Happy Feet and More

The socks I've decided to re-dub Happy Feet are moving along. Felt like I stalled on them for a while, but last evening got the heel turned and a big chunk of the leg done. The heel is a garter-stitch short-row heel for a very critical design purpose: I didn't feel like purling.

Gratuitous close-up of said heel. I love how the garter stitch makes the holes vanish.

Now to keep K2P2 until I run out of yarn -- then make another to match. Still not sure where these'll end up. They're a little big for my feet which gives them a wider potential for gift giving (it's a wool sock yarn, and this is Tucson, so they're not going to get a lot of wear if they stay here). I've got some ideas, though, of who'd really like them, especially the bright colors.

In finished object news:

Pattern: Skull Charms Reusable Swiffer Cover
Yarn: Peaches 'n Creme #1 (White) and #173 (Spring Meadows) -- probably the equivalent of about 1/2 ball each.
Needle: #7 Brittany Walnut
Mods: Since I was making this one for my Wet Jet, I did three complete pattern repeats rather than the 2.5 called for in the pattern.

You can always use more cleaning supplies, and when I finished the Horseshoe Lace Socks and the Baby Sweater, I was at a small loss for what to do. When in doubt, knit a dishcloth (or, in this case, a Swiffer cover).


Pattern: Well, it started out as the Made With Love Baby Sweater, but it ended up being more my own top-down baby sweater.
Yarn: Peaches 'n Creme #173 (Spring Meadows)
Needle: 24" Addi Turbo #7
Mods: Changes made from the Made With Love pattern: no hearts; seed stitch borders; added a few stitches to make up for gauge difference

This sweater is very cute, and I do hope that the family likes it. It's a little bigger than newborn size, so it should still fit in the fall when it starts getting cool in the Pacific Northwest. I also really like the buttons:

Bibs also have buttons:



Not sure what's next. Thought I might just focus on getting a substantial portion of the Dr. Who Scarf done (Ravelry link); also thought I might swatch for Isabella. We'll see what happens.

Of course, my new consulting gig is keeping me somewhat busy (I don't think it breaks any confidentiality to say I had no idea there were so many web sites where you could book a hotel room in Paris) as I learn the ropes. And the church's web site is proving to be a bit of a challenge (specifically getting a podcast of the weekly services up and running). Alas, it keeps me off the street.

I leave you today with some glimpses of spring in the desert:
[Note to my father: that's a tree behind the rose bush.] The unusual pink rose on one side of our driveway. The colors are beautiful, but the bloosoms are unlike any roses I've seen:
See the one in the lower left of the pic? It's an almost completely flat single layer of petals. I do love the color of these.

This is the rose on the other side of the driveway. That part sticking up at top, I swear it wasn't there last week. This one was a late bloomer (it didn't even have buds when the other one started blooming), but it's making up for that in sheer quantity. Not only is it covered with blooms, but it's also still covered with buds. Color is much deeper than shown here -- a really beautiful rosy burgundy. And the blooms are very robust:

And finally, this "I haven't a clue what it is" tree which grows just outside our front door was covered with honeybees this morning:

Okay, so it's probably not the smartest thing to do in Arizona, getting that close to a honeybee (and I WAS that close, these pics are taken with a very old 2.3 megapixel Olympus -- no fancy lenses or attachments here), but since none of them seemed to get agitated -- and the house hasn't come under attack in the last hour -- I'm guessing these ladies are not africanized.

Horseshoe Lace

Pattern: Horseshoe Lace Socks, not yet available from Kollage Yarns
Yarn: Kollage Yarns Luscious in colorway Rosetta -- 2 50g hanks
Needle: 40" 2.5mm Addi Turbo
Mods: None, it was a sample/test knit (unless you count the fact that I knit them magic loop rather than on DPs -- didn't stop me from spotting a problem knitters would run into doing it on DPs, so there)

I thoroughly enjoyed both the yarn (a cotton/nylon blend) and the pattern. Had a little issue at first with the heel, but that got sorted and the rest was smooth sailing. Socks are on their way back home today.

The Baby Sweater is also done, but it's in the dryer right now, so no pics (later). Then I need to do a button hunt for the sweater and the three bibs. Photos of all completely completed before they head off to their destination will be forthcoming.

Have started a new Swiffer cover (the larger size for the Wet Jet), this time in white with the same ombre I used on the baby sweater (173, Spring Meadows). Not a very exciting in progress shot, so no pics there, either.

On a personal note: one of the reasons I haven't blogged this week is that I started training Monday for a new job. It's part time, work I can do from home, and all proprietary and confidential-like. Like, even amongst ourselves, we refer to the client as "The Client". Very clandestine. Guess this is one gig you won't find me doing out at the local coffee shop.

Note to my mother and brother who've decided from reading the blog that I knit a lot: Have you noticed how small most of my recent projects have been? Wait until I start on a sweater for me (which I hope to do soon).

And I leave you with a final shot of the horseshoe lace socks, auditioning for a Dali painting:

Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

It can save more than the environment. Case in point, these:

Handy, dandy handmade covers for my Swiffers (dry and the Wet Jet). Total cost for the two: approx $2.25, a savings of goodness knows how much over the at least two disposable cloths each I was using per week before. Now to find a solution that will replace the floor cleaning fluid for the Wet Jet.... Any ideas?

Pattern: Skull Charms Reusable Swiffer Cover
Yarn: Peaches 'n Creme, black (MC) and 168, the imaginatively named "shades of green" (CC) -- a little less than a ball of each for the two
Needle: Brittany walnut (yeah, the beautifully turned ones they're not making anymore) #7 -- note a pattern lately in my needle usage?
Mods: None for the dry Swiffer cover. For the cover for the Wet Jet, I did three full repeats of the 12-row pattern to make it wide enough to fit.

Here's a pic showing the "pockets" at the end which hold it on:

Just love these!

In other RRR news, M and I found this at the thrift store today:

Yep, a handmade Irish fisherman sweater. And it was dirt cheap 'cuz, frankly, who'd WANT one of these here?! We had a chilly winter this year, and I can't remember a single moment when I would have been tempted to put this on (and I've been cold since about birth).

Anyhoo, that's about 31 ounces of prime Irish wool (checked the seams, and it looks completely re-claimable) or a really beautiful sweater for someone who'd like it. [Sweater measures about 48" at the underarm.] I couldn't leave it in the store but, honestly, don't really have a use for it myself. So, anyone wanna make an offer (trade preferred) for it?

Oh, and this should add credence to its claim of being handmade:

Note the boo boo in the cable on the sleeve.