Friday Knitting Blog (07/15/2011)

It's a week of FO's (Finished Objects). First up, socks. I finished these on Monday. 

Pattern: Short-Row Toe and Heel Basic Socks
Source: Socks From the Toe Up By Wendy Johnson
Yarn: Ty-Dy Socks in Cherry Cola

Project time: 11 days. 

I used a 2.25 mm needle for these and the YO method of short-row heels. There's an annoying little gap at the top of the heel, but I just checked Simple Socks Plain and Fancy out of the library to read up on the technique, and I think I can fix the problem on my next sock. The videos I watched didn't fully address the last couple of short rows, but the book does. 

This picture is just because I wanted to capture all the colors in the yarn. From further away, the tan tends to blend with the pale pink, but up close, the distinct colors are more clearly seen. 

These socks ended up in Amanda's sock drawer; she seemed to like them a lot and they fit her well, so I handed them over. 

And here is what I finished the knitting portion of last night. I need to buy some heavy-duty ribbon or something similar for handles (knitted ones would stretch too much) and sew them on, but I'll do that over the weekend.

Pattern: Everlasting Bagstopper
Source: Knitty Summer 2007 (free pattern)
Yarn: Two colors of Lily Sugar 'n Cream (an entire ball of Patio Pinks and about 1/3 to 1/2 of a super-size ball of white).
Project time (knitting) 3 days

This project calls for 2 needle sizes, a US 5 (3.75 mm) for the bottom and the top band and a US 10.5 (6.5 mm) for the mesh portion in the center. This was a quick knit and quite a bit of fun. I see more of these in the future due to the fun factor and the fact that the mesh is super stretchy and the bag can hold a lot of stuff. I've seen project pictures on Ravelry where people really load these things up to show what they can hold. 

Right now, I have nothing at all on the needles. That'll change after I finish work tonight, but until I decide what project is next (only 2 more weeks of yarn fast and then I can buy some more at Sock Summit), I don't know what the goal for the week is.