Fucking Cheery Feet

Last December I joined a sock club created by CookieA. TheBrit bakes, and Cookie includes cookie recipes and I get to make socks so it's a win all around.

So the second session of the sock club was purple socks. Don't get me wrong, I like purple, but Didi of Little Red Bicycle had some bright yellow hanging around from a OOAK dye that I'd fallen in love with and snatched up. Plus, I'd gotten a little purpled out with the clubs I was in and my not-insignificant stockpile of the colour.

Fast-forward to July, when Cookie came to London to teach at Knit Nation. I was working on the Jubilee socks the day of the class, but she had a meetup for her area sock club members where we got to eat cookies and see the next yarn and one of the next socks. (Sorry, I can't tell you anything more than "they were yummy, it was pretty, and I'm looking forward to knitting up the pattern". We were sworn to secrecy.) So I brought my Boysenberry YO socks that Cookie has taken to referring to as my Marmalade YO socks¹ and she took a picture of them (and me) for posterity.

And I got her to sign my copy of Sock Innovation, which was well loved and had obviously been leafed through quite a bit. And I plan on taking the information I learned from her Knitting Off the Grid class and taking over the world designing some things.

Rather than just cheerfully yanking the photo (as I did for my project page) to post on the Ye Olde Blogg, I'm being good and asking permission since it is Cookie's photo that she took. So, until I hear one way or the other from her, I direct you to the link for the Marmalade socks above.

¹: That's right. Cookie A took a photo of me with socks that she designed and I knit. Why yes, that faint noise is the sound of me still doing the suppressed fangirl squee.

Baa, baa

I really wish there were a way to have an audio file of a sheep bleating when your eyes pass over the title of this blog post.

Shy of that, I'll just have to be satisfied that I now have you hearing the sound now.

We all know (or should know) that I'm a knitter. Sometimes knitterly things show up in the media. Most of the time they're cutsey or just plain shit.

This, however, is brilliant.

As I told B, if we lived in Belgium, we would be going through this company for our natural gas needs based on this commercial alone.

What's even better is that the company did a follow up on how the commercial was made.

I'm of two minds. First off, "all that work, gone!"

Second, "did they get to keep the yarn? How many ball winders were involved? And, just awesome!"

For the first time in a while, I don't feel like the use of knitting or yarn/wool is gimmicky. I think that this commercial verges on art.

Thai Bird Chile Bolero

Okay, so Stefanie's design is really called "Lemongrass Bolero" (here's the Ravelry link) but I figured since mine wasn't green, it couldn't be lemongrass... But I had to keep in the SE Asia food theme. So, Thai Bird Chile it is.

Statistics

Yarn: Malabrigo Worsted in Sealing Wax, approx 2.5 skeins.
Needles: Size 8 KP Options
Pattern: Lemongrass Bolero by Glampyre Knits
Modifications: Since I failed to add in short rows under the armscye, I had to expand the front collar section from 14 rows to 22 rows.
How long did it take me? Three days, I think.

Knitting Linkdump

Yarn Love - Elizabeth Bennett - Bayfield Apple @ ESK
Knitty - Heart (pattern)
Black Bunny Fibers - Jumbo Sock
Anticraft - Snowball's Chance in Hell
Wavy Feather's Wimple (pattern)
Fish Scales Socks (pattern)
Seamless Baby Kimono (pattern)
Crochet Stash Baskets (pattern)
Flower Power Hand Towels (pattern)
BBC Patterns (cricket iPod cozy)
Basketweave Ribbing Socks (pattern)
Judy's Magic Cast-On (technique)
Basic Formula for Men's Socks
Painting Knitted Lace with Dye 1
Painting Knitted Lace with Dye 2

I'm a genius!

This will likely be of no interest to anyone other than knitters.

I finished the blue sweater (yay!) but realized that if the red bolero barely fit in the bathroom sink that I had no hope for the blue sweater to fit (boo!). I scrounged around, looking for anything that I could use to soak the blue sweater in, and then I remembered that I had an inflatable foot soaking thing that I've never used. Voila! Perfect fit. Tons of water to help the sweater leech out any excess dye, fits in the bathtub (that has a leaky seal) and doesn't overdo it with the water.

I am teh smart. S-M-R-T.

And I've found that I can get a basic Necci sewing maching in the UK for about £100. I should be able to skim that from my part of the budget and then be able to pick up patterns and make skirts for myself rather than spending £40 a pop for a skirt from Marks and Sparks. And have skirts that suit my shape and style. Woo!

Well, it's blue...

And it's long sleeved.

Yep. Raw photo image. I'll edit this to give a nicer one later.

For the long sleeve, alternating two strands of Malabrigo.
Decrease four stitches at start and end of round over next 40 rows (dec every 10th row)
Decrease seven stitches at start and end of round over next 56 rows (dec every 8th row)
Decrease four stitches at start and end of round over next 24 rows (dec every 6th row)
Knit three rounds.
Drop one strand.
Switch to smaller needles.
Knit in K2P2 ribbing for 4.75", bind off in patt.

Fuck me, snowballs melt in hell?

I believe the last post pretty much sets the tone. I'm not good at censoring myself, so it's all wide open [insert cloaca joke here] from here on out.

So, because I need to be all Emo/Goth at nearly 30 (whimper) I've decided that I need to have a pair of these. I was going to be all classy and knit up something with Venezia's pattern from Interweave Knits, Winter 2006. (Holy fuck me, knitting content?!) But I then went "naah, later." So, the colors are burgandy (Knit Picks "Garnet Heather" Telemark) and white (same in "Drift") for the time being, but I think I may have not purchased enough yarn.

Apparently I'm a bit of a freak. I go from 12" to 6" at the wrist, so I have a fair few decreases to do.

Wow. So damned exciting.