FO - Farnkrautsocken

Remember when I joked about renaming this blog "Vickilicious Knits Green Socks"? There is some comfort in being predictable, no?



In many ways, these are a Greatest Hits of my favorite aspects of knitting: green wool, toe-up, small gauge, fast-moving, vine lace, socks... I mean, what's not to love??



Pattern: Farnkrautsocken (Ravelry link) by Silke Pieper, available as a free Ravelry download; my project page is here
Size: lady's US size 9 with 9-inch foot circumference and 9.5-inch foot length
Yarn: Schachenmayr nomotta/Regia Uni 4-ply fingering weight, color 2082 Green, 75% new wool/25% nylon; I used 76.1 grams/2.67 oz or 349.6 yards/319.7 meters.
Needles: Knit Picks 6" nickel-plated double-pointed needles, set of 5 size 1.5 (2.50 mm)
Modifications: Used figure-8 cast-on and swapped jojo heel for short-row heel

Started: July 29, 2009
Finished: August 26, 2009



I knit these socks as part of the July Sock Knitters Anonymous Sockdown, a challenge that included Homegrown Designers who are members of the group. I found this pattern clearly written, well-organized, and just lovely through and through.



The pattern called for a jojo heel, and while I was looking forward to trying this new technique, I ended up using my tried and true short-row heel. I really like the look of it and, frankly, I didn't have the pattern with me when it came to heel-turning time, so I just went with what I knew.



I'm sort of glad I did because these are some of the neater heels I've worked, and I really love the way they fit.



Everything about these socks was easy and satisfying. I am a huge fan of vine lace (as you may note from the scarf and two Jellyfish shrugs I've knit that incorporate the vine lace pattern). It's a four-row repeat, with two plain knit rows and two essentially identical pattern rows that differ only in being off-set by one stitch. It is fast, intuitive, has a pleasant rhythm, and at this point, I can work it in my sleep, which is helpful because much of the time I spent knitting these socks was while half-awake on the train or subway.



I like the way the front and back are divided by narrow bands of stockinette that frame the vine lace. In the past, when I'd considered knitting vine lace socks, I thought I wanted an all-over lace pattern, but the way these bands absorb the off-set stitches and draw a neat line down the leg just charms me.



The yarn was quite a treat as well. I kept finding myself surprised at how soft it was, for such a durable, workhorse type of yarn. I'm happy I have a few other colors of this yarn in my stash, and I will certainly keep an eye out for it in the future - I just love it. I also must say, this is perhaps the most perfect shade of green I've ever worked with, and I'm thrilled to have socks in such a great color. (I'm also happy to have nearly 25 grams leftover, which I hope to use in some kind of accessory.)

All in all, I couldn't be happier with this project! It's revived my interest in sock-knitting, lace, and knitting in general, just in time for fall.

FO - iPod Sock

For such a simple project, this iPod sock has been one of the most satisfying lately.



Pattern: iPod Sock by Jillian Neary (free PDF available here), my project is here on Ravelry
Size: one size, approximately 2"x4.5"
Yarn: Mondial Extrafine 8-ply DK weight*, color 804 Orange dye lot #57, 100% Extrafine Merino; I used 9 grams, totaling approximately 34.7 yards/31.8 meters.
Needles: size 1 (2.25mm) DPNs
Modifications: None

Started: August 29, 2009
Finished: August 29, 2009

* This yarn is listed as DK weight in Ravelry, but I found it to be straight up fingering weight.

I was charmed by such a wee tiny ball of yarn left over from my Bella Catena Italiana socks, and I'd hoped to be able to use it, as it is such a decadent, lovely merino.



When I recently upgraded to a Macbook Pro (looooooove), I got a free engraved iPod because I purchased it through my school's Apple store. I could have gotten a Nano, but I opted for a classic because it had a 120 gig drive (versus the 8 gig Nano) and well, it matches my Mac so nicely.

The trouble is, within seconds of getting my shiny new iPod, my brother dragged it across the table and scratched the silver bottom. Grrrr. I knew it needed a cozy if it was going to survive many-hour trips through Manhattan and Brooklyn.



This pattern was straightforward, easy, fast, fun, and I adore the finished product. I'm so charmed by the crispness of the edge formed by the ribbing, and even though my Kitchener stitch was surprisingly sloppy, I sort of dug the sharp edge it made. The ribbing made it nice and stretchy for a snug, happy fit.



I used all but a few centimeters of the rest of this fantastic orange yarn, which was yet another of many points of satisfaction in this great project. Highly recommended for a rainy afternoon.

(On an administrative note, I suspect I've gotten some of the technical problems worked out, so I hope to have a lot more to share soon!)

Technical difficulties

I'm having some trouble with FTP publishing on this blog, and more and more I think I may jump ship to WordPess since they seem to do a lot better with self-hosted blogs.

I have a few things I'd like to post, but I keep seeing weird errors and screwy things, so I'm going to hold off until I get that sorted out, I hope sometime this weekend.

Sorry for the (continued) delay!

FO - Green Jellyfish Shrug

(Note: I actually wrote this post in September of 2008, but I didn't publish it at the time because I didn't take detail shots until uhh, last weekend.)

As far as shrugs go, this one is already very well traveled.



It was seen on the streets of Milan.



It made undocumented appearances in Venice and Volterra (among other cities).



It went to Rome where it visited many churches.



It even made it to the Vatican.

With each time I took it out of my suitcase and slid it over my shoulders, I think I fell a little more in love.

Pattern: Jellyfish (Ravelry link) by Iris G., free pattern previously available on MagKnits, now available for sale here
On Ravelry: Green Jellyfish
Size: Small
Yarn: Knit Picks Shine Worsted 10-ply worsted weight, Grass (dye lot 3740), 60% Pima cotton 40% Modal; I used 4.5 50-gram balls, totaling approximately 225 grams/7.92 oz or 337.5 yards/308.6 meters.
Needles: US size 10 (6.0 mm) straights and Knit Picks Options interchangeable circular needles, in US size 8 (5.0 mm)
Modifications: none

Started: July 10, 2008
Finished: July 14, 2008

This project literally flew off the needles. I've knit one Jellyfish previously and loved the experience then, so I knew it would be fun. By substituting worsted weight cotton yarn, I got a denser but still nicely draping fabric which made for a substantial yet cool shrug.

I took a bit of a risk working the size small, since I usually wear a large in store-bought tops, but I think if I had made this any larger it would fall off my shoulders and look sloppy.



The construction of this shrug is really satisfying: the sleeves and body are knit flat, seamed at the underarms, then stitches are picked up to do the neckline ribbing in the round. Because of the heavier yarn, the neck ribbing forms a sort of collar that cuts in sweetly around my clavicle. It's a nice surprising detail that looks intentional, and I have to like that.



I used Elizabeth Zimmermann's sewn bind-off (with instructions from this Knitty article) to maintain the stretchiness of the rib. Because I used a way longer yarn tail than necessary, I wasn't completely in love with the technique, but I see how useful it is.

The way the vine lace came out just thrills me.



I have previously professed my deep love for this yarn, and it continues to rank among my favorites. I noticed that this color shed slightly more than the others I've used, which I hear is a fairly common complaint, but I didn't find it bothersome. It holds up beautifully to washing and wearing and the color is exactly what I wanted for a summery shrug.

This almost instantly became my go-to garment to wear with sleeveless dresses and tops. I wore it regularly while I was in Italy (and got compliments every time), all over Brooklyn and New Jersey, and basically everywhere I go. It is by far my most frequently worn FO, and I adore it. People consistently comment on its color (which matches my favorite malachite earrings really nicely) as well as its unique style, all of which please me to no end.

I definitely recommend this pattern in a DK or worsted weight yarn, or whatever you could imagine. It was a fast, easy, and pleasant knit and I think it would makes a great gift too. All around, this is one of my favorite FOs, and I look forward to all the wear I'm sure I will continue to get out of it.

Previous Entries on this Project:
- Keeping Busy

For Those About to Block...

This is a really good one.

Once the weather sorts itself out, I hope to have a big pile of FO photos.

Knitting to Wear

I've been thinking lately about why I knit what I do. Like many knitters, I get entranced by patterns and yarns, dream about creating unique garments custom-fit to my measurements, and I get a special thrill when it all comes together "just so."

This summer I noticed that I have seasonal "uniforms" that I put together, without fail, every year. I'm sure it's because my mother imbued a sense of classic styling in me very young, but there are few differences between dresses or outfits I would have worn at ages seven or twenty-seven. When I looked in my armoire, I noticed stacks and stacks of carefully-folded sweaters, shrugs, and little knits of all weights that I've amassed over the years and come to consider indispensable in dressing. Above anyone I know, I am that girl who always brings a sweater.

Unfortunately, my knitting output hasn't really matched my wardrobe needs up to this point. Of the projects I've actually finished (which is its own issue), the two I've used exponentially more than all others were both shrugs. Every single time I wear them, I get compliments. My friends and colleagues - and even strangers in churches in Italy - admire their unique shape or color, ask where I got them, and refuse to believe how simple they were to make, until (in one instance), I sketched out a top-down raglan and explained exactly how it was made.

There have been a handful of projects that, if I'm being honest, I will probably never wear. Or they require so much work to "fix" that I've lost all enthusiasm for them. That bums me out, and for a long time it discouraged me from knitting anything wearable (perhaps you noticed the sock fixation?). Often I'd hit that point of realization partway through knitting them, and they'd languish for several years in hibernation, their pieces stacked in my knitting basket making me feel guilty.

I've come to this realization before, but I disregarded those intentions and launched into a flurry of accessories, socks, impractical strapless situations, and well, more socks.

I think I've sorted it out now. I'm learning about which type of garments suit me, and I've gone back through my projects in progress to make a secondary queue of sorts, dividing pieces into those which I really do intend to finish, versus those I plan to frog so I can reuse the yarn for something I will actually enjoy wearing.

That said, I'm still going to make socks and accessories, since I love knitting them and I do wear them a lot. In fact, I've got big knee-sock plans for this fall. I guess in general, I'm going to try to spend my "sweater time" a little more productively if I can help it, and actually get some of these big exciting wearable things made.

Shimmer

It occurs to me that if I wait to photograph and post each of the eight FOs I currently have waiting, or the staggering pile of WIPs I've started, I will succeed in taking the entire summer off from blogging, which really hasn't been my intent.

Moving forward, I have become utterly entranced by this yarn.



It is KnitPicks Shimmer Hand Dyed, a lovely baby alpaca and silk blend that has escaped my attention until now. I originally bought it for a little laceweight shrug project, thinking the variegation would look nice in the stitch pattern. The color is Eucalyptus, a subtle blend of light greens and pale tones.



It wasn't until I got it in my hands, though, that I realized just how special it feels. It is heavenly soft, a pleasure to touch. The silk gives it strength and smoothness that glides through my fingers, while the baby alpaca makes it weightless, with a delicate halo.

I decided this yarn needed to become something special, elegant, maybe even a little fancy. Also, I wanted to wrap myself in it. I searched Ravelry for an understated pattern which would showcase the beautiful texture and colors of the yarn, and I came up with the fabulous Upstairs Shawl.

I have this green Calvin Klein satin dress that I bought earlier this summer, which I've decided to wear to a wedding in October. I am excited beyond words to try to complete this shawl in time to go with it.

Man, I am a sucker for green lace.