Friday, March 17, 2006

Sock buddies are soft buddies


I've started to work on my sock buddy's socks for sockapalOOOza. I've been sucked back in by Lorna's Laces; it's just so soft and comfy. (I really want to try Koigu KPPPM or KPM (Canadian yarn, 2 skiens/pair of socks) and Socks That Rock (west coast yarn, 1 skien/pair of socks)... maybe I'll buy myself a birthday treat sometime.

Anyway, I'm using the stranded pattern Crusoe (ha ha), even thould this wasn't my original intention. I had intended to knit a lace leaf pattern to match my sock buddy's blog, which is filled with lovely pictures of fall. The yarn is kinda fall-coloured, too, so it made a nice theme. However, I'm using my new plastic sock needles, which nixed that plan. Since these needles don't seem to be particularly common, I'll lay out my experience thus far (quick overview: I like em, but they're needles with a purpose):

  • If you look at a past post after I recieved my needles, you can see the woman who sells them commenting that I got some of a bad batch (I have no idea what's wrong with them, I haven't used them). She actually sent me two sets of needles, at no charge, to make up for this. Three cheers for Katherine! She's obviously responsive and responsible, and I'm very happy to have supported such a great business.
  • The needles are great to knit socks with. They're bendy, but I like that in my sock needles, so they're quite comfy. I don't have problems with the stiches coming off or sticking on, and I can throw them in my backpack without fear (especially as she includes 6 needles in a pack, just in case). These needles have already begun to see heavy use in the socks I carry around with me all the time.
  • These needles are great for socks, but they're not great for lace socks. The nice bendiness means that k2tog is annoying (though SSK is not), so I tossed my original lace pattern in favour of a stranded one. I seem to prefer very pointy metal needles for lace, and these just aren't metal (though they are very pointy).
  • My cat has a fondness for plastic. I've tried explaining that these are not snacks, to no avail. If your cat is similarly insane, don't leave them out.


I tried something new with the heels this time, slipping (purlwise) only on the knit rows. This makes a really cool false ribbing (click on the picture above to see it a little closer) that's stretchy, narrower than k1p1, and less "busy" than k1p1. These socks should be nice and cushy for my sock pal. She says she's never had hand-knit socks before, so I'm trying to give her some incredibly confortable ones to enjoy.

One last glimpse of one of the reasons I don't knit as much as I'd like (after job interviewing, TAing, Actual Work, and life maintenance). Doesn't he look neglected? He's just looking at the plastic knitting needle "snacks".

3 comments:

  1. Anonymous2:50 AM

    Oh, I love the socks you're doing, what a fantastic colorline! And many thanks for sharing your impressions the way you did the heels, slipping only on the knit rows. The false ribbing looks great, I think I'll try that out with my next pair of socks as well!
    Have fun knitting, and best wishes from Austria!

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  2. Thanks for the plastic needles review--'ve been curious about them, esp. since I bend my bamboos practically into semi-circles. I'll definitely have to order some!

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  3. OMG Kitty is TOO CUTE!!!

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