Spoiler Alert: RSC Dec 2007

My final Rockin' Sock Club arrived today, and the colors are very nice. The colors look darker when wound than in the hank, more so than usual--either that, or I'm remember a spoiler hank (which could vary some from mine) rather than my actual hank. The pattern is interesting, as usual, but it's much too early to decide whether or not I'll knit it with this yarn. Click above if you want to spoil the surprise!

I'm a little relieved that this sock club is done. I'm tired of waiting for packages to arrive in Washington after they've arrived in Europe, and I'm tired of seeing the skeins of yarn pile up, mostly unknit, but overall I generally liked the yarns and patterns. There are a couple that don't suit me, but not any more or less than I expected going in.

The only place that the club really fell short for me was in the opinions expressed on the blog & in other places. I felt that some people over-emphasized the exclusiveness of the club (where are we, the USSR?), and some people posted fairly nasty messages when they were disappointed by the pattern or color. I really can't get on board with either one of those attitudes--one knitter isn't superior to another because of membership in a club, and part of joining a "surprise" club is that you might not love every surprise. Basically, I think that a vocal minority dominated the conversation, and not in a constructive way at all. I love the STR yarn, and there are plenty of non-exclusive colorways for those who will have our noses pressed up against the window next year.

Enough of my kvetching--I've got my December yarn, and I may have to break into it with a tiny mitten. There's no chance that the amount of yarn in a tiny mitten would prevent me from finishing a sock, right? Today I gave away the seven finished mittens, but knit another two this evening, and I hope to have replenished the tiny mitten stash over the weekend. It's the best way I know right now to avoid the spector of Christmas Card Failure (2007 edition).

Spoiler Alert: RSC Oct 2007

Here's the penultimate Rockin' Sock Club yarn from the 2007 club. There are six total, right?

I love this yarn, although it's mighty close to some other sock yarn that is currently in my stash. The pattern looks interesting, although I haven't actually looked at it (or the rest of the stuff that came in the package) that closely yet. I'll catch up on that (and hopefully everything else I'm behind on) soon! I did complete the Flat Stanley project, he had a pretty good time on his travels. Here's a very seasonally-appropriate shot, one of my favorites from the batch:

More Sock Yarn? Seriously?

My STR club kit arrived today, this is package #4 of the six for the year. I like the colors of the yarn, I love the pattern, I have no bandwidth to start more socks right now. I've not started the last two kits, nor the two Yarn Pirate Booty Club yarns, nor the Petals Collection kit that I received earlier this summer. I'm writing this out as a reminder to back off on the sock yarn, or to start knitting faster.

The Firebird Has Landed!

The June Rockin' Sock Club arrived late last week, and the yarn is beautiful! Click the spoiler screen above to see the beautiful colors. The spoiler screen may not be necessary at this stage (my package was one of the last to go out, and I've had it for almost a week), but I'd rather be safe than sorry. The pattern looks good, and although it's more up my alley than the last pattern, I'm not 100% sure that use it with this yarn. There are so many patterns that I'd like to try out that I don't know if I really need more to add to my list at this point!

Walking on the Wild Tide

My April Rockin' Sock Club kit arrived today, and I'm officially sorry that I started two new projects in the last week. I really can't start anything new until I free up some of those tiny needles! Also, the new pattern has a knee-high option that requires a second skein, and I need a little time to decide whether I want to give that a go. The pattern is great, but it looks like it will require some attention--it might not work as a knit-while-driving project.

Speaking of projects in progress, I've not picked up the Bohus for almost a week--it's not a project I wanted to take on my trip. I'll try to get some daylight photos in the next few days, after a few more rows of the gorgeous, gorgeous yoke.

You Can't Stop My Heart From Turning Inside Out

I'm expecting my April Rockin' Sock Club kit any day now, and just in time I've finished February's Inside Out socks. They've been close to finished for about a week, but I couldn't quite get them done AND get packed for the trip to LA, so they just came off the needles last night. I made a couple of modifications at the top of the leg cuff, which felt a little too loose and unfinished for me. I added about an inch of 1x1 rib, and used this tubular cast off for a prettier finish. Thanks to yoyogirl for the suggestion!

This is probably the most interesting sock pattern that I've knit, and I like they way they turned out. I'm a little concerned that they'll feel super bulky under socks due to the cabling, but since it will probably be months before I can really wear them I won't worry about it too much yet.

STR Sock #1 - Inside Out

I finished sock #1 of the first installment of the 2007 Rockin' Sock Club while flying home from Boston last night. Here's the outside:

Here's the inside:

It fits really well, nice and snug. I hope that it will stay up o.k., it does seem like it will. I used size 0 Knitpicks circulars for the toe, foot, and heel, but switched to size 2 for the leg. I love the way the cables look, how they just grow out of the foot and how they are reversable.

I wanted to start sock #2 during the rest of the flight, but the man sitting in the aisle seat made it pretty clear that he didn't want me to get up to access my carry-on--taking up the whole empty seat between us, including spreading out a variety of cups and cans on the extra tray table, and making a big deal of getting up the other time. I decided that it probably wasn't worth the trouble, especially since I was very tired and the start of this sock is new to me so it requires some concentration.

I was tempted to go another 10 rows, but I don't want to run short of yarn on Sock #2 and have to break into this:

I love the tiny skein! Although I'm glad that yarn normally comes in larger sizes--it would be a pain to splice a million of these together!!

Back on Track

After a stupidity-related hiatus (I left the pattern at home when I went to PHX), the Monsoon socks are back on track. I had a few offers for pattern help from some very kind Phoenix area knitters, but it was really too hot for me to knit much. Plus, I had a few other things to work on, so I decided to wait until I was home. Last night I finished the heel and switched to larger needles for the leg. I'm not yet to the first cable, so I'm not 100% sure that I switched to the right size needle--Knitpicks US#2--I should know in another couple of inches. I really like the way that other RSC knitters' socks have turned out, and the way that the stripes are shaping up. It does freak me out a little to see the sock growing in the leg-up direction, I haven't made toe-up socks before!

As for the new knitting I started in PHX, it has been ripped back and will probably be restarted on the Boston trip. I checked out the pattern, and I think I used smaller needles last time, so I'm planning to go down to US#0. Here's how it looks now:

I love the way the beads space out when I rip out the rows--they bunch up again in places, but are (or should be) very even. Maybe a future project would be a cuff that randomly spaces the beads like this?

Keep on Sockin' In the Free World

That must be the absolute worst title I've used for a blog post, but I'm not going to pretend that they are going to get any better. My Rockin' Sock Kit arrived on Monday, and I'm very pleased with it! The colors are beautiful, and the pattern uses different construction methods than I've used in the past. Click below, if you're not hoping to be surprised by your own sock kit--and be warned that I discuss the pattern below the photo:

Since this construction is new to me, I'm not sure if the toe is supposed to pull in quite so much with the ribbing. When I put it over my foot it seems o.k., does anyone know whether this weird shaping will block out, or whether I've made an obvious mistake of some sort?

The pattern itself is very cool, and my gauge seems o.k.--I'm using size 0 knitpicks needles and the Magic Loop technique. I was a little concerned that the sock patterns would be a little too fancy-pants for me, but this is great--new techniques, enough variety in the pattern to make it interesting, nothing that makes me think I should change the pattern. And the yarn is really beautiful. Let's hope I can get through these before the next batch comes in a couple of months!