Looks can be deceiving

So, what is the difference between the Greenwood Fiberworks (top) and the Zen Yarn Garden (bottom) cotton/lycra sock yarn? Why did the 72-stitches-around pattern that worked perfectly for the former come out huge in the latter? Let me show you something.

Both strands below were about 7 inches with no tension on them, but when pulled tight, the Greenwood about doubles in length, whereas the Zen only gets to 10 inches. So Greenwood's more elastic and contracts more after it's knit. That probably means it wears better than the Zen. I think I'm willing to keep the pink for myself and give my mom the "campfire" color if she wants.

Sockapalooza 4 signups have started. I've been ambivalent on it for a while now. I loved knitting socks for other people (I had one pal and was a sock savior for another), but the socks I received are a little too big for me. I don't have much sock yarn I'm willing to part with, and I'm trying not to buy more for now. I don't know what to do!

Test knitting

I learned a new way to make short-row toes and heels, with double wraps a la Wendy this time (top in photo). This photo shows what I think is the uglier side of the wrapping method. The two sides of the YO method (bottom) look pretty similar to one another.

I started these socks but had to redo them because they were coming out too big (at 72 stitches cast on). So the Zen Yarn Garden cotton/lycra sock yarn is a bit thicker than the Greenwood Fiberworks. I'm trying 64 stitches now and it seems to be good. I took a photo of the new attempt but my camera ate it.

Cappuccino chill

This arrived yesterday. Yarn that I don't have to pay for but still get to play with is pretty cool. I told my mom about this yarn I found online that looked similar to Greenwood Fiberworks' cotton/lycra sock yarn and she bought this for me to make into socks for her.

Cotton/lycra sock yarn from Zen Yarn Garden (which also has an etsy shop)

Suck It, Swiffer!

I went to the store and threw a box of Swiffer wet cloths in my basket. I continued shopping for a while and then noticed that my suede shoes had drips on them. My pants leg had drips on it. My groceries were wet. The damn Swiffer box had not been level and so it leaked. Thank you produce department for having paper towels available! I abandoned the box on the floor of an aisle (I never do that! I was mad), wiped off what I could, and got new ham and eggs. I did not buy the damn leaky things. I came home and finished this:

CO 53 on size 6 needles, knit every row until it fits. Obviously, these were scraps, from the baby bibs and burp cloths, which the mom loves, by the way. I was just at her house and she pointed out to me how the cloths are sitting all around the house. I plan on buying more cotton to make more mopping cloths. Swiffer can suck it.

(The shoes seem to be fine.)

One of the best cotton sock yarns is still around

Greenwood Fiberworks had me worried there for a while. Her store was empty of sock yarn every time I'd look. But now she's got a few skeins of a new color--Campfire--for sale. I can't buy any now, so I hope she'll have more in the coming months. I need a pair for myself!

Fiber everywhere

There's cotton in deodorant now. I'll give it a shot, but I'm skeptical.

I ripped out the Fleece Artist sock, made a much nicer picot edge, and tried to spice up the sock with Mata Hari again. But I don't like it. I'm going to rip it back and go with plain stockinette stitch.

One is not enough

One ball of Sugar 'n Cream is not enough for a baby genius burp cloth.

Not working

I started Mata Hari socks with my Blue Moon Sock Candy yarn, but it's just not working. It looks OK here but looks worse when I put it on my leg. So I guess I'll rip it and do something else with the yarn (plain socks). The yarn (cotton/"elite" and much less elastic than other cotton sock yarns I've used) does not hold up well to reworking.

Gift Socks

I made socks for my friend Tasha after this yarn caught my eye. I thought it was perfect for her because it's cotton and brown and blue, the colors her wedding party wore one year ago this coming Sunday.

I'm embarrassed to say how long these have been almost finished. I pretty much only had one toe to knit for a couple of months, and I finally did it last night while watching an episode of Midsomer Murders that's overdue at the library. I was planning on grafting the toes instead of doing the visible zig-zag close seen here, but I hate grafting when it's just a few stitches. This would be 144 stitches. I'm wondering if these are too small, but they're stretchy so I think they'll be OK. And I so don't feel like making them longer.

Scraps and scrapped

My castoff edges used to be a little tight. Now it seems I've overcompensated.

I didn't really like the purple and white burp cloth (seen on top of the back of the blue and white one), and I didn't have enough purple to complete it anyway, so I frogged it and started a Fibonacci-type bib, seen below before finishing.
I think I'll stick to one or two-color bibs to reduce the potential for unravelling. All those ends make me nervous.

I have lots of work again this week so I probably won't knit much.

As promised

I do plan on making several bibs but wanted to switch to the more interesting burp cloth for a change.

And I just took more photos but they are not showing up at all on my computer. Hm.

Finally knitting again

I finally finished the bib, and I started the burp cloth. Close-up photo of the burp cloth to come!

Button or no button?

One reason it's taking me so long to finish a bib is because I'm not sure how I want it to fasten. Here's my current, button-less idea: Or should I just use a button like everyone else?

Garter stitch

I used to think garter stitch was ugly, but it's really not.

Summer=cotton knitting

One pair cotton socks complete, one in the works, and one to be reworked (again)
I haven't knit with wool in a while. I went to FedEx today and right next door is a craft store I'd never been in. I picked up one ball of cotton yarn to try out the baby bib pattern in Mason-Dixon Knitting, which I have checked out from the library. It's a royal purple, not the blue it appears to be in this photo, and I think it should work for a boy or a girl. I'd like to make several but the color choices weren't so hot. There are other places in town to try, however.

M-D Knitting is a book worth owning. There's a huge collective blog for people knitting projects in the book. Here's a completed bib on an unusual model.

Rustic cotton socks

I finished these socks (made with Elann.com's Sock It to Me Collection Esprit) ages ago but one was too big, the other just right. I think I may have used too large a needle on the second sock, forgetting what I had done on the first one (write it down!). I ripped it out and redid it with a smaller needle. I had lots of yarn left, as you can see, and it's now a bit too small. So I'll do it over another time. The frustrating thing with trying on elastic socks in progress is that they can stretch and fool you into thinking they're the right size. I can pull on the sock into a nice fit, but after wearing it a few minutes, the heel moves down.

And it's the longest day of the year

Here are cotton/ lycra socks I made for my mother.

Yarn: Greenwood Fiberworks in Genola Sunset
Pattern: Came with the yarn
Needles: Size 1 DPNs

This was my first time doing a short-row heel. I had wanted to learn how for a while and I didn't think I had much choice with this yarn, because of the lycra. I thought it would be too difficult to pick up stitches for the gusset if I did the flap.

I think this heel is more mental work than the flap/ pickup heel, and I am not sure I could ever do it without a cheat sheet. And there's the sometimes-awful purl 3 together through the back maneuver. But it does look nice and now I know two ways to make a heel. (This heel uses YOs and reverse YOs, not wrapping.)

Don't ask

Don't ask about the lawn. The situation is angering me, to say the least.

Here is a swatch of sorts: