Going Out of Town Wednedsay, July 27, 2011

I am going to Pittsburgh, PA tomorrow to watch my son dance in the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School's Summer Intensive school performance.  I will arrive in Pittsburgh Thursday afternoon, the first performance is Friday.  That one is a student choreographed show.  The actual school performance is Saturday.  After that, we will leave for Chicago early Sunday morning.   We will spend 2 days in Chicago doing a sort of Ferris Bueller's Day Off tour.  Then fly home Monday night.

This type of trip is so much fun for me.  I have missed my son so much, though I know he has been having a blast at the ballet program.

This is his audition photo this year.  He was 15, and is now 16.  I am so proud of him.  There is nothing more fun for me than watching my kids do anything, but mostly dancing.  So I get to see my son and watch him dance.  2 wonderful things.   Also, I don't know anyone in Pittsburgh, so it is always fun for me to visit a new city.  If I were going all by myself, I would spend my free time visiting yarn shops!  I am actually going with a family friend, who I am picking up in Chicago, and who will be our tour guide for the Ferris Bueller Tour.  Here he is modeling the Dr. Who scarf I knitted last Fall:

Since he will be with us, I will still have a good time, but less yarn shops.  I'm not sure what we will do when Luke is still in class... We will have to figure that out.  I do know that we will see the Chicago Art Institute, and Sears Tower, and eat some amazing Pizza in Chicago!

But though I won't be visiting yarn shops this trip, I will be knitting.  I am bringing the Red Hot Socks that I am making for my Great Nephew Zach.  I have finished the toes - to - gusset  (toes and foot), and am ready to start knitting the gusset increases.

I am not sure if I will have time to work on the gussets before I leave or not.  I enjoy public transportation because it gives me a lot of time to knit.  My plane leaves at 6 am, and frankly, I am just not sure if I will be awake enough to knit without mistakes.  But, wow, I should be able to get a TON done if I can stay awake to do it. 

I will also bring yarn for a 2nd pair of socks for Allie.  I just might finish up the Red Hot Socks.  I hope so.  I would love to actually mail them in time for Zach's birthday.

Someone is Watching... Sunday, July 24, 2011

OK, I'm curious.  Someone is reading this blog.  And by that I mean usually some ONE.  Would you leave me a comment?  I would love to know who reads this (besides me)...

C. A. Losi

Red Hot Socks Saturday, July 23, 2011

I have started the socks for my Great Nephew Zach.  I am using Red Hots Sock Yarn from Sock-Ease yarn from Lion Brand Yarns.  This yarn is not very soft.  I hope the socks aren't too itchy for little Zach.  But they look terrific.  So far I have finished the toes:

A bit more "orange hot" than really red, but I wanted orange yarn anyway.  I love the self striping colors, too.  You can't see them very well in this bad photo, but I'm in a rush and wanted to post SOMETHING.

I am doing my own "pattern."  My niece says that Zach wears size 2.5 which seems HUGE for a 5 year old.  She says, yes, he has monster feet. 

Here is my "Knitting Math" for these socks:

Size:   2.5 

8 2/3  inches foot length

7 1/4 in  width around cuff

gauge: 

8 stitches/in   

10 rows /in

Circumference 7.25 in x 8 st/in = 58  so

100% = 58 I'm going with 56 It's easier if there are even numbers on the needles and when you divide 58 by 2 you get 29.

50% (stitches on each needle) = 28

75% = 42

25% = 14

X = desired total sock length = 8 2/3  8.67 in

Y = # rows in gusset and heel cup (75% circumference-1)= 41

Z = rows per inch = 10

X - (Y/Z) = TGL

8.67 - (41 / 10) = 4.57 inches

4.57 in x 10 rows/in = 45.7 in  rounded up to 46 rows from tip of toe to gusset.

the toes will increase each row so casting on 8 on each needle

12 rows of toes (11 increases + 1 row of just K)

34 rows of foot

This last part in bold is new.   I have discovered a potentially fatal flaw in the socks I made for Allie.  The formula given in Toe-Up 2 at a Time Socks  give a Toe to Gusset  length.  I was thinking:  End of the toe section to gusset!  But on re-reading the book, it is from the tip of the toe to the beginning of the gusset!!!!  O! no!  I believe the socks for Allie are about 1 1/2 inches too long.  Exactly the length of the toe section =(  I will have her try them on after they are blocked (still waiting for my new blocking toys ... I mean tools), and then if they are uncomfortably long, we can decide if I should just remake them.  The pattern is easy, and it took me about 2 weeks of knitting.  I won't mind taking them apart and remaking them.  Or I can donate them to charity, and some person with long skinny feet can have a pair of hand knitted socks!

I tried to check for some rule of thumb for how quickly/slowly to increase the sides of the toes and couldn't really find a nice formula.  One blog I found said that if you increase every row, you will get wider toes, if you do an increase row followed by a straight knit row, the toes will be longer and more narrow.  Also, there was no real formula saying how many stitches to cast on.  So I decided to just cast on  8 stitches on each side.  Then I increased each row until I had 28 stitches on each side.

 

I figured out how many rows of toe increases I was going to use from 8 stitches to 28 is 11 rows (I did one straight row) then added one more straight row, so 12 rows of toes, then subtracted those rows from the total Toe-to-Gusset number.  46 - 12 = 34.  The foot of the sock will be 34 rows.

I am just using a simple 4x2 ribbing for the top.  Because the 28 stitches to a needle is a bit of a weird number for dividing, the actual sock ribbing for the leg, will not be completely even.  

The top (or instep, or front) of the leg ribbing will be:

K K K K X X K K K K X X K K K K X X K K K K X X K K K K

and the back will start with a K then repeat the pattern 4x2 , ending with an extra K:

K

X

X

K

K

K

K

X

X

K

K

K

K

X

X

K

K

K

K

X

X

K

K

K

K

X

X

K

 So there will be 5 knits at the sides, but this will center the ribbing a bit more.

For the foot part, I will do the instep ribbing and just knit the sole.  I think a ribbed sole can feel lumpy.

I am excited.

C. A. Losi

ABB (All But Blocking) Thursday, July 21, 2011

I finished Allie's "Rain" socks yesterday, well everything but weaving in and blocking.  I am not sure I like the casting off method I used.  Casting off Toes-up Socks can be a bit of a challenge, because the cast off must be very loose so the top of the sock is stretchy.  The book by Melissa Morgan-Oakes (Toe-Up 2-at-a-Time Socks) recommends 3 different methods.  I chose the method where you add an extra stitch between each stitch on the last row, then bind of a double wide top.  It makes a kind of "frill" around the top of the sock that is supposed to disappear when worn.  We shall see.

These socks look so lumpy unblocked and unworn.  I have ordered some blocking tools from KnitPicks.com, specifically:  Sock Blockers.  Ok, I know I can make my own from some wire... and possibly just block with pins...  But well, I want official blockers!  So I will wait to get my new toys to block these socks.

Samantha wants a pair in the same yarn, but I have a birthday coming up for my great-nephew Zack, so I am going to make a quick pair of socks for him first.  He will be 5, and they should be pretty small, so a quick knit.  It took me 2 weeks to make Allie's, so Zack's should be really fast.  I'm not going to do any pattern, just knit them toes up with probably a 2x2 ribbing.  I got some nice orange striping yarn from Lion Brand Yarn Red Hots.  It's not the softest yarn, but it looks like it will knit up in a nice stripe.  And it is a fun collection of colors that a 5 year old boy should like.  Don't worry, I will buy him a dinosaur, too.  So far, I am working on the swatch.  It looks right now like 8 stitches, 11 rows, but I need to knit a bit more to be sure.  I want these to fit =)

About Life:

I have walked just around the block (1/2 mile) now Mon. and Wed.  On Wed., I was thinking that I would walk the other block (we live on a corner) and make it 1 mile, but as I left the house, my left sock traveled under my foot, and wadded up there.  I don't know about you, but I HATE THAT.  I kept telling myself that it wasn't that annoying, and that I could just keep walking.  But, I knew that I was walking just slightly weirdly because of the extra bump under that foot, and that I would ache in strange places because of that.  So I just did the 1/2 mile.  Excuses?  Reality?  IDK.  Well, I hope to do the mile today.  Of course, I didn't go right away.  I sat down to knit and write in this blog.  Excuses?  Reality?  It is gray but not raining...  I will walk the full mile today...

And on Buffy:  She has been raised from the dead.   This is such an interesting story-line.  I love that they returned her from Heaven, and that she now thinks of Earth as Hell.  Also, I'm on the episodes with the 3 "evil geniuses:  Andrew, Jonathon, and Warren.  Andrew is one of my absolute favorite characters in this wonderful show.  And I'm doing a quote from Spike (who is also sooo wonderfully written and acted), where he saves Mr. Giles, then says, " Did your life flash before your eyes?  Cuppa tea, cuppa tea, cuppa tea, almost got shagged, cuppa tea."  I so love Spike.



C. A. Losi
7.21.11

Morning List 7.18.11

To do list:

1. walk - write
2. laundry
3. checkbook
4. knit
5. grocery store (CAT FOOD!)

1. Walk - Write:

I took a walk around the block.  It is about 1/2 mile.  It took at least 20 min.  Maybe 30.  I am not kidding.  In my defense, I haven't been able to walk for 3 weeks because of some minor surgery on my right calf.  The doctor expressly said, "NO Walking."  And also, we live on a very steep hill.  Also, I have bad knees... wow I'm slow and out of shape.  I get my stitches out tomorrow, but I absolutely have to start walking again.  I love such sedentary activities, video/computer games, knitting/crocheting, cooking, reading, movies, etc.  My body is atrophying. Every Day.  Every Day I will walk and then write briefly.  I get good ideas for poetry and so on while I walk.  When I have completed a poem, I will post here.  I will also log my walks so I can't cheat.

2. Laundry:

On the 4th load, but I need to fold and put away.  That will happen as soon as I save/log off this blog.  Back... I did 6 loads, folded and put away.

3. Checkbook:

Organized April =)  Ok, I didn't balance... A bit every day because it is so boring.

4.  Knit:

I have finished 2 repeats of the vertical pattern on Allie's socks.  She wants 3 repeats, and each repeat is 20 rows.  I am on row 3 of the last repeat.  Then there will be about 1 inch of ribbing, and done!

5. Grocery Store:

Ok, I didn't do this.  Samantha and I went to the movies and saw, Horrible Bosses.  Really funny.  Then we bought cat food at Petco, which was the most important thing anyway.  I made up some tuna salad for dinner.

Tomorrow I get my stitches out and Allie wants me to check out some apartments with her.  I hope I can get in my walk before everything starts.

And, since I didn't go to the store today... my list tomorrow will be:

Walk
Laundry (2 loads left)
Knit
Grocery

In not necessarily that order.

C. A. Losi

OUCH! 7.16.11

The final Harry Potter movie (The Deathly Hallows Part 2) opened Thursday night (Friday morning really... 12:01 am).  Why is this being reported in a knitting blog?  Other than it marks the end of my kids' childhood?  The end of our family's greatest common obsession?  The end of the phenomenon that encouraged a love of reading in millions of kids of this generation? 

Why, sitting in line for the movie for 4 1/2 hours gave me ample time to knit of course! 

Since my 2 youngest sons are out of town (James is visiting his good friend Olivier in France, and Luke is dancing at the Pittsburgh Ballet Theatre School's Summer Intensive), I went to the opening with Allie and Samantha.  Allie brought crocheting, and I brought my socks.  Samantha brought the book and reread most of the 2nd half of it AGAIN.

I was able to finish the heel cups and both heels.

Why the ouch?  if you look closely at the photos, I am using new needles.  Why?  I really loved those beautiful rosewood Knit Picks needles.  However, in an effort to knit a bit tighter, I BROKE them!

Honestly, I almost cried.  First of all I dropped some stitches, then I had to transfer the ones on the broken part to a holding needle... o so carefully.  Then I had to find another size 0 circular.  Michael's?  nope.  JoAnn's?  Nope!  Pacific Fabrics?  thank goodness, Yes!  They were the only store with size 0, period, much less in circular.  But I had to go with metal needles.  I stopped using metal knitting needles when my good friend and fellow ballet mom, Maggie, got me restarted knitting.  I was amazed at how much nicer wooden needles feel.  But, all they had in size 0 circular were some 40" Addi Turbo Circular Knitting Needles.  I was nervous, but, wow, I love them!  I can knit super tightly, also, because I don't have to worry that I am going to break them.  They are a bit more slippery, but I am getting used to their "feel."  I think I will order some more in even smaller sizes.

So my OUCH! and some fabulous Harry Potter 3-D (yes, I got a pair of the commemorative 3-D HP glasses), has brought me this far with the Allie Socks:

 This shows the one finished heel and the other with the heel cup.  Can't wait to start the legs.

Maybe I will knit while I re-watch the Deathly Hallows part 1.  I totally feel the need to see that movie again. 

Lumos!

C. A. Losi

Confessions of a Blockhead 7.14.11

Last night, I made a quick post because I was so excited that I had blocked my Summer Mystery Shawlette and matching socks.

Part of the reason I was so excited was, drum roll.... I HAVE NEVER BEFORE BLOCKED ANYTHING.  Ok, I mostly crocheted afghans or knitted socks, and really why block socks?  Just wear them...

But, wow, you can see the lace pattern so much better now that it's blocked.  I posted this before, but here is the shawlette and socks unblocked:

Here is a close up of the Blocked Shawlette:

The color washed out a bit, but you can see the pattern pretty well. And here is a close up of the unblocked shawlette:

 Wow, what a difference.  I am sold on blocking (lace at least), and am now an official BlockHead.

On to other projects.

I am still knitting the gussets on the socks for Allie.  It's been pretty busy around here... I'm not sure with what, probably playing computer games.  She came over to try them on and said they felt loose... ouch.  I shall continue on with them anyway.  When I get the gussets finished (today!!!), I will take a photo, then another with completed "heel cups,"  and then heels.  I love being able to document every bit of progress in my knitting projects.

I just received an invitation to my Great Nephew's 5th birthday party, and my niece's baby shower.  Not sure I will make something for Zach (maybe some quick socks, but then I'll have to buy him a toy, too...), but I would love to actually make something for Katie, or her new baby.  Why do my nieces keep having boys?

O, speaking of boys, I posted a photo of the Poet Shirts I made for my sons for their ballet performance, but I also wanted to post a photo of them in the shirts.  They HATED them.  LOL.  They both complained that the shirts were too puffy.  Decide for yourself:

Enough blogging for the day.  I need to increase some gussets!

C. A. Losi