Question 17 1007

This will be the LAST Question 17...

Tell me about your favourite sock yarn?

My parents came to visit a few weeks ago and my father had on a lovely pair of handknit socks. They had subtle earthy tones and were extremely soft. I had never seen a sock yarn like this before. My mother said the yarn contained aloe vera and jojoba oil. Unfortunately she didn't know the type of yarn.

I figured it out! It is Austermann Step Sock Yarn. I especially like the earth tones of colour number 12.

Special notice: This month I will be picking three entries, at random, each one to receive one ball/skein of sock yarn* (enough to make a pair of adult sized socks). The prize winner will be chosen on November 16th, 2007. If you would like to be included in the draw please send me your email address to fingersfancy at inbox dot com once you have posted your submission to the comments section of this post.

*1 each of Step Yarn, Opal Yarn, and Posh Yarn Emily Sock Yarn.

ETA: If you wish to email me, please put "[FF]" in the subject line (without the quotes). Otherwise your email will be lost.

Socks of Love (1)

Here is one of the pair of socks that I knit up for my grandmother. She has a green thumb and loves roses. I chose this colourway because it reminds me of a rose garden. I thinks socks look best on feet! But my feet are larger than my grandmother's and the socks didn't fit. Don't you like my hand crafted sock board? I made it just to post pictures of these socks. What a good reuse of a shipping box!


Pattern: Calla Lily Socks

Designer: Sandara Murphy of Sundara Yarn

Yarn: Seacoast Handpainted Panda Yarn (400 yds per skein)

Contents: 60 % superwash merino, 30% bamboo, 10% nylon

Colourway: Strawberry Patch

Needles: 2. 75 mm (2 US) DPN

Tension: 28-32 stitches per 10 cm (4")


This yarn is lovely in every respect. It is very soft and has a sweet sheen. It was a pure joy to knit up. And there was plenty of yarn for this and a child's pairs of socks.

I made some modifications to the pattern because I wanted it to be able to stretch & cling depending on the state of my grandmother's ankles. I increased the number of stitches to start and then decreased gradually to the number indicated by Sundara. I also added a set of ribs on both sides of the front section of the sock for more elasticity. The simple lace pattern was fun to knit and I like the result (see below). Sundara is great for details like the reverse stocking stitch that carries from the cuff down the bottom of the heel.

Love & Hand Knit Socks

This post is without pictures :o(

My computer is feeling very low these days and will not boot up (hard drive failure I am afraid). So a lot of my spare time will be spent trying to raise her spirits. That means I won't be posting as much as I would like. Wish me luck!

My next series of posts is about hand knit socks made for those I love.

I get immense satisfaction choosing the pattern, considering the size, picking the yarn, and knitting up a pair for those I love. This gesture epitomizes sweet, abiding, true love.

Hand knit socks are love: often taken for granted (until they fail and you are left with a painful blister), intimate (would you knit a pair for the Queen?) and constant through difficult times (i.e., puddles, and snow banks). There is nothing quite so tender as a warm pair of socks snuggling your cold toes on a stormy night. If you listen closely you'll hear their wee sock whispers, "See how much you are loved! The knitter cares for you so much that s/he has made us for you!"

Hand knit socks say "I love you" so very well.

When my computer up and running again I will share some pictures of my sock affairs.

Question 17 0907

It is that time of month again! Time for question 17 of course! (what else could you be thinking?!). Here it is...

What is your current favourite yarn? Why?

This is hard for me, I have so many favourites! For now I have narrowed it down to two choices:

Eva 8 ply (Aran weight, 55% silk / 45% cashmere yarn. Each skein is 55 g / 100 yards) in colourway "Love is..." by Posh Yarn. It is such a tactile treat. If I could use only one word to describe it, it would be sumptuous. I am completing a project using this yarn and will post it in the next few weeks.

Now I can't resist posting a second yarn. Panda Sock Yarn (60 % super wash merino, 30% bamboo, 10% nylon, 400 yds per skein, 7 sts=1") in colourway Strawberry patch by Seacoast Handpainted Yarns. The yarn is super soft and has a wonderful sheen. I made a lovely pair of Sundara Murphy's Calla Lily socks for my Grandmother in this yarn. I will post these socks next week.

Winner chosen for Q17 0807

Thank you all for making last month's Q17 such a success! I enjoyed checking out each designer. (You can check them out too by clicking here.)

Of those who entered the contest, Martha (chosen by a random number generator) wins the Shelridge Farm Soft Touch Heather fingering yarn in Highland Mist. Thanks for your winning submission Martha!

Commuter Scarf Pattern

A. K. A., Diagonal Garter Scarf

I have done it - the pattern for the Commuter Scarf is completed!

If you would like a copy please click here to download. This pattern is free for individual use. If you decide to make this scarf (or just look at the pattern) I would truly appreciate your feedback.

Knit on!

Diagonal Garter Scarf (1)

Here is my Diagonal Garter Scarf, inspired by Jared's Iro scarf (see Brooklyn Tweed). It is a snap to knit up and so much fun. I figured out the pattern all by myself (big grin) and will share it with you next weekend with my very own first pdf pattern!

In the meantime you can check out my other pictures of this project by clicking the one above.

If you are thinking this would be a fun fall knit (and make a terrific holiday present) you can purchase 2 skeins of Noro Iro and check back next week.

Note: Little Knits has a terrific price on Noro Iro. You can pick your's up here.

ETA: This scarf is now named the Commuter Scarf

Campanula for the Cure

Here is a terrific idea: raising money for the fight against breast cancer by knitting!


All you have to do is send a donation (of any size) and Ramona of Campanula for the Cure and she will send you a pattern for these lovely socks.

Check out her website for more details. So far she has raised $3900!

We're cheering for your Ramona!

zeebee photos

Pattern: zeebee beanie

Designer: schmeebot

Yarn: Posh Yarn's "Love is..." colourway, in Eva 8 ply (aran weight) 45% cashmere, 55% silk

Needles: 4.5 mm

Techniques: provisional cast on, garter stitch, short row shaping, garter stitch grafting

More pictures: click here

zeebee beanie

My zeebee beanie is finally done. I finished the knitting part at my usual pace and had fun with the short row technique. The construction of the hat is fun to watch develop as you knit. I also like the look of the completed crown. But I took weeks to get up the nerve to graft it together. If you read schmeebot's instructions on finishing this may make sense to you too. For me, I start quivering when I read, "should you stumble and mess up the last stitch." It doesn't much matter what comes next because all I feel is fear. My head knows this is silly. I mean, making a mistake while knitting will have very little lasting effect on my world. In fact I can always frog away and try again. Yes, my head knows this, but for my heart it's different.

If you are thinking of making a zeebee too, let me tell you, my heart was wrong! The finishing was fine, not perfect, but fine. schmeebot's writing assumes you are a knitting neophyte and therefore goes into great detail.

It is true, however, I had never done a garter stitch graft/Kitchener stitch. Now that took me some time to figure out. I started with the reverse stockinette graft two times before I finally figured out how to do do a garter graft/Kitchener Stitch.

I thought I would share my findings with you so that you too can do a reverse stockinette, AND garter graft/Kitchener Stitch! First I have embedded a YouTube video of the stockinette graft/Kitchener Stitch (for those of you struggling to teach yourself this stitch). For those who are already comfortable with this stitch scroll down to my table the shows you the differences between the graft stitches.

Grafting / Kitchener Stitch Table

Type	Prep stitches	Front Needle (1st)	Back Needle (2nd)
Stockinette	F - S1: aitP*on; B - S1: aitK*on	S1: aitK off; S2: aitP on	S1: aitP off; S2: aitK on
Reverse stockinette	F - S1: aitK on; B - S1: aitP on	S1: aitP off; S2: aitK on	S1: aitK off; S2: aitP on
Garter**	F - S1: aitP on; B - S1: aitP on	S1: aitK off; S2: aitP on	S1: aitK off; S2: aitP on
F = front needle; B = back needle; *aitP = as if to purl; *aitK = as if to knit; ** For this to work, ensure purl bumps are snug up against the front needle, and knit stitches are against the back needle. Repeat as needed! Picture of my zeebee beanie to follow. This beanie is supposed to be for me, but it doesn't suit my large melon head! So this zeebee will have a very limited life. But I am certain there will be other zeebee's in my future!