I’m decluttering. Oh noes! It’s awful. At the moment it’s going like this:
- Open cupboard
- Realise how much there is to do
- Put small item in discarded Waitrose bag (because they are stronger and better quality)
- Wipe exposed inch of surface in desultory manner
- Make nice cup of tea
- Read Living Etc and feel despair rising within like an overyeasted loaf.
Well I have paused at stage 5 this time to come and do a quick blog post and show you my work in progress. Thanks as ever to
Tami for hosting WIP Wednesday, cheers Tami! And if you go and look at her
WIP Wednesday post you will find lots of bloggers with nice things to show you.
I myself am knitting a sock.
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| Admire those gusset decreases |
I know it doesn’t look very exciting. That is because this is a vanilla sock, which means it is plain and straight and has no cables, colourwork, lace patterns or anything. I am charmed that knitters have borrowed the term for boring socks from our friends in the bdsm community, because I love a bit of friendly linguistic swapping, and I feel we should give something back. Might I suggest that there are some technical knitting terms that would make really excellent
safe words? I’m thinking particularly ‘steek!’ or, ‘nupp!’, but you may prefer others.
I always knit socks the same way. This is because I am not very adventurous, but also because I see them as utility items and I know this way produces a good, serviceable sock that I will be comfortable ambling about in. Also I really love knitting with bamboo double pins, I find it excessively relaxing. (Odd? Moi?). These are knit on 2.5mm needles although I am wondering if I should have used 2.25 (wouldn't you think I'd write it down instead of trusting my memory?). I am using
Regia Kaffe Fassett yarn and I cast on with a knitting-on cast on:
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| I don't know how to do the old norwegian cast on, I am rubbish |
It doesn’t look tidy but it is very, very stretchy. I use this rather than a long-tail cast on basically because if I use a long-tail I have to look it up, and also I don’t like estimating how much yarn I am going to need. I may one day go wild and try a tubular cast on, though, who knows. If I knit on my socks every evening, I normally get a pair done in about a fortnight. I think they are possibly my favourite thing to knit: quickish, useful, cheap, and everyone thinks you are a magician to be able to turn a heel.
Where do you stand on the whole sock issue?
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15 comments:
I'm with you on the old comfy non exotic sock knitting. With regards to long tail cast on to estimate the amount of yarn you need, wrap the yarn round the needle 10 times and then multiply that length of yarn it by the number of stitches to cast on divided by 10. It really works.
I like plain old comfy socks too. But that's probably because I'm a beginner sock knitter. I do find myself admiring socks with interesting textures or patterns. So I guess I'm neither here nor there! I love this pair you're knitting. I think the colors deserve all the attention here they're lovely.
Socks are the reason I wanted to learn how to knit. I just bought needles to try it, first in a worsted, then in fingering weight. I hope to try it soon, once I get a little more advanced. I just want to make socks I can wear, nothing too fancy.
I go through phases on sock knitting. Sometimes I want to knit sockssockssockssocks and nothing but, other times I want nothing to do with them. Right now, I'm in a sock phase.
CraftyCripple, thank you! My next project after these socks specifies a long-tail cast on (bugger) so I will try that then.
Vinita, thank you! I love the colours too.
Tami, socks are actually dead easy - if you can knit in the round and pick up stitches you've pretty much got it. Worsted weight is a good plan to start with.
Mujercita, sockssockssockssocks indeed ;-).
I love the Kaffe Fasset colors. I have ventured into the sock world recently myself, and now you're inspiring me to cast for another sock.
Love the way your yarn stripes... not all the same width. And I'm with you too on comfy, serviceable socks. I'm wearing a pair I knitted up last year. Those gorgeous patterns with the fancy, textured stitches going down the foot would drive me nuts stuffed into a shoe.
Ooh! Pretty yarn. I've knit one pair of socks, pink and lacy. I loved doing it. Since then I've purchased eleventy billion or so skeins of sock yarn and am knitting mittens from worsted weight. I think I need to get back on the sock wagon!
Gawd. Decluttering. Do you know the Point of No Return, when you've pulled out so much stuff to "sort it out" that it looks like Phuket post-tsunami ... and then you get the sinking realisation that you have to keep going, no matter how hopeless it seems, because there's just no way back any more ... and seven hours later, you're finally finished but there is NO discernable difference to the untrained eye between your Pre- and Post-Cluttered house?
My approach to decluttering? Denial. It's not just a river in Egypt, you know!
I don't know where to start -- sympathy on the decluttering (I know the phases all too well), cheers of encouragement for the sock knitting (mmm, fun colors!), or to thank you for the vocabulary education (wow, wikipedia really does cover a wide range of topics).
PS - thanks for the Knitty spinning pattern link. I'm joyful to think I might actually be producing yarn I can knit with!
Love your decluttering strategy, especially #5. In terms of socks, I like to knit the plain vanilla types myself for everyday wear. The fancy lace/cables/nupps are reserved for special occasions when my feet needs a bit of sock lingerie. You can never go wrong with fun stripes like yours!
Aww, thank you everyone! I can highly recommend the Kaffe Fassett yarn, it's very cheerful ;-). I love when other people do nuppy/ lacy socks, I think I'm just not a quick enough knitter to make it worth it for me - if I do something elaborate I need to wear it on my head with a big sign attached saying, look what I did.
Decluttering. Gingerbread Lady, as ever, bang on, except, there is a difference, in that the inch of bare wall exposed looks scruffy and now I will have to paint. Painting = decluttering BUT WORSE. I see many cups of tea in the near future.
Oo, also, Marushka, I'm glad the knitty link was helpful!
I do think there's something especially hardcore about spinning. It links you to the Fates.
You know, I had never thought much about our use of "vanilla" until you pointed it out. *strokes jaw* very interesting . . .
I prefer to knit socks plain vanilla with a knitted cast-on with my Inox size 0 or 1 double points. Top-down.
I really like the colors in that yarn you are using.
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