Happy feet!

It’s been a while coming, but I have something off the needles again at long last. The anniversary socks are finally finished!
They got put down for several weeks, while I was occupied doing my most recent show, as well as reading more, but I took them on holiday with me and with the time to concentrate on it,  I managed to make a start on the heel. When I got back I knew I needed to get the heels finished, or I’d lose my place in the pattern and I’d have to rip back. Once the heels were done, I had the momentum to get them finished.

I procrastinated a little over the bind off, but went with what was in the Earlybird sock pattern; Jeny’s Surprisingly Stretchy Bind Off. I actually ran out of yarn on one sock, but had plenty left on the other, so I did a russian join using the end of the other ball and had enough to finish. It meant there’s a bit of a sharp colour change just at the end on one of them, but I don’t think it looks too bad, and won’t be seen much as trousers will cover the top anyway.

They’re a little longer than I expected, and a little shorter than I’d like, but they’re a good fit and quite comfortable to wear.

It was my first time using real sock yarn. I love the colour changes. I think doing two at a time using magic loop is the right way to do it, as I know I’d suffer badly from second sock syndrome if I tried knitting them separately. Toe-up was great as I could use every last bit of my yarn without panicking about running out or wasting lots. I liked the heel flap construction – it made sense and gives a nice fit, although I did end up with a teeny tiny hole in the corner, which I guess is just about experience with where to pick stitches up from. I’d go down a needle size in future as the fabric is a little looser than I’d like, but all in all, happy feet!

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A yarn crisis

I’ve finally finished knitting the sleeves of the never-ending cardigan – wow, that’s a lot of stockinette! After finishing my sister’s gloves, I was determined to finish the cardigan before casting on anything. Yes, I know I’ve said *that* before! Casting off both sleeves is certainly a step in the right direction, only now I’ve hit a snag. I’m out of yarn. I only have the button band to go, so it hardly seems worth buying another whole 400g ball. So, do any of you lovely readers just happen to have a little leftover floating about in your stash, waiting for a home? It’s Stylecraft Special Aran with Wool in shade 3351 Blue Heather, Dye lot 47745.

On another note, I don’t think I’ll ever go back to using straight needles again, unless there is a very specific reason to. (Is there?) Give me my Knitpros any day. The straights are just so awkward and ungainly, especially with the weight of two sleeves hanging from them.

Cast off!

Woohoo! I’ve cast off the back panel of my cardigan! This is my first ever real knitting project – I’ve not even made so much as a scarf before – so I’m really quite excited and pleased with my achievement. Now I need to take the final step and cut the yarn, which always feels like the point of no return, as up til now I’ve always had the option of frogging everything and starting something different. But the panel looks like it’s the right shape according to the diagrams and I’m pretty sure I’ve followed all the instructions and dimensions as closely as possible, so I think it’s good to go.

The next job will be to block it, which is another new venture for me. I bought some of those interlocking foam mats the other day, specifically to use as blocking mats, though they’ve already been purloined by my boys for their own amusement. Not that I object too much to that – they are designed for kids to play on after all – I just hope I can steal them back for long enough to get the blocking done.