Knit Along: Arched Gusset Sock from FiberWild - Day 3

Gusseting up for the tricky part...

Now it’s getting tricky.  Not too much, though.  A few yarn-overs, couple of k2tog and such, with a handful of cables just to make me feel accomplished.  I did have some trouble figuring out how to yarn-over after a purl stitch--the yarn seems to be on the wrong side of the needles to set that one up.  A quick google search brought up a video tutorial that confirmed my hunch--you just wrap around a bit farther to get the yarn where it needs to be.

The thing I’ve always loved about toe-up socks is that you can try them on as you go.  Yes, it’s like wrangling a porcupine up your ankle if you’re on dpn’s, but with two circulars the socks slips on quite nicely.  Don’t forget that the final row of this gusset has some alterations--you can’t just stuff the gusset pattern in your knitting bag (the full pattern is several pages long and I always copy only the page I need to put in my bag) and be done with it.  Make a note to yourself that the final row has some details that don’t show up in the pattern chart.  My favorite bags?  Namaste's Oh Snap bags.  

They came out nicely.  I feel quite confident at the moment.  The next step it to turn the heel, and I’ve done that enough times that the prospect doesn’t frighten me.  The patterns up the ankle?  Well, that’s another story.

Knit Along: Traveling Vines Scarf from Magpie Yarns - Day 2

Progress and props...

The good thing about a 12-row repeat is that it doesn’t tax your brain cells. The bad thing is that after the first foot or so, it doesn’t offer much adventure. While in my crazy world that makes for peaceful knitting (“oh, look hon, I’ve done a whole foot and I haven’t made any colossal errors!”), it doesn’t make for exciting writing. I’m sure you all find it much more entertaining when I goof it up. And, while it is a small consolation, I do often say to myself, “oh, well, at least it’s blog material.” But after ripping out twelve rows of itty bitty stitches, it’s small consolation indeed. So, my perfection is your loss. Try to cope and I’ll try to find some way to spice things up.

Which I have indeed done, because today we’re going to talk about gadgets. I’ve been pleased to put several of my new toys into play on this project. Some of them, like the Signature needles and the spiffy handy KnitKit, you’ve already heard me rave over. Today’s addition holds the whole enchilada: Namaste’s stunning project bags. Yes, they are simply silver mesh rectangles with snaps on top--but they’re so much more. Like everything Namaste does, they’re thoughtfully designed. The mesh is fine enough not to welcome even the sharpest of point to wander through and snag in your handbag. You can clearly see what’s inside. And things lay out so nicely in the flat-enough-but-not-too-flat construction. In short, these do a simple job exceedingly well.

Going to the other extreme, I’m going to tout one of the joys of parental knitting. Namely teen or tween parental knitting: orthodontic rubber bands. Those bitsy bands you pay some professional thousands of dollars to stretch over your offspring’s teeth also make exceptional small-sized stitch markers. Put to tremendous use on my last tiny-needled sock project. They’re flexible, boast just the right bit of grip-to-slip ratio, and chances are you can easily filch a dozen from your teen’s medicine cabinet without him or her even noticing. An orthodontic knitting benefit! Who’d have thunk it?

What do you press into service for your knitting that didn’t start life as a knitting gadget? Come on, DestiKNITers, I’d like to hear your “knitting uses for everyday objects.”