Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Knitting and Reading


First socks knit on double pointed needles - I feel much more confident about this now.
Dear husband, Mike tells me he would love a pair of hand knit socks  lovingly knit by his wife  - what do you recommend in a sock yarn that will hold up to lots of wear - a wool/? combo...

Using some more wool yarn I hand dyed - one in painted yellows and moss greens and the other kettle dyed in yellow to coordinate.

The vest is a very simple pattern that I am making up as I go along.  Pictured is the front and I now have the back cast on.  The size will be about a 4T.

And, after passing by the Into the Wilderness series at the library for a couple of months, I decided to pick up book 2.  It has drawn me in already - there is just something about her writing that keeps me reading and not wanting to stop - usually, however, sleep calls me long before I am ready to put it down.

Looking forward to all of the sharing today with Ginny at Small Things for the Yarn Along.



30 comments:

  1. Your posts are inspiring! I love to see what you are up to and it motivates me to see how much knitting you get done;) I am taking a double pointed sock class right now. I have gotten the hang of it, and I am excited for tomorrows class where we work on the heel turn!
    Blessings,
    Renee
    www.tail-spinfarm.com

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  2. I love the socks and can see why your husband wants some! I have to look for the books...I love the ones you just can't put down! Enjoy the rest of your week!

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  3. How sweet to see handknit socks on baby feet! The socks look so adorable.
    I am not an expert and others may know better than I do, but I would say wool for your husband's socks. I did a pair for my son and used wool, so far they are holding up quite well.

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  4. Those socks look fantastic on those lovey baby legs!! Your vest is looking great, how clever to be making it up as you go along.

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  5. I absolutely love lambs pride wool for making my husband's xmas socks. you do need to make them a bit bigger and bear in mind shrinkage is a possibility but it's so cosy & sturdy wearing. sometimes i do the whole sock in a 1-1 rib for extra stretch and cushioning on the foot but that's a trick to get used to!

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  6. Love those socks! Nice and colorful, too. Your dyed yarn looks great. Do you plan to publish the pattern for the vest?

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  7. Your colourful socks are beautiful, as are the tiny toes moddelling them. I just wanted to let you know that I first came across your blog a year or so ago when I was in the process of making the decision to home educate and seeing your blog and your family helped give me the confidence to go ahead. Thankyou x

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  8. Tonya, I love those socks! The colourway is just wonderful and they look so cozy and warm.

    The vest is lovely, I do hope you post the pattern. Your hand dyed yarn is beautiful.

    xo xo
    Linda

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  9. Your socks came out great! I started knitting socks on double points but then moved to magic loop. I like both methods. Just depends on my mood.

    The socks that I wear the most and have yet to get a hole in them are made from Lion Brand sock yarn I got at Michaels years ago on sale. It's not the softest thing around, but it's a wool/acrylic blend that is indestructible.

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  10. I believe I have knit that very same vest...although in a smaller size for my niece! :)

    I just love that first photo! Those sweet, chubby baby legs and fantastic socks are adorable!!! :)

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  11. Dear Tonya~ Oh those socks on those perfect baby feet! I love them! It feels quite an accomplishment, to finally be able to do socks on dpns doesn't it? At least that is how I felt. And they are surprisingly fast.
    I have hesitated to make my DH socks, as he wears through socks so easily. I have tried many yarns and had little success for "hard wearers" (Shea is also hard on socks). Though I will say, I used lamb's pride once and those never got holes- though they were a bit on the scratchy side. I'd be interested to see what others recommend, and I look forward to seeing future socks!
    Love, Mel

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  12. Too cute. Currently on my third baby sweater that's similar to this one. I, too, want to try larger versions--maybe an adult size!

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  13. The socks are too cute! Love the vest. I'm currently on my third infant version. Would like to try larger sizes--maybe even an adult size someday!

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  14. Love those socks, I taught myself to knit simple things wish I could make socks! :)

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  15. I would suggest a wool/nylon blend yarn for socks that can be machine washed over and over again for your husband.

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  16. Both the socks and the vest look great! I am not a good one for sock yarn recommendations as I don't knit socks... but I'm sure you'll get some from others!

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  17. The socks are lovely - it feels so good to master them, doesn't it?
    I find that it's not so much about hard wearing socks but about how many other pairs share the work, if you see what I mean.

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  18. Oh my goodness, I LOVE those baby socks. What yarn did you use to make them so much fun?

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  19. i love those socks! and those little chubby legs!!!
    i really like the yarn for the sweater vest as well. i am making up my first pattern right now! so exciting!

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  20. Your socks look so cute. (and not even because of the adorably chubby baby legs) I knit Mike some socks out of a superwash wool blend 75% wool/25% nylon. He's been wearing them for a year and no holes yet!

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  21. What beautiful socks and sleeveless vest :)

    I advance very slow with crochet vest for my daughter.

    Warm greetings from Chile

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  22. I hate to say it, but the best combo for socks is 75% wool, 25% nylon. This is readily available in fingering weight and DK weight. If you are going to make worsted weight work socks, look around for worsted weight with at least 20% nylon. The Lamb's Pride (recommended above) makes a lovely warm sock, but does not stand up to heavy wear. If you use it, get some coordinating fingering weight yarn (75%-25% as above, Regia and Lang Jawoll are both excellent), and carry it along as you knit the toe, heel flap, and heel. You can also get reinforcement wool for socks, which is a lace weight and is designed to reinforce toes and heels of DK and fingering weight socks. Both WEBS (yarn.com) and Patternworks carry it and can mail it to you. Good luck!

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  23. Hi hi! (de-lurking to give my 2 cents on sock yarn, and say I love your blog and really enjoy seeing what you and your family are up to!) I'm a big big sock knitter... I love the portability and the small-ish size! I usually have lots of projects on the go at the same time and I always come back to socks when I want something easy and comforting to do. I'm a fan of wool socks (cotton generally makes my hands ache). If you're looking for hard-wearing, generally blends will help with that-- wool/nylon is popular and readily available. If you want hard-wearing plus cushy, luxurious socks, go for a cashmere blend (wool/cashmere/nylon blends are popular). Both the cashmere and nylon will decrease your risk of holes. You can also buy elastic or nylon thread you can carry along with the yarn in spots that might wear through, like the heels & toes.

    As far as brands, Opal, Trekking, and Regia are good and reasonably priced; the yarn wears well and if you like stripes, their self-striping yarns are really fun. If you want to spend a bit more, Blue Moon Fiber Arts Socks That Rock is WONDERFUL stuff; the colors are GORGEOUS and the yarn wears well. There are lots and lots of indy dyers out there with lovely stuff, just do a search on etsy. :)

    If you're interested in the "science" behind sock yarns as well as knitting techniques, there is a great book out: "The Knitter's Book of Socks" by Clara Parkes. It's an excellent book, full of patterns and information and techniques. Definitely look it up!!

    Sorry this got so long.... I'm a sock knitter at heart and I guess I have a lot to say on the subject! :D

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  24. Those baby socks are so awesome. And love the vest.

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  25. Tonya,
    I LOVE the picture of those socks on those sweet little feet. How precious.

    Love, Taryn

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  26. Those socks and those legs are gorgeous! I want to knit some kids socks now!

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  27. congratulations on the adorable socks, they look beautiful, but the precious baby legs might be even cuter.

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  28. Love love the darling baby legs and feet and the socks on them! Precious!

    I used a worsted weight wool for the Mister's socks. Any will do, but you will use only about 48 stitches instead of the 56 or 64 that you do with sock yarn... faster knit! LOL I use Elizabeth Zimmerman's man's sock pattern for his and he loved them and so did I! Have fun knitting!

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  29. Your socks are so cute! Id have just completed my fist sock and cast on the second. I have learnt a lot and am hoping my second pair will be better looking! :)

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