Things I love for February

February has been a pretty busy month for me!

Remember the list I posted back in January?  I wanted to see how much progress I had made on it, so I took a look at it.

Here goes:

I took a class on Double Knitting this month.  This technique is awesome, and it challenges me to think in different ways, especially when reading a chart and knitting flat.  Here is some evidence of said class, I give you Puff the Double Dragon!

They are mirror images of each other, but they are knitted at the same time, and are actually one fabric.  Not blocked in this picture, which makes them look wonky, but I am quite pleased with the end result.  I made a small mistake, but opted to maintain sanity and not tink back to fix it.  I can see the error, but I didn't feel that it ruined the piece.  I guess I can cross double knitting off of my list!

I also toyed with dyeing wool this month.  It all started with a bargain book from Chapters.  For $5, how can you go wrong?  Spin - Dye - Stitch was on sale, and it is worth the $5 for me.  It is a very very basic book on spinning (wheel and drop spindle) but does have great pictures when it comes to how to ply and fix some common errors.  The back has a couple of easy knitting patterns that can include hand dyed and/or spun wool.  The most interesting part to me, however was the middle: the portion on how to dye yarn.  Several methods were explained, again with great pictures illustrating what needed to be done.  And so, off to Safeway I went to procure my supplies:  Kool Aid, and some white spoons (to see if the dye bath is exhausted)  Here is what I ended up with:

 Dyed with Kool Aid (never drinking that stuff!) and a few experiments with food colouring and vinegar.  I used a plastic bowl and the microwave to dye these experiments up.  I got some cheaper Patons wool as my base and made mini skeins out of it with my niddy noddy.  Light is not great on some of those shots, but it was fading fast, so I did what I could.  Overall it was a fun experiment, and even the kidlet got in on it (she had earlier proclaimed that this endeavour would be "boring" Ha!)  She even vowed that Kool Aid would never again enter her body, as if this is what it does to wool, imagine what it must do to your insides!

On the eve of Valentine's Day, I was asked by the kidlet to buy some Valentines for her friends.  We embarked on an epic journey to Superstore and eventually found some to her liking.  Since we were there, we decided to buy the Madhatter some flowers (we are, after all, equal-opportunity over here)  

Also, on our epic adventures, we spied a few new friends that were destined to come home with us and live on our couch and chairs.  They are as yet unnamed (although I think the big guy is begging to be named George) but they helped to model some of the recent knits that I have finished.  

That is my Travelling Woman that George has draped on him.  And the little guy is wearing Madhatter's new toque.

This hat is knitted out of Cascade Eco+, 2 strands together to make it more windproof

Traveling Woman out of TFA Pink Label Laceweight held together with a strand of Debbie Bliss Angel.

I am currently working on a sweater, and am about to start test knitting (!)  I feel as though I am really turning into a knitting superhero!  

Where the magic happens

Not that kind of magic, folks.  The knitting kind.

You can see my (oversized, as I thought hubby would share it with me) pot of tea, Orange Pekoe this time, nothing too exciting.  Also, my pod-growing thing that I got for Yule.

Here, you can more clearly see the yarn for this month's sock by Yummy Yarn in colour Candy Corn.  Also, my needle case from Yule, and my cat, Molly.  She is generally good natured, unless you try to confine her and then all hell breaks loose.

Hopefully tomorrow I'll have a better picture of the sock in progress, as well as a cowl shot.  It's still drying as it's blocking, so it isn't quite ready for it's debut.

Happy February!

Cherry Post

Well, today is "balls to the wall" cold, as my husband would say.  We started out this lovely monday morning at a balmy -33C, and that's without windchill.  We are currently sitting at a wonderful -23C.  I take comfort in the fact that it is sunny, at the very least.

With that weather report, my intended plan of taking pictures of things outside today went completely out the window.  Instead, I made due with inside natural light.  I'm not a wonderful photographer in the first place, so I doubt it makes much of a difference.

This blog will (eventually) contain a multitude of things, ranging from knitting, spinning (I hope!), food (maybe) and things I find interesting re: babies and childbirth.  Also, anything else that I feel like at the time.

My sister in law and her husband, who are some rad photographers (www.flashbullet.com  check it out) have a thing where they post their "tech specs" at the bottom of their photos.  And so, I shall do the same with my knitting.

That being said, let's get this party started.

These are my first knitted (fitting) socks ever, and also my January socks.

As you can see, the are a little wonky from my crappy blocking job, but maybe that will make my case for sock blockers more relevant.  Also, they are a tad too large, so my next pair will be a smaller needle size.  I knit very tightly, so don't be too shocked when you find out how large my needles were.

The pattern is Diamond Gansey Socks, from Socks from the Toe Up by Wendy Johnson.  Knit on 2 2.75mm 16" circs.  Yarn is Orchid by Shi Bui.

Here you can see the seed stitch borders a little better and the slip stitch heel.  A little weird looking but pretty good.  The colours don't show up as nicely as I'd want them to, but I will wait for a milder day to shoot them outdoors against some snow.

I am quite pleased by them, and can't wait to cast on my second pair of socks.