On the Needles was conceived by Judy L as a way to share and motivate each other to find time to knit. Especially during those summer months when everything outdoor seems to take up so much of daily life. Having the garden this year and now the chickens, I could fully understand the need for motivation to make time and am happy to be a part of this. Not motivation to knit, but motivation to SCHEDULE some knitting TIME into the days. The plan is to post what’s “On the Needles” every Friday, with a link to Judy L’s blog where you will find other knitters, crocheters, and spinners posting links to their blogs about what’s on their needles.
Hey, it’s a perfect way to share our knitting! And it’s start coincides perfectly with this years WWKIP! That’s World Wide Knit in Public Day, which is not exactly a day but spreads for a week. Details about that are HERE.
So what’s on my needles this sunny Friday morning? Well, I had to frog the socks I showed you last week. The color, while pretty, was pooling once I got into the main body of the sock. I’ll find something to use that yarn on, just not socks based on 64 stitches (my magic # on size 0 needles). And as I still needed a pair of Plain Vanilla socks for the June YOSS socks (for the Ravelry YOSS group) I pulled out some Knit Picks Felici in the Rainbow colorway and got started again.
As you can see, I’m using one of my favorite books. Although this particular pair is “Plain Vanilla” (i.e. no fancy stitches) I love this book because it is full of stitch patterns and heel and toe choices for all sections of socks and you can mix and match the patterns you want. Kind of like a gazillion choices in one place if you have the imagination to play!
And as I’m a spinner too, I’ve always got something on the wheel. This week, and for the last couple weeks as it is summer which is less spinning time, I’ve been spinning up this pretty yarn:
Isn’t it pretty!!!!! Hey it’s the dyer that makes the colorway of the fiber pretty to make pretty yarn and I can honestly say I’m in love with this one! The fiber is from Fiber Optic Yarns in the Emily colorway and it’s a 50% Superwash Merino/50% Tencel blend, which makes it super soft and super shiny. I’ve got two 4 ounce braids of this particular colorway, here I’m about 3/4 of the way through the first braid spinning as fine as I can. My plan is to spin both braids and then Navajo Ply them to get a fingering weight yarn with consistent coloring to eventually knit into a shawl. Navajo Plying is one of my Ravelry TDF challenges that I’m doing, but more about the TDF when it actually starts.
That’s what’s “on my needles” this Friday morning, what’s on yours? Want to play along? Blog about what’s on your needles and head over to Judy L’s blog and add a link to your blog. Hey, we all want to see what everyone is working on or we wouldn’t blog or read blogs!!!!!
Really like the “Rainbow” yarn you are working with… I have not been able to figure out how to cast on for Toe-up style socks, would like to try it that way some time.
Sandie, I used a provisional cast on with short rows down and back for a while until I finally managed to convince my fingers not to be all thumbs with a figure 8 cast on.
Try this link and see if it helps any:
http://knitty.com/ISSUEwinter02/FEATtiptoptoes.html
I didn’t like the even rows that the KnitPicks yarn made so I turned it into a BSJ for donation. It worked very well with an added solid color yarn. I like KP yarn but have to make a smaller sock with the multi as it pools horribly for me (my gauge) on a 60st sock.
Well, I just bought another sock knitting book. I hope you get a finders fee! I have been wanting to do toe up socks and this looks like a good book for that. I like the idea of mix and match patterns too.
It is hard to find sock yarn that doesn’t pool!