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Socks

Summer Test Knits

By Sheetar 14 October 2014 10 October 2014

The blog is slowly sliding away from One Local Summer as winter draws ever closer, so I thought I’d fill in some space with knitting and spinning updates! For those of you unfamiliar with knitting, when a designer whips up a new pattern, he/she typically will want to have a friend test knit it to make sure all potential errors are worked out before officially publishing a pattern. It gives the designer another set of eyes on the pattern which can be really helpful. On my end, as a test knitter, it’s really fun to be the first person to have a go at a new knitting pattern and help out a friend at the same time. So, that’s what I did this summer (among other things).

Pattern: Barrel Riders Sock
Designer: Corrine Walcher
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Aisha Celia Designs Hand-Dyed in “178AA”
–Ravelry Project Link–
I finished these pretty quickly and love the neat detail on the heel as well as the wave pattern on the leg/instep. For the time being, this pattern is a special release just for a yarn club and isn’t available to the public just yet.

Pattern: Clara Barton
Designer: Corrine Walcher
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm)
Yarn: Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks that Rock Lightweight in unknown Mill Ends colorway
–Ravelry Pattern Link–
Another fun project! I think I knit these in about a week, so they knit up super quickly. The yarn just happened to be a happy match for a sock pattern called Clara Barton, named for the woman who founded the American Red Cross. It was a Mill End I picked up at Rhinebeck a few years ago, and I’m glad I held on to it for just the right pattern. Love that little cross on the heel, and the cable running down the front. Another great design and fun test knit!

Gloves/Mittens, knitting

Night Owl Mittens

By Sheetar 18 September 2014 24 April 2023

Actual knitting content on the blog! Fear not, even though there have been a lack of posts about knitting and spinning, I’ve still been doing both. It’s just a lack of time to photograph the finished objects! But I have one here, and there will hopefully be more to post in the next few weeks. They knit up in three days (about 5 hours in the evenings after dinner and before bed), and used about 225 yards between the two colors (125 of the blue and 100 of the yellow). The yarn is a nice, densely spun wool completely sourced and produced in the USA from Rambouillet sheep, using natural dyes that surprisingly didn’t bleed when I gave these a wash and block. The yarn has incredible stitch definition and feels really sturdy which is perfect for mittens. I only made one big modification to the pattern – I switched the thumb to a “sore thumb” instead of the charted traditional Selbu Thumb since I find a sore thumb fits better. A pretty easy modification to make, just shifting the thumb gusset placement over a few stitches. Speaking of the thumb, I love that cute little owl worked into the thumb chart. Really happy with how these came out between the colors and the fit! Finished them just in time for the slow creep of Fall’s chill.

Pattern: Night Owl Mittens
Designer: Jorid Linvik
Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) for the cuff, US 2 (2.75mm) for the mitten body
Yarn: HiKoo by Skacel American B.R.A.N.D. in Yellowstone (Yellow-108) and Hawaii Volcanoes (Blue-102)
–Ravelry Project Link–

Shawls/Wraps, Spinning

Antarktis

By Sheetar 25 April 2014 20 August 2023

Another spun-to-finished project! I recently realizes just how much handspun I have sitting around, and how much I need to start using it instead of keeping it set aside as precious yarn that shall not be touched. The resulting shawl came out really lovely, light and airy, and I’m super happy with the results. I’ll admit to not really being a shawl person, but with the right pattern, I’ve slowly grown to like wearing them with the point in front, and sometimes add extra increases to make sure the long side is long enough to go all the way around. There’s nothing worse than a shawl that won’t wrap around the whole way without feeling like I’m being strangled. Details below!

First up, the fiber. This is Twisted Fiber Art’s Cloudy in colorway “Terrain” which is 60% Merino and 40% Bamboo. It looks like the name of the fiber was changed to Glam, and the fiber contents tweaked a little.

Next, the yarn. Spun to something between fingering and lace weight, I came out with 547 yards, chain plied.

The shawl! Pattern is Antarktis by Janina Kallio. Total knitting time was just over two weeks, so it went pretty quickly and was easy enough to bring with me to knit night. I used up pretty much the whole skein, following the pattern instructions until I got to the border section, except switching the wrong-side rows to purl so that it was garter instead of stockinette with a 3 stitch garter border. Just not a fan of garter stitch! I kept repeating the border section until I was just about out of yarn and then bound off using Jenny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off. Blocked aggressively with wires and the resulting shawl came out beautifully. Ravelry Project Link in case you’re interested.

On a non-knitting realted note, I’m really trying to blog more, especially with One Local Summer starting again. It always seems like I go from May to November only posting about food, and I want to try to blog more to break all that up a bit! I have a whole bunch of projects I haven’t blogged about lined up, and there will be PLENTY going on in the vegetable garden, so hopefully those will break up the summer monotony. We’re also going on some trips this summer, and I hope to be able to blog from the road. Anything you’d like to hear about specifically? Let me know in the comments!

Gloves/Mittens, knitting

End of May Mittens

By Sheetar 12 March 2014 16 January 2022

I’m REALLY pleased with how these mittens came out! The yarn was purchased at Purls of Wisdom in Kimberton, PA with the intent to make mittens at some point. Finally, I grabbed the yarn, found a pattern, and went to work. I managed to churn these out in five days (worsted weight mittens go pretty quickly even in colorwork), and have been wearing them since mid-January when they were finished. As usual, I’m super late posting these to the blog, but you know that’s nothing new. 🙂Yarn: Ella Rae Classic Superwash in colorway 15 (orange-rust color) and 19 (cream color). Lining is Alpaca from a friend’s farm.
Needles: US 3 (3.25mm)
Pattern: End of May Mittens by Mandy Powers
–Ravelry Project Link–
Notes/Modifications: The pattern originally called for the lining to only extend up about an inch or two from the cuff. I went ahead and used the same directions for the outer mitten minus the colorwork for the lining. It came out a little bit wide (there is some wrinkled-up fabric inside the mitten), but not enough that it’s unbearable. They blocked out to the perfect size for my hands! The alpaca actually came from a co-worker of the husband’s who owns an alpaca farm. It’s really luscious stuff and makes the mittens extra warm – perfect for the cold winter we’ve had!

Gloves/Mittens, knitting

Ingress Mittens

By Sheetar 5 November 2013 23 March 2021

When I received my invitation code on January 16, 2013, I had no idea what was waiting for me – this virtual, alternate reality game was something bigger than I ever expected. When I first picked up my scanner, it was cold, but not so bad, and hey, Spring was not too far off in the Philadelphia area, and I still had a lot to learn about the game. The mittens were an idea from the beginning since I’d been knitting for a number of years and thought it might be fun to combine my new obsession with an old one. I made Level 8, and summer came and went with the idea still percolating. Finally, Fall arrived and while the days were getting cooler, I was charting out the design for these mittens. The final design incorporates the Resistance Key on the top of the hand and the Ingress logo on the palm side of the mittens using blobs of XM to balance out the pattern and fill in spaces, preventing longer floats. The resulting pattern fits an average sized Resistance woman’s hand, and expects an intermediate skill level as well as prior experience with stranded knitting on DPNS in the round. I’m offering this pattern for free as per the guidelines set forth by Ingress that allow for fan-created artwork. Sorry folks, no Enlightened pattern is in the works, VIVA LA RESISTANCE!

[EDIT, 5 Nov 2013: Enlightened chart available, due to popular demand! Follow same directions for Resistance mittens, substituting Enlightened chart – LINK (pdf)]

Alternative chart with dark lines – LINK (pdf)

The portal in the image to the left is that of the statue of David Reeves in Reeves Park, Phoenixville, PA, USA. The park was, and still is, Phoenixville’s public square. Gifted to the community in 1871 by Phoenix Iron Company founder David Reeves in his will, the park is an active Ingress battleground, having been a Flash Farm for both factions a number of times. Founder David Reeves was so loved by his employees that they decided, unanimously, to place a statue in his memory at the center of the park shortly after his death. [Portal Link]

Many thanks to agent Sensalia for acting as a hand model, to Abbie for proofreading, and to PAIR for being the best Resistance team ever. Keep Warm and Hack On!

Ravelry Pattern Link (Removed March 2021 due to Ravelry’s lack of attention to accessibility)
Ravelry Project Link (Removed March 2021 due to Ravelry’s lack of attention to accessibility)
Pattern Download (pdf)

Socks

A Year of Sock Knitting, part 2 – 2012

By Sheetar 19 December 2012 19 December 2012

I was originally shooting for 12 in 2012, and I just squeaked by with a quick pair of DK weight socks for grandma. I could probably do another pair, but I don’t think I’ll have the time. Anyway, the lineup is below!

	Pattern: Rick Designer: Cookie A Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits Sheepy Feet in, “Tangerine Tango” –Ravelry Project Link– I ended up having to cast on more to make the sock fit. Cast on 72, and then had to finagle around the heel to get the pattern to line up. The socks don’t exactly match since I’m a lazy knitter who tends not to write down good enough notes to do the second sock the same, but it worked out well enough, and they’re bright and fun to wear.
	Pattern: Dayflower Socks Designer: Dayflower Socks Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits Grab Bag Mystery Yarn in, “Electric Blueberry” –Ravelry Project Link– These worked up pretty quickly and were the right combination of lace and ribbing so that it was interesting without being boring. The color and the pattern just matched up perfectly and I couldn’t have been happier with how they turned out. The yarn was a neat thing too since it was from a club that offered a ‘grab bag’ option – list the weight of yarn you want and the dyer picked out something that would work. It did! I really like how lofty and airy this particular yarn is and it was fun to try something completely different.
	Pattern: Primavera Socks Designer: natalja Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Little Red Bicycle Tricycle Sock in, “Mistletoe Grope” –Ravelry Project Link– A friend gifted me the yarn for these socks a few years ago as part of a set where the yarn matched two pots of eye shadow. Pretty neat! I finally got around to using the yarn and love how it knit up in this pattern. It’s totally holiday-yarn-barf, but somehow, the pattern breaks up any pooling and keeps it interesting. I do love the little spot of pooling on the heel since it kinda looks like a candy cane stripe.
	Pattern: Jaywalker Designer: Grumperina Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Lang Yarns Jawoll Magic in colorway 1001 –Ravelry Project Link– Because no year is complete without a pair of Jaywalkers. Am I right or am I right? My brother brought back the yarn from a trip to the Netherlands and it was just SO much fun to knit with. The colors are spectacular and made for a fun sock. I had worn them before getting a picture, so they’re not as crisp as they were right off the needles, but they sure are cozy.
	Pattern: Pointelle Designer: Cookie A Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits Sheepy Time MCN in “Driftwood” –Ravelry Project Link– These probably rank as my #3 most difficult pair of the year. It wasn’t that the chart was particularly difficult, but it did involve actually looking at the chart instead of knitting away. I knit the larger size, but probably could’ve done the smaller size since there’s a lot of extra room, especially around the foot. I do love them, and love the subtle variation in the yarn that works well to show off the pattern without swallowing it up.
	Pattern: Simple Skyp Socks Designer: Adrienne Ku Needles: US 2 (2.75 mm) Yarn: Schachenmayr nomotta Regia Design Line Kaffe Fassett 6-fÃ¤dig 6ply in colorway 05958 –Ravelry Project Link– These were very simple and quick two-day socks. We were going to visit grandma and I needed something quick to knit up for her that she’d enjoy, hence these socks. The bright colors really jumped out at me and the pattern has a neat almost herringbone style motif inbetween the ribbing. Grandma was very happy with them and tried them right on – they fit perfectly! Gotta love ending the year with a fun pair of socks like these.

Finished Objects, Socks

A Year of Sock Knitting, part 1 – 2012

By Sheetar 7 December 2012 19 December 2012

I was originally shooting for 12 in 2012, and I just squeaked by with a quick pair of DK weight socks for grandma. I could probably do another pair, but I don’t think I’ll have the time. Anyway, the lineup is below!

	Pattern: Steampunkery Designer: Heatherly Walker Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Holiday Yarns FlockSock Sock Yarn in, “Vanilla” – purchased as a kit –Ravelry Project Link– They were an absolute PAIN to knit. I must’ve gotten an early version of the kit because there were errors and omissions throughout the pattern. No errata supplied, nothing. I am happy with the finished product though since they’re SO pretty, and what a neat idea to have the fully functional button up flap on the leg.
	Pattern: Child’s Sock in Miranda Pattern Designer: Nancy Bush Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Little Red Bicycle’s Boneshaker BFL Sock in, “Oh, Io” –Ravelry Project Link– These were meant to be children’s socks, but I cast on 64 stitches and worked the pattern as normal, ignoring the calf shaping. They came out great, and I love that the pattern is replicated from a historical pattern.
	Pattern: Gentleman’s Fancy Socks Designer: Nancy Bush Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Knit Picks Essential Solids & Twists in, “Sarge” –Ravelry Project Link– A friend requested socks ages ago and I finally got around to knitting them. What took so long? The requestor has a size 14 men’s shoe! Yikes! Took the better part of 2.25 skeins, but he commented in a thank you note that they are, “easily the coolest pair of socks I’ve ever owned.” WIN!
	Pattern: 14 Karat Designer: Glenna C. Needles: US 1.5 (2.5mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits, All Your Base in “Sunken Treasure” –Ravelry Project Link– Twisted stitches Ahoy! The chart was easy to follow, just time consuming, and I’m not good at memorizing charts with cables. Still though, they came out beautifully and I love the color depth in the yarn – there are so many colors that pop out of that yarn.
	Pattern: Business Casual Designer: Tanis LavallÃ©e Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits, All Your Base in “Fathoms Below” –Ravelry Project Link– They were easy enough to knit, but the photo doesn’t show the pattern very well. The diamond pattern shows up just fine in real life but didn’t photograph very well. The color is a favorite – I love the greens and black together.
	Pattern: Escher-WÃ¼rfel (Escher’s cube) Designer: Stephanie van der Linden Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) Yarn: Sheepy Time Knits, Pearl Necklace in “Grey Matter” –Ravelry Project Link– The pattern is really just a stitch pattern to create the cube effect. I cast on 60 and knit a basic cuff-down sock. I was a little worried that 60 wouldn’t be enough stitches, but it was perfect with enough room (and a little extra) to stretch around my calves. Very happy with how these came out!

Sweaters

Knitting Update – finished objects!

By Sheetar 20 May 2012 18 May 2012

So I actually have been knitting, honest. I just haven’t posted everything here. So, here’s a quick post with a few recent finished objects.

On the top above, is 14 Karat. The yarn is from the club I’ve been a member of for a while now, and is a colorway called “Sunken Treasure.” I figured a pattern referencing jewels would work nicely with a color referencing treasure. They were pretty labor intensive and required working from the computer with the chart, but they’re well worth it!

On the bottom above is Business Casual, using another yarn from the club, this time the colorway was, “Fathoms Below.” Easy to knit, and they worked up pretty quickly. These two pairs of socks were worked at the same time, but the Business Casual socks didn’t require looking at a chart and were taken along with me everywhere. The faux-argyle diamond pattern shows up more in person than it did in the photo, and I really love how they came out.

This is the big project that I’ve had sitting in my Works in Progress (WIP) queue for a while. I started the Royale sweater in November of 2010 for the National Knit a Sweater Month (NaKniSweMo). I got about 5 inches up from the bottom and set it aside. With Ravelympics 2012 coming up soon, the team I joined decided that we should spend the month prior to the Ravelympics ‘training’ and finishing up WIPs. This one isn’t my oldest one, but it was a huge undertaking – the cables, twisted stitches! All the hard work was totally worth it though, I mean, just look at that! It’s sort of unfortunate that I finished now, mid-May, when I won’t be able to wear it all summer long. The pattern and charts were easy to follow. My only big mistake is that I usually don’t do as many increases for the bust as the pattern sizing calls for – everyone has different measurements and should adjust a knit pattern to suit their individual measurements for a best fit. Nooo I just kept trucking along! So, the bust is a little loose, but it’s not a dealbreaker, and there’s NO WAY I am going to go back and work all that over. The yarn used was Valley Yarns Northampton in the color, “Twilight Heather.” The photos above are pretty color accurate, and I’d call the color kind of a purpley maroon heather. I over estimated on the yarn purchase, so I have three skeins left – I’ve got a short torso, so while most folks have 4 or more repeats of that center cable pattern, I only needed three, cutting down drastically on the yarn requirement. Love this to bits, and I’m so glad I finally finished it!