On schedule

Well. For a week that's been pretty darn busy with school (that's the closest school ever gets to 'boring' for me, admittedly), I've been very productive! In fact, as long as I manage to turn a sock heel by the end of the weekend, I will be right on schedule!

What schedule, you ask? My "knitted Christmas gifts" schedule. I have two pairs of socks to finish between now and Christmas, which is approximately 8 weeks away. I figured (when I started this plan) that if I could finish one sock every two weeks between now and then, I'll have everything made with a whole week to spare! However, between about the 7th and the 21st of November, I have crazy studying to do, so I figure I will almost definitely lose knitting time (I know, it's tragic) - which means that the "week to spare" will probably been needed.

It makes me a bit sad that all kinds of knitters out there make WAY more stuff than I do in a similar amount of time....but whatever. It's all about the process, right? ;o)

Without further delay, here's what I've been up to this week:



Brad's Mom's Christmas socks. These are the basic sock pattern from The Knitting Experience, Book Two: The Purl Stitch, by Sally Melville. The yarn is my very first ever experience with Koigu Painter's Palette Premium Merino, and I'm pretty sure I'm in love. Dishcloth cotton, my arse (see below) -- I AM MERINO!

I'm halfway through sock #1, which I had to quit working on in class the other day when I hit the point where the heel needed turning. I have no issue with knitting in class (as long as it doesn't distract me or anyone else), but I think it's a bit rude to haul out a book to look up the heel technique! Heels also require concentration, which I'm pretty sure would have interfered with my ability to learn about the various forms of memory (the topic of the presentation).

I'm also having a little teeny dilemma -- I'd really like to try short-row heels on these (I'm not nuts about flaps) but I can't find any good instructions on the net. Having never tried short-rows before, I'm a bit reluctant to just dive in and hope for the best. Does anyone know of a good tutorial?

Even more exciting than the socks...



Wee William's cardigan! I finally finished the neckband early in the week, and I sat down last night and seamed it all up. It's HARD to seam things that are made of out variegated yarn and avoid having the seam stitches show, because they often contrast with the pieces. I finally found a way, which I am currently calling the "Nikki Method" because I have no idea what it's really called. It looks good, though, if I do say so myself. ;o) (There's a picture below - sorry, I forgot to take a shot of the inside of the seam so you could seem it better. I'll try to remember when I post the "finished" picture!


Now all I need to do is add the buttons and block it. The button bands are seed stitch, not that you can tell because they're rolling so much. Never having blocked anything before, I'm actually a bit nervous about this. We'll see how it goes! I'm going to block his blankie at the same time - it'll be a Wee William block-a-thon!

Incidentally, the colours are more accurate in the first picture, which is why it's here even though there's a big ugly reflection.