Still Spinning

After I let the fibers settle for a few days I took it off the back of my chair (because I don't have a Knitty Knoddy yet):

And for anyone wondering what a Knitty Knoddy is:  (images taken from Google images)

I was so excited to start knitting I decided not to wash it because then I would have to wait for it to dry!

I just did a straight knit stitch because, again, I was excited to see how it was going to turn out.

I love how some parts of the yarn is skinnier than other parts, it gives it a very handmade look.  But after knitting a few rows I think I've decided to take it apart and knit on larger needles.  I used size 10 US but I think I want to go up to 14 US.  And since I've seen what it is going to look like I may wash it and then knit/purl this time.

Learning and practicing, learning and practicing, that's what art is all about and I love it!

How my sock knitting is coming along

I finished my second ever pair of socks!!!

This pattern is called Syncopated Rib Socks from I Can't Believe I'm Knitting Socks by Cindy Guggemos for Leisure Arts.  It is a super easy pattern for a beginner like me.  It was just enough to challenge me but not so overwhelming that I got frustrated and quit.

Updates on the next two pairs of socks I've started:

I am doing a third pattern from the book  I Can't Believe I'm Knitting Socks.  I do have other sock books but I love the way this book is written.  My coral/pink pair has started out to be the little arrowhead lace socks (on pg. 50) but it doesn't look quite like the picture in the book.

The pattern is a little more complex so I need complete concentration (which does not happen with a two and four year old) and I need to be fully awake which is debatable after 8pm.  I haven't given up on it yet but trust me I've thought about it a few times. 

I think the reason why I haven't given up on my third pair is that I have picked a super easy pattern for my fourth pair.  Remember I said I always wanted to be working on two different pairs at the same time, one difficult and one easy. I found this pattern on Ravelry and it's called Thuja by Bobby Ziegler.

(I will post a picture in the next few days).

The designer is a man and the sock is really a man's sock but I'm using smaller needles.  The reason why I picked this pattern is because the pattern on the leg is carried down all the way on the top of the foot.  If you've noticed on my first two pairs of socks it is just the basic knit stitch once you turn the heal.  I'm challenging myself a little bit more each time and working my way up to the more difficult ones.

I had not planned on mentioning this book in this post (because it deserves a whole post all to itself) but I'm working my way up to this book:

It has some of the neatest designs!  I'll just share one with you in this post because it may be the first one I try from this book.  Again I emphasize MAYBE.

Stay tuned!

One hitch...

the way I knit.

Up until yesterday I had decided that in order for me to knit more intricate sock patterns I needed to knit on circular needles instead of DPN's.

Yesterday I moved my coral socks (see previous post for photo) onto a 40" (same size 4) circular needle.  I am still at the ribbing stage of these socks so after I moved them I knit one more round to get a feel for circular sock knitting.

Extremely awkward.  Why?  Because of the way I knit.  A few years ago when my mom taught me how to knit I just couldn't hold the needles in both hands.  It felt awkward.  Hold one needle in one hand and the other needle in the other hand.  Control tension by wrapping your yarn around one finger... and that's the finger you'll use to wrap it around the needle.  My mom was a very good teacher and showed me more than one way to knit.  We tried the continental and English method.  I couldn't get it.  I understood the mechanics of the knit and purl stitches but my fingers just weren't cooperating.  I was in my 30's.  

Finally I said "Couldn't I just hold one needle between my legs?"  My mom looked at me kind of strange and then said something like "whatever works".  And I've been knitting like this ever since.

This picture was taken on Monday while knitting in my car (no I was not driving):

 My work is in my left had and my yarn is to the right of me.  My needle is being held between my legs and my right hand, which was at the moment holding the camera, controls the tension.

Therefore it's almost impossible for me to knit with circular needles because I can't hold the right needle between my legs.  Like I said, I knit one round of the coral socks holding both needles with my hands but my tension was off and it took me forever to do just one round!

I went on Ravelry last night specifically looking for DPN sock patterns and they are out there.  So I transferred my coral socks back onto 4 DPN's and knit 2-3 more rounds to get the tension right again.

So again stay tuned for the development of my coral socks!

Knitting, knitting and more knitting

I have found that of my many hobbies knitting is something I may be staying with for a while.  Why?  Because with a two and a four year old knitting is something that I can pick up and put down easily.  I have decided that I will probably always have two different pairs of socks going at once: one with an easy stitch so I can work on it when I'm with the kids (a lot of starting and stopping) and then a more challenging one for after they go to bed (so I can devote more intense concentration to it).

For Christmas my sister-in-law gave me a gift card to Knit Picks.  I bought a lot of great stuff but my favorite purchase was this large clear knitting bag:  

I love it!  I can see everything at once and don't need a flashlight to see down into it.
So today I decided to gather up all of my knitting books: 

And then I decided to separate out my sock knitting books:

And my favorite one for an absolute beginner like me is:

I have knit almost two pairs of socks now and this book has guided me through every step.  My first pair I finished about a month ago:

And hopefully I'll finish my second pair sometime this week:

And now that I have two pairs "under my belt" I feel like I can take on more challenging patterns.   So I started my third pair and when I got to the pattern on the leg (after the cuff) it seemed almost impossible on DPN's.  I needed it on a circular needle because there was going to be a lot of moving stitches onto different needles so I could SSK (slip slip knit).  I have now cast on for two new pairs of socks but am not sure what patterns I'll be knitting them in.  I think I'm going to try to move one of them to my circular needles and attempt a challenging pattern.  Note, in the first pair I am using another gift purchase from Knit Picks called Harmony Needles.  They are absolutely wonderful!  BUT I have noticed that knitting with a lighter color yarn is much more easier on these needles than a darker color yarn.  I found this out when I cast on a gorgeous purple yarn but couldn't see it!

So stay tuned to see what these two new pair of socks will end up looking like.  

How is my knitting coming along?

It's coming along just fine, thank you.  A few days ago I told you that I had cleaned out my old stash of yarn in order to upgrade and I found a few UFO's in my bin so I'm trying to get these done before I continue on with my socks.  I will probably finish this scarf tonight (YIPPEE!)

I couldn't tell you what kind of yarn or what weight it is.  It's probably a bulky weight as I'm using size 8 needles and it is rather thick feeling which I love. 

I said I wasn't going to post a picture of my socks until I finished both of them.  Well since I started these "other" half finished projects I'm dying to show the world my first pair of socks (1/2 finished)

I am starting to add SOCK knitting to my collection of knitting books but the one that I've found most helpful is a leaflet by Leisure Arts called I Can't Believe I'm Knitting Socks by Cindy Guggemos.  My green socks, which I've named Frolicking In The Grass on Ravelry, is just the basic sock pattern.  But I was so excited about these pair of socks I started another pair... just a little more difficult.  This pattern is called the Syncopated Rib Socks and I picked out bold colors for this.

And here's a closer picture to show the detail of the leg.  The pattern is fairly easy, you just have to keep track of what row you're on.

I have already picked out yarn for my third pair of socks but I will not, I repeat I will not, start these until either my first or second pair of socks is complete.

Happy knitting everyone!

Knitting up a storm

Sock, socks and more socks!  I am now obsessed with knitting socks.  I have finished one in the pair of my first socks ever and I LOVE the way it turned out and I love the way it fits my foot...perfect!  So I have cast on for the second sock in this pair (because I can't show them off unless I have both socks).  But got bored with the solid green color so I started another pair of socks in crazy, wild variegated colors and love them too!  The first pair of socks are light green with striped heels and toes in greens, blues and yellows.  I will eventually post a picture when they are both finished.

Now that I've started listening to a lot of knitting podcasts I've decided to go through my stash of yarn and get rid of the acrylic stuff and upgrade to nicer stuff.  I donated a whole trash bag full to the Wednesday morning knitting group at my church!  

As I was going through my stash I found a lot of UFO's (UnFinished Objects) that I'd like to finish.  So along with my two pairs of socks I am also finishing up two scarves that I started about two years ago. 

I joined Ravelry about a month ago and just today took some pictures that I hope to eventually post here and on Ravelry.  They are nothing spectacular so don't get too excited (just scarves) but I can't wait to take pictures of my socks!

Happy knitting everyone!

Progress

Well it's not much but I'm super excited about my FIRST pair of socks!!  I'm not used to knitting with such small needles (sz 4) it feels like I'm knitting with toothpicks!  But this is my ultimate goal in knitting... knitting my own pair of socks and I'm doing it, hurray!

I've been inspired again

I dabble in a lot of different types of media and when I can "marry" the two of them together it is such a thrill for me.

While waiting for my sock knitting book to come in the mail I went to the library just to see what they had, one can never have too many art books.  In my collection one can find anything from sculpey clay books to glass fusing to quilting and embroidery books.  I love learning new techniques and am always inspired by other people's work.  So in the library I found this wonderful "combination" book entitled Knitting with Beads by Jane Davis.  Right up my alley!  I love beads and I love to knit... why didn't I think of this?

My first project from this book is on page 83 and it's called Cascading Diamonds Scarf.  The pattern calls for 2 skeins of yarn and I am to string 725 beads on each skein.  I only have about 200 beads on the first skein so I don't have any progress pictures to show you yet but this is what it will eventually look like:

The color of the scarf in the book is eggplant but I will be doing mine in a marina blue with blue beads.  I will definitely be purchasing a copy of this book after I have returned it to the library because this one needs to be in my collection.

Happy knitting... and beading!

The knitting Bug

Good riddance summer... we are now moving into my favorite season, fall.  I love the crispness of the air, the pumpkins on my neighbor's porches, and the vibrant colors of the changing leaves.  I can wear my hair down again and not worry about it sticking to the back of my neck like it does in hot, humid Virginia.

I have so many creative interests and one ever knows what I'll be working on a month from now.  I may be revisiting old projects or trying my hand at something new.  Well the knitting bug bit about two weeks ago.  With the weather changing as fast as it did it seemed only natural for me to pull out my needles again.  My mom taught me the basic knit and purl stitches six years ago but I have never gone any further than that.  I've knit on circular needles which I find to be tons of fun.

I'm not aspiring to knit a sweater, frankly because I don't wear too many sweaters, but I definitely want to learn some different designs.  I told my husband that I'm going to try not to buy any new yarn until I use up some of my old stuff... and complete some of the knitting projects I started last fall.  I'm off to a great start.  I pulled out the 2 small tubs of yarn I had stashed away.  I inventoried then organized all of it and to my surprise I had many UFO's (unfinished objects) that were nearly done!  Which means I'll be able to buy new yarn sooner than I thought, yeah!

Like I said I'm not aspiring to knit a sweater but I would just LOVE, LOVE, LOVE to knit a pair of socks for myself (or two or three).  Last night I got on the computer and ordered, what looked like, the easiest sock knitting book there was.  By the time the book arrives I will have finished two more projects from my stash.  I think that may be enough to treat myself to sock weight yarn... YIPPEE!  

Happy Fall Everyone!

Digging into the Archives

I just printed new business cards for myself listing my blog address, etsy address and e-mail.  On my card I also listed the artistic things I like to dabble in.  I've been pondering this list for a few days now and have decided to go back into my photo archives and share with you some of my other artistic endeavors.

One of my other hobbies is knitting.  I'm not that great at it and have only made scarves and hats.  My favorite one, that I made two years ago, was for my niece Lainey.  At the time I made it for her she was only six months old so I needed to make it "bitty".  And since my brother went to Virginia Tech what other color was I going to make it than maroon and orange?

And then when I was finished trimming down the HUGE pom-pom I made for the top...

I stitched the pom-pom on and... PEFECTO!