Sheep On My Stuff

Well, the ankle socks from last time turned out… badly. Badly enough I only knit one sock and then gave up. So poor Douglas doesn't get to model a finished object as well as the socks in progress. She protested (bleating at me as I tossed out the failed sock, and then bleating louder and more indignantly as I revived a newly-found pair of socks), and so I have brought her back to model a pair of red socks in progress:

Yarn used: Essential by KnitPicks, in Burgundy. Needle size: 2.5mm.

Douglas bleats that she's happy to be back, and promises to convince me to model the socks in a slightly more interesting fashion when I have them finished.

It's a pretty standard pattern — 2×2 rib down the leg for four inches, then one of those heel flaps where you do s1 k1 across and p across the next row. Ribbing continues on the top of the foot. Toe is kitchenered.

I actually found this pair of socks in a closet, with about 2" done on the second sock. I was immediately overcome with the need to finish the second sock, so despite the fact that I have two other pairs of socks in progress — not to mention a shawl, dammit — this one got bumped to the top of the queue.

Two other pairs of socks in progress: one of them has been resurrected from the knitting queue, where it's been langushing a while. It's a simple pair of socks, this one for SheepLad. Made of a brown "mouline" yarn from Regia, it's an attempt at recreating his favorite pair ever of handknit socks.

Yarn used: Regia 4-ply mouline in brown. Needle size: 2.5mm.

Small Ty Sheep returns (from the post on Current WIPs, which are not so current anymore), bleating insistently that she didn't get a finished project picture, either, and therefore deserves another shot at the spotlight. Since I like to keep my flock happy, I went ahead and posed her with SheepLad's socks-to-be. (Sock-to-be?) We'll check in with her again when I've made some more progress on the socks.

After a few projects with 2mm sock needles, 2.5mm feels huge. And to think I used to work exclusively on 3mm Inox dpns. :) My last pair of socks — no picture yet — is another pair of ankle socks in a white/black ragg yarn from Regia. I think that one's on 2mm needles, but I'll need to check again when I'm taking pictures.

As any knitter can tell you, the day you discover that your lovely Basic (not) Black Shawl

Basic Black Shawl (yes, I know it's not black) in KnitPicks' Gossamer (Rose Garden), on Addi Turbo lace needles, size 5. Pattern from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls.

is actually going to be much, much larger than you ever contemplated, and may indeed take the rest of your natural life to finish… that's the day you should start a new shawl.

Flower Basket Lace Shawl in KnitPicks' Shadow (Jewels Heather), on KnitPicks Options, size 5. Pattern from Fiber Trends.

At the top, you can see BaaBaa the sheep. BaaBaa is a Ty sheep, one of their larger, fluffier ones — not one the size of a single hank of yarn, let's put it that way. I have a few of these sheep from Ty in different colors and wool styles. BaaBaa is a college-era sheep, but late college — maybe 1999 or so.

At the bottom, you can see Tulip Sheep. Tulip Sheep is in fact the first sheep ever added to my collection. My mom got her for me one year at Easter. At the time, I was quite confused (I was accustomed to getting rabbits), but Mom thought she was adorable, and so she went into the Easter basket! In later years, of course, I could see just how wise Mom had been, because look at that face. She is totally adorable!

And now a quick word about the KnitPicks Options needles. I love them. OMG. So far they're working out just beautifully — comfortable to the touch, the wire has little memory and no drag, I can't feel the join at all. I never thought a set of interchangeable needles would become my primary needles, but these have earned it. They're outstanding. So far I'm liking them even better than the Addi Turbo lace needles, but I'm not overly fond of really really really sharp tips, which the Addi Lace needles have.