NOTE: This is one of those link-heavy blogs; the knitting related ones are all Ravelry links.
First things first, I am not much of a gardener. I know that many knitters are also gardeners, but for the most part, I'm more of an indoor-activity kind of girl. That said, today was slow at work, and my boss asked for volunteers to take some PTO (paid time off). I had the hours available, and the urge to move about a bit, so I took her up on it.
So I gathered mom, and we went to the Olympia Farmer's Market because I needed plants for my front porch. I like to have some flowering annuals out there. Last year I had geraniums and some petunias. This year, I went for pansies. The plants were $1.25 each or $12 for 12, so I picked up an even dozen, got my hands a little dirty, and added some much needed color to my front porch.
One side of the door.
It's like the Pantone people can read my mind; I am in love with orange this year (I like mine a bit brighter, though).
Not to worry, I'm still a knitter, and Friday is knitting blog day, so here's what's been happening. Last Saturday I took the day off for Procession of the Species, one of my favorite local events. The parade started at 4:30 in the afternoon, and I had the whole day, so I knitted this hat. It's going to the Hats for Sailors Project that I've made hats for before.
Project Info:
Pattern: Man Thing (Free!)
Yarn: Stitch Nation by Debbie Stoller Washable Ewe (Inexpensive!) It's 100% superwash wool, the only requirement for this project group.
Colorway: Kitten (Gatito) per the label. (Yeah, it's grey.)
Needle sizes: US 7 (4.5 mm) and US 8 (5 mm).
Time: About 3 hours from casting on to weaving in the ends.
I gave the pattern a 4 star rating. It's easy to follow and makes a very nice hat, which to my eye is pretty masculine.
Then, as per my normal, I felt the urge for sock knitting. I took some yarn I bought a couple of years ago (sometimes yarn stash needs to marinate for a while to decide what it wants to be), and a pattern that's pretty popular on Ravelry and put them together. This is where I am so far.
Pattern: Hermione's Everyday Socks (Free!)
Yarn: flydesigns Flying Sock (about $25 a couple of years ago). It's 100% washable BFL (Blue Face Leicester, a breed of sheep) with a tight twist for socks. It has a lovely hand.
Colorway: Roses.
Needle: US1 (2.25 mm), and those are the Signature DPNs that I splurged on at Sock Summit last July. They are wonderful.
Yarn: flydesigns Flying Sock (about $25 a couple of years ago). It's 100% washable BFL (Blue Face Leicester, a breed of sheep) with a tight twist for socks. It has a lovely hand.
Colorway: Roses.
Needle: US1 (2.25 mm), and those are the Signature DPNs that I splurged on at Sock Summit last July. They are wonderful.
I started working on them Saturday evening, 04/28, and I'm about halfway down the leg of the first sock. I haven't been working on them every day (reading a lot the last few days). They're coming along pretty nicely.
So, that's what's been happening. And since it's still early in the day today, there's more knitting going to happen.
2 comments:
Hey Connie..
I just LOVE the colorway. I Googled the yarn and colorway, and it is still available. Only now it is $20 a hank instead of $22. I think it is the prettiest collection of pinks in hand-dyed yarn that I have seen in a long time. My niece would absolutely have a fit for something made from that colorway, so I will have to find something to make her that uses sock yarn. Being that she is only 3, it may take a while to come up with something suitable. I can't wait to see your socks. I always love your work. You are such a talented knitter. ;) Maybe one day, I will be in a similar league.
You picked a great pattern to go with that yarn - it works great with the color changes!
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