Tag: self striping

A Sock is Born

On By FogKnitsIn Casting On, Socks, WIP18 Comments

chiaogoo-size-0-needles

In what seemed like the longest 48 hour wait ever, my itty bitty needles finally arrived!  I have spent a lot of time whining about how I don’t want to use needles this small.  I was resolute in absolutely denying they even existed.  And now I think I might love them.

Don’t get me wrong, I’m still going to complain about how small they are.  Seriousleeeeeee??  2.0 mm.  OY.

But, this progress does not lie!  I am loving it!

I have progressed rapidly.  The beginning was terrible.  I went with a Turkish Cast On.  It looks awesome…yay for toe up!  But the M1Ls and M1Rs were a test of my patience.  The small size doesn’t help but the real issue is the kinks in the yarn.  A dropped stitch doesn’t behave as expected when the yarn has a kink it in.  It’s like backing up an 18 wheeler with a trailer.  I’d jack-knife it every time.

Lucky for us, no one was hurt this time and once I got passed the first couple rows, everything got better!  Everything is falling into place nicely now.

sock-blank-sock-in-progress

The yarn is a sock blank my Mom painted back in the summer!  We dyed another sock blank when I was home for Rhinebeck,

rhinebeck-round-up-sock-blank

I couldn’t make any more excuses.  I want to wear those socks! A lot!  This could be the beginning of a whole new era for me.  I’m on the verge of addiction.  The second sock will be the test.  I’m not down with two-at-a-time so Second Sock Syndrome could be a problem.

Then again, I don’t mind if my socks don’t match, so maybe it won’t slow me down at all :)

FO Monday -Crochet ‘Entrelac’

On By FogKnitsIn Crochet, FO Friday, Shawl11 Comments

Last week there were multiple FOs for other people.  This week there are multiple FOs for me.  This is the part where have 10 WIPs at once finally pays off!

mini mochi shawl self striping shawl diagonal stitch

 

First up, the crochet piece I started as a swatch.  It was so much fun to do that it grew into a full blown WIP, complete with yarn chicken!  I got more yarn, only a single skein though.  I knew then, it wouldn’t be enough but it was available and it was a dye lot match and one is better than none.

With my skein count at 4, I decided, enough is enough, even if I barely had a scarf.  That’s 4 skeins of Crystal Palace Mini Mochi, 780 yards.   (Which I’m just now realizing is way less than I thought.  Each skein is 195 yards, I thought it was 300.  I was annoyed that 1200 yards wasn’t enough.  ooops.  my bad.  I completely understand why I never had enough now!  On average, crochet uses 30% more yardage than knitting.  Imagine a knit shawl with 520 yds.  yeah, that’s exactly what I’ve got here.  and it’s just not enough.)

 

I’m quite pleased with my solution to the problem, in any case!  It’s a button!  One single button from the stash.  It wasn’t even an agonizing decision, as buttons often are.

button shrug triangle shawl blue button fogknits made in san francisco

With one little plastic button, I’ve gone from shawl-that-isn’t-even-big-enough-to-be-a-scarf to the perfect garment.   The stitch pattern (diagonal crochet stitch tutorial here) is predominately double crochets.  They’re tall enough that a button pushes through anywhere, easily…no buttonhole necessary!  (aka no planning necessary!)

Now I’ve got a beautiful shrug!  Perfect for warming the shoulders without the bulk of a shawl (or the fuss.)

I realize this isn’t a new or unique idea but I’m tickled pink with it.  There are lots of ideas out there.  That doesn’t help me remember them all.  Having the right idea at the right time…priceless!  I never would have planned this and I’m pleased as Punch that this is where I’ve ended up.   I may never take it off…at least until the next FO comes around!

 

Not Quite FO?

On By FogKnitsIn Crochet, Shawl, WIP10 Comments

 

Nothing this week has been quite right, so it’s no surprise that today’s FO is not quite an FO yet.  The progress is good, but as I suspected all along, I had no where near enough yarn!  Damn you, Crochet!

crochet shawl diagonal stitch

So far, so good.  It’s lovely!  I want to wear it but this happens…

IMG_7466

It’s just not big enough.  They aren’t called Shlankets (half shawl/half blanket) for nothing! I’ve got one more ball of Mini Mochi but it’s a different color.  I don’t think it works.

crochet crocheted shawl stripes mini mochi

I think I need more yarn.

(Who am I kidding?  I can’t say that with a straight face anymore.  Of course, I need more yarn.  DUH!  I’ve already browsed Ravelry stashes twice, I just need to send a few messages!  There’s quite a bit of this color in the wild… come to me pretties, come to me!  You will be mine!)

And to kick your weekend off, check out this link for a tour of Stephen West’s stash and a color chat with Taiu of Koigu!  They’re the first two Knit Stars to share with us!   Looks like we’ll get two more videos next week too!

Right on Schedule!

On By FogKnitsIn Crochet, Shawl, WIP3 Comments

Once a year, I get bit by the crochet bug.  Last June, this happened…

IMG_3207

 

It was lots of fun to do.  The instant gratification factor left me saying I should really crochet more.  It’s only taken me a year to act on that.

As if on cue, I can across this link to a crochet tutorial over the weekend. The time had come, something tempted back into crochet!  Just a few short hours later, my hook was on the move.  I love it!  It’s a crochet version of entrelac.

154cea

What started as messing around with a swatch has grown into a full blown project!  I blame the yarn…Mini Mochi!  Stripes make everything more fun!  My current goal is a shawl but ‘shawlette’ may be a better term.

IMG_7340

That’s the current state of affairs.  One ball of Mini Mochi done, one more to go.  Unfortunately, I don’t think that’s enough.  I’m not sure what I’m going to do about that yet.

(Yes, I do…let’s face it, I’m going to buy more yarn.  I’m just in denial right now!)