I browsed around the store for a little while and eventually decided to get a ball of Plymouth Sweet Caroline, a 100% cotton, worsted-weight yarn. Three strands are solid-coloured, and the fourth is variegated in the standard baby colours. It was a tossup between a colourway that was mostly pink with the one variegated strand, or the white one that I got. I went with white because I don’t know if Michael’s sister is a fan of baby-pink! The yarn came with a free pattern for this lacy Baby Bunny Hat, perfect for a little girl to wear in the springtime.

The pattern is written for the hat to be knit flat and seamed, but I decided to knit it in the round. The WS rows are only purling back with no lace, so I figured it wouldn’t be too difficult.

“Cast on 101 stitches,” the pattern said. I got out my DPNs and measured out a length of yarn for my usual long-tail cast-on, very carefully counted out 100 stitches, and knit a full round before I realized that I’d forgotten to add stitch #26 to the fourth needle. Rip, rip.

I cast on again, 101 stitches this time, and knit a full round before I realized that the first row of the edging is actually the wrong side of the work, and when the pattern said “knit” I should have purled because I’m working in the round instead of flat. Hooray for reading comprehension! …so I cheated. I turned the work inside out. Voila, a purl round! Then I worked back the other way, and I used the tail from the cast-on to fill in the little hole that was left.

This might be the least terrible cotton yarn I’ve ever worked with. I never find cotton to be as nice on the hands as wool, but I knit the edging and a full pattern repeat last night and my hands aren’t complaining. In addition, the yarn is theoretically machine-washable (excellent for baby clothing!), but the label had no care instructions. Cold-cold? Delicate cycle? I want to include a little tag with the gift, but I don’t know what to write on it!

And now, on center stage, the Knitting Pirate is pleased to present, in their debut appearance… HANDSPUN SOCKS!

410 yards of two-ply yarn, spun from 4.4 ounces of BFL from FreckleFaceFibers on Etsy, became this pair of toe-up, short-row-heel, socks for myself! I started them in the end of July, 2009, when Janis and I challenged each other not to just spin yarn, but to actually knit with it, too. We both decided on socks. I decided to go with toe-up, because I didn’t know how far the yarn would go, but I knew I wanted to get as much out of it as I could. I used Wendy’s Generic Toe-Up Sock Pattern, substituting a figure-eight toe.

One of the neat things about toe-up socks is that there’s really no need for a gauge swatch; you can just use the toe as a swatch. The yarn seemed thinner than most commercial sock yarns I’ve knit with, so I decided to use size 0 needles. I started with my usual sixteen-loop toe, knit until I thought it fit my foot, realized that it was too large, and horrified my audience by nonchalantly ripping it out and starting over. “But you’ve knit so much already!” they said. “Isn’t it frustrating to have to begin again?” I explained that I’d rather lose an hour or so of knitting, than put in the time it takes to knit the entire pair and end up with socks that don’t fit. It’s possible that my horrified audience didn’t entirely understand.

(Lesson learned: When using a toe-up toe as a swatch, work the increases only to the point where the toe fits over your first four toes. You can leave the pinky out, it’s okay. She won’t mind, because in the end the socks will fit much, much more snugly around your foot.)

The socks do fit perfectly, thank goodness. They are a little tight to get on, but once I have them in place they fit me like, well, like socks. No bagging around the ankles, no sagging around the legs, and no extra material around the foot. I hope they wear as well as they fit!

I’ve been taking naproxen and sleeping with wrist braces on… but hopefully I’ll be able to get a few stitches in here and there.

I don’t have a picture of the scarf, but I do have this picture of the nieceling wearing the Bunny Sweater that Mom knit for her! The bunny is still missing a pompom tail, but that’s all right. And now that Mom’s done knitting the kid-size sweater, she’s thinking of knitting one for herself. Does anyone have any suggestions for a structured cardigan or coat that might work? Something suitable for office-wear?

Then Mom totally made my day by asking for a pair of socks to wear with blue jeans, although in the past she’s said that she wasn’t interested in them as she tends to wear very thin nylon socks. But the gloves I made her, and the scarf from her friend, are working to change her mind. Not to mention Pirate-Husband, who chimed in to say that he’d been skeptical about handknit socks until he got a pair, and now he is all about the socks. I would be thrilled to make socks for my mom! I just need a few measurements, I told her, and then I will surprise her with when she gets the finished pair. This is going to be fun! Hey Mom, do you want plain socks? Stripey socks? Socks with a fancy stitch pattern?

But no.

Firstly, I hate knitting to deadlines. I get all stressed about it and the rest of my life suffers while I commit myself to doing nothing but knitting in all of my spare time. Sure, sometimes that happens – like last year, when I finished a baby blanket the night before going to meet the new baby. Given how grumpy I got doing that, I’m not going to sign myself up for doing it on purpose.

And secondly, whenever I knit to deadlines, I have a tendonitis flare-up in my arms and then I have to take a break from everything for a couple of weeks.

I will be cheering you on from the sidelines, you crazy knitters who are going for gold medals. You make it look so easy, and your work is all so beautiful! And of course, I will be watching the Olympic athletes in Vancouver. Figure skating has always been my favourite of the winter events; I wanted to be a figure skater when I was a little kid, and part of me still holds on to that dream. They make it look so easy, especially in pairs skating where he seems to effortlessly lift her above his head, gliding around the rink holding her up with just one hand.

Here’s to all of us – the knitters, the athletes, the participants and the cheerers-on – here’s to the best in all of us, however we may express it.

Our first stop was Wool N’ Things in Orleans, where I was thrilled to find some of the discontinued Jo Sharp Silkroad DK Tweed, the same yarn that I used to knit my Fleep-Tops. I picked up two skeins in Cedar, a gorgeous dark green with red and yellow flecks. They’ll probably become another pair of Fleeps, as backup for when my first pair inevitably wears out. The green totally doesn’t match my dark blue winter coat, but it’s time for a new coat anyway. Perhaps something in green, or preferably black. Black goes with everything.

Then we headed over to Yarn Forward in Ottawa proper, where I bought two skeins of this super-soft (and superwash!) Lang Merino DK in a gray so dark it’s almost black. My first thought was that it might make a pair of Fleeps for Michael, but he wanted something thicker and tweedier, so I’m going to use it for a pair of classy office armwarmers for myself and pick up some Rowan Felted Tweed in as black as it comes for him. Not that I mind being able to use this pettably soft stuff for myself, not at all! I am thinking about making something like these Cafe au Lait Mitts from SnapperKnits, or perhaps I will come up with my own pattern for them.

I did have a disappointment this year: My old Stellar Toque, now over four years old, may be nearing retirement. It’s gotten stretched out and too large, and lets the wind through to my ears. I am thinking that before next Winterlude, I will knit a colourwork hat with earflaps and line it with fleece. We saw many of them in the Byward Market when we were there for the Stew Cook-Off on Friday, and I was seriously tempted to buy one – but why buy what I can knit? Pirate-Husband suggested that I could salvage the Stellar Toque by knitting earflaps onto it and lining it with fleece, instead of making a whole new hat. I could also felt it a little to shrink it and make it more windproof.

In preparation, I cast on last night for the second of the Sibling Socks, an easy project to bring along that not only won’t take up too much space, but also won’t be too hard to work on while drinking beer and playing games. I haven’t traveled by train since I was in college, and I’m not sure if I’ll be able to knit without getting motion-sickness. I’m going to give it a try!

Here’s something that you might find hard to believe: I turned down a trip to WEBS. One of the potential routes to Canada puts us in the neighborhood of America’s Yarn Store, and I actually said “let’s not go this year.” We’ve stopped at WEBS for the past few years, so I feel as though I’ve accomplished my pilgrimage as a knitter. I really don’t need any impulse yarn, and I’m sure to buy some if we stop. And… we’re going to visit yarn stores in Ottawa. Not that the exchange rate is super-favorable to American dollars at the moment, but I’d rather see if I can pick up a souvenir from another country that I might not be able to get in the States.

This is my new favorite sock yarn. It’s smooth, yet squooshy. It got a little splitty around the SSKs, but so does most yarn, since working that stitch takes some of the twist out. The colors were evenly distributed without any garish pooling. There was a little bit of pooling over the gusset, which is expected, and a vague hint of spiraling down the foot.

It’s a simple pattern, but I am considering writing it up for publication anyway. Like the Highwayman Armwarmers, it would be a freebie. This time around I would use a Creative Commons license, most likely Attribution-Noncommercial-Share Alike – in other words, you can distribute the pattern as long as I get credit; you can’t sell the pattern itself but you can sell the items you knit from it; and you can make changes and distribute them under the same license. I’m a big supporter of Creative Commons licensing; why keep something to myself if there’s no good reason to do so?

(Speaking of the Highwayman Armwarmers, one of my readers was kind enough to inform me of a typo in the pattern. It’s been corrected and a new version has been uploaded, both here and on Ravelry.)

The reason for wanting the heel turned Tuesday is that on Wednesday, I was finally able to rejoin my old crowd, the Reston Stitch ‘n Bitch, for their third anniversary celebration. We had about 40 knitters (and crocheters, and embroiderers) there and it was a wonderful time! I can’t say that I got too much knitting done, but at least it was all stockinette and I don’t have to worry too much about messing that up. We meet at Cosi, which was as warm and welcoming as I remembered. Our group takes up the entire back of the restaurant! Towards the end of the evening, our organizer Marie organized cheesecake for everyone.

I think I am going to have to make more of an effort to get back there on some Wednesdays. Maybe not every week, since I do have to stay late at work in order to get to Reston at the right time… but some weeks. Yeah. I miss everyone. It was awesome to go back.

Back at home, I measured and was happy to conclude that the foot was still about an inch short. I worked on it while watching the Vikings/Saints game, and then on Monday evening I settled in to knit the short-row heel. Well, I got about eight or ten rows in and something went wrong. I couldn’t tell what – perhaps I forgot to wrap one of the stitches, or maybe I forgot how to count as I knit. Either way, I was tired so I decided not to stress over it; I put it down and went to bed. I’ll fix it up this evening.

On the spinning front, this lovely fiber from LakeHouse Loft was my birthday present to myself. It’s six ounces of Corriedale in randomly-patterned colors, and I’m not yet sure how I’m going to spin it. I could do a three-ply sock yarn, or a slightly heavier weight for a matching hat and fleep-top set. Most of my queue is hats and socks, with the occasional scarf or dishcloth in there as well. What can I say – I like socks!

And I’ve made plans to go back to my old SnB next week for their anniversary celebration. I was there at the beginning; I would love to revisit everyone for an evening and catch up again. Besides, if I don’t spend the whole night talking, I’m sure I’ll make lots of progress on whatever project I bring.

In non-knitting domesticity, Pirate-Husband and I have been using the stand mixer to make lots of bread. The more loaves we make, the better they get! The latest was an oatmeal-raisin breakfast bread. We brought a loaf to my parents’ on Sunday, and they loved it. Last night we tried a recipe that could be used as a sandwich bread for cold cuts, with half white and half whole wheat flour. It was still in the oven when I went to bed, so I didn’t get any – but Pirate-Husband emailed to tell me that it’s “a semi-wheaty sandwich bread. Slightly chewy, soft, but it holds together well. The crust is perfect, it could be store-bought.” Hooray!

…while at my parents’ house celebrating my birthday! We were there for both lunch and dinner, and also mid-day snacks. Mom and I talked a bit about her next project; it may be a sweater for herself! Her shawl is all fixed up and now she just needs a fancy event at which to wear it. It was a lovely day, except for

…the Cowboys losing. Well, at least they got into the playoffs this year. But man, it was like they just threw away that game. I thought Minnesota would win, but I didn’t expect it to be such a blowout.

…the second of Michael’s socks is past the gusset decreases and on into the foot. I still think that Cascade Heritage is my new favorite sock yarn; maybe that’s why the sock is going so quickly! I’m bringing it with me today to knitter-friend Veronica’s house, where I expect to make a little more progress while I catch up with the women from my old SnB.

…gin & tonic with cucumber is surprisingly good. I usually like lime. Put a thin slice of cucumber, skin and all, into the drink. Let it soak in for a few minutes; it gets better the longer it sits. At the end, it will be the best piece of cucumber you’ve ever eaten!

“Thank you, I made them myself!” said I, and demonstrated how they fleeped. “I figure that no matter what you’re doing, you really only need three fingertips, right?”

He looked impressed and said “You have the best of both worlds with those!” Had it been a longer elevator ride, he might have asked me to make him a pair. As it was, we got down to the lobby, I grinned and wished him a nice day, and we went in opposite directions.

Totally made my day, I tell you.

Now that I’ve cleaned up the house and showered, I’m wearing another pair of the handknits, and my toes are warm and cozy. Having a roaring fire helps with that, too.

Michael tried on the socks that I’m knitting for him, and they fit! Hooray! I admit to being really relieved. I had nearly convinced myself that they’d be too small, but now I am no longer worried and can finish them with confidence.

Here’s to a wonderful, happy, healthy, productive, 2010 for all of us! Happy New Year!

Pomatomus are the most complex socks I’ve ever knitted. Although they’re rated as difficult, I found that the stitch pattern made a lot of sense and was actually quite easy to follow once I got the hang of it. On the other hand, they’re definitely not a mindless sock that I’d feel comfortable knitting on without the pattern in front of me, checking off rounds as I finish them. I love them, but unlike some other patterns (*cough*Jaywalker*cough*) I’m not tempted to knit another pair. Pomatomus were my introduction to Cookie A.’s designs; this free pattern came from the Winter 2005 Knitty.

I wear my Fleep-Tops more than any other piece of knitting I’ve finished, I think. They are amazingly warm and incredibly comfortable, and not quite like anything I’ve ever seen in a store. I used a combination of Knitty’s Cigar pattern and Sarkasmo’s Gnomittens, with added miniature fleep-top thumb caps. They were a good quick project, finished in only a month. It’s unfortunate that the yarn is discontinued; I would love to make a backup pair, or perhaps some as gifts for people I especially like. Perhaps some medium- or heavyweight Socks that Rock from Blue Moon Fiber Arts would be a good substitution.

The thoroughly misnamed Quick Toe Up Socks weren’t quick at all, not after I found a knot in the first skein of yarn and had to do some serious futzing to make the stripes line up from one sock to the other. I used Wendy Johnson’s Generic Toe-Up Sock Pattern, substituting a figure-eight toe, and made the sock 64 stitches around. It pleases me that they match so perfectly, even if I had to be ridiculously perfectionist about getting them that way! I like when my striped socks match up, especially wide stripes.

While it wasn’t knitting, I did do an overhaul of this site in 2009 to change the look and feel, and I added a Twitter account. I bought a new spinning wheel, a Kromski Sonata in walnut, on which I spun several skeins of yarn, including this BFL two-ply which is rapidly becoming my first pair of handspun socks. I’m considering selling the Ashford Traditional; while I love the way it looks, it doesn’t fit me quite right and I don’t spin on it. Perhaps I’ll give it one last try before I make a decision. Pirate-Husband says that it matches the house, and if I want to keep it around as a decoration, he’d be fine with that… but I think it’s sad to have a working wheel that isn’t ever used.

Also in 2009: I read 26 books, which took up some knitting time, and I finally learned to drive a car with a manual transmission so that I could trade in my old beat-up Cutlass for a new shiny Mazda3.

I am excited about 2010! I have plans to finish up the projects on my needles and start some new ones, to publish a design or two, and to improve my spinning skills. My parents bought a KitchenAid stand mixer for Pirate-Husband and me for our combined birthday and Chanukah gifts, so there will be fresh bread to go along with the yarn. Things just keep getting better and better!

This is what I have learned about socks this year:

• With standard sock yarn, I should make a 64-stitch stockinette-footed sock for myself.
• I might consider 68 stitches if I want ribbing down the foot.
• The socks aren’t too small. Really. Unless they are, in which case
• It’s so easy to rip back and fix mistakes.
• If I make the sock leg six inches long, there should be enough yarn left over for the foot.
• Heel-flap-and-gusset socks fit better than short row heel socks.
• Short row heel socks are acceptable, though.
• I need to learn to do a heel flap and gusset sock from the toe up.
• Here is a conveniently free pattern from Wendy for just that.
• I like to knit socks for the people I love best.
• Handknit socks are so much better than store-bought, but toe socks from Sock Dreams are a close second.

In the coming year I’d like to try new sock architectures – the Hat-Heel Sock looks interesting, and I have Cat Bordhi’s New Pathways for Sock Knitters book to work through as well. I have a half-ton of sock yarn and I’m not letting myself buy any more until I’ve used some up!

I have been thinking of the handspun socks as the “Perfectly Imperfect Socks.” There is something incredible about knitting with yarn that I spun myself – about being able to spin yarn that’s good enough to knit with – about watching the colors come together and knowing that there will never be another pair of socks like these. They’re mine, from beginning to end, and I am wonderfully proud of them. And of myself.

I hate to admit it, but I’d kinda like a second pair of these. I’ve seen some gorgeous knee-high versions that alternate white with the colors. What can I say, I’m a sucker for the stripes!

The Sibling Sock is stripey in a whole different way. Trekking XXL is a beautiful thin yarn which comes together in completely random stripes. This is a skein which Janis gave me as a gift a few years ago. The leg is a little short because I was paranoid of running out of yarn, but that’s all right; I’m sure the leftovers will be put to use somewhere. When the sock is done, I plan to write up the pattern for it in two sizes, and then publish it.

One of my goals for 2010 is to finish all the socks I have on the needles. Another is to publish at least two patterns. I have the first one nearly done and ready to go… but I don’t yet know what the second one will be.

When I picked up the gusset stitches, I picked up an extra two in each corner to eliminate the hole that so often forms there. But they were picked up into purl stitches, so I needed to figure out the purl equivalents for decreases. The opposite of K2tog is P2tog, but the opposite of SSK… is SSP, a complicated maneuver which begins in a similar way (slip two stitches knitwise, return them to the left needle) but then requires those two stitches to be purled together through the back loop. Fortunately there is only one of these stitches to be made per sock; I think I can deal with that.

Perhaps in a couple of years I’ll look back on this entry and laugh that I ever thought SSP was complicated.

The truth is, I think I will love these more if they are slightly imperfect. As a perfectionist, I’ve always been a hoarder of arts and craft supplies, and now of yarn – because as long as it’s still unused, it has great potential. If I use it up, it might not come out as well as I imagine it in my head. These socks are an attempt to conquer that terrible attitude. I was hesitant to spin the fiber into yarn because I didn’t want to mess it up, and then I was delaying knitting the yarn into socks because I didn’t want to mess it up. But I have one sock done and another on the way, and they’re coming out all right if not perfectly… and they are mine, my very first handspun socks, and no matter what they’re like when they’re done I will adore them.