FO Post: The Only Knit Gift This Year

You may or may not remember that The Tim told me last year that he didn't need any more knit socks at the moment, so not to make any for him.

During the course of doing laundry, I noticed that a pair of socks I made for him years ago, that he wears as slippers around the house, had several big holes in them. He usually wears another pair of socks under them, so either he didn't notice, or figured it didn't matter (or - I'll take both for $100, Alex). 

Well, that just seems ridiculous to me, so I decided that I would knit him a new pair, and if I got them finished in time for Christmas, fine, but I wasn't gonna hurry. Of course, since they are knit from worsted weight yarn, they knit up really quickly. and I finished the second sock this past Monday, even after taking a long break in between the two so that I could wrap and mail gifts to people out of town. 

So here they are! I am not known for my color management, so you really can't see some of the one-row colors in here, other than the black which shows up. But I really like the way they turned out, and it was fun to have a knit gift for him. 😀

Project: Replacement Social Security Number Socks

Pattern: Vanilla sock pattern using worsted weight yarns

Needles: US size 5/3.75 mm

Yarns: All are scraps of Plymouth Encore worsted yarns from several other projects. I'm a big fan of Encore, because it has a little bit of wool in it, but the acrylic means that it can go in the washer and the dryer with no issues. 

Notes: The pattern is one I came across a long time ago - does anyone remember the Knitlist? I mean, that's waaaaayyy back! Anyway, someone posted it there, and since it's not, as far as I know, the specific property of any designer, I can share it here.

Basically, the way it works is that you take your Social Security number, and assign a yarn to each number - you can either say that there are 9 different colors, or assign yarns to a number and use only that color throughout, which is what I did. For zeroes, you can either do a purl row, or eyelets, or assign a color. 

Now, before you get all worked up about identity theft, someone would have to be very very close to your foot and sock, and would need to know how to count knitted rows, in order to figure out your SS#. It seems to me, that if someone seems that interested in your foot for that long, and you either don't notice or don't think it's the weirdest behavior this side of the Mississippi, then that's on you.

His previous pair (with all the holes) was made up of brighter colors, whereas this one is more subdued. But I like the way this one looks. And except where I didn't realize that colors were not distinctive enough to show up unless you were *very* close, I like the way they all complement each other. The heel and the toe are in black yarn, because that is what I had the most of as a leftover. 

So there you go - now you even know how to make your own if you like. I think they are really fun, but of course, the options are limited, since if you say to someone "Could you tell me your Social Security number for a knitting project," there is a good chance it won't end well. 

I do have to say that after knitting the first pair, it was a huge help to me whenever I would need to know The Tim's SS# for some form or another and he wasn't around. 😄

The only other knitting project I would like to finish before the end of the year is my cardigan. All it needs is the second sleeve, and the buttons, so I think I can get it done. I put it aside at the beginning of December for the aforementioned wrapping and sending of gifts (which have all been received now, yay!). It took me about two weeks to do the first sleeve, which was in fits and starts, so I think I can get it all done. I'm not gonna drive myself nuts about it, but it would be fun to have such a great finish to my knitting year.

What about you? Have you knit any gifts? Anything you hope to finish before 2025 heads out?

FO Post: Blueberry Souffle Socks

Hooray, it's a finished project!

You are probably not completely surprised to see it's a pair of socks. 😊

Project:  Blueberry Souffle Socks (Ravelry project page)

Pattern:  Vanilla Souffle Socks (free pattern - Ravelry link)

Needles:  US size 0 and size 1

Yarn:  indigo dragonfly Socktabaa, in the colorway Cerealism

Modifications:  None

Notes:  I can't remember now where I saw this pattern (probably someone showed their FO on a podcast), but I was intrigued by the texture created on the front top of the sock:

Seeing that it was a free pattern, I figured why not give it a try.  Well, it's fun to knit, let me tell you!  Once you do the first pattern repeat (4 rounds), it's really easy to remember.  And since it's only on the front of the sock, you get a "break" with just knitting for half of the round.  Because the texture pulls in the sock somewhat, I made the larger size, and it worked out just fine.  The pattern is clearly written, and it didn't take me as long to knit them as my Ravelry page might indicate - there were a lot of times when I didn't work on them at all for a few days.

The yarn is deep stash, and though at first glance, it looks like it's just a light blue, there are flecks of dark blue, turquoise, and purple thrown in which also makes the knitting fun.  

I highly recommend this pattern, give it a try!

I Have a QO to Show You!

Happy last Friday in August - though I realize it's not the same as most Augusts are.  But still time goes right along, and it seems only right to mark it.  Because I have a Zoom meeting at 1:00 today that I know will only make me angry, I thought I'd use this time to write a happy post.  That way, I can be in a good frame of mind before it starts, and spend the afternoon knitting away my anger and aggravation.  

And so, I wanted to share my QO with you.  You may think, "What in the ever-loving universe is a QO???"  My response to you is, that *this* is a QO:

Then you will say, "But Bridget, that looks like a hat, and like it's an FO."  Which means that yes, you are quite observant, but then again, not quite.  Because although this particular piece may be a Finished Object in and of itself, it is only 1/4 - a Quarter - of an overall planned project.  Hence, the term QO = Quarter Object.

This is a hat for Keith, who is married to my niece Julie.  I decided a couple of weeks ago that I am making the same hat for everyone in the family for Christmas, which then became the KJPO Hat Project.  Above you see the K hat.  I am using the Olmsted Hat pattern by Jaclyn Salem.  I have already used that pattern to make a hat for The Tim, which he really likes and wears a lot in the cold weather.  It uses DK weight yarn, so for me, it was a perfect chance to use some stash!  This one used two strands of sock yarn knit together.  I used some leftover Hedgehog Sock in the Construct colorway for all of it; the brim which looks gold and blue is leftover (and now completely used up - YAY - Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in the Spats colorway; and, the bulk of the rest is Ancient Arts Fibre Crafts sock yarn in the Grey Tabby colorway.  I like how the brim turned out, though I must admit it was as much dumb luck as anything else, because I didn't really do a lot of planning - just grabbed and started knitting.  I followed the pattern exactly as written, and again have to say, it's a great pattern and makes a nice, squishy hat.

This took me about a week to knit, though in fits and spurts.  I'd get a lot done one day, and then not knit at all the next.  So this is all definitely doable.

And now?  I'm working on the next one in the group, which is the P hat.  I've adapted the stitch count for a kid's size, based on other kid-sized hat patterns I've seen.  As you know, baby and child knits go so quickly, I'm just moving right along on that one!  I want to try and get all four of them done before I move on to any other gifts for anyone else.  That way, at least one group will have handknit gifts this year. 😉

*****

I'm feeling pleased with myself this morning because I have been able to get a few things accomplished - got a flu shot and the first part of my shingles vaccine, took a LOT of old but still in good shape towels and dropped them off at the vet's office where they were much appreciated, and I'm almost finished with the laundry.  Always a good feeling to check things off the list for the day.  We have no particular plans this weekend.  Tomorrow it is supposed to rain the entire day, pretty steadily, so it will be a day of inside projects.  Sunday promises to be lovely, and so The Tim is thinking maybe we can take Hamlet to one of the large parks nearby where we can all walk around and not have to worry about crowds.  I hope we can do that, it would be a real treat.  

And that's all of the excitement from my life.  I hope all of you have a nice weekend and get in some time to do the things you really enjoy.  See you next week!

In Which I Realize It Might Be Good to Be Prepared

The other day, I was sitting around thinking - just thinking, not thinking while doing anything else - and it occurred to me that August leads to September, which leads to October, and on and on.  Which also means that December will be arriving (OK it would have arrived even if I hadn't thought about it), and that if things continue as they are, two things will be true: 1) finances will be tighter than ever, and 2) even if they are/were not, it's unlikely that I would be going out to shop for gifts.

And then it occurred to me that I just might want to consider doing something now to avoid worrying about it as the holiday season came closer.  So I poked around to see what I might want to knit for gifts this year, and decided that I will try this pattern and see what I think; if I like the results, it might be something that I will make variations of to give.

(pattern photo from Ravelry)

If I decide that I like it and enjoy knitting it, that would be great since I have soooooo many amounts of scrap yarn to use.  I've already put many of them into my Cozy Squares of Memory Blanket, but there's still some left over even after that.  I attempted to get one started the other day, and I found the right size circular needle, but oh man, was it hard to use!  It was one that I've had since I learned to knit, and I don't exactly remember the specifics, but the needle part has some kind of gray - almost rubbery feeling - coating on it, and the yarn was not willing to move along.  I realized after trying to continue nonetheless, that if I was even going to be willing to make one single hat to see how I liked the pattern, it was going to be unpleasant.  So I powered up the ol' computer machine and went to Loop's website and ordered one of these.  I justified it by telling myself that I would use them over and over, and that I would donate the pair I already had the next time I donated yarn and books to a local shelter.  So today I picked them up and will see if this is going to work out.

Though I fear I may have become a needle snob.  But those coated needles were making me stabby, and I knew there was no way I was going to continue.  If they were the only needles I would/could ever have, I'm not even sure I would have used them.  I'm guessing that when I first learned to knit, I just thought needles were needles and it didn't matter.  Now it does ... at least to me.

I just started this book yesterday:

It was on the opening screen when I went to return something on Overdrive, and I thought I'd give it a try.  So far, I like it, and I find the early days of detective investigations really interesting, so I'm hoping it will be worth borrowing.

Be sure to visit Kat's blog, to see what she and others are reading and knitting this week for Unraveled Wednesdays.

An FO for Friday - Not Blocked and No Longer a Secret

I'm glad that today is Friday, because this has been a rough week in so many ways, and since today (at least so far is rainy and dreary) I can just stay home and do what I want - or not do anything.

I have an FO for you today.  I almost waited to share it until it was completely finished - meaning blocked - but that will likely take a while, so you are getting an FO post anyway.

As mentioned during July, I decided to join the Stillness Shawl MKAL hosted by Helen Stewart.  To be honest, I'm not sure why, except that I'd seen the finished projects on several podcasts from previous MKALs and they were always lovely.  It could also be because at the time I was knitting a pair of socks designed by her and really enjoying it.  Anyway, I signed up.  More amazingly, I actually participated, in that I decided on yarn, wound it up, and not only downloaded the clues each week, but actually kept up with the knitting.  WHAT????

Project:  Stillness Shawl

Pattern:  Stillness Shawl MKAL, by Helen Stewart

Yarns (from left to right):  Indigodragonfly Tough Lester Sock, in the Dark Lord Bob colorway; Plucky Knitter Plucky Feet, in the colorway Good Ol' Pip; and, Sweet Swallow Yarns Nuthatch in the Shy Violets colorway

Needles:  US size 6

Modifications:  None, since I was flying blind here!

Notes:  First of all, I was pleased because I used all stash yarn for this project, and since that has been something I've been really trying to do, it was nice to use three skeins in one project.  Also, I was pleased because I got to learn two things that were new to me, which is something I have also been trying to do.  This pattern included an i-cord cast on; one of the sections was the Star Stitch, which frankly I was worried about since it looked rather complicated, but as it turns out, it's fairly simple to execute.

After finishing the first clue, I was feeling quite proud of myself, I must admit:

I think the fact that I was able to do this without [many] problems kept me motivated.  I will say now that the project is finished, that I feel confident that I can trust any pattern written by Helen Stewart to be not just well-written and understandable, but very easy to follow.  Even when I would mess up, it was my mess, not because of anything to do with the pattern.

The finished shawl is a really BIG one - so big that I do not have the space nor the pins to block it!  I mean, even before blocking, there's a whole lotta shawl here:

As a point of reference, this is across a double bed!

I do think it is pretty, and when I talked about my blocking issues on Facebook, Lorette offered to block it for me if I wanted to sent it to her.  I have to say, I'm giving that some serious consideration.  I know she does a lot of both shawl and lace knitting, so she knows much more about blocking this kind of item that I do.  I'll keep you posted.

In any case, this was actually fun to knit, and though I didn't really do a lot of the chatter, etc. type of stuff on Ravelry, I did enjoy seeing others' projects.  I think the reason that all of the planets or whatever aligned and I ended up finishing this was because at first it seemed a good distraction and a way to use stash, and then it became a personal challenge to me to keep up.  This is not to say that I'm likely to sign up for any KALs again anytime soon, but it was a good feeling to sign up and then actually *do* something!

 I guess sometimes you can still surprise yourself in a good way.  

******

Not a lot else worth reporting.  This morning I walked up to the Post Office, and finally mailed out all of the prizes for Christmas in July.  Why do I think I'll mail each one as it happens?  From here forward, if you win a prize, just assume it will go out all at one time with the others.  Geez.

I did feel bad because the woman who helped me was so apologetic, saying, "I just want to let you know that in the current situation, I can't guarantee that any of these will get there right away, or as soon as they probably should.  The Post Office is under attack, you know."  I told her that it was OK, I'm a big supporter of the P.O., and between the virus and the administration, they were getting hit everywhere.  She looked at me and smiled and I hope it made her day at least .000001% better.

Hamlet is recovering from a bad bout of hemorrhagic gastroenteritis, which has really knocked him (and by extension, all of us) for a loop.  Fortunately, the vet took x-rays and it wasn't caused by any blockages, tumors, etc. - just probably from something he picked up and ate off the street.  We watch him like a hawk, but sometimes things get past us.  He is starting to seem more like his usual sweet self though, so that's good.  The cats have been very annoyed because they can't sleep on/next to him because he smells bad and that is a real inconvenience for them ...

Next weekend we had scheduled a trip to Baltimore to visit my niece and her husband (we made the plans back in April).  Now my sister and brother-in-law are planning to be there as well, which means most of the family will show up to visit also.  I had been leaning towards cancelling even if it would just be the four of us, but the addition of even more people has made me certain that I don't want us to go.  It just seems irresponsible, and though I know they are all careful people, I just think we have been so conscientious about things, why stop now?  Having to go into work two days a week has been making me anxious enough.  It is disappointing, since we haven't seen anyone for such a long time, but I'm not willing to take the chance, particularly when things are taking an uptick again.  Why can't people wear a mask? (Rhetorical, I know why and so do you.)

Anyway, it's Friday, and it's the weekend, and we have wine, and The Tim just informed me that he made some chocolate pudding!  All's well that ends well, right?  😃

Have a lovely weekend yourself, and take care.

Friday FOs - Two, Count 'Em, Two!

Before I completely melt today and lose all interest in anything, I have two finished objects for you - yes TWO.  Granted, neither one was a major undertaking, but they are still both finished, and that counts!

First up, the shortie slipper socks I knit for The Tim:

Project:  Same Mother Shortie Socks
Pattern:  Just a plain sock, turned into a shortie sock
Yarn:  Plymouth Encore Worsted Solids, in the Oatmeal, Purple, and Orange colorways
Needles:  US size 5
Notes:  As you know if you have read my blog for a few weeks at least, I knitted the first sock, and then strongly suspected that I would not have enough of the Oatmeal colored yarn to complete the second one.  For some people, that would mean they would take apart sock #1 and do some color-blocking.  I'm not those people, and because I had not thought ahead, I warned The Tim that his socks would not match and why.  He said, "Well, if you have to throw in another color, make sure it's something that pops." And I think the orange definitely pops, right??  Anyway, these were really quick to knit, and since they are just meant to be slipper socks, it didn't bother me that they wouldn't be the same.  I called them "Same Mother Shortie Socks" because they are like family members who have the same mother, and look similar but different.  😀

The best part was that when they were finished, The Tim was *thrilled* with them, so all's well that ends well.

*****

Next up, something for the kitchen:

Project:  Leftovers Kitchen Towel
Pattern:  At Your Service Knit Cloth (a free pattern)
Yarn:  Knit Picks ColLin, in the Conch colorway
Needles:  US size 7
Modifications:  None
Notes:  I had some yarn left from my Down the Shore Shawl, and decided to give this pattern a try, since we use these kinds of hanging towels in our kitchen all the time and they are not that easy to find in stores.  The pattern was overall easy and pretty quick to knit, but in my heat-addled brain, it did take me a few times to get the decreases right.  In the end, it turned out just fine, and I see many more of these in my future.  The Tim thinks they would be nice Christmas gifts, but I'm not sure that people would enjoy that kind of gift.  Then again they might.  I'll have to give it some thought.

Both of these projects were from stash yarn, and that always pleases me - the button for the kitchen towel is also from a stash of buttons that I have, so no extra money at all was spent for this project, which is even better! 

******

Before closing, I wanted to remind anyone who is interested that you have until one minute before midnight this coming Sunday, July 5, to comment on this post and be in the mix for a giveaway. 

And finally, tomorrow is Independence Day here in the U.S.  This country is far from perfect, but if we can get back on track, I really believe that things could move forward and we can be what we wanted our country to stand for.  It's still better than lots of other places.  So, if you celebrate, have a lovely day, and remember to VOTE in November!!

And for everyone, I hope you have a good weekend no matter how you decide to spend it.  See you on Monday for the announcement of the giveaway winner.

The Last of the Turn A Square Hats

Yep, they are all finished!  I wove in the ends of the last one - the one for my niece Annie's boyfriend Patrick - on Sunday evening.  And, though you have seen every single other one, and know my thoughts, I'm still showing you the last two!

First, my great-nephew Zach's hat, in orange and black, the colors of his favorite baseball team, the Baltimore Orioles:

I was working on these near the time of Halloween, and people kept saying, "Oh how cute, a Halloween hat."  So I guess if he decides that's what it is, that's what it can be.  But when I chose the yarn and was knitting, it was all Baltimore Orioles to me ...

And the final hat, for Patrick, in black and tan (though the pictures make the tan look more whitish):

By now, you know the details of the pattern, and the only different thing is the tan yarn, which is Berocco Vintage in the colorway Oats.

If you want to review things, and/or see them all "lined up" together, here is the link to the project page on Ravelry.

I am both pleased with how well they all turned out, and that they were all made with yarn already in my stash!  Win-win.

*****

Thank you for your good wishes that my cold will move on soon.  So far, it's still digging in, but at least I have medicine that is making me able to function pretty well, and good cough syrup that makes it possible for me to get a decent amount of sleep at night.   At this point, I think it's just a matter of waiting it out.

I'll be back tomorrow for the last day of NaBloPoMo - see you then!

Way Too Late or Way Too Early

I am finally able to show you my first FO for 2015.  And it's kind of ridiculous.

Perhaps you are thinking to yourself, "Weird. Those look like Halloween colors."  You would be correct.  I  bought the yarn for these a couple of years ago, and finally in the beginning of October 2014, I started knitting myself a pair of socks with it.  You may remember that October was also when I started the Kidney Socks for The Tim.  Well, once I started concentrating on those exclusively, these got put to the side.  And then the holidays kept me busy with other things, and suddenly it was January, and they were still languishing.

But I liked the way they were looking, so I decided that I would finish them before I let myself start anything new.  That way, I wouldn't leave them until the last minute for Halloween 2015.  This turned out to be a good thing, because having other things to work on, and not being able to, meant that I really did dedicate myself to finishing these.

Jetsam approves.

Project:  Halloween Socks
Pattern:  Classic Socks for the Family, by Melinda Goodfellow
Yarn:  Vesper Sock Yarn, from Knitterly Things.  Colorway:  Trick or Treat
Needles:  Size 1 1/2US
Modifications:  Nothing major, but I did make them taller than usual.  I was amazed when I went to block them, to realize that the stripes more or less match up perfectly!  This is not something I would ever have gone to the trouble to work to make happen, so it was a funny surprise to me.

I loved the yarn, and have a nice amount left for some little thing, or sock blanket squares or whatever.  The socks fit perfectly, and now they are ready when Halloween rolls around this year.

So ... yeah ... my first FO of 2015 is a pair of socks I will wear in October.  I know I'll be thrilled that they are waiting for me!