Moms With Yarn - Episode 4

Tracey and I managed to crank out one finished object each!

Finished:

Sharon: Broken Seed Stitch Socks by handepande (free Ravelry download)
US #1/2.25mm needles / Cascade Heritage Sock Yarn & String Theory Bluestocking (multi)

Tracey: My Knitted Heart Socks by Elizabeth Suarez
US #1.5/2.25mm needles / Blue Moon Fiber Arts lightweight
Tracey learned how to do the kitchner stitch using this site, and she scored her yarn from here

WIPs:

Sharon: Lavender Cardigan by Schneckenstrick, test knit socks to be named
Tracey: Little Oak Cardigan by Alana Dakos, another pair of My Knitted Heart Socks


We also have a Ravelry forum called Moms With Yarn, and you don't have to be a mom to join, so won't you pop on over and see what that's all about.

A huge thank you to:

Heather of the Bunniphish Crafts Podcast
Diane of Knitabulls Podcast
James and Dawn of Wolfe Farms Podcast
To all the people that joined our Ravelry group and subscribed to us on YouTube!
Thank you, gracias, merci, dziękuję

If you have any questions about anything we talked about in the video, please don't hesitate to ask.

Steal Away

On Saturday, I was up at 3:45 a.m., hot into a cab and went to the Port Authority where I met up with Sojourn Knitter, then hopped onto a bus to Northampton, MA.  Why?

I went to WEBS!  It's been on my bucket list for years, and my friend and 'road dog' traveled all morning in the dead of dark to arrived at about 10:30a.  When we got off the Peter Pan bus, we walked to the store, a mere four blocks away.

Seeing the store, which I thought was much larger than it was, I was not disappointed.  If you ever went to Seaport Yarns when it was at the seaport, WEBS is that size, which is pretty impressive.

With no plan, my shopping list was short and there was only one imperative - no sock yarn.  I have plenty and even though I was trying to stash down (and because sock yarn doesn't count as stash),  I went off the rails.  Honestly, how can I say no to yarn at $3.79/ball?

There were vendors outside, and there were the tents and there were even items for $1.00.  Yes, the lines were long, and you should have seen the folks who were clearing off those tables!  They had shopping carts full.  Yikes!

Inside the showroom, there was everything you could possibly want in yarn, fiber, needles, patterns, and books at 30% off!  I was in heaven!

So here's the haul:

A bag from Stitched by JessaLu, not on sale, but cute as a 'gift wrap' since I plan to put a gift in it.  Her shop is closed until June because she's vending on the road, but she has some really pretty bags and she is so nice.

There was a table full of coned yarn, and this cone weighs 2.5 ounces and only cost $20.  I don't know about you, but that's a lot of cotton for a really good price:

I've been coveting these books by Ysolda Teague for a long time, and I could only find books 1 & 3, and they were 30% off.  And of course, I never have enough US #2 needles:

Lastly, I did buy some yarn, but I'm going to hold out showing it here in case I don't get to use it until who knows when.  Maybe I'll flash it on the Moms With Yarn podcast ...

The upside of having gone to WEBS was that it is now off my bucket list and in my memory bank.  It was time (and money) well spent.  The lines were long, but they went fast and I made a new friend while waiting.  I bumped into Mimers66 (Amy) of the Hudson Valley Knits Podcast and her friend Sandy.

Would I go again?  Absolutely!

Moms With Yarn - Episode 3

Sharon & Tracey are knitting and talking about it in episode 3 of Moms With Yarn.

Finished Objects:

Sharon:
Pattern: Cable Rib Socks by Erica Alexander from Interweave Knits Favorite Socks
Yarn: Austermann Step (multi) / Creatively Dyed in the Ancient colorway

Oaklet Shawl by Megan Goodacre (free Ravelry download)
Yarn: Handspun Punta yarn in the Fall 05 colorway

Tracey: Lin Lin Shawl by Yoko Johnston (paid for pattern on Ravelry)
Yarn: Plucky Knitter Scholar in the Headboard colorway

Works in Progress:

Sharon:
Broken Seed Stitch socks

Tracey:
My Knitted Heart Socks
Little Oak Cardigan


Thank you to all the people who watched our first two episodes, subscribed to our channel and left comments - especially those who left feedback.  Tracey & I are trying to get better at the tech stuff.

Punta From Start to New Beginning

Some time ago, I purchased some Punta fiber from She Spins because it was pretty and I'd never heard of Punta.  I was intrigued by the fiber, but was sucked in by the colors.

I'm always willing to try something new and lately I've been doing a lot of spinning.  The colorway is Fall 05, but I think the colors look more like Summer, so I put off spinning it.  Not that it matters when it gets spun, just that I spin it well enough to make something out of it.

When it was all done up: I was tickled pink (and orange and yellow and ...):

My 2-ply yarn had 423 yards..  I was trying to figure what I could make with all that yardage and started the Crocus Shaw, l but nixed it because the colors of the shawl were being drowned out by the pattern and all I could see was the vertical striping which I wasn't pleased with.

A short Ravelry search (I searched by yardage), and found the Oaklet Shawl by Megan Goodacre, and I was smitten.  So I started knitting and in the end, this is what was left:

But this is the result:

The shawl is just the right size, just the right colors for Fall or Summer, and I a love the way the stripes lined up on both sides of the shawl almost perfectly.

Amazing how string turns into things, isn't it?

The Pain & The Joy

I honestly don't know what I was thinking when my uncle asked me to make him knee socks, and I said yes.  Where was my brain?  He's 6'1" tall and wears a size 12 shoe.  I didn't realize how tall the leg had to be, or how long the foot had to be and that all of my knitting dreams would be put on hold.

In the beginning I was so enthusiastic because I love knitting socks and it seemed such a challenge. I dug around in my stash figuring that one skein of yarn wouldn't cover the job.  I was glad to find two colors that (sort of) go together.  Creatively Dyed Yarn in the ancient colorway, and Austermann Step in color #23.

Using a US #2 needle and doing two socks at a time made the knitting go slowly, so when I got to the heels I switched out to double points which changed my whole attitude towards these socks.  I finished the foot on one sock and half the other in one evening:

And then they were done!  The socks are much larger than my large sock blockers, but how is that a problem?

The Austermann Step had two knots in it, and the pick up after the knot picked up the striping pattern in reverse.  I was too tired of the socks to care, and they will be in my uncle's shoe anyway.  As long as they keep him warm, I'm sure it won't be an issue.

But now I crave something that will turn out as planned with no surprises.  So when a friend of mine said she had clear rain boots and only a few pairs of hand knit socks to wear with them, I offered to make her a pair.

My stash dive came up with String Theory Bluestocking:

And some Cascade Heritage sock yarn in black and chose the Broken Seed Stitch Socks, which I've made before and it's a relatively easy free pattern on Ravelry:

After making knee socks, these are a breeze!  No stripes, no knots, just wonderful yarn - and the sock in the picture was knit in two days.  I'm zooming!

Now all I need to do is find something to knit with big fat needles so I can give my hands a little break and I'm all set.

Technical Difficulties

Tracey and I were finally able to post another video of Moms With Yarn after overcoming technical difficulties.

During the time it took to overcome the technical difficulties, I wasn't just sitting around waiting for my computer to come around to my way of thinking.  I knew that wouldn't happen.  So I finished the log cabin blanket:

This pattern is a recipe, so you can make it look like anything you want.  I chose Lion Brand Wool Ease in both sport and worsted weight: in white, heather gray, navy and heather blue to use up some old stash, US #6 needles, and I knit until I ran out of the sport weight white which has been discontinued for years.

I'm also working on my uncle's knee socks.  My biggest fear is that they won't fit and he won't tell me.  After all that time and effort - all I can say is that it would be less stressful to make these socks if we lived closer together.

The top of the sock is the Cable Rib Sock pattern by Erika Alexander (Favorite Socks, Interweave Knits), I used Creatively Dyed yarn in the Ancient colorway for the top of the sock and Austerman Step for the striped foot.  I used both Addi sock rockets and Signature Needles, both in US #2 needles.  The foot of the socks is plain vanilla.

I'm also working on a shawl called Crocus, but I'm second guessing my choice of pattern because it's just not the same with no beads on it, but I think I have a back-up plan.

Tracey  is working on the Lin Lin Shawl using The Plucky Knitter's new yarn line called Scholar in the Headboard colorway and using US #8 needles.



Tracey also mentioned a shop on Etsy called Grandmas Handknitting, where they're offering 10% off during the month of May if you use the code MAYFLOWERS.  That's a good deal!

Thank you to the people who gave feedback, we really appreciate it.  And thank you to the new subscribers, we got more than we expected and we are tickled.  We're doing our best with tech issues, I'm the idiot in charge and mostly I pray.

Enjoy the show and thank you so much for watching.