By Sunday afternoon, with the last of the good light, I had made reasonable progress on John's socks.
Perilously close, as the saying goes, but no actual cigar. I knit the second sock using my newly acquired Darn Pretty needles from Grafton Fibers. I found out about these needles via Claudia
Perilously close, as the saying goes, but no actual cigar. I knit the second sock using my newly acquired Darn Pretty needles from Grafton Fibers. I found out about these needles via Claudiaand must say that I wish I'd been paying attention earlier because buying these needles is not only great for my knitting experience (they are beautiful, have a lovely finish and come in a 5" needle size) but also great for my sense of supporting small craftsmen and women. They definitely deserve a better picture and I will endeavor to do that with the next sock project that I can photograph in good light!
But even in the waning light, I persevered and before the end of Sunday, John did, in fact, have a new pair of socks.
Because I wanted to add a little extra oomph to these socks, and to keep myself from getting bored knitting the second sock, I had the cable on the second sock twist in the opposite direction. I also used the heel of the second sock to try my hand at Japanese short rows. I think the assessment that these make for a neater, less gapped short row is probably true, but since my current reflexes are already hardwired to the PGR method, it slowed me down because I had to think about the process more carefully. The results were good enough to make me want to try it again some time soon.
These last pictures were all taken in the light of my office with the help of my 50 mm f/1.8 lens. It's pretty good for eking out the last bit of light and helping you create good pictures of still objects. The colors in these socks reflect light better than the black, so the green and purple show up much more prominently than they would if you were actually holding the socks in your hand. If they were really this vibrant, man rejection would have been certain.
But even in the waning light, I persevered and before the end of Sunday, John did, in fact, have a new pair of socks.
Because I wanted to add a little extra oomph to these socks, and to keep myself from getting bored knitting the second sock, I had the cable on the second sock twist in the opposite direction. I also used the heel of the second sock to try my hand at Japanese short rows. I think the assessment that these make for a neater, less gapped short row is probably true, but since my current reflexes are already hardwired to the PGR method, it slowed me down because I had to think about the process more carefully. The results were good enough to make me want to try it again some time soon. These last pictures were all taken in the light of my office with the help of my 50 mm f/1.8 lens. It's pretty good for eking out the last bit of light and helping you create good pictures of still objects. The colors in these socks reflect light better than the black, so the green and purple show up much more prominently than they would if you were actually holding the socks in your hand. If they were really this vibrant, man rejection would have been certain.But, in fact, they were happily accepted and modeled by the man, who is looking forward to having a new pair of heavyweight STR socks while I repair his Mudslides.
Fortunately, I have a fair amount of Grawk left over, so should holes appear sooner than expected, repairs will be able to be made. I'm hoping John will be a little gentler on these, since the patterning would make them somewhat more difficult to repair.
I didn't quite meet my challenge of getting him a new pair of socks by Thursday, but I definitely finished them in a week, and there's still plenty of cold weather left in the forecast
Fortunately, I have a fair amount of Grawk left over, so should holes appear sooner than expected, repairs will be able to be made. I'm hoping John will be a little gentler on these, since the patterning would make them somewhat more difficult to repair.
I didn't quite meet my challenge of getting him a new pair of socks by Thursday, but I definitely finished them in a week, and there's still plenty of cold weather left in the forecast
They look fabulous - and aren't the Grafton dpn's the nicest needles? I absolutely love mine...
Great socks! That yarn is really pretty. Just like a crow's wing.
Those look great!
With so many leftover socks with potential for repair, how do you store all of the related sock leftovers? I would worry that I wouldn't be able to find the repair yarn because I decided to do something with it!
Oh, those are quite handsome! And hooray for you for your support of handcrafted items. There is something very personal about them.
Those came out quite manworthy. Yes, I hear there are more arctic chills coming your way.
Thanks for the short row tip!
Nice work! Very manly indeed.
I love my Darn Pretty DPN. They are my favorite needles to knit socks with.
I love them!
These socks are amazing. Thanks for the referral on the needles, they look and sound wonderful.
I'm glad you like those needles. Besides being great needles and just the right length, I also really like supporting Tom and Linda.
I see you've discovered the usefulness of your fast 50!