Meezermeowmy’s Weblog

As Eeyore would say “Don’t mind me.  I’ll just be over here, knitting in the corner.”  Not going to Sock Summit, but it does sound amazing.  Many of my blogging friends are attending, so it will be my job to stay home and keep the blog open, I guess.

I was musing this morning about knitting travelers.  Will all those sock knitters freak out the airport security?  “The last gal had knitting needles with her, too.  What is this, a test to see if we are allowing knitting?!”  Hah!  Serve them right after all the grief they’ve given knitters!

Then my mind jumped to how many knit guru’s will be in Portland. All the best minds of sock knitting will be there, in one place.   It will be a brain trust that even a head of state could envy!  I pray for traveling mercies for all those knitters, and for a wonderful weekend of knitting and friendship.

I’m knitting away on my Ulmus, have about 8  + repeats on the main body remaining.  Yet I feel pulled to cast on a sock in solidarity with Sock Summit.  Heh!

I’ve taken a fancy to the Easter Monkey.  No candy or eggs were involved.  There wasn’t even any fake grass!

Actually, I cast on a pair of Monkeys between services on the Second Sunday of Easter.  (For my friends who belong to non-liturgical churches, Easter is a season of the church year, and runs until Pentecost.)  The yarn is Morandia’s MIB Fibers in “Close to Pastel”, purchased from the Knitting Asylum.

I was struck by how much they looked like an Easter confection.  They were, from early on in the first cuff, my Easter Monkeys.

The first sock was finished before our Disney vacation.  The second sock has languished, partly due to the fact that this is my third pair of Monkeys. (One other pair for me, one given as a gift.) The novelty has worn off, even more than one might expect on the second sock.  I have made progress since vacation, though:  the cuff, heel, and gusset are completed now.  There’s nothing left but racing (crawling?) for the toe.

Monkeys tend to be a bit snug on the foot for me in the 64-stitch cast on, but that size is dandy for the cuff.  I have developed a technique for expanding the foot that I’d like to share with you.  When I decrease the gusset stitches, I don’t take the heel side of the sock all the way back down to the original count (32 stitches in the case of a 64 stitch cast on).  If I decrease to 36 stitches for the sole and 32 stitches on the instep needle I get the extra room needed for my bunion.  When the sock is long enough, I do a decrease round on the sole needle only, a plain round, and another sole decrease, and one more plain round before I begin my standard toe.  The finished product looks like a proper sock, and fits so much better.

The Monkeys get to go in the car with me, while the larger sweater projects remain behind.  They went to Knit Night at the Asylum last Thursday, and the admiration they received encouraged some knit progress.  I’ll take them to my eye appointment this afternoon.  Perhaps I should get out more, if I want to finish these socks.

It was a white and fluffy Sunday.  The appointed Gospel for this week is the “I am the Good Shepherd” verse, with the accompanying Psalm being, of course, Psalm 23.  I couldn’t help thinking of my internet friends who were off on junket to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival.

There was good news in the announcements, too.  Emmanuel, the baby born 9 weeks early at only 2 pounds, now weighs 5 pounds +.  He’ll be coming home this week!  May I say, Yippee!  Remember the blanket I knit for him? I knew his weight was over 4 pounds last week, so I brought the gift to his parents Sunday.  I’m so glad I didn’t wait until after our trip to present it…perhaps he can come home from the hospital wrapped in it.  (Yes, I know it’s in the high 80’s, but Louisiana is all about air conditioning, and it’s COLD inside.)

When we got home from church, DH suggested a walk down the drive to enjoy the magnolia blossoms.  I dearly love getting the mail in magnolia season.  The prevailing winds blow the scent away from the house, but as you walk between the magnolias it wafts toward you, ambushing you with its perfume.

The blossoms are the largest these trees have produced.  I asked DH to put his hands in the picture to show the scale. 

Even the buds are the size of a baseball!  The rains came at just the right time this year, I believe. 

The rest of the day was spent on…wait for it…knitting, of course.  I have now finished 3 1/2 pairs of footies, and have less than an inch before I begin shaping the toe of the remaining footie.  Wednesday is our Disney trip (bouncing up and down)!  I’ll make the deadline with for the  socks.

I’m spending my knitting time considering what to pack.  I most certainly don’t want to get stuck somewhere without sufficient knitting!  Think of those poor people quarantined in a hotel in Asia because one traveler became ill!

The second pair of footies has been completed, but not without a rude surprise.  First, I should say that the knitting modifications I made (changing the ribbing from 3/4″ to 1″, and starting the white for the toe at the point of beginning the toe decreases) were very satisfactory.  In fact, the first footie was just fine.

Then I began knitting what has come to be known as “the evil twin”.  I must protest that I did not deviate from my protocols.  It was the yarn’s fault, entirely!

Although you have to look closely to tell that they are even cousins, both footies came from the same skein of yarn (Fortissima Colori Socka Color, Disco, #9051).  The second was begun directly after the first (I did not fiddle around trying for identical status.)  What a terrible dye job!

Now, for the happy ending:  Because it was part of a grab bag purchase, I don’t have a lot of money invested in this yarn.  It has been marinating in my stash for several years.  Unless you have some put away, too, the odds are small that you will come across this yarn.

These are perfectly functional footies that are intended to be worn inside athletic shoes.  Only the cuffs will show.  It’s certainly a good thing I wasn’t working on something fancy, eh?

I’ve completed my first pair of footies, and it is a success.  I cast on 72 stitches for my wide feet, and knit in K2 P2 rib for 3/4 inches.  I continued in stockingette until the piece measured 1/34 inches, then changed to white for my standard flap heel. 

This was my first foray into contrasting heel and toes.  My stash contained only one 50 gram skein of this self-patterning yarn (from a sale grab bag); the contrast yarn provided enough yardage to complete the pair.  I was very concerned that I might not have enough of the patterned yarn, so I began the white toe one inch before the toe shaping.  My feet look like a Snowshoe Meezer!  (Not to worry:  they are meant to be worn under tennies:  no one will see them.)   After all was knit, I could see there would have been sufficient patterned yarn.  I have another “orphan” 50 gram ball, same brand,  from the same grab bag, and I’m glad to know it will work.

The second pair will have one inch ribbing instead of 3/4 inch.  I think that will provide better “cling” at the ankle.   I’m pleased with the results…time to cast on!