Tuesday, April 8, 2014

Small Stuff

I have not posted about any of my FO's (finished objects) since right around Christmas.  All of the FO's in this post were the "small stuff" that I made as samples for teaching in February and March.

In January, I made my first Colormatic (from the free pattern designed by Michelle Hunter) as a shop sample in less than two weeks.  Ann at Gosh Yarn It! takes the best photos.

© Gosh Yarn It!

I taught the one-session class on February 1, and I made my Colormatic 2 for my lovely daughter as a teaching-project-in-the-works. 
I have a difficult time with indoor photos after dark, but this one is actually better than others that I have attempted.


Each cowl was made with four different colored skeins of "Kenzie" (50% New Zealand merino, 25% nylon, 10% angora, 10% alpaca, 5% silk) from the HiKoo by Skacel Collection, Inc.  A lovely, beautifully balanced yarn, and very easy to work with.  The class was well attended and great fun!

And then there were socks!  I do love teaching from my own patterns.  In March, I taught a three-session class in making a basic toe-up sock from my TATU Try A Toe Up) patterns:  TATU Sock and Fingeringweight TATU Sock.  The class created a perfect opportunity for me to both start and finish a pair of socks for Mr K (whose 'Sad Socks' are still quite that).


The yarn that I used was Cascade Yarns Heritage 150 Paints (75% merino, 25% nylon).  The fantastic 492-yards allowed me to make the tallest socks ever(!)  I rolled the skein into two equal-weight balls, and I knit the sock cuffs until I thought that they should not be any taller.  You can see that there was a decent amount of unused yarn in the remaining two balls (How opposite is that from those sad socks?)

I also made a second child's sock.  This photo shows a blocked and unblocked sock.  The blocked one was a part of the pattern photography.  The unblocked one a class sample.

 
I had a total of three in-the-works socks as I taught the three classes which focused on (1) the toe cast-on, foot and gusset, (2) short rows, and completing the reinforced heel, (3) my favorite toe-up sock bind-off (the Kitchener Stitch Bind-Off) along with alternate bind-off possibilities.

The sock knitters were a smaller but very enthusiastic group!  I hope to offer a couple more classes before summer.

      

4 comments:

  1. You do motivate me to try socks! I am always either in sandals or sneakers with white socks. I think that knitting them for me would be a waste. But, I can think of a few people who would be happy recipients!

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    1. LOL Your footwear description is exactly what I wear through most of the year. But during those weeks that you might be in Florida, I might be wearing my boots, and hand knit wool socks are the best for keeping warm.
      Some people (Mr K is one) do appreciate hand knit socks more than others, and might even wear them in warmer weather. Thanks for your comment, Tracy!

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    2. Lovely cozy cowl that looks so great on your beautiful daughter!

      Long socks are so comfy. Although I had my doubts, socks are so much fun to knit; I especially like turning the heel.

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    3. Thanks for your comment and compliment, Dixie! I remember telling my Mom after I knit my first sock that turning the heel was "like riding a roller coaster". (No one but a knitter would understand :-)

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