Not a stitch...

Really, I didn't even touch the knitting yesterday. My right wrist was sore -- I actually put Biofreeze on it before I went to bed Thursday. All better now. This morning, I finally finished the round I started 2 days ago, and then did the plain-knitting round that follows it. I don't know why I'm sitting in front of the computer. I need to get back to work on that shawl. Not to make it sound like I'm not enjoying it, because I am.

I didn't even get once around the shawl yesterday! I started a round, got interrupted, didn't pick it back up till much later, got interrupted again, then it was bedtime. I did spend too much time shopping for yarn online yesterday, but I was strong & didn't actually purchase anything. Whew!

I took my knitting with me (not the shawl, as I'm working from a cone of Zephyr, and cones are just not very portable) to the world's longest baseball game yesterday afternoon. It was a middle school game -- it took them over 3 hours to play 5 innings! But my son's team won, 15-14. It was not only their first win (they've played 7 games), but also their first time to score more than a couple of runs in a game. As long and potentially sleep-inducing as the game was, I did not get out my knitting. I just can't bring myself to do it -- people might think I'm weird, or something ;-)

Making little bits of progress

I have already done 6 rounds on my Mystery Shawl today, bringing me up to having completed round 152. I am on the final clue, which ends with round 182, so if I can keep up this blistering pace, I can have it done on Monday! I am just 2 rounds into the final clue, but it was nice to finish a chart and move on to the next one. On the final round of the previous chart, I knitted the shawl onto 4 circs in an attempt to be able to spread it out and take a picture. This is as good as it gets, as I didn't feel like looking for pins and really stretching it out.

This is prom week at our local high school, and the theme this year is Hollywood Nights, so they're featuring a different classic each day this week. Monday was the Wizard of Oz -- this is my daughter in a dress I made her 6 years ago for a Wizard-of-Oz themed dance (October 2000). This is the extent of my sewing -- I don't make "real" clothes. I guess I'd rather knit. And "Toto" is being played by Kai, even though she's not really right for the part.


My Cedar Creek socks have grown just a little -- the Socks That Rock yarn is wonderful! I actually took one sock off the Magic Loop and put it on dpns the other day (thinking I'd get one sock done, and it would be quicker & more portable that way). I knit one chart repeat, then did once through the chart on the other sock and put the first sock back on the circular needle. The dpns were those short 5" Brittany Birch size 1's, and they just don't feel good in my hands.

One sock done

Not much to see here. I finished one of the socks from the Red Cross kit. The leg is the same length as my husband's "real" Army socks. The yarn is quite nice; it seems to be fingering weight. The pattern gauge is 7 sts and 9 rows to the inch. I'm using US 1 needles, and I'm not getting gauge -- more like 7.5 sts and 10 rows to the inch. I wouldn't want to try a larger needle, as the sock would be too flimsy. I think the pattern must have been meant for a heavier yarn, like sport weight. In fact, one version of the pattern specifies 14/4 wool, and when I did a search for "14/4 yarn", everything that came up said sport weight. Strike two for the folks who put the kit together (the 3.75 mm needles, US size 5, that came with the kit being the first strike).
My Mystery Shawl 3 has progressed through row 134; 46 rows (rounds) to go. By my calculations, I've done 24 rounds in 10 days. Not too impressive. The EZasPi group posted the first clues to the Knit Your Own Adventure Mystery Pi shawl last night (um, I think I was up too late, actually, and I'm doing it again, still on the computer). I haven't even figured out which yarn I want to use, and the first clues shouldn't take too long to do, so I can catch up.

It's been a week?!?

Where to start? Let's see... I finished the Pink Ladder Socks on Wednesday, a week ago. Exactly 2 months after I started them, which would be ridiculous if they'd been the only thing I worked on during that time. I usually throw newly completed socks in a mesh bag and wash them, then hang them to dry, but these soft & cushy things have disappeared into the upstairs part of the house.

I told my husband I'd make him a pair of socks, so that seemed to be the appropriate next project. I had gotten a kit from the Red Cross with a vintage pattern and some nice olive drab wool, so I'm going to make those for him. The kit looks like this:


And here's what comes in it:


I'm not sure who picked the needles to include -- they're not marked with a size, but my needle gauge says they're a US 5, or 3.75 mm. The yarn seems to be a fairly standard sock/fingering weight. It's a 4 oz. skein, and I estimated the yardage to be about 435 yards. Pattern gauge is 7 sts and 9 rows to the inch. So I'm using US 1 needles. I don't think I'd use a size 5 even for worsted weight socks!

The pattern is also available as a free download (.pdf format). I am trying to follow the pattern without modifications, just to see what I get. I have 3 inches of 2x2 ribbing done; this will be followed by 8" of "plain knitting" as the pattern calls it. I'm up to about 4 1/2" so far. This is my traveling knitting -- waiting while I get the car worked on, or at the orthodontists office, or the eye doctor, whatever.

In a moment (or several) of weakness the other day, I started the socks from the Rockin' Sock Club. I decided to try them toe-up so I could make the legs as long as I want, without worrying about whether I'd have enough to finish. These are my first socks with Socks That Rock yarn, and I have to say that everything good that I've heard/read about this yarn is true! The socks will be soft & plush; the stitch definition is excellent; the yarn has a sheen to it.

I am using the chart as written but I started with row 3. I thought about turning the chart upside down, but then I'd have to figure out an easy way to turn that nifty right twist into a left twist. I've got 64 stitches on a US 1 (2.5 mm) needle. Started with a short-row toe (love the Queen Kahuna method), and I'll probably do a short-row heel, as well. The tricky part is going to be the picot edging at the top of the leg, or to be more precise, finding an easy way to fasten the edging down.

My Mystery Shawl 3 has grown by a whopping 10 rounds this week. I'd like to get it done before the EZasPi group starts the "Choose your own adventure" Pi Shawl on April 14th. Only 70 more rounds, divided by 9 days... doesn't look too likely, does it?