yarn for 4 pairs at my flat. Er... I think I need to stop buying this stuff.



The upper left one is a lovely cranberry colour, 100% cotton (I just love knitting with cotton), lower left is also cotton and then the usual Regia 75% wool/ 25% polyamide.

Easter at the 'Rents

So, I'm new to this knitting blog thing, even though I've had a different blog for about 2 years now. Will introduce myself later. :) Instead I'll start with some of my current WIPs and planned projects.

I know Easter is still two weeks away, but I'm leaving next Sunday for my parents already and have to plan which knitting to take. :D So this post is just a little reminder what I plan to finish and so I can be embarrassed feel triumphant of what I actually got done.

Let's start off with what seems to be the easiest case: Regia Mini Ringel stockinette stitch socks


Easy, right? In case you can't see it properly in the above pic, this is all that's left to do:

Not even one colour repeat! But do I find the motivation to finish this? No. Bloody stupid 2mm (US0) needles. Hate them. With every stitch they bend a bit as if breaking any moment and I can't get a proper grip on them. Never again. Add to that that the socks are a bit small for me and my mom is not really a sock wearing person... yeah. I smell a UFO.

Then we have a classic case of SSS:
Love the pattern (Tipsy Knitter Socks from Socks, Socks, Socks), love the colour, love the yarn (Schachenmayr Catania, 100% cotton), but I just don't feel like knitting the second one right now. TV time will probably help with this. Need to remember to buy another skein of that yarn, as I used just over one for the first sock.

Instead I'm itching to start a new pair of socks:

Child's French Socks from Knitting Vintage Socks. The pattern looks lovely and I think even the variegated yarn won't disturb the pattern too much and I'm just itching to get these started. The yarn (Rödel Marmara, 100% cotton) is lovely, even though a bit thick for sock yarn (105m/50g), but I already swatched with 2.5mm (US1.5) needles and really like the resulting fabric. Will try to do these with two circulars, because I'm sick of SSS. And perhaps working with circulars isn't so bad after all. (Yeah, right.)

And finally, another pair I started, but somehow lost steam after one pattern repeat. I still love the pattern and think the yarn colour really fits perfectly, but OMG so much left to go...

Pomatomus from Knitty. More good TV knitting.

So, let's see what I have to show in 3 weeks. :D

Have been looking through stash pics from Flash Your Stash 2006 and OMG I get so jealous of all the yarn. And I love all the different ways people organise their yarns. I'm an organising freak (even though you wouldn't see this, looking at my room *g*) and so I love all the storing possibilities almost more than the yarn pron. ;)

I think I should also finally get rid of some of the yarns that I know I won't use anymore. When I get back from my parents. I only have a 13sqm room and need all the air I can get. :D