What to do with sock yarn leftovers

Baby socks, of course! And just in time for SAM5 too. I was getting a bit worried... I started these so I would have socks for January. Then I accidentally left them at my parents last Friday. Ack! I finally got them back yesterday and finished them last night. Phew!

Yarn: Regia Mini Ringel Color in 5211, leftover from FIL's Wendelin socks.
Needle: Knit Picks 2.25 mm circ, Magic Loop.
Pattern: My own. Judy's magic CO, 2x2 rib on instep and leg, short-row heel, elastic BO. I ran out of yarn, so the leg of the second sock is slightly shorter than the first one...

More socks yarn leftovers can turn into a shawl.


The Pi shawl by Elizabeth Zimmermann, on a 60 cm circ. I am a bit further along now. This is a really fun knit! I am doing the version with yo, k2tog rounds every six rounds. These yarns don't need any more detail than that... The hole rounds makes the knitting seem faster, there are never more than six rounds until the next action. At the same time it is easy to remember what comes next.

You Make My Day Award

I received this award from Nina at Knit In Denmark. Thank you so much, Nina! It is nice to know that my blog is appreciated :-)

I couldn't find the origins of the award, does anyone know? However, here are the rules:

“Give the award to up to 10 people whose blogs bring you happiness and inspiration and make you feel happy about blogland. Let them know by posting a comment on their blog so they can pass it on. Beware you may get the award several times.”

I actually found several set of rules. Some tells you to give the award to 5 people, some to 10 and some to up to 10. I'm going with the up to 10-variety! So, here are my winners, my absolute favourite blogging people, in no particular order:

Stephanie @ Yarn Harlot
Franklin @ The Panopticon
Anne @ Knitspot
Julie @ Samurai knitter
Probably Jane @ Jane's Probably Knitting
Elemmaciltur @ Númenna - Nan Annûn
Aija @ sock prØn
Jared @ brooklyntweed

Visit them!
I will do so immediately, to tell them about the award.

Startitis, and a FO

New projects galore over here. First I started a pair of socks for Mum, Veil of Leaves from New Pathways for Socks Knitters (which I am not sure that I like, may frog them). Then when I ripped the top down cardi I started ages ago and got bored of E came by and loved the yarn so I promised him a sweater. Which I promptly cast on. Sherwood from Knitty. I am about halfway through it and I really like how it is turning out. My gauge is slightly off so I am getting away with the number of stitches for the 4 year size and still getting the 6-8 year size, and that is plenty big for my small and skinny six year old.


Of course this means a sweater for H in the near future.

Then I got stressed out by not having a pair of January socks for SAM5 yet, so I started a pair of baby socks for A. The fist one is almost done. I think he likes it!


Oh, yes the FO. I misplaced my Knucks so I decided I needed a new pair of fingerless things. Some Ravelry surfing resulted in the Vanilla Mitts. Started Sunday evening, finished Tuesday morning. I used some Claudia Handpainted fingering that I bought to make a scarf. Don't know what I as thinking, a scarf from only 100 g of fingering. Plus that I don't really like the Santa Fe colourway.


Pattern: Vanilla Mitts
Yarn: Claudia Hand Painted Fingering in Santa Fe and Ingrid's Blues, one strand of each. About 60 g in total.
Needles: 3,35 mm circ, Magic Loop
Mods: I cast on 36 sts instead of 40 or 44. I put the thumb stitches on a piece of yarn instead of knitting the thumb at the same time as the hand. That seemed too fiddly! The thumb was huge so after the first two rounds I decrease two stitches each round until I had 12 stitches left (I started out with 22) Both hand and thumb are finished with 4 rounds of 2x2 ribbing.
Verdict: Me like! The fabric is firm and thick, almost windproof. And they where quick to make.


I have hardly touched the Fire&Ice socks, the Bee Fields shawl, and the Obstacles shawl...

Oh, and I have spinning to show off! Look at this: my best effort so far.

4 ounces of BFL roving from Spunky Eclectic turned into 300 meters of fingering wieght two-ply. Lovely sea-green colour. I don't know if I will turn it into socks or a small shawl.


I also started on the December fiber from the Spunky Club, Party Dress. A very colourful superwash Corriedale in red, blue and electric green.


Not something I would have bought myself... Though I like the fiber.
Someone in the club plied hers with white and that looks rather nice so I am doing the same. I have ordered some white superwash merino to ply it with. The yarn will be a sweater for H. Top-down raglan I think.

Happy New Year!

I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas (or whatever you celebrate at this time of year)

We spent Christmas at our cottage in the woods with my parents and my paternal grandmother. Forest all around, no street lights, no passing cars, fire in the fireplace and kitchen stove at all times, lots of good food. Very cosy. No snow though, but there usually isn't any at Christmas. As H said: "It was a grey Christmas".

But in the dark afternoon of Christmas Eve, there was suddenly a lantern outside the window. Someone came walking over the field. Jultomten!


The children where all big eyes and nervous eagerness. Everyone was accounted for, so it had to be the real Santa! And he brought presents!

They let him in this time. Two years ago when he last visited E was terrified (and four) and refused to let him in. Santa had to leave the sack of presents and leave... Last year we where in Australia with my sister and her family and our kids where excited to leave milk and gingerbread for Santa by the fireplace in the evening and see that there were only crumbs the next morning. He had actually come down the chimney! And left presents in stockings! They still talk about it.

I only did one knitted present this year, Grandmother's socks (they fit and she loves them. Yay!) But I finished a hat for M on Boxing Day (can someone *please* tell me why it is called Boxing Day!?)


Pattern: Zeebee
Yarn: Drops Alpaca in a dark blue, 2 balls.
Needle: 3.75 mm Knit Picks circ
Verdict: Fun pattern, even though it is a bit boring with back and forth garter stitch. Luckily there is short row shaping on every row to keep you awake.
M wanted a hat to fit under his bicycle helmet and I think this one does the trick. It is plain and long enough to cover the ears. And when the helmet comes off you can fold up the brim if you want to.


H picked up a dreadful cold at daycarethe week before Christmas, so she spent Christmas coughing and coughing. Then she passed it on to baby A. He has been most unhappy with a stuffy nose, running eyes and much coughing. I spent all Saturday afternoon at the hospital to get some meds for him. He seems to be on the mend now, thankfully.

I must show off my latest spinning! This is Sunrise:


Fiber: 4 ounces of Blue Faced Leicester (sp?) roving from Funky Carolina, colourway Sunrise (I think)
Yarn: 110 m/120 yards of approximately DK weight yarn, about 11 wpi.
What I did: I split the roving in two equal lengths, one for each ply. Then I split it many times lengthwise but I didn't predraft. I spun it as thinly as I could, and plied it. Amazingly, I had less than one meter left on the other bobbin when I ran out of single on the first one!


And this is Manly:


Fiber: 4 ounces of superwash merino roving from Squoosh, colourway Manly. This fiber is So Soft!


Yarn: 112 m/122 yards of approximately DK weight yarn, about 11 wpi.
What I did: I split the roving in two equal lengths, one for each ply. Then I split it in eight lengthwise strips but I didn't predraft. I spun it as thinly as I could, and plied it. This time I really tried not to overtwist the single. I had a bit more left over from plying this time so I tried Handy Plying the rest. OK, very easy to wind the single around my hand. But not so easy to ply from the thing. It tangled rather badly and it took me quite some time to untangle it. But I managed to ply a baby skein.


I have nothing on the wheel right now but I think that my other roving from Squoosh is next in line.

It is merino but not superwash. Colourway Kiss.

I joined the Spunky Fiber Club, December was my first shipment. So now I have to decide how to spin this very bright thing:

8 ounces of superwash Corriedale in *very* bright colours. One looong length of green, and two shorter lengths of blue and red. Someone plied hers with white, that looked nice and not quite so bright. I may do that too. Anyway I think this is destined to be something for the kids.

Now when Grandmother's socks are done I have continued to work on the Fire & Ice socks again. This is the second one:

I have just started the arch increases.

The second project that I really work on is the Obstacles shawl.

I have done 11 repeats, a little more than a third of the length according to the pattern. I plan to make it as long as the yarn allows. I still have a good bit left on the first of my two balls, so about 30 repeats is a good guess. The colour is a bit off in this picture, it is really a dark rich red. I love this pattern! The texture is interesting and I have managed to learn the pattern by heart so it makes good TV knitting now. At least when I don't hold baby A...

And because socks are socks, I couldn't resist my new Noro Sock yarn...


But I may resist it a bit now, I really want to make a pair of socks for my mum first. She has some health issues right now and I want to make her something. I have both yarn and pattern picked out, I just have to make some calculations before I start.