Vesper Redux

After looking at last week's pictures of my Vesper socks, I could no longer deny two things: that short row heel wasn't fitting, and the picot hem wasn't as cute in execution as I had hoped for it to be. Stitching it down to the first dark green row made sure that the hem was white with light green picots and dark green sawteeth (sawtooths?) all the way around, but, given the nature of the yarn, the first dark green row wasn't all the same row, and the result was a little wonky.


Therefore, I present, Vesper Redux. I took the scissors to the first sock (I must be getting brave in my old age) and cut out the heel and put in an afterthought/peasant heel in garter stitch, mostly to hide the any mismatches in pattern. And then I liked it so much, I did a garter stitch cuff, too.



Details:
Pattern: none/my own -- toe up on 64 stitches, wedge toe, garter stitch afterthought heel, vertical garter stitch cuff, my Vesper sock trick
Yarn: none other than Vesper Sock Yarn in Crew
Needles: US1 DPNs

That afterthought heel is mighty handy to have in your bag of tricks for self-striping yarns or variegated yarns that pool. I used the heel from Cookie A's Baudelaire on my Swirl Sock, and it fits well for a toe-up sock, but it disrupted the yarn's natural striping in an unfortunate way.

These may be my new favorite socks! Post-mods they remind me more of the Grinch (you know, at the end, when he's the happy Grinch) than of Slytherin.

I should get around to that second Gryffindor Argyle soon.

German Stockings

At last, the German Stockings!

Details:
Pattern: German Stockings by Cookie A
Needles: 1.5 Knit Picks, combination of DPNs and 2 circulars
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Chino

Notes: I ended up ripping after the first 5 or 6 inches on the first sock because it was just too big, and reknit one size down for all measurements. Looking back, I wish I had gone down a needle size instead, or maybe in addition to, reducing the number of stitches. The cables would have traveled farther across the foot, and the overall look would have been more detailed and intricate. They did move along pretty quickly on 1.5s, though, I'm used to 1s or 0s for socks. I did modify the pattern so that the cables on the right foot cross in the opposite direction from the cables on the left foot.

This was my first experience with Lorna's Laces, and, comparing it with my in-progress Swirl Sock, I prefer working it on smaller needles. I used maybe 2 1/3 hanks. The first hank was solid tan, the second hank has some hints of green in it, and number 3 was solid tan even though I purchased them at the same time and from the same place. So the left sock is solid with some subtle green stripes on the toe, and the right sock is the opposite. It's probably something that only I would notice, but I think it makes them look a little dirty.

My only other issue is getting them to stay up. I ran elastic thread around the top and bottom of the ribbing on both socks, and still they sagged. So I knitted two strips of garter stitch, 8 stitches wide, and joined them in tubes when they were just long enough to stretch around the widest part of my calf. The garter stitch kind of matches the twisted rib cuff, and there's a lot less tugging the socks back up, although the problem isn't completely alleviated.

I can resist anything but temptation.

Link

Va-va-Vesper

So here's my little Vesper trick. When the yarn changes colors, sl 1, k 1 around, and then slip the first stitch again before continuing in plain stockinette. It creates this sawtooth effect that looks sort of fair-isle-y and disguises the color jogs. I think it's kind of nifty.

As I mentioned before, however, I've been rereading my Harry Potter in preparation for the big finale, and perhaps that has colored my thinking because I keep thinking of this as the Slytherin Sock. So of course I had to cast on for another sock in Gryffindor colors, and thus began my first argyle.



There, I'm house-neutral. For the record, the Sorting Hat placed me in Ravenclaw. I don't really have Ravenclaw-colored sock yarn in my stash, so don't look for Ravenclaw socks any time soon. Besides, I just got my Heilo order and I'm dying to cast on for the Norwegian Stockings from Folk Socks.

Now, to knit the second socks. But first I have some catching up to do if I'm going to finish Order of the Phoenix before the movie comes out.

Moving past ho hum

Over the past couple of weeks I did something I haven't done since I re-taught myself to knit. I went an entire day without knitting. And then another. None of my projects were exciting anymore. I wasn't inspired. I finished my German stockings and wasn't even anxious to photograph them (not that it has stopped raining long enough to do so). The heel wasn't working on my Gentleman's Fancy Sock, and I knitted all the way past the heel on my knee-high Welsh Country Stocking before admitting that the shaping was all wrong, making it baggy around the ankle. I ripped and re-knit and swatched a little for a new sweater, but I wasn't having much fun with it. So I focused on my Harry Potter rereading instead.

Then last night I went to my sock yarn drawer and fondled the stash, hoping something would spark, and it did. I had recently wound some Vesper sock yarn in Crew for maybe-Jaywalkers or maybe-kneehighs, had a few false starts, and put it back in the drawer. A flickr search for "Vesper" reveals a variation on two themes: the plain stockinette sock, and the Jaywalker. While sometimes it's nice to know exactly what you're going to get, it's not exaclty the ticket back to knitting nirvana. But looking at the yarn again, I thought, what if...? Yes, that could work, I'll try it. Looks good so far, how about after a few more color repeats? Oh, yes, and how's the heel going to come out? What have I been doing with two circulars, when I know that DPNs are my true love? I'm back, baby, and with any luck, I'll have a sock to show you soon!

And maybe I'll even take some pictures of those German Stockings.

Happy 4th!