Summertime...almost here!

Today I stopped by a small local yarn store on the way back from an errand.  Not that I really needed any more yarn....just to stop and look because someone had said they liked their selection of yarn.  In the past, when I've stopped in, I've found the selection pretty basic and plain but not today!

Look what I found!

It's Colinette Jitterbug Sock Yarn in Ruby Saffron.  Doesn't it just scream SUMMERTIME to you?!  Look at those neon corals, pinks, peaches, and golden yellows. From what I recall, Colinette makes Jitterbug in larger skeins that in the past...this one is a more than adequate 400 yards.  I thought I would work on some socks for my daughter this week during the recital dance dress rehearsals.  The theater stays fairly dark and I think I may be able to see this yarn even in a state of semi-darkness!  Now to wind it before it's time to go!

Yarn Review: Socks-to-Be Yarn

Recently, Erin of Socks-to-be Yarn asked me to review her hand-dyed yarns and sent me a sample after asking what colorway I preferred!  Wasn't that nice of her?  You all probably know I'm rather fond of blues by now so I chose this:

Soft and squishy, I couldn't wait to try it out.  The variations of blue are so pretty.  Check out some of Erin's other colorways here.  Before long, I was knitting a sock, just a basic vanilla one, to get an idea for how the colors showed up:

Pretty nice, right?  And, lastly, here's a pic of the completed sock:

Some information on the yarn:  It's 2-ply Sock Weight 100% SW Merino Wool Yarn.  A 100 gm/3.5 oz skein has approximately 365 m/400 yards.  The Knitting Gauge per the label is 6 stitches = 1 in on Size 3-5 Needles.  The Crochet Gauge per the lable is 16-20 sc = 4 inces on E-7 hooks. (3.5mm - 4.5mm).

When knitting socks, I prefer knitting sock weight yarn with size 2 needles (which I used here) and I had a gauge of 8 stitches per inch which is generally where I wind up with sock yarn.

I love the way the sock turned out and I can't wait to try  Socks-to-be yarn again.  You can find Socks-to-be Yarn on Etsy, Twitter and the Socks to Be Yarn Blog.

Disclosure:  Socks-to-be Yarn provided iKnit2Purl2 with a 50 g sample of Sock Weight Handpainted Yarn free for review.  iKnit2Purl2 was not compensated for this blogpost.  All opinions in this blogpost are that of iKnit2Purl2's and do not necessarily reflect those of Socks-to-be Yarn.

Whatcha Been Up To?

I feel like I've been quite a bit MIA from my blog the past few weeks.   Between part-time accounting work, crazy kiddo schedules and trying to design some knitting patterns (more on that later), I haven't been able to sit down long enough to actually post something here in a while.

I'm having a lot of fun trying to design some socks.  I carry a graph paper notebook with me everywhere.  I'm almost at the point where I can write the pattern down and put something on Ravelry so stay tuned for an update.

I'm also knitting some socks for my husband.  I've knitted socks for my daughter (who says thank you and wears them), my son (who says thank you) and for me (I love my hand-knitted socks).  But I haven't tackled anything for my husband until now.  Of course, he wanted dark socks which I am finding are very difficult to knit in the evening.  I'm using yarn from The Sanguine Gryphon in Sooty Dancer (Bugga) which is knitting up quite nicely in this diamond pattern.  I wanted to knit something a little bit more interesting than a plain sock and this pattern isn't difficult and provides a nice, simple detail. Hopefully, perfect for my hubby!



I'm thinking of trying to knit a shawl or wrap soon but can't decide on a pattern...any suggestions?  My daughter's dance recitals and two, yes two, weeks of rehearsals are coming up (next week start's the rehearsals) so I am feeling a bit of a need to start a new project to get me through those looonnnnnggggg nights of rehearsals.  So...whatcha been up to?  Tell us here!