Socks, a Mug Rug, and Sacks!

I've finished the first 9 pairs of socks for the 26 Pair Plunge on Ravelry. The challenge is to finish 26 pairs of socks in a year, from 1 July 2011 -- 30 June 2012. You can include any socks you had in progress before July 1, as long as they're not completed until on or after July 1. So, as you may recall, I've been working on getting a headstart going on a number of pairs of socks.

here they are:












Then, I participated in a mug rug swap in the Quilters Knitting group on Ravelry. My partner should get her package tomorrow or Monday at the latest. I was late sending out her mug rug, so I also made her a project bag and a tote bag, in the hopes that at least she'll think the package was worth waiting for ;-)

Her mug rug:


The project bag I made her (with one of my projects in it for the picture):

And the tote bag:

Now to get back to sock knitting -- I'm participating in a challenge for the month of August, to finish as many pairs of socks as possible. I've got a lot of in-progress socks to choose from, so I'm taking the opportunity to be inspired by the challenge, and get some things finished.

Thanks for coming by to play. Come back again soon.

Not the best way to bring in the New Year

We've been dealing with a "stomach bug" at our house. It started the last couple days of last year, and followed us into this year. We're both feeling better now, but it's thrown a kink into how we'd intended to start the year off.

I haven't done any sewing in over a week, but I have been doing a bit of knitting. I got these socks started shortly after midnight on January first, and finished them last evening. They're my first finished socks for the Year of Stash Socks group on Ravelry.

As I was working on them, DH admired them, so I asked him if he'd like them. He said yes, so now they're his. He's really happy with them. And you may notice that the stripe sequences don't fall in the same place on each sock -- my preference is to let them fall where they may, because I enjoy the slight quirkiness of having matching but mismatched socks. In case you're curious, here's what the yarn looked like in the ball.

Today I'm hoping to finish up something that's been a UFO for far too long. I'll show that tomorrow, if I do finish it.

Thanks for stopping by to play. Come back again soon.

Year of Stash Socks -- January project yarns

My book for the one YOSS project came in yesterday's mail, so I was able to choose my yarn and wind it into a ball and take its picture. First is that yarn, for the project called Changeling. It's from Cherry Tree Hill, a yarn called Soft Twist. The colorway is one of their Potluck runs, and it's called "Awakening."





Next, for the project called St. Brigid's Carnamoyle Stockings, I'm using Lion Brand Wool-Ease in Wheat.





In my experience, Wool-Ease isn't great for socks, as it tends to get pilly. I suppose I could avoid some of that by hand washing the socks, but if I'm honest, I have to say I probably won't do that. The point of the YOSS is to use stash if you have it, and the good yarns I have of the appropriate weight for this project are earmarked for sweaters and such. So I'll use the Wool-Ease, and have the experience of making this pattern and learning what I can from it. If they don't last too long before they get pilly, I'll just enjoy them as long as I can, and then wear them around the house after that.


Finally, for the "plain vanilla" socks for January, I'm planning to use this yarn from Online. That's a funny company name, but that's what it says on the ball, big as can be. I can't tell if there's a color name on the band, because none of it's in English.




I think it'll work up into a pretty interesting pair of socks -- my DH has already expressed an interest in them, so I'll make them for him. He loves fun and quirky socks, which means he never fusses about my yarn stash, as long as I make him a pair of socks from time to time. Actually, he wouldn't fuss anyhow, because he's a great guy and understands about these obsessions that feed my soul.

I'm ready to cast on all three of these socks come January 1! Thanks for stopping by to check them out. Come on back any time.