Tag Archives: sock knitting

Road Trip Wrap-up

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We’re back! We had a fantastic trip down to Mt. Shasta (which is conveniently located exactly halfway between Seattle and LA, where our friends live). It is a gorgeous place- beautiful scenery, fantastic weather, tasty food! I’d definitely go back again.

And the kids even managed to hang the whole drive down. I got so much knitting done! I made it all the way past the gusset of the first sock in basically one go. It was fantastic.

However, the way back was a different story. Who knew that 2- and 5-year-olds didn’t want to 20+ hours sitting in the back seat of the car? Basically, what ended up happening was that my husband (the hero that he is) managed to wedge himself in-between the car seats in the back and entertain the kids the entire way back while I drove as fast as I could to get us home. So, obviously, I didn’t get the full knitting time I was hoping for. (Honestly, knitting on road trips is the only practical application I can see for self-driving cars.)

It was a fantastic trip, despite the lack of knitting time, and I’d do it again in a heartbeat (but maybe not for a couple weeks).

Do you prefer to be the driver or the passenger on a road trip?

Road Tripping

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As I write this, my family and I are about to head out on a big family road trip down to California to visit friends that we haven’t seen in waaaay too long. (If everything goes as planned, we’ll be home by the time you read this. Fingers crossed.)

My husband is being very responsible and making sure that we have the packing list squared away, hotel reservations for the nights we’re traveling, and a map of all the parks and kid-friendly restaurants between here and northern California. (Basically, a list of all the “Old McDonalds” as our 5 year-old still calls them. Nobody correct them!)

I, on the other hand, am making sure that I have the right kind of knitting project for the trip. It’s going to be a good 20+ hours in the car, and hopefully, I’ll be able to spend at least some of that time knitting (between handing out snacks, manning the audiobooks, and trying desperately to facilitate naps).

I had planned, at first, on bringing my new crochet project to work on, but honestly that project is way too much of a wildcard. I’d hate to get three hours into our drive, rage quit, and have nothing to do the rest of the trip. Plus, I really have to concentrate on the pattern, counting, and making the actual stitches. None of which are super compatible with driving with preschoolers.

So, I’m going back to my comfort zone. Because it’s comfortable there!

I found an unlabeled skein of sock yarn (I’m 80% sure it’s KnitPicks Hawthorn of some sort) and got to work. I’ve got a nice, simple ribbed cuff all done and a couple inches of stockinette started.

I figure I’ll work the leg until we’re about halfway through Oregon, then it should be time to turn the heel.

And maybe by the time we get back, I’ll have a new pair of socks to show you!

What’s your go-to road trip project?

Done and Dusted

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Not much to report this week, just that I finished my self-striping socks! Woo!

And, just like I said last week, it took maybe 20 minutes to finish them up. 30 if you include weaving in the ends and blocking them. Sure, I could have pushed through and finished them last week, but it was kind of nice taking my time with them and only working on them when I was really in the mood.

I’m glad I got them done, and I’m so pleased with how they turned out. The colors are so pretty. And, the fabric is so soft and smooth, especially since I knit them with smaller needles than I usually use.

I can’t wait until the weather turns and I can wear them!

Have you finished anything lately?

1.5

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I’m one and a half socks deep into this project, and I’m still making progress. Something that doesn’t feel like it happens much these days.

I did my best to match up the stripes, but my first try, I was wildly off. I ended up having to frog basically the whole leg portion and re-knit it, which is never my favorite. But I’m so glad I did!

They’re not an exact match, but if you look closely at the colors, they’re actually dyed slightly differently, so no matter how careful I was, I could never have matched them up perfectly. I guess that’s just how hand-dyed yarn goes.

I was a little bummed about it at first, but the more I look at it, the more I like it. That little bit of variation makes the socks even more interesting.

Do you try to match up your socks perfectly, or do you go with the flow?

A little retail therapy

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It’s nearly the end of the school year, so it’s been wildly busy around here. I’m on the board of our preschool co-op, so there’s lots of year-end stuff that we have to do. We’re getting ready for our big kid to graduate from PreK (which is insane and hitting me harder than I expected). And, we’re getting ready for a big multi-state trip back to visit grandparents (our first big trip since Covid, and our first time flying with two kids. It’s going to be nuts).

Needless to say, I’ve been a little stressed. So, when my little one and I had a bit of free time the other day, we went on a coffee/donuts/yarn run. They were more excited about the donuts than the yarn, but they’re two, so that’s not really surprising.

I, however, bought myself a lovely skein of Urth Uneek Fingering. I know nothing about it, except that it was soft, pretty, and superwash. I plan on making a nice vanilla pair of socks with it while we’re traveling. I’m hoping for some nice, low-key, relaxing knitting for the plane (HA!)

Now we’ll just have to see if I can remember my formula for improvising socks…

What’s the last thing that you treated yourself to?

And we’re done!

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Can you believe it?! I’m already done with the socks I picked up last week! (Yes, I did have them about 80% done. And yes, they have been sitting unfinished in my stash for almost a year. And yes, this pattern was published before this pair was even close to completed. Hush.)

I even wove in all the ends and blocked them! Ooh la la!

Unfortunately, they’re a little bit small (which, honestly, was probably why I stopped knitting them in the first place), but at least they’re finished and super cute. I guess they’ll just have to go in the “to be gifted” pile for someone with slightly more petite feet than me.

Have you ever successfully resurrected something from your hibernation pile?

Oh, hi socks!

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Y’all. I realize this is kind of a dumb thing for me to say. After all, I literally wrote the book on it. But…

Socks are fun?!

Like, I don’t know what I’ve been doing. I just 100% forgot that I can knit socks. I’ve been so sweater-focused for so long, that I totally forgot that socks were even a thing. What’s with that? Is it mom-brain? Is it quarantine brain? Am I jus a ding-a-ling?

But anyway. Turns out that socks are fun. Even super vanilla ones like these. Who knew?

I’m really enjoying this project. It feels so satisfying to zip down a sock, especially with the self-striping yarn. I enjoyed the fiddly heel, and don’t even get me started about how the stripes lined up with kitchener-ing up the toe. So satisfying.

Now I’m itching to get the second one going! Can’t wait to see my new socks all finished.

Have you ever forgotten that you enjoy a certain project?

Done and Done!

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You guys! I think my mojo is back! (Or at least kinda back.) I’ve finished my little blue socks and I love them.

Did they take longer than I expected? Yes. Did they turn out nothing like I had intended? Absolutely. But am I pleased with how they turned out? Totally!

I think I really like this length. I usually (always) make socks with legs that are about twice this tall, but I kind of love how they turned out. They took quite a bit less yarn (so I didn’t have to play yarn chicken!) and were a much quicker knit. I think they’ll be a great fall sock, for when I don’t necessarily want a big, thick “middle of winter” sock, but I still want to pull out something soft and cozy.

Now I just have to wait for it to cool off enough to wear them!

What finished projects are you excited about lately?

Halfway there, and picking up speed!

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You guys! I think I might have my mojo back! I’m beyond happy with this new sock!

It’s so cute and girly, exactly what I want to wear right now, but also different enough from the other socks in my sock drawer. I’m just tickled.

I mean, just look at it! It hasn’t even been blocked yet, and it’s adorable! (And also look at my garden! Everything’s growing like crazy- the squash are coming in like gangbusters and the cosmos are just about the prettiest flowers I’ve ever seen.)

In fact, I’m so pleased with these socks, I’m considering writing them up and publishing the pattern. It’s been a minute since I’ve self-published anything, and I think it might be time.

Gosh it’s a great feeling when your favorite activity starts to get fun again!

What are you feeling excited about lately?

Keeping it Chill

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I’m keeping the pressure off, and I’m making headway… slowly. In the last week (when previous versions of me would have already finished an entire pair of socks), I’ve turned a single heel.

That’s right. I have taken a whole week to make a heel on a sock. Something I’ve done a million times and usually will take me no more than an episode (or maybe two) of whatever crime documentary I’m watching. I can’t even say I was using that time to make the sock leg longer, because, I didn’t add any length at all to the leg since the last time I told you about it. I could probably count the number of times I’ve made socks this short on one hand.

But, you know what, I’m kind of digging this length. It’s cute! I like the zig-zag pattern, too. I think it could be nice as an embellishment on the top of a long sock, or even a repeating pattern down the length of a sock. Who knows, maybe this’ll end up as a self-published pattern with options on the length. It’s been a minute since I’ve written up a pattern just for myself.

And, after all that grumping about how slow this sock is going, I just want to pause for a second and say: I love a slip-stitch heel. It’s so cute. It’s sturdy and attractive. I’ve seen people checkerboard the slips, which is nice enough, but I really like the faux-ribbing that happens when you stack them up. It’s definitely my favorite sock heel.

Are you working on anything currently?