Tag: sockknitting

And Finally a Little Break

My goodness! I have barely had time to breathe and finally a little break. Since my last post I have been to three fiber festivals. On Memorial Day weekend I was in Wooster for the Great Lakes Fiber Show. The weather was so nice and there was good turnout. I wasn’t going to bore you with more booth shots but I changed my mind since it’s what I have. Posts with pictures are more fun, right?

Great Lakes Fiber Show

The first weekend in June was Hoosier Hills Fiber Festival in Franklin, IN. The weather was pretty warm this year but that’s not unusual. This show has really grown and improved so much over the 16 years I have been vending there. I am very impressed with it’s progress and look forward to it every year. The organizers do a great job with every thing, from vendor communication, to classes, to promotion.

Hoosier Hills Fiber Festival

This past Friday and Saturday, I was back in Ohio. For the third year, I went to the Mid-Ohio Fiber Fair in Newark. This festival is currently one day only. I have given it a few years, and it’s a nice one for what it is, but it may be the last year for me. It’s mainly because it’s all in the one day. I drive up on Friday and then on Saturday I arrive at 5:30 am to set up the booth for the market which opens at 9 am and runs to 5 pm. Then it’s tear down time. I put in a long 13 hour day and it’s just a bit too much. Attendance has dropped off too, which makes it hard to make enough to be worth the effort and expense. If it wasn’t 400 miles each way requiring two nights away I would keep it, but as it is, for me, it’s probably not one I will keep going forward. It makes me sad to do it though. One bonus is that I have my trailer and truck right there behind the booth. Saves some time and energy during set up and break down.

Mid-Ohio Fiber Fair

So, not a whole lot of knitting happening lately. I did finish that first sock and the cuff if the second one. I am ready to start the heel flap when I get back to it. If you recall, I am making these with some remnants of discontinued colorways of my Classic Merino Superwash Sock yarn.

shorty socks for summer

I have also been working on my shawl design. I am ready to join on the third skein at this point. It is measuring about 45″ unblocked. I am probably around the half way mark now since I want it to be generous for wrapping.

We have put in a huge yarn order to get started dyeing when I return from my next show. I am home this coming weekend but am back on the road for one more festival, Houston Fiber Fest, before the summer break. More on that in my next post. See you later!

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Some Knitting and Dye Studio Upgrade

I have been knitting on my Gridiron sock. I am almost to the toe decreases on this first sock. I have not cast on yet for my two booth samples but as you can see I have wound a skein of each of the yarns and put them in my knitting bag. I brought them along on my trip to Wooster, OH in hopes of a bit of time to start them.

I will be setting up the booth this morning for the Great Lakes Fiber Show but if I get done early enough I can squeeze in some time to knit tonight.

In other news, while I am away this weekend, my husband is busy upgrading our yarn drying lines. Here is what we have so far. I am excited about this. Not only will there be more room but they are right next to our work area instead of on the other side of the yard. It’s going to be great!

He took this picture yesterday. I’ll update when I get home with the progress.

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Home At Last

I returned from Minnesota last Tuesday. I have been trying to squeeze in time to get my gansey blocked and write a post. I have been working hard to get my website rebuilt plus other stuff. So I am happy to report that the website is done. I will probably do some more tweaking but it’s functional and I am pleased with it so far. My blog is now part of my shop which I have wanted to do for a long time.

So now on to my gansey and current knitting. I have the gansey blocking at the moment. I blocked it out quite a bit so that when it relaxes it will be closer to the finished dimensions I was planning for.

I only got one project started. It’s another Gridiron sock.

I really enjoy this pattern. It’s just interesting enough to be entertaining but not enough to be distracting if you are watching videos or something like that. They are also comfortable to wear. My last pair are my favorite socks.

Ok gotta go for now. I am going to be going to Lexington, KY on Friday for the Kentucky Sheep and Wool Festival. I don’t know if I will have time to post again before that. We’ll see. Have a great week!

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Favorite Socks

I just love these socks! They are so comfy and warm. The fit is perfect and they are definitely my new favorite pair of hand knit socks. I’m not sure if it’s the pattern or the yarn. I’ll probably be making this pattern again though. It as fast, interesting and easy.

I have been wearing my hand knit socks a lot this winter. I tend to wear them only when I am home for the winter since it’s hard to properly wash hand knit socks while traveling. I just save them up for the week and then just throw them in the sink with some shampoo to soak for awhile. When they have finished their bath I toss them in the washing machine for a rinse and spin cycle and lay them out to dry on the dryer or a table in the work room. Easy enough at home but more challenging in a hotel room. :-)

I have only one project left going at this point. I’m plugging away on my DeBussy shawl and have switched over to a longer needle. I have completed 4 of the chart repeats and joined on the second skein. I will see where I am on yarn supply and size when I complete the minimum of 7 repeats. I am thinking I would like it on the large side and I would rather use as much of the yarn as possible, so I may be going for the 10 repeats if I can.

I haven’t forgotten that gansey I want to start, so that may be happening soon now that I have only the one thing going.

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Friday FO

Does it count as a FO if it’s just halfway to a pair though? 🤔

I have also made some progress on my DeBussy shawl since finishing the first Gridiron sock. It’s not alot different from last time but I am on the main chart now that gets repeated 7x or 10x, depending on what size you want. I’ll see how my yarn is holding out once I get 7 repeats done. I am currently on the second repeat.

We have had a spell of cold, grey, wet days this week. Thankfully we didn’t get much ice overnight from the storm. There may be a slight glaze but we have power and internet. It’s a good day to get in some knitting I think. 😉

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One Down

I finished my Spiral Effect Cowl on Friday. I love how it turned out. This is going to be my go to scarf for those times when you want a bit of color . Also on days when you just need a little something around your neck but it’s not cold enough for a heavier scarf.

I have been working mostly on my Gridiron Sock since then. I am past the heel trn and gusset decreases. It’s just a straight shot until the foot is long enough.

I’ll be getting back to the shawl soon I think but I may at least finish this sock first.

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Startitis

I have been stash diving this week and it appears that I have a bad case of startitis. This is a rare affliction for me. I am typically project monogamous. The other notable change is that none of these are booth samples. I know! It’s been awhile since I just knit some stuff on a whim, and it’s pretty fun actually.

So here’s what’s on my needles at the moment. Riveting, I know. :-)

First up is Debussy, which I have knit before as a booth sample in my DK weight Merino yarn but this one is just for fun in some Cestari Wool/Cotton blend that has been in my stash for about 10 years. It’s slightly rustic looking which I think will make a nice all-season wrap.

Next up is a pair of socks. It’s been too long since I made any socks and I wanted a variety to switch back and forth on. I decided to make a pair of Gridiron Socks, in another long marinating yarn. The story behind this yarn and the one in my other project below goes back to 2009. I was in a online group, I think it was on Ravelry originally, with a handful of other hand dyers. We decided to do a collaboration yarn club. I think we called it Fiber Baristas? Anyway, we each were dyeing up a unique colorway for one of the installments and agreed to send a skein to each other as well. It was fun and I am finally getting around to using a couple of mine.

This last project is a cowl pattern my second daughter wrote for me using my Classic Merino Superwash Sock yarn about 10-12 years ago I think. It’s called Spiral Effect Cowl and I have made it a couple times before as a booth sample in that yarn. This one is made using another indie dyed yarn from the above club though. The cat (Mimi) is a bonus today. :-)

Oh, and I almost forgot! I finished my third booth sample I was knitting over the weekend before the stash dive. I think I will save that for another post after I can get a chance to get some better pictures maybe. Here’s sneak peek though.

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