Porecca's sister-in-law socks

i've finished the first of the two socks and i really love this pair. i'm going to have to make a similar pair for myself. the color work keeps it interesting and really looks lovely and complicated on a sock. the stripped bottoms are a nice break from the monotony of the pattern. by the time i reached the foot i was pretty sick of it. i used an after thought heel here for the first time ever and i can see why people like it. if it wears out it will be easy to replace. my only change is that i might not work the decrease 1 stitch from the edge like i do on the toes as it creates a very defined line on the edge of the heel. i really liked the red toes and heels on this sock. it reminds me of the hard wearing socks that are used to make sock monkeys. there's just something about brown and tan with a splash of red. on the next pair, i'm going to work one of the leaf clusters in red for a little surprise. i know that the future owner of this new pair is going to love them.
my friend Porecca, who ordered this pair for her SIL, had to wear her pair to bed last night because her heater went out on them. she said her feet were toasty warm and she was glad to have them last night. i was really glad to hear that. it's really nice to have my work noticed and appreciated after so much hard work, and so many unsuccessful projects. it seems funny to me how my skills suddenly leaped into the more advanced levels and now i can just knit socks, gloves, and mittens with out a pattern now. i can finally make things just the way i see them in my head. now all i have to do is reach that same skill level for my sweaters and i'll finally have sweaters that both fit well and are lovely, and just what i can't find in the stores. i have purposely avoided putting knitting needles into the hands of my youngest son until i felt that i was a "master knitter" so that he will be gifted with the skill of a master, according to legend. i don't want to hand them to him while i'm still just barely average and curse his ability, lol. it's too late for Dante. i didn't know about the legend before i handed him a pair of needles.
so anyway, here's what you came for:

christmas socks

i've been working on the socks for Porreca's sister and they're coming out really well so far. i'm just getting tired of the pattern, or was it that i'm tired of the amount of the pattern that i'm knitting. hand warmers would be done by now. but here they are...

and the other side...

Saturday night

yesterday i went with my friend Heather to the Make-a-Wish benefit concert at the Blackstone in Pawtucket RI. There were several local bands playing, including Days Unknown which is a band that is fronted by a coworker. They rock out so hard that it's really mind blowing. funny because i know him from work and he's completely different at work that on stage. much hotter on stage. very silly and sort of a doof at work. I've seen him perform once before but i got there late and only got to see the last half of the last song in the set. this was much better! they did about 4 of their original songs from their upcoming album, and 3 covers from Metallica, Stone Temple Pilots, and Nine Inch Nails. it was a really great show.
when i got out of my car to go into the bar, my hand warmers fell off of my lap and out of the car onto the ground. it rained all night so after 3 hours in the rain, in the parking lot, they were really wet and really gritty. i'd been wanting to wash them for a while anyway but i didn't mean for this to happen in order to force me to get it done. so i soaked them in Soak, (what else?) and then squeezed the extra water out between a towel, and hung them out to dry. they'll be really soft and they're much brighter so i guess it all worked out in the end. one was right on the ground right next to the driver side door, and the other was about a foot under the car due to the high winds. i was just really glad that i didn't lose them completely.
i finished the hand warmers for Heather and gave them to her yesterday. it just made sense. and now i've spent the last 2 days working on a pair of socks for Porecca's sister for Christmas. i've started and ripped, started and ripped, and repeated a few more times till i finally pulled out the brand new copy of 1000 Great Knitted Motif's that i just picked up from Bella Yarns yesterday to help out with all the hand warmers, and after 3 failed attempts i found a stitch combo that i thinks going to work well for the socks. on my Ravelry page i have a photo my baby just because i really don't like having empty photo boxes there. its distracting.

jana's gloves in progress

i'm really loving this pair. i'm not a big fan of gray but the tweed is really lovely. i've been working these without a pattern, just using my gauge and tape measure to figure out how many stitches i'll need for each finger. i finished the first glove yesterday and it's really nice...very understated.
when i brought the glove in progress down to Jana's department and forced her to try it on, one of her employees fell for them and if i'm not careful i'll be knitting gloves for the entire fulfillment department of my bank. i'm still making hand warmers but right now i don't have any of the colors that have been requested and i need to place an order. so in the mean time, i'm working on items that need to be done by the holidays. i have a pair of silk/merino mitts for Heather, socks for Jana and for Porreca's sister, and mitts for Natalie's sister.

my boys

photos taken of the boys today.





and my finished mitts for Maria, inspired by Sister Wilson

one mitt down

i finished the first of the mitts and i'm completely in love with these. you can't see it here but the colors are pink, brown, and tan in the middle of the large brown diamonds. i think that i'm definitely going to make socks from this pattern. i just love it.
i've also knit a gauge swatch for my Hourglass sweater. i can't wait to knit this. it'll be just great for this winter. maybe when i get done with all these wrist warmers, i'll get back to my socks and have warm and pretty socks for my feet. but before i can do that i have to order more yarn for my back ordered mitts.

all new stuff

today was a very transitional day for me all around. i'm trying to get over the surreal feeling that the election left me with. never in my widest dreams did i think i would see a black president elected in my lifetime and it still hasn't sunk in. i'm so proud to be an American right now and i think that the election and the way it was handled at the end by both candidates helped us gain some of our dignity back in the eyes of the world, (or at least that's what i'm telling myself). i was very proud of what McCain said in his speech and how he would not allow the crown to boo, and how he asked that they back Obama as he will. and i'm very proud of our country for showing that we can make decisions based on what we think is best for us regardless of race, color, religion or anything else when it really comes right down to it.
on the work front, i moved into my new desk and spent the better part of my day reestablishing my email account, assigning printers to my computer, and pulling things off my H-drive back onto my desk top, not to mention having to set up all my junk again. it's a huge process. i also had to have my manager call maintenance to come and reinstall my keyboard drawer into my new cube. the only one who doesn't seem to be having any trouble adjusting to the move is my fish, Emmett.
today my friend gave me a new pair of pumps that she can't wear because they're too narrow for her feet. they fit me perfectly and i love them. then i looked at the bottom of them on the way home and saw that they had the coolest pattern in the rubber on the sole and now it's my mission to try to translate that pattern into a graph for a mitten or hand warmer. this hand warmer thing is getting a little out of control. it's replacing my sock obsession for the time being. as soon as i can get a decent sketch and photo, i'll put it here and see what everyone thinks.

Election Day

today is a big day for the country and a busy one for me. i got out and voted, and donated blood all while still managing to finish up all my work for the day and make decent progress on the newest pair of mitts for Maria. i love these best of all. they just might become a pair of socks one day but for now they're mitts. Maria made an adorable fleece blanket for Alex which he loves and so these mitts will be spectacular as a "thank you" for making something that my picky baby boy loves.
although you can't really tell in this photo, the light yarn is pink, and the middle of the brown diamond is stitched with tan. it's really cute in person.

cabled mitts

i finished the cabled mitts for Penny this weekend and have started working on a pattern for a pair or argyle mitts for my next coworker. it's been fun because i've had a chance to play with patterns and stitches that i've not used before and my coworkers are so happy to have warm hands that they've all been happy to wear them. i don't give them an option of what they want in the mitts. i only ask them if they have any colors that they don't like and work from there.
these mitts were fun because they were knit with worsted weight alpaca on 4.5mm needles so they were lightening fast! they're hanging over the baby gate right now drying for tomorrow. i know that Penny will be very happy with them. Maria is going to flip when she sees her argyle mitts.