Carole edited the most recent issue of Yarnival – check it out, because there’s lots to read and think about!
For those tracking gas prices, that same Holiday gas station hit 1.879 this morning. Before you all start thinking about moving here, the current temperature is -5°F, with a windchill of -15°F. Brrr!
We had a few more inches of snow Sunday night.
A tiny drift even formed on one of my window ledges, causing Chaos to have to crane his neck to see outside.
“The conditions under which I must live! Shocking, isn’t it?” -C
A few weeks ago, the wonderful Deb gave me skein of Colinette Jitterbug sock yarn in bright charcoal. I was in such a hurry to get it rolled into a ball Friday that I forgot to take a picture of it in the skein – whoops. Anyway, sock attempt the first was a dismal failure – the stitch pattern (from Kristi’s very cool Gentleman’s Sock) just wasn’t right for how the colors played out in this yarn (but I will be using that stitch pattern for other socks). Plus my usual sock formula and 2.0mm needles didn’t work for this slightly heavier-than-fingering sock yarn. RIP!
I went up a needle size to 2.5mm, cast on fewer stitches, and tried a garter stitch rib (one round K2P2, one round knit). The stitch pattern worked, but the sock was way too big, the fabric too loose, and the pooling bad. RIP! (I was starting to feel a bit like Goldilocks at this point.)
Fortunately, I had some 2.25mm needles, and things were going great – the sock fit, the colors were spiraling instead of pooling, and all was rosiness and light. And then… The pooling again.
Here’s the sock from the top. See that nice light grey spiral starting where the stitch pattern starts? That made me happy.
I had trouble getting a good picture of the bottom of the sock, due to the *a-hem* assistance I received – but do you see the black blop on the bottom center of the sock? That’s pretty much just going straight up the bottom of the sock now – no spiraling at all.
“Do you see the problem there, May?” -C
“Wait, I’m not sure I… Oh, I do see it, big kitty!” -M
“What do you think, big kitty? Can this sock be saved? Or should Mom just give us the yarn to play with?” -M
In your dreams, Mayhem, in your dreams! Any ideas on how to force the sock to keep spiraling instead of pooling? I’m usually ok with pooling, but sometimes it just doesn’t work – and this is one of those times. (And I’m not sure I have it in me to rip out and start over again!)
