On and Off the Needles - April 18, 2014

Today I'm happy to show off my first pair of knitted socks--finished. Yipee!!

1st pair of knitted socks

I'd like to thank Judy Laquidara for inspiring me to try knitting socks years ago when she came to St. Louis to teach a workshop and telling me not to give up no matter how many times you have to rip out and cast on repeatedly for the same sock(which I did numerous times), and my friend Sheron who started a pair with me so I had a mentor when I became discouraged or dropped stitches and made a mess of it (she gladly came to my rescue several times) and to Lenora who gifted me the beautiful Opal wool yarn from her magnificent stash to make my first pair. Now I am hooked and I look forward to my next pair. Thank you ladies for encouraging me and helping me learn to knit socks. I am loving this new skill and look forward to knitting many more pairs.

Now see what came in my "Box of Fun" that I teased you about on my post Wednesday. 

Surprise, more yarn and a set of circular needles.  On the right is Judy's Loopy Legion "Judy's Favorite Quilt" and on the left is Denise's "Mandarin Duck".  Aren't they just beautiful.  They feel so soft and can't wait to start another pair of socks with one of them.  My only dilema is which one to try first!  

The set of circular needles are the small size set of Chiao Goo stainless circulars.  I was so excited to see how they worked, I started an easy project called Faux Mobius Cowl made from 1 skein of Rainbow Boucle with Size 8 needles. This gave me a chance to try out the largest tips which came with my circular set and red lace 32" cable, This set has sizes U.S.#2 through U.S.#8.

I wanted the color shown on the wrapper which was black, charcoal grey through a silvery grey/white, which would look great on a black coat, but they were all sold out of that color.  There were many other beautiful choices though and I ended up with blues/teal/grey/turquoise blends.

These are the first two colors and I'm not sure how long each color covers, but so far I like what I'm seeing.  Here is the huge skein with all the range of colors.. I was in such a hurry to get started that I didn't take time to try winding it somehow or pulling it from the center.  Next time I'll know better.

Before the arrival of the Box of Fun, I had started another pair of socks using KnitPicks' Stroll Tweed. The color is Thirst Heather. The pattern is Game of Thrones-House Targaryen by Christine Pike.  I have to blame give credit to Teresa of A Quilt and a Prayer for making me try this pattern. Really, she twisted my arm until I said OK. lol.  Take a look at her beautiful red ones HERE and then you'll understand why I was inspired to start these.

To see what others are doing in the knitting arena, stop by On The Needles at Judy's Patchwork Times.