December 23, 2006
Winter's Eve
Festive socks for the festive season, Winter's Eve, designed by the talented Sivia Harding, is the Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club December sock. I had the good fotrune to test drive the pattern, and it was an intriguing and fun design to knit. The socks fit beautifully, the beads feel smooth and the yarn is exceptionally nice to work with. I loved both the colour and the handle.
I really like the way the cables separate on the sides and meet on the instep and heel. There is a line of beads that runs down the centre front and back and ends at the point where the cables meet. You can just see it in the picture below, but the colour in this shot is really off. Dark days in the PNW don't make for good photography.
Every few years I get the urge to turn out a fresh crop of tatted snowflakes. This year the urge struck, but somehow I just ran out of time. I did get a dozen or so finished, but they haven't been starched or blocked yet. The ones on our tree were done years ago. When I first started making these, I used sugar water to stiffen them. One year I gave some to a friend whose dog daintily picked them off her tree and ate every last one of them. Fortunately, no harm came to the dog. Now I use a cornstarch mixture instead of sugar.
I joined the Angel Pearls scarf knit along in October. I have knit this scarf before as a Christmas gift and as an item for my Guild sale. It's another of Sivia's amazing designs. It provides the perfect opportunity to work with a luscious yarn, get a lace fix and play with beads at the same time. The beads are hard to see in the photo, but they are strategically placed in the lace along the full length of the scarf. It took one ball of Heavenly (colour 592) Kidsilk Haze on 3.75 mm needles.
These lovely, addictive little heart sachets designed by Vicki Sever first appeared on the Interweave Knits site. The pattern has since been included in the IK Holiday Gifts 2006 issue. Vicki does wonderful things with mitred squares. The sachet makes a lovely small gift or stocking stuffer. Mine are stuffed with lavender, and this year I get to keep one.
Do you remember this from last May? I got 4 oz. of silk/wool and a canary wood Bosworth Featherweight spindle at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. Between May and September, I happliy spindled the fiber. I loved watching the colours go by, and I love the Featherweight spindle.
As I finished each cop, I used my ball winder to wind the yarn over the cardboard core from a roll of toilet paper. I numbered all the cores so that I could maintain the colour sequence. I can see that I'm going to have fun with #4. I used plenty of masking tape to hold the core to the ball winder after that one.
The singles ended up being 80 wpi.
Now I am Navajo plying the singles. I think I might like to make an entrelac scarf with this yarn if it's not too fine. It will likely plump up a bit after it has been washed.
My best wishes to everyone for a warm and joyful holiday season. May you all have time to enjoy your fibery pursuits.
Beauties...each and every one!!
Man..you are one fine spinner!
I love the socks....Sivia is truly amazing!
Many happy thoughts for Christmas to you.
I hope that it's a best ever!!
Holy cow that silk is gorgeous! I can't wait to see that as yarn!!
Thanks for all the pretty pictures, have a nice holiday.
Posted by: CarolineF on December 23, 2006 06:08 PMYou are incredibly talented! Each and every picture is eye candy! I can't believe how fine you got that merino/silk - it probably floats like a spider web!
Posted by: Kerry on December 23, 2006 07:13 PMGosh Mel! I'll say it again-when I grow up I want to be just like you! Amazing spinning!! The socks are beautiful-the snow flakes are beyond my comprehension! Have a wonderful holiday:-)
Posted by: elizabeth on December 24, 2006 08:10 AMThose socks are so delightfully unusual - great fun! And I, too, love the heart sachets. Too hard to stop!
Posted by: Theresa on December 24, 2006 05:14 PMThat's some mighty-fine fine spinning, Mel! Really, your spinning is so lovely and inspiring - and so darned perfect!
Loved all the project photos and I laughed out loud at the image of that dog snacking on your sweet snowflakes, oh dear!
Posted by: Denise on December 27, 2006 12:44 AMmelanie, i don't know where to start!
Posted by: vanessa on December 27, 2006 10:04 PMThe silk/merino looks gorgeous!
Posted by: Monica on December 28, 2006 04:50 PMOMG! Well, I guess as always I am late to the party, but oh my, how gorgeous is all of your spinning! :) Love it!
Posted by: June P. on December 28, 2006 06:49 PMWow! I have recently learned to spin using a spindle. My yarn is much chunkier. Seeing the pictures of the beautiful yarn you have spun makes me see that I can make beautiful stuff, and that I have alot of practicing in my future! Must take a spinning class...
Posted by: angelarae on December 29, 2006 07:27 AMI am speechless -- not only about your beautiful knitting BUT it is such a rarity to "meet" someone else who tats. I have made many tatted snowflakes over the years, too. Wow. I love your blog and the wonderful things you have made -- the beaded socks and lace scarf in KSH esp caught my eye.
Posted by: lv2knit on December 30, 2006 08:15 PMWhere can I buy that excellent sock pattern? Couldn't seem to find it on Sivia's website...would appreciate suggestions!
Thanks!
For Erin - the sock pattern is only available to members of the Blue Moon Fiber Arts Rockin' Sock Club at this time http://www.bluemoonfiberarts.com . I hope that BMFA will publish the sock club patterns some time in the future.
Posted by: Melanie on January 4, 2007 03:04 PMThanks Melanie!
Posted by: Erin on January 4, 2007 06:56 PMLoved the story about the snowflakes . A friend sent me over here specifically so i could read it.
I made a couple of dozen new crocheted ones this year because the surviving sugar-stiffened old ones were looking sad. Mind you there had been no predatory acts by canines ... just ANTS. About a gazillion ants.
This year I used a half half mix of water and PVA glue and it worked a treat.
How does one acquire the pattern for the Winter's Eve sock given that they are not listed on Sivia Harding's site? (Clicking on Contact Me got me nowhere.)
Posted by: Mary K. in Rockport on January 5, 2007 06:47 PMHi!
Just to echo Erin's comment, I would love to buy this sock pattern; it is beautiful. BMFA should definately be encouraged to publish them!
This is the first time I have heard of the Rocking Sock Club and going to their website I see that membership for 2007 is now waitlisted. But assuming that one made it from the waitlist, is this pattern representative of the quality of the patterns? i.e. how much should I envy those in the club?!
Posted by: Samantha on January 6, 2007 12:56 PMNot sure how I stumbled across your blog, but glad I did. That spinning is FANTASTIC! I envy you!
Posted by: Melanie on January 7, 2007 06:08 PM