Socks, Easter, Birthdays, and General Insanity

The cashmere socks are done! Woo Hoo!!

Ain't they purty? It really was a race to the finish. The legs worked up quickly, and were really fun. Then came the pain. I knew my gauge with the green yarn would be a little smaller than the cashmere, but didn't realize just how much smaller it would be. See this heel flap? Can you guess how many rows?


72. Yes, 72 rows in eye of partridge to make a 2.5" heel flap. My jaw was dropping too. It kept going and going and going and going. I was ready to turn the heel by late Thursday night, right on schedule, but didn't get them done until sometime Monday. I picked up stitches for the gusset as usual, but realized that if I picked up one stitch per slipped stitch the gusset puckered like you wouldn't believe. So I ripped both socks back and picked up 3 stitches every 4 rows and it worked out alright. The feet were knitted in a blinding fury, and I finished the toes at work by about 5:15 on Wednesday, steam ironed them at work, picked up a cake, sped home, took a shower, wrapped the gifts, and sped to the recipient's house for a party.

He adores them, as he should. They fit perfectly, and he was given strict instructions on how to treat the socks with the respect they deserve, and he will be getting a lesson on how to properly wash them in room temperature water with scentless Soak. I wouldn't have made these socks if they wouldn't be appreciated, and I am pleased to say that they are loved.

I had to really push to get them done because life has gotten more crazy every day. Saturday night I went to a dinner party with some old friends, and ate grouse. It tasted like chicken. I just had a bite, because I normally don't eat chicken or game, but that's not something you get to try every day.

The rest of the week has been a blur - Easter Sunday with the family, including my aunt and uncle from Virginia and cousin SassyFrassy, then the birthday party for cashmere sock boy on Wednesday (including seeing The Gourds at Mercy Lounge!).

Thursday night was another great birthday party - for my big brother. Mom cooked a great meal, topped off with key lime pie and hummingbird cake. I got the award for the best card - it was one of those musical cards that played "Play That Funky Music". Big bro and the nephews rocked out and were shakin' their booties all night.


I think I'm still full from last night. Finally, tonight I'm doing nothing. And it's so nice! After such a dreary day, I picked up some Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in the color Happy Valley to brighten my spirits. I'm a sucker for that 10-minutes-before-closing-I'm-in-a-bad-mood impulse buy. That's the best and worst part of working in a yarn store. The discount is amazing, but I spend so much more money because the discount can justify anything.

AAAAAH! I've been tagged!

A certain friend was giving me hell for not posting lately (sorry) so she tagged me for a meme.

Here goes:

The rules:

1) Link to your tagger and post these rules on your blog.
2) Share 7 facts about yourself on your blog, some random, some weird.
3) Tag 7 people at the end of your post by leaving their names as well as links to their blogs.
4) Let them know they are tagged by leaving a comment on their blog.

I was tagged by my favorite PhD candidate, the 6 Speed Knitter.

1 - I'm terrified of slugs. One dark night, while walking barefoot, I stepped on a slug and it squished between my toes. The most disgusting feeling ever. Eeeeeeewwwwwww! It took a very long time to scrub the slugginess off. I've hated those darn things ever since.

2 - Heard of the Bell Witch? I'm a descendant of the Bell family, who were apparently tortured (and one was murdered) by the Bell Witch in West Tennessee. She's supposed to come back every 108 years or so and torture their descendants, but I'm not too worried.

3 - Last night on 20/20 there was a story about an artist who scratched her skin with knitting needles and the design would raise up and stay there for about 30 minutes. My skin does that too. See:


I did that on my arm at work today to prove to Abby that it would actually stay. If I've gotten a little sun, I can press down on my stomach and leave a handprint for a good 5 minutes.

4 - I have amnesia. 2 weeks after 8th grade graduation, I was hit by a car while riding my bike. (No, I was not wearing a helmet, so let this be a lesson to everyone else.) It was a hit-and-run, and I had a major concussion. I don't remember anything in the 2 weeks leading up to the accident, and my first memory is coming home from the hospital and watching Funny Farm on tv. Chevy Chase is so funny!

5 - My mom's dad was a cattle farmer. He was a bad-ass, and an industry leader. Dad's third cousins are the Perdue Chicken people. And I eat neither beef nor chicken (not for political reasons or anything like that, I just don't like the taste). I do gobble up a lot of turkey and seafood though, but don't think I'm related to any turkey farmers or fisherman. I am going fishing tomorrow, does that count for anything?

It's getting difficult to come up with things. Hmmmm.... I called my good dear friend to come up with more random and weird things about me and we realized that everything about me is random and weird.

6 - My pets live freakishly long lives. I got a dog, Hosie (her name is a whole different random and weird story), on her first birthday, and she lived to be almost 19 years old. I got a Betta fish, named Buju Banton, and he lived 6 years. My sister's cat, Angel, lived to be almost 20. I sure hope that by writing this I'm not jinxing Just Fish. I've become quite attached to the little guy.

7 - I DESPISE pretzels and have never met anyone else who shares my hatred. They just taste so bad! I don't know how everyone else eats them. People tell me that the big soft kind are a lot better, but no, they're gross too. It's like licking a pile of yeast covered in seawater.

That took longer than expected! Back when Flava Flav was cool the first time, my brother gave me the nickname "Flav Random" because he thought I was really random and weird. He still does, but he's just as random and weird as I am.

And scratch what I said in #5 about going fishing tomorrow. Plans are changing - I think I'm going to some horse race instead. Either way, it'll be nice to go on a little day trip and get out of NashVegas for a few hours.

I promise to post some knitting in the next couple days. Mom's clapotis is done, but I want to weave in ends and block it before I take pictures. I'm starting 2 projects tonight - one is a sexy little number for me, and the other is an ambitious gift.

I'm making a pair of cashmere socks on size 00 needles and have 11 days to finish them. How is it that I finish mom's mother's day gift 2 months early, and leave myself 11 days to knit a pair of socks for someone with 17" calves? At least they're not knee socks, but it's still going to be a race to the finish. I've got some travel time to knit tomorrow, but I'll be with the recipient of the socks so they can't come. I swatched some last night, and it looks like the socks will start off with around 100 stitches, then decrease to about 82 by the time I get to the ankle. The yarn is Jade Sapphire's 2-ply cashmere, and I'm using 3 strands of Lacey Lamb for the cuff, heel, and toe. The 00's are easier to knit with than I expected, and the cashmere is so soft that you don't want to stop knitting. They go even faster if I knit them at the same time, and I figure with a strong start, if both heels are turned by Thursday night then everything will work out just fine.

Have a safe weekend everyone, and try not to drink too much green beer!

Spoiled Rotten

I left work early yesterday to go on a mini-getaway to Monteagle. We stayed in the same place as last fall. While the trees aren't as pretty in the winter, it was still a blast and quite beautiful.

I'm teaching another sock class, so it's another excuse to make a sock. This one is out of Flat Feet, an interesting way of packaging sock yarn. The store should get a shipment in March. I'm almost done with the leg, and knitted a few inches in the car on the way.



As we were pulling up to the house, we almost ran over a deer.


His friends were not far away.


After a little hike, we ran across a waterfall and I took a bunch of pictures.



The view from the porch hasn't changed much - this was after it rained all day.


While it was pouring outside, we stayed in and watched tv. I turned the heel on the vacation socks from New Year's. The colors are matching up so well.


I feel like this post has been a really bad version of a 3rd grader's "What I did on vacation" report. I really should blog when I'm a little more awake and have a little more energy.

Knitting Update, with Pictures!

The Clapotis is done! It was pretty wide after blocking, but has shrunk up a little from wear. It's soft, gorgeous, and makes me feel like a million bucks. Just what the doctor ordered. I LOVED working with Schaefer's Lola - it's a superwash wool that's perfect for winter socks - it knits up to 6-7 sts per inch, so they're not like your usual fingering weight socks. I think I need new socks now.


Speaking of socks, this took me about 4 hours yesterday. I ran home and grabbed an extra circular and tapestry needle and wove in my ends, joined the hem, and knitted just a little bit, but had to put this one down for a break.


So I picked up the Tangled Yoke Cardigan. This is my second sleeve, and after this I get to join the front/back and sleeves and start the yoke. That's the super cool part of this pattern, and I'm so excited to see how it goes. This is my first Eunny Jang pattern, from the Fall 07 Interweave Knits, and I'll work on this today while I wait for the winter issue to come in the mail.


These are my dragon socks. It's Colinette's Jitterbug, in the color Toscana, and they're my first toe-up. I started them a while back and took a break and then lost them. Turns out they were in my t-shirt drawer shoved in the back with those shirts that I never wear anymore but can't quite get rid of. I've always loved the Dragon Skin pattern from Barbara Walker's Second Treasury of Knitting Patterns, and the stitch count was perfect. The picture is a little fuzzy, but these socks are awesome and I can't wait to do the heel.


Before I started the Jitterbug socks, these were my dragon socks. It's the Pomatomus sock pattern from Knitty and I am so freaking proud of these socks because it's a crazy pattern done in twisted rib. The yarn is beautiful - my first ever Koigu project. They were so pretty that I ordered 2 more colorways and they're sitting in my stash because I am supremely pissed at this yarn.

I've worn these socks 3 times. I blocked them well and have hand washed them, 3 times, in my sink in the perfect temperature water with the best fiber washes out there, and they look like crap. It's hard to tell from the bad picture, but they're pilled and fuzzy and the pattern is already getting lost. It's not like I'm running marathons in these socks or running around without shoes on sharp gravel. I take very good care of them and they have let me down.

I expect some pilling and wear from my handknit items, but I have 2-year-old socks out of crappy yarns that look a whole lot better than these.

Koigu is so pretty and everyone loves it, and I love the colors. I've talked to a bunch of people who have used Koigu and while a few have had similar issues, most people say it holds up well. I'm asking you, is this just a bum skein or should I expect this from the yarn in my stash?

I loved the Pomatomus pattern so much that I'm getting some new yarn to make them again so I can wear them all the time.

It's time to go see the nephews and do some laundry. I'm also super duper excited about a little errand today - I'm going to the new Whole Foods in Green Hills! Mom went on opening day and went on about how cool it is, and I'm one of those crazies who LOVES grocery shopping.