Stash Dash

It's been a busy last few months for me, knitting wise, thanks mainly to a concept The Knitgirllls came up with called the 5K Stash Dash. The concept is that you knit your you through 5K worth of yarn over the period of 3 months. As part of that, I've managed to complete a lot of finished objects, including the ones below.

First up, Wendy of Wendyknits fame had a KAL for her latest mystery shawl. This was great timing, as I had a relatives birthday coming up, and as she'd admired the last shawl I made, I thought it would be the perfect present.

This gift was greatly appreciated by it's recipient, who remarked that I must have a great deal of patience to knit something so detailed. If only she knew! All up, this shawl only took 3 weeks and the clues were broken up into manageable chunks, so it was easy to keep up with everyone else.

Yarn: The Sanguine Gryphon Skinny Bugga - Sarah's Purple Soldier Fly
Pattern: Summer Mystery Shawlette by Wendy D. Johnson
Duration: Started 20th May 2011 - Completed 4th June 2011

Next up, I decided I desperately needed a new pair of socks, especially after all the gift knitting I had been doing for everyone else. I quite surprised with these, as I was expecting either a spiraling or striping pattern out of the yarn, as that's generally what Socks That Rock is known for. Imagine my amazement when these turned out to be variegated! All these years of hoping for a STR variegated, and I finally get one.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Mediumweight - Blue Brick Wall
Pattern: Basic Sock Pattern
Duration: Started 24th May 2011 - Completed 26th June 2011

Last up, we have a cute and easy baby hat for my newest niece. I'd received a sample of yarn in one of the Ewe Beaut Sampler pack ages ago, and thought this would be the perfect project to show it off and use up the limited yardage. I'm very pleased with how it came up, and it's another project to be used against the stash dash.

Yarn: Ms. Gusset Sock - Ewe Beaut Xmas Sampler Colourway
Pattern : Easy Peasy Newborn Sock Hat by Keri McKiernan
Duration: Started 24th June 2011 - Completed 28th June 2011

I really enjoyed being part of the Stash Dash, and am sad that it's over. It really inspired me to to a lot more knitting over the last few of months, not to mention making a minuscule dent in my ever expanding stash.

Oops I Did It Again

I blame it all on Tina. I had just put away my latest batch of yarn purchases, and was thinking virtuous thoughts about not buying any sock yarn for a while, and Tina from Blue Moon Fiber Arts put up a blog post about some of the STR colourways going on vacation. There were a few that I thought would be nice for gift socks and socks for me, so I put in an order for a few (seven!) skeins, thinking I'd be good for sock yarn and wouldn't need to place another STR order until late in the year. Big mistake.

Just a couple of days after I placed my order, Tina put up another blog post about STR Rare Gems coming up for sale. Rare Gems are the creme de la creme of sock yarn. They are one of a kind colourways, that are almost impossible to get unless you happen to live in the U.S., and can get your fix in person. They have only come up for sale on the Blue Moon Fiber Arts website once before, and I managed to pick up some skeins then (see here), and I'd been hanging out to get more since Tina started hinting about it late last year. Hence my other order of another eight skeins of STR, and all those virtuous thoughts of cutting down on my yarn buying habit went flying out the window.

This is what arrived this week.

First we have my initial order of seven skeins, in colourways L-R: Mmm, Mmm, Good; L.L. Cool Sock; STORM large; Femmebot; Jubilation (x2); Deep Unrelenting Grey

Then we have my other order of eight skeins, L-R: Earth (1 x mediumweight), Fire (2 x mediumweight, 1x lightweight), Water (2 x mediumweight, 2 x lightweight).

That's fifteen skeins of sock yarn that arrived in one week. A years worth of yarn arrived in one day! I have no idea when I'll end up knitting it (some of it's earmarked for gifts, so at least some of it will be knit up this year), but on top of the usual sock club shipments (Cookie A & Vesper), that is a phenomenal amount of yarn that has come in the mail this week, and I have no idea where on earth I'm going to store it. I'm almost to the stage of putting it in the roof as insulation, except then I wouldn't be able to admire it's squishy yumminess. Somebody save me from myself and my yarn buying addiction quick, because unless my sock yarn starts to knit itself, I'm in serious trouble!

An Addictive Combination

You have been warned.... I have just discovered the knitting equivalent of The Red Shoes - Socks That Rock and Signature needles. Once you start knitting with this combination, you can't put it down. This is how I completed one sock in three days, which is a brand new combination for me. The second sock in this pair took longer, only because I didn't touch my knitting at all for several days, as I knew I wouldn't be able to put it down once I started.

These socks were for mum's Mother's Day present this year. In fine tradition (and in accordance with my habit of deadline knitting) these were finished the night before they were due to be gifted. Mum loved them though, and put them on right away. My dad was actually disappointed that they weren't for him, as he'd been admiring the colours.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Medium Weight - Pixie Park
Pattern: Sock Recipe: A Good, Plain Sock by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Duration: Started 22nd April 2011 - Completed 7th May 2011
Modifications: 56 stitches instead of 64 that the pattern calls for to give a nice snug fit, and a short row wrap & turn heel

I also found time to knit a little something for me. It's been very chilly here recently, with more nasty weather on the way, so I knit some nice grey fingerless gloves for me to wear to work.

Yarn: Lush Yarn Cashcotton - Haze (Yarn company now out of business)

Pattern: Fingerless Gloves - One Pattern Three Looks by Clare Vallans

Duration: Started 26th February 2011 - Completed 8th May 2011

Now that mum's socks and the fingerless gloves for me are done, I'm at a loss as to what to work on next. Should I finish up one of my many WIP's or cast on something new. You help me decide...

Last Of The Old, First Of The New

Things have been a little slow in my knitting world of late (it's difficult to find the energy to knit when doing house renovations), but I finally have some finished objects to show.

For my last finished object of 2010, I knitted Mum a pair of socks for Christmas. It is now something of a tradition that I give Mum a pair of hand knitted socks every year for a Christmas gift. Another part of the tradition is, that no matter how much I plan ahead, I always seem to be up late on Christmas eve, doing a mad dash to finish them while watching Carols by Candlelight.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Medium Weight - Hollyday
Pattern: Sock Recipe: A Good, Plain Sock by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee
Duration: Started 20th November 2010 - Completed 24th December 2010
Modifications: 56 stitches instead of 64 that the pattern calls for to give a nice snug fit, and a short row wrap & turn heel

For my first finished object of the new year, I have finished another pair of socks to add to my sock drawer, which brings my collection of hand knitted socks up to 13. These are the Loopy Ewe Sock Club installment from September 2010, and despite the fact that brown is not a colour I normally choose to knit with, the skein looked so pretty that I had to cast them on immediately.

Yarn: Madelinetosh tosh sock - Loopy's Favourite Season
Pattern: Berries and Leaves by Ruth Greenwald
Duration: Started 2nd October - Completed 16th January
Modifications: Extra repeat in the legs to add length

Hopefully I should have some more finished objects to show soon. At the moment I'm have two different pairs of socks on the needles (one for the S62011 KAL, and one for Dad), and a shawl for The Knitgirllls swap, so as long as I don't get distracted with casting anything else on, I should be able to finish something. Fingers crossed...

Cause for celebration ..... or not?

I was lucky enough to pick up four Socks That Rock Rare Gems skeins at the start of the year (see here), and they had been languishing in my stash ever since. So in order to celebrate getting a temporary job (hey, when you're unemployed, even a days work is good news), I decided to celebrate by casting on a special pair of socks. The job fizzled out, but the socks turned out much better than I had hoped.

Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Lightweight - Water
Pattern: Hermione's Everyday Socks by Erica Lueder
Duration: Started 28th August 2010 - Completed 1st October 2010

The colourway of this particular Rare Gem didn't initially appeal to me, but I'm really happy with how these turned out. Apart from some pooling on sock number one, the textured pattern really brings out the best of these colours. I'll definitely be using this pattern again for some of my other Socks That Rock skeins.

In other news, I had to redo the Smooshy Winter Gloves I made for my mother. It turns out that Sanguine Gryphon Bugga stretches a lot, and the pair I made for my mother's smallish hands now fit my father's giant sized ones!

Yarn: Sanguine Gryphon Bugga - David Attenborough

Pattern: Fingerless Gloves - One Pattern Three Looks by Clare Vallans

Duration: Started 8th October 2010 - Completed 15th October 2010

Modifications: Cast on 50 stitches instead of the 60 the pattern calls for. This way when they stretch, they'll actually end up being the perfect size.

Other than these, I've actually been working on some of my old WIP's, tyring to finish them so that I can start on Christmas knitting with a clear conscience. (I figure I might as well actually finish my niece's jumper while she can still fit into it.) We'll just ignore the little slip up I might've had with the latest installment of The Loopy Ewe sock club. Brown is not really my colour, but somehow before I knew it, this had happened....

Oops!

Rare Gems Loot

Recently I was lucky enough to buy some of the Blue Moon Fiber Arts/Socks That Rock Rare Gems.

I've lusted after these for years, but as Tina usually only sells them at the U.S. fibre shows, I figured my chance of ever scoring one of the elusive skeins was nought to zero at best.

So imagine my delight, when Tina announced that to celebrate the Blue Moon at the end of '09, she was going to have a once in a lifetime Blue Moon Rare Gems sale! Lightweight and mediumweight skeins grouped into elements, ie. Earth, Air, Fire & Water. Basically a lucky dip of what you could end up with, except that you could choose which element you wanted (with a limit of how much you could buy to ensure that everyone got a fair go).

I chose one skein each of lightweight and mediumweight in the elements of Air and Water, and overall I'm impressed with what I received.


Of the four skeins that I purchased, there's only one that is not really 'Me', but I'm sure it'll be great to do some gift knitting with.

Overall I'm just thrilled to have scored not one, but four of the Rare Gem skeins. Now I just have to find the perfect projects which are worthy of them....

First Finished Object of 2010

I've completed my first finished object of the new year, which is actually the first Rockin' Sock Club installment of last year. I absolutely love the pattern and the colour of the yarn, and may use this pattern again.

This is actually the only installment I knitted from last years club as last year was a very gift/swap heavy year for me. I've made it one of my new years resolutions this year to knit more stuff for me!


Yarn: Socks that Rock Lightweight - My Blue Heaven
Pattern: Queen of Beads - Sivia Harding
Duration: Started 4th October 2009 - Completed 4th January 2009

I'm very happy with these, the only thing I'm disappointed about is the fact that we're in the middle of a heatwave and I'll have to wait until the weather cools down again to wear them!

And just when I was looking for a new project to start, look what appears on my doorstep...


It's the new installment of Knitabulous Indian Summer Club. The yarn is 50/50 silk merino in Bollywood Nights, to be knitted up into the Bollywood capelet. As usual, she has included lots of extra goodies as well (edible treat, pincushion, candle and stitchmarkers). I love using her yarn, and the colours she comes up with are gorgeous as well.

Can't wait to get started on this one. Only one more gift project to get out of the way, and then finally I can knit something for me!

Xmas Wrap Up

Christmas this year has been totally hectic, and I'm glad to finally be able to sit back and take a breather.

First up with the Xmas knitting this year, was a package for the Aussie Swappers Xmas Swap on Ravelry. I knitted this Travelling Woman shawlette in Knitabulous Merino Sock yarn in Pumpkin Head.Shown in more close up detail here:
My swappee loved it, which was great, but it was my first time knitting a shawl, and by the end of it, with so many stitches on the needles, each row seemed to take forever!

I then received this package in return, with yummy Malabrigo sock yarn, which I've been wanting to try for ages!


Next up was socks for Mum. As I knit her a pair of socks every year for Xmas, I couldn't break with tradition.


Yarn was Socks that Rock Mediumweight - Spaun of Brawn colourway. I used a basic toe up pattern, with afterthought heels. Went down to the wire on these ones, finishing up at 10 minutes to midnight on Xmas Eve! Sock 2 was done in 2 days, both very very hot, and knitting in 40 degree heat - not fun. Mum did love them though, and that's what counts.

And last up - the two yarn club packages I received in December. First up is the delightful package I received as the first installment of Knitabulous' Indian Summer Club.


The colour of the yarn is gorgeous, and I loved all the extra goodies that were included - DPN's, lip gloss, tea, chocolate - all of my favourite things.

The other package was the first installment of Lush Yarn's Summer Sock club package.

The pattern is gorgeous, and I had to refrain myself from casting it on right away. I loved the extra goodies included in this, especially the 50g ball of cashcotton (can't wait to try it out).

All of this is the reason I am now crawled up in a ball, waiting for the new year! Somebody pass me a cup of tea....

Socks that Rock, How do I love thee.....

Ok, so maybe I've gone a little bit overboard on the yarn orders recently, but in my defense, our exchange rate has been good, and Blue Moon Fiber Arts was putting some of their colours on vacation, so I just had to place an order, didn't I? And what's the point of ordering only one or two skeins, when the Socks That Rock is such a smooshy delicious yarn!