On the Needles Friday

I received  yarn this week from Webs; it was all on clearance.  The middle skein is Plymouth Socketta and it is no longer available.  The others are Regia Fusi Color yarn.  I have not used it before but the colors were so happy looking and the price was great.

My current socks use Knit Picks Stroll yarn in Parlor multi.  I am using the simple skyp pattern again.  The pattern is not as obvious with this yarn but it is better then "plain vanilla."  These socks will be a birthday gift for a quilting buddy who has terrible bunions.  I looked at some discussions on Ravelry and found some good advice.  I am making the socks a little larger and the natural stretchiness of the yard should be all the compensation needed for the bunions.  I just love my little knitting tote.  It was a gift from my niece, Tara.  The size is perfect for little projects like socks.

The color in this photo is more true to life.

Thanks for checking in.

Off the Needles June 22nd

I have 3 "finishes" since I pledged last time to get them done.

I completed the denim looking socks last night and I'm very happy with the results.  I closed the toe on the last of the red socks and picked up the dropped stitches on the toe of the multi-colored ones and finished it as well.  But not really, when I took my photos this morning I saw that I missed the thread from the beginning of one sock.  It is done now!!

I have not started my next pair.  I am going to make a pair of socks for a friend for her birthday next month.  My friend has some crazy shaped toes due to bunions.  I'm not sure how to accommodate that.  I think I can just make a larger forefoot on the socks but first I will search around the net and see if I can find someone else who has had this experience.  Any one out there have a clue?

We are in an RV park about 30 miles from the Poco forest fire here in Arizona.  The air has been very smokey the last few days.  Today the wind direction has changed and the air is clear.  I am so sorry these fires are threatening our country and the lives of the firefighters and animals and the homes and cabins in the forests.  My prayers go out to them all.

On the needles June 15th

This is the second Friday that Judy L is posting "On the Needles".  I am still working on the same pair of socks that I posted last week at this time.  I have turned the heel and I'm working on the instep.

Last week, Judy W, posted about her socks and about a book I just had to have.  Luckily it came before we headed out on the road in our RV.  This book has a neat mix and match section and I'm going to use if for my next pair.

This is from the book, Socks a la carte 2.

Judy L has often written about her problem with only finishing one sock and then moving on to start another pair. I NEVER do this and felt rather superior.  Oh, how the mighty have fallen.

I was looking through my yarn to pick some skeins to take along on our trip and look what I found:

Not only isn't this last sock not finished but it is unravelling-I have plenty of stitch holders so why????  The yarn is Glass Peony from Grant Creek Yarns.

AND here's another unfinished pair that only needs to have the toe woven together.

This is more yarn from Grant Creek.  I think it was called red brick.

Guaranteed these socks will be finished by next Friday's post.

Design Wall Monday June 11, 2012

My version of Judy's Peaches and Dreams is just about complete.  There are a few inches of binding to sew down and the label isn't made yet.  I am waiting on the new baby girl to make her appearance so I can put her name and date of birth on the label.  I hear that she is due any day now.

My friend, Tammy quilted an all over swirly flower design.  Tammy managed to get it quilted the day before her second grand daughter was born.  You know she isn't quilting now as she has other things on her mind and in her arms.

Enjoy everyone else's post on Design Wall Monday at Patchwork Times.

On the needles-first post

Judy at Patchwork Times is going to start posting her knitting in progress on Fridays and has invited us to join in with our posts.

Judy actually got me started in knitting socks.  I knit years ago and made lots of sweaters when I lived back east.  Living in Phoenix, AZ, I haven't much use for sweaters but I do love kooky socks.  When the economy started to slide, it seemed to me that fewer neat socks were available and those I found were not well made.  About then I started following Judy and there she was making socks.  So, I bought some yarn, dug out my Mom's needles, found a free pattern and away I went.  Well it wasn't quite that easy but once I had faith in the pattern and followed it exactly-even tho it didn't sound right- there I was with a sock and a new obsession.

I buy most of my yarn on line and like quilting material you get what you pay for.  Yikes, who knew some of my socks cost more then the shoes I was wearing.

One of my favorite sources for yarn is ETSY.  My favorite shop on that site is Grant Creek Yarns but wow it is everybody else's too and it is hard to get any yarn from there these days!

I am using a pattern recommended by Judy with is free from Ravelry. Actually there are 2 patterns both by Adrienne KU.  The first is Simple Skyp Socks and the second is Skyp Rib Socks.

These are the first pair I made using this pattern.  They are the Grant Creek Yarn paradise blue glitter pair and I wish you could see the silver threads in them.

Then I tried the more complex pattern.  This is blue violet multi yarn by Stroll from Knit Picks.  I did not continue the pattern down into the foot because I forgot and didn't want to take the time to go back and correct it.

Now I am back to using the Simple Skyp pattern with 1 completed and one partially completed.

This yarn looks very denim in real colors.  This is Madelinetosh Merino Light in Mourning Dove.

Thanks for checking out my latest socks.  I hope you got some "new" ideas.  I'm looking forward to the other posts for new ideas as well.

Design Wall Monday, June 4th

I make quite a few small/baby quilts each year for the children/grandchildren in my neighborhood.  These small quilts give me the opportunity to try new patterns that I may not actually want to keep or have a use for.

I started this quilt at a retreat in early March.  I had all the blocks made.  Then I was invited to fill in at another retreat a few weekends ago.  I put these blocks together and added the small green border.  It has taken me until now to add the last yellow border.

This is quite a bright/loud quilt, I hope it won't keep baby awake.  The fabric is Studio E Retro Boho and I couldn't resist it at the quilt shop.

Can you place the pattern?  It is the sweet mellow Peaches and Dreams pattern that Judy offers for free at her Patchwork Times Website.  I wonder too if the leftover fabric would do just fine for her recent Sweet Treats pattern?

Check out everyone else's design wall at Judy's site.