Tag Archives: finished object

May update

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May marked my 11th year of blogging. It just seems like yesterday when I published my first post. I need to do some housekeeping and clean up some of the headings and pictures.

Well, the Bamboo socks are finished. I l-o-v-e them.

These are my first ever toe-up socks. I started to knit a different pattern and after the first several rows, I realized that I didn’t like it so chucked that pattern and found this bamboo sock that was also a toe-up sock.

There are pros and cons to toe-up vs. top-down socks.

Toe-up Pros: No picking up stitches at the gusset.

Toe-up Cons: Starting the toe. Loosely binding off. Plus it is new to me.

Top-down Pros: Easy to cast on. Familiar to me

Top-down Cons: Picking up stitches for the gusset. Kitchener stitch for the toes.

I’m not sold on the toe-up construction but I’m willing to give it another try. The cast-on for the toe was a killer so if you have any suggestions or techniques to help, please feel free to leave them in the comments.

Details: Needle size US #1. Used 68 grams of hand-dyed yarn. Bamboo Sock pattern.

Since my sock needles were empty, I decided to knit a pair of shorties with some ribbing around the arch. I have a pair of commercial socks with ribbing around the foot. They really support the arch and make my feet feel good.

I’m making this up as I go so once finished, I’ll decide whether or not to knit the second one or rip out this one.I’m carrying the pink up the ribbing section so I can rejoin that color for the rest of the sock.

The last update for May (and I don’t remember if I did this in May or April) is a sewing project. Our front porch furniture needed new cushion covers. I made these covers in 2014 and the fabric faded and just would’t get clean. The print was large and busy.

I tried to order some new fabric in June of 2020 but with all the craziness happening in the world, my order was cancelled in August and wasn’t available anymore. Mr. Aitch suggested a solid red. I like the color but the fabric is slippery and was very difficult to sew. However, I think it will hold the color and clean up well. And the hummingbirds like the color, too.

Oh, one more thing… Brood X cicadas arrived about 10 days ago. We’ll be listening to their lovely (?) mating song for about another month. Then we won’t see nor hear them again for 17 years. This one is sitting on my giant-leaf hosta and is about 1.5 inches long with red eyes.

More next week…

Patti

Curling mist

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Helen Stewart’s Handmade Sock Society season 4 got underway earlier this month.  The first sock pattern, Curling Mist, was a joy to knit with an all-around texture.

(c) Helen Stewart

Knit Picks Hawthorne Multi yarn in the Cully colorway (color discontinued) is a soft green with hints of blue.yarn colorwayI pretty much followed the pattern except for the heel flap.  I have two favorite patterns that I like to use: the Slip-stitch heel flap and the Eye of Partridge heel flap.  I decided on the slip-stitch one as it would flow better from the ribbed pattern into the heel flap.

Helen suggested in her pattern to reverse the cabling from leaning to the right to the left for the second sock so they would be mirror images.  So I did that as well.

The socks fit my feet perfectly.

Isn’t it funny that you can look and look and look at something and not see a missed stitch until you have a picture of it?

And with that missed cable crossing (oops) I will keep these for myself.

Do you have works-in-progress or finished anything lately?

Patti

No-go mojo and a sneak peek

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Even though my knitting mojo was a no-go for a few weeks, I did manage some relatively mindless knitting making more scrubbies.I love the top one but dealing with two balls of this scratchy yarn in one row was too much for my hands.  All were made with Red Heart Sparkle Scrubby yarn.

So all the others were two or three color blocks.  Much more interesting than a solid color.  They do hold up well and the best part is they dry quickly.

Craftsy was hosting a week-long series of Valentine crafts and I decided to make a heart-shaped scrubbie.  The pattern is free but you might have to sign up to get it.

My mods were to stop increasing after 36 stitches (34 rows), straight knitting for 10 rows then follow the instructions for the decreases.  It is just too cute for dishes!

I also signed up for the fourth season on The Handmade Sock Society and already have the first sock started.  More on that later this week.

While waiting for the first sock pattern, I decided to sort through all my yarn stash for something suitable.  I found some DK weight yarn leftover from the cowl I knit for my grandson that was enough for the Twist Again Shawl from the Deep Fall 2014 issue of Knitty.

Here’s a sneak peek of the finished shawl.

How is your crafting coming along so far this year?

Patti

Mask holder

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This idea is not mine but I’m so happy that someone else came up with it and is offering the FREE pattern.  Lorraine of ikatbag.com fame designed this wonderful Airplane Bag pattern for a bag for airline travel. She has some incredible patterns on her website, some free and some for sale.  Her instructions are great, too!  Granted, I did not follow the instructions as written but adapted her pattern for my own use.  I do plan on making a few of these for family members if and when they decide to fly again. Did I mention the pattern is FREE?!

My bag is a simple version with no extra pockets, secure tie, carabiner slots, or magnetic snap closure.

I used a sturdy cotton fabric (in my fabric stash for 30-35 years!) for the exterior, satiny smooth fabric for the interior, grosgrain ribbon for the hanging loops, and leftover plastic cord from my upholstery projects.  Plus two magnetic hooks to attach the bag to the metal door.face mask holder

The plastic cording used in welting on cushions is pliable but stiff enough to keep the bag open whether full or empty.

The bag is the perfect size for our collection of face masks.

We keep it attached to the metal door that leads out into our garage so we can grab a face mask when we go out the door.

I never thought I’d ask this but where do you keep your face masks?Patti