Boys To Men . . .

Boys to Men is a new pattern, and my #7 pair of socks completed in the 52PPII. The socks shown here are modeled by my 7-year old, Duncan, and were knit from the Regalia remnants (50 grams of Wollmeise in Rittersporn on 2.25 mm needles, toe-up).

This is an embossed moss rib stitch pattern featuring a hybrid gusset and short row heel in three sizes to fit young child through adult men foot measurements. Experimenting with worsted weight yarn and larger needles would create even more sizing options.

Regalia . . .

Regalia, my sixth pair of socks for the 52PPII is now off the needles and available to buy on my website, at Ravelry, and through the Buy Now button below.

Regalia is knit from Wollmeise Sockenwolle 100% Merino Superwash in the beautiful Rittersporn color using 2.25 mm needles. Knit top-down with a mirrored stitch pattern for the right and left legs, the motif is located off center. The heel is a standard heel stitch heel flap with a French heel. There is a standard wedge toe. The sock is designed for Ladies S (M, L) and features optional beading within the motif’s medallions.
The design is clearly charted, with no written stitch instructions given for the stitch pattern. Instructions for how to read the chart are given for those who have little or no experience with chart reading.

52PPII -- My Sanity is Debatable

Yes, I've gone round the bend. Almost certifiable, I'm sure. I joined the 52 Pair Plunge II. The 2008 challenge to complete 52 PAIRS of socks between June 1, 2008 and May 31, 2009. If you know me, you're probably going, "Yeah, menopause hasn't been very kind to poor Terry. She's lost all reason. First it was adopting 3 kids after she was 45. Now, it's committing to knit 52 pairs of socks during the next year."

Oh, if you only knew. Not only will I knit 52 pairs in the next year, but I have challenged myself to design as many of them as possible.

And, since June 1, I've completed three pairs, nanny-nanny-boo-boo, and thank you! First was Flamenco, (OK, so I got a couple of days headstart and the rule is COMPLETE pairs during the year, so that is totally within the rules all you Type-As out there) then a pair for Abby from the Flamenco remnants.

And then just a couple of hours ago, only about an hour short of the end of the first week of the plunge, pair #3, which is Enchantress. Enchantress will be available later on this month when Meg finishes test knitting the model in the most lovely black Panda Silk to show the very mesmerizing stitch pattern. But for now, I knit through the pattern myself using Lime and Violet's Sasquatch Sock in the Violet's Spring colorway. Even though the stitch pattern is swallowed up by the beautiful hand dyed colors, I did get this pair finished, and what the hey . . . . socks is socks! :-)

So here they are, and just WAIT until you see the black Enchantress version!

Top-down or toe-up . . .

Ana left a comment in the Koi Socks (thanks, Ana!) asking about whether the Koi socks are worked toe-up or top-down. The Koi socks are knit top down, but the stitch pattern would look exactly the same worked from toe-up, and is easily convertible.

Which made me realize I needed to put more information on the Socks page of my website to tell a little bit more about the pattern. I've incorporated a brief description for each pattern which you may find helpful.

In a nutshell, Flambeau, Gracious, Tangled Faeries, and Miss O'Hara are all toe-up construction. The rest of the socks are knit top-down.

Flamenco . . .

This latest sock is called Flamenco, featuring lacy ribs and a central lace strip which runs from top to toe, and even down the center of the heel flap.  It's knit top-down with a standard heel flap and gusset construction, and sized for Ladies Medium.

This sock is my first completed pair in the 52 Pair Plunge II.

Flamenco is  available now from my website, from Ravelry, or directly from my blog by clicking the button below.

Simple Pleasure and Miss O'Hara . . .

Introducing Simple Pleasure and Miss O'Hara to the sock pattern line-up on my website. Both designs are available from my website, from Ravelry, and also from the Buy Now buttons below.

Simple Pleasure is a ribbed sock knit top-down using a 4-stitch/2-row stitch pattern that continues down the heel flap. Great for men or women, and sized for adult S/M/L.

Many thanks to Meg Converse for test knitting the pattern, as well as the model socks for Simple Pleasure.

Miss O'Hara is quite a fussy little lady. She's very lacy, with some cables thrown in. Knit toe-up with a hybrid heel (small gussets above and below the short-row heel) and finished with a novel herringbone rib cuff.

Wadi . . .

wadi  A gully or streambed in northern Africa and southwest Asia that remains dry except during the rainy season.

Wadi is my new sock pattern available at my website, on Ravelry, and via the Buy Now button below.  The texture is very pebbly and the hand-dyed yarn paints a river tripping across the stones of the dried river bed.  

This sock is sized for Ladies M and L, and is shown here knit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock medium weight in the Lucy colorway.  

(Digital only)

Beach Buddy Tote Pattern Now Available . . .

The Beach Buddy Tote felted bag pattern is now available to purchase on Ravelry, at my website, and also via the Buy It Now button below. Enjoy!


$5.00
(Digital only)

Tangled Faeries . . .

Yes, that's right . . . . another new sock pattern! This one worked up so quickly and was such fun to do. I cast on Wednesday evening and finished on Sunday afternoon. Take a look at Tangled Faeries.

The sock is knit from toe to cuff in Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock Lightweight in the Jade colorway. There are cabled along each edge of the instep, which become horseshoe cables above the heel flap on the leg. Between the cables, a tangle of faeries play along the sock, to be topped with a lettuce leaf openwork bind off that is very stretchy as well as decorative.

The pattern is available now on my website, and at Ravelry. You may also buy it now by clicking the button below. I hope you'll enjoy knitting this fun sock for spring.

Diamond Strands . . .

Diamond Strands is a new pattern now available on my website and on Ravelry. This sock pattern is worked from cuff to toe on 2.25 mm needles and incorporates a heel flap and gusset. The diamonds are created by working a two-stitch twisted combination of a knit stitch crossed over a purled stitch, and the seed stitch ribbing is carried down the heel flap.

The pattern contains sizing for Ladies M and L, as well as both written instructions and the charted design. The yarn used for the model is Shibui Knits Sock in Peony, which was purchased from The Loopy Ewe. Gotta love the Loopy!

Whistle Bait Socks . . .

My latest sock design is now up on my website and at Ravelry. Whistle Bait is knit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock lightweight in the Thraven colorway. The pattern is sized for Ladies S, M, and L and combines nice texture with visual interest, an eye of partridge heel flap, and a nifty picot cuff. The pattern is written for top-to-toe construction and calls for 2.25 mm needles. Gauge is 8 stitches per inch and 11 rows per inch in stockinette stitch.

Thanks once again to Meg Converse for testknitting the pattern and the sample sock for me.

Beach Buddy Tote . . .

This new tote was a little break for me last week. I've been concentrating on developing sock patterns lately, and trying to branch out into other garment design as well, and I decided to take a breather and go back to a favorite old standby -- felted bags.

Late last year, I committed to designing a bag for the June Bag-a-Holics group monthly knitalong. I thought that I'd get busy on that last week and get the project finished and off my plate well in advance of the deadline, and so this design, Beach Buddy Tote is what resulted.

A serendipitous thing happened though. Just when the bag was finished and the pattern was ready to go, the person who had committed to designing the April bag was unable to make that in time and a call went out to see if another designer had something ready. Et voila! Beach Buddy to the rescue! It was a pleasure to be able to pitch in and offer the pattern two months early and help out a fellow designer.

This pattern will be available for sale on my website and through Ravelry beginning May 1.

Lacuna . . .

la·cu·na [luh-kyoo-nuh] –noun,
plural -nae /-ni/
1. a gap or
missing part, as in a manuscript, series, or logical argument; hiatus.
2. Anatomy. one of the numerous minute cavities in the substance of bone,
supposed to contain nucleate cells.
3. Botany. an air space in the
cellular tissue of plants.

A new sock design debuts today -- Lacuna -- knit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock lightweight in Stonewash. It is a great casual Friday look with jeans, featuring a seed stitch heel flap and a seed stitch toe.

The pattern is available for sale now from Ravelry, and will be up on my website for sale soon. Stay tuned for more sock patterns coming soon!

Give a Friend a Hug . . .

Here's a quick knit when you want to give something to a friend to warm her heart and her neck at the same time -- I'll Take a Hug -- a new design I'll be writing up and putting on my website. My friend Nancy, who has a wool allergy, doesn't like to be cold, so I knew just the thing for her. I started this last night from 1 ball of Lion Brand Jiffy in the El Paso colorway. The neckwarmer took less than one ball worked on U.S. size 10 (6.0 mm) needles. Three large funky looking buttons keep this warm and snug against the neck. The 18" rectangle is worked to produce diagonals at each end. Watch for the pattern on my site soon.

Another member of the Koi Collection . . .

The Koi Collection grows today with the addition of a quick to knit little neckwarmer. It uses only about 125 yards of worsted weight yarn. It's shown here in Lorna's Laces worsted in the Aslan colorway. One nice feature of this design is the I-cord edges that are knit on as you go -- no applying afterward! This makes a nice non-roll border for a very tailored look. Click the photo to enlarge it for a better look. This pattern is available from my website for $5.00 and goes great with the socks and hat. It'll have a new member of the family joining it soon, so be watching for that pattern too.

Another new sock pattern is featured on my webpage as well -- Conversational. Here it is knit from Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock lightweight in the Azure Malachite colorway. This pattern costs $5.00 and features a nicely textured rib, as well as some openwork. Many, many thanks to Margaret Converse for testing the pattern and knitting the model for me. Doesn't she do beautiful work?

The Koi Collection . . .

Today I want to show you some designs which are part of the Koi Collection. Within this collection will be socks, a hat, fingerless gloves in two weights of yarn, and a neckwarmer. Shown here are the Koi socks, Koi hat, and Koi gloves (worsted version). When the other two items in progress are completed, I'll upload the entire collection to my website for sale, and also to Ravelry.

The stitch pattern is very easy to memorize and gives lots of texture and interest. I just love these socks. The way it worked up in the Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock mediumweight Little Bunny Foo Foo reminded me of koi swimming in a school, hence the name.

I also loved the way the Fiesta Boomerang yarn knit up in the hat and worsted version of the fingerless gloves. Another version of the gloves in fingering weight yarn is in the hands of my lovely and capable test knitter, Denise. I'm currently knitting the neckwarmer myself. More on those later!

Gracious . . .

I'm very excited about my newest sock pattern, Gracious. This pretty and feminine sock is a motif I adapted and compiled from a couple of different stitch patterns. I've just posted it on the Shopping page of my website and on Ravelry as well. This sock is knit from Dream In Color Smooshy in the Petal Showers colorway, and the pattern is sized for ladies small, medium, and large. I hope you'll enjoy this little beauty and it'll soon be adorning your feet.

Calorimetry . . .

What a fast and fun little knit this was! I've been in such a fast and furious design mode lately that I thought I'd take a few hours and knit something that someone else designed. So, Calorimetry (from Knitty.com) it was. I used some yarn remnants to knit this up and just love how it turned out.

On my design needles (and the needles of my test knitters) are 3 pairs of socks and some fingerless gloves. Just off the needles are another pair of fingerless gloves and a hat. Lined up as soon as one of my test knitters finishes socks is a cute little neckwarmer. Soon, I should have several new patterns up for sale on my website and posted at Ravelry as well.

Fini! . . .

And they are finished! My friend's socks are finished. Now the suspense begins to build as I wonder "Will they be that perfect fit I was striving to achieve?" Stay tuned . . . . I'll give these to her tomorrow and we'll see then.

Off to work on some of the other half dozen designs that are swirling around in my head.

Knitting Socks for a Good Friend . . .

I have a wonderful friend. She's smart, funny, accomplished, curious, generous, focused and we just enjoy letting one another be who we are. Can you believe she doesn't KNIT? And, she has a wool allergy.

I love to knit for people I love, and of course you know I love to knit socks, so I've wanted for quite a while to knit her some socks. Finally, I'm doing it. I'm using Panda Cotton from Crystal Palace Yarns in the Sable colorway, which she chose from the colors I had on hand. And I designed a motif specifically for her, deconstructing and recombining various stitch patterns I liked.

Here's a peek at the socks. I'm increasing the gussets, toe up, right now and hope to have these completed by Wednesday when she's here to have dinner with us.