Status Update

I have a tendency to procrastinate when it comes to taking photos. After a tall enough pile builds, then I wait for sunlight, haul out the camera, take the photos, download them and then create a post. Then the procrastination begins again.

I just went through a repeat of this cycle, and hopefully the duration of the upcoming procrastination phase will not be as long as the last one.

Here goes:Pomatomus by Cookie A, knit in Cherry Tree Hill millends from here. That yarn was such a great buy! I love the way it knits up. I'm almost to the toe of the first sock. I don't think I'd like the pooling barberpole in any other pattern, but here it doesn't bother me. And I have so much extra yarn, I'll be able to experiment and find a good gauge for another pair that stripes.

This big blue sock was my first toe-up sock without a short-row heel. Since it was my subway sock that I only knit while commuting, I experimented with the heel. I did a typical heel flap, then turned the heel and did the gusset decreases as I knit the ankle.
Here it is close-up. On the left is the bottom of the foot, which I knit in stockinette. At the bottom of the picture is where I turned the heel. When I did the gusset decreases, I used the heel-stitch pattern. I really liked using this along the gussets, as well. My heels are pretty narrow, and the heel-stitch drew in the sock along that side. When I wear it, it ends up fitting quite well.

Here is the shaping at the top of the sock. As you can see, I haven't woven in the ends. I used the twisted stitch in the middle to mark the seam. In the future, I'll avoid using a twisted stitch in the middle, since it seems to veer to one side. I might, though, use the twisted stitches along the beginning of the ribbing, to hold it in place better. I took this picture along my arm, so it will be significantly more stretched than it is right now. Hopefully a good wash will straighten this up, too.This is my very first knit for a baby! It's Elizabeth Zimmermann's February Sweater from Knitter's Almanac. This is a book that I highly, highly recommend. The sweater was very fun to make. I did have some gauge issues, as you can see on the yoke. It's knit in Knitpicks Shine Sport in Grass, which was very fun to use, on Inox size 4 needles. I needed just under 2 skeins for it, and it took just under a weekend.

This is the Baby Surprise Jacket by Elizabeth Zimmermann's Knitting Workshop. Again, I used Shine Sport. I still need to find buttons to use for this. I did 4-row stripes with both the white and the green, and I really like the wrong side. The stripes merge together and create a variegated look. The other side is more crisp, and is clearly striped.

The Shine Sport knits up beautifully and is quite soft. I'm thinking about making myself a picovili in this.

On to the next work in progress....

Here is what I've been spending a lot of my time on. This is Isabella, knit in CotLin. I'm almost finished. All that's left is finishing the left side and the picot-edging on the arms. It will need a good blocking, and some of the unevenness will probably stay after the first wash because of the linen. I've been working pretty hard on my rowing out, and have gotten much better, believe it or not. I'm not too concerned with it. I'm planning on using this as a casual summer top, and I don't think it will be too obvious once I finish.

A detail of the lace pattern. I really like it, but now I'm beginning to wonder whether it will be practical to wear, or if I'll need a tank underneath it.

Last of all (I really go overboard with these things, don't I!):

Handknits soaking in the basin. This is how I wash all of my handknits, and many of my delicates. Here you can see faux-cable socks in hand-dyed indigo (left), my trekking clock stockings (center), my Koigu monkey socks(right center), socketta socks (top right), shedir in Harrisville Shetland (top left) and Jaywalkers in dyed-with-kool-aid yarn (bottom right). Proof that I actually do use almost everything I make! I'm washing them with dishwashing liquid, and I'll probably put some conditioner in the rinsewater.