Monday, July 04, 2011

Socks IMO A Dear Friend


First, Happy 4th of July to all--watching the fireworks displays in Washington, DC and New York City tonight makes me feel very patriotic. http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
But on to knitting. Sorry it's been so long since I've posted--we've had a lot of big occasions in our household, most notably my DD's graduation from high school. So while the knitting (particularly her college afghan) has gone on, the blogging has taken a back seat. http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Prior to the holiday weekend I finished the socks I have been knitting for quite some time--in between projects--from the “Egg-Stra” Special Sock Kit by Skacel; all proceeds went to Ovarian Cancer research, and I wanted to support this cause in memory of my dear friend who passed away from a form of this disease. However, the pattern looked a bit too complicated. I decided “On http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifHold”, from Wendy Johnson's "Socks from the Toe Up," was also a fitting pattern to honor Mimi’s memory, as she did hold on for so long, fighting as hard as she could.
I learned a lot while making these socks, including more experience at toe-up socks (although I just couldn’t get Wendy’s short-row heel, and ended up going back to my old stand-by, Sensational Knitted Socks, and used an Eye of Partridge heel). The kit had come with beads, and I worked them into this pattern in a pretty design. I also tried the dental-floss-threader method of adding the beads, and I think I like it much better than the crochet hook method. Good to know both ways.
Finally, I used the sewn bind-off to ensure stretchiness at the cuff. Very pleased with these socks.
Immediately cast on Cauchy, from Cookie A's Sock Innovation, for my DH, using the very pretty, but very thin, Swanky Sock BFL Yarn in Navy Blue from Evermore Studios. We'll see how I do with an 80-stitch sock (at a gauge of 9 stitches/inch)!

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