check to be sure you have the proper needles, etc with you - don’t assume you know what you have in the gadgets bag.

in my brilliance, I decided that since the bear is nearly done, I’d swatch up the blue yarn from my SP for mittens. I assumed that the needles I used the other day from my gadget bag were size 3s - perfect for mittens in a dk weight. get on the bus, pull out the yarn, grab the needles. they’re size 6. I swatched anyway, just for something to do. but that now leaves me with no bus knitting for the ride home. I’m thinking we need a knitting supplies library downtown - so I could pop in, check out a pair of size 3s to save my sanity on the bus, and then use my own once I’m home and return the borrowed pair on Monday.

(the bear still needs an ear. why? because I ran out of yarn and was too lazy to run upstairs and grab another ball of it. curse you aquascum Lion Brand and your skimpy yardage. well, maybe not that skimpy, but the pattern needs 65 yds and fun fur has 57 yds. so close!)

Finished size: foot - about 9 1/2″. followed the high instep instructions. about 6″ high.
Yarn: Rio de la Plata Merino Sock in Harbor Blue
Needles: Size 2 circs
Pattern: Coupling socks from knitty.com
mods: I used a picot hem instead of ribbing. (version 4 from here)

Started: early August 2007 …
Finished: 23 September 2007
made for: Sadie - my swap partner.

I loved this yarn! and the pattern was pretty fun too. I think I finally had it memorized after turning the first heel. (I got pretty good at reading the knitting too, so I could tell when I was messing up).

Here’s a shot of my picot edge (first time I’ve tried it):

and here’s the inside where I sewed it down:

and here’s a modeled shot:

they fit rather nicely (though maybe a wee bit on the tight side - which is a good thing as her feet are shorter than mine). if I were to make them again, I think I’d want the leg to be longer.

also, my picot edge flares/falls down a bit… any tips for the future?

I’ve joined the Holiday KAL-CAL.

Here’s my list of Holiday knitting for this year.

• felted poinsettia wreath
• felted penguin (started back in February?)
• sea lettuce scarf (I think that’s what it’s called. I started it last week)
• probably a hat
• socks or a stuffed toy
• I have no idea
• another stuffed toy
• another small toy
• yet another small toy
• socks
• pair of mittens for the Yarn Cafe

I’m worried that it’s a little too ambitious, but we’ll see how it goes. The good news is that I have yarn in the stash for almost everything. I’m thinking I’ll start with the socks, since next month is Socktoberfest. and I’ll sort of work on the other things here and there - I’m hoping the toys will knit up pretty quick (they usually do).

(and yes, I know I still haven’t finished L’s mittens from last year. I’m going to get that finished as soon as I get these socks off the needles - two and a bit more pattern repeats, then 2 cuffs. still waffling on the ribbing vs picot…)

no. because I do stupid things, like read the directions without really reading them.

I was all happy on the bus ride in this morning cuz I was almost done with the heel. and then I got to the line that tells me

pick up and k 5 sts (1 st in each slipped st) along edge of flap

what 5 stitches? there’s no heel flap. did I miss something. reread the directions looking for the 5 (well, 10 actually, since they should be on both sides), no sign of them. really read the first two lines of heel directions:

Even-numbered Row 2-10 [WS]: Sl 1, p17. Turn work.
Odd-numbered Rows 3-9 [RS]: Sl 1, k17. Turn work.

DOH! there’s 10 rows there, not 2!
frog frog frog.

heel attempt #2 will commence in a couple hours.

I am anticipating that with all this glorious rain (it decided to POUR right as I got to the park & ride and was ready to get out of the car. I think I’m finally dry now.) my internet at home will be a bit spotty. this should give me plenty of knitting time tonight, I’m hoping.

I’ve realized I never quite got around to posting about the fun of Irish Fest, which was back in mid-August. I spent much time visiting with my sister and the kids. I also made an excursion to what some might consider a yarn mecca - The Fold - in search of some Socks that Rock. next time, I need to consider what weekend I pick to go. apparently the week following Stitches Midwest is not the best of choices. but it was still fun. I met up with Heather (who I’d met at Camp Knitty a couple weekends earlier), since she lives not too far from there (jealous!).

en route to the Fold, I got lost in Whitewater (which shouldn’t happen. I know the town pretty well, considering lots of family lived there. my grandmother still does, matter of fact.) due to road construction. I ended up at the library, which just so happened to be having a book sale. I found some old knitting books, then hopped on the computer to double check directions and figure out how to get where I was going.

back on the road, driving thru the countryside of southern Wisconsin, I see a sign:

of course, I have to stop. what a great shop! I knew there were shops in the area, but I hadn’t really mapped them out or anything, so it was a fun surprise. I came home with a few things:

some sale yarn (a month later, that’s the only reason I can figure I bought laceweight) and a cute notepad

if you’re in the area, you definitely need to stop. here’s their website.

finally made it to the Fold and had a fun time with Heather, oohing and ahhing and petting all the fibers and yarns.

and of course, I had to come home with something:

the Gypsy Girl Creations yarn is local to the area, and she has an awesome Gryffindor color that I resisted buying.

Saturday I poked into The Yarn House. my friend Ginny said she still loved the hat and it sort of came up that a scarf to match would be nice. so I was poking around a bit and almost bought some yarn to match the hat. and then I found the Tweedy Cotton Classic that I’d been looking for for a project I want to make. so that took priority (since this will be outgrown if I don’t make it soon enough.)

Irish Fest itself was pretty fun the first few days - Thursday & Friday we had good weather. Saturday was rather cool & rainy all day and I left early. waffled a bit on whether I wanted to stay or not for Sunday, and decided it’s probably be better to just head home. only to have my ‘worn brakes’ light light up on the dash. yeah, like I could find something that’d be open on a Saturday night. after a bit of an ordeal I found a hotel room (Irish Fest tends to make finding a room hard, especially on short notice) and stayed the night and miraculously found something that was open on Sunday to fix my brakes. yay! so my sister, her husband and the kids came out to entertain me - we went to Build a Bear - and as we finished up, the car was ready. and then I headed home.