Knitting Machine

No, I didn't invent one, I was one last night!

I knit 10 rounds of Mom's fancy lace sock, 20 rounds of Dad's much simpler sock and then cast on and knit 15 rows of a brand new project. That's right a new project, because what I need is more WIPs.

I do, however, have a new niece just a little over a month from arrival and I wanted to make her something. So I found some left over Knit Picks Comfy Sport Cotton in Honey Dew from the baby blanket I made in the spring and a pattern on Ravelry and cast on.


It doesn't look like much in the picture, but it feels great in my hands and looks really cute so far. I am playing it by ear as the pattern seems kind of confusing further on, but it is knitting up quickly and hopefully my friends can help me through the rough parts.

Also, I must revisit the Christmas Stocking debacle this weekend, progress must be made!

Socks for Mom

Last week I showed you Dad's socks, now here is a look at the Emma Lace Socks from A Cuff Above for my mom for Christmas:


I am at the heel flap for sock #1 as of today and hope to work on the heel at my knitting group tonight.

The yarn is Plymouth Yarn Happy Feet in a pretty cornflower blue color. The yarn is very affordable but isn't quite the softness I would like, I will hold out hope that a Woolite soak and some blocking will soften it up.

Socks for Dad

My poor dad has not received any handmade gifts, so I decided to make him a pair of Hunter Socks for Christmas, like I made my brother last year.


I am using the same brand of yarn, Lamb's Pride Superwash, in a lovely colorway called Sandy Beach. It is very slightly heathered and as the cuff of the sock grew longer I saw where it got it's name.

For my brother's socks I did a 2X2 rib and I decided to change it up for Dad, so he is getting a 3X1 rib instead, it looks nice.

These socks came out soft and warm and I hope my dad enjoys them on snowy winter days!

Stocking Stress

So a couple of posts ago you saw the beginning of Madison's stocking with comments about the snowflake motif not working. While I worked out that chart (which I did with help from 3 Good Rats) I started on Charly's stocking which has a different motif.

It was Charly's stocking that I blogged about last week with the short row heel issue. So...


here it is!

It is done, but I have to admit, it might not be the stocking she gets for Christmas. There is something about it I do not like, it is floppy and not the right proportions or something.

I am happy with the color work at the top, the tree motif is cute and I charted the name myself!


I may try a whole new pattern for Madison's or I may try the same pattern on smaller needles to see if it comes out more stocking-like. Until then I am stepping away from the project glad that I started this in August.

Wrap and Turn Short Row Heel

So I have made a lot of progress on my nieces' Christmas stockings, unfortunately I have frogged most of it for little errors. These are going to be family heirlooms, I want them to be as close to perfect as a homemade item can be. :)

I have gotten to the Wrap & Turn Short Row Heel 3 times now, here is how it looks:


Looks pretty good right? It took me 3 times to get even close to right and luckily Donna in my knitting group gave me some helpful instruction. Despite that I still have this problem:



A hole, big enough for my thumb to fit through on one side (and only one side). I don't know what I could be doing wrong. I am tempted to try one more time and then if the hole is still there try to fix it with some fancy sewing after the whole thing is done.

Any advice?