I’m feeling very much like a slacker today. After waking up, I realised I haven’t finished one knitted item this month!

Mum’s socks were finished in late December and the two projects I have on the go, my Aleita Shell in alpaca and my Peapod Socks, are both nearing completion but are not quite there yet. So, today will be my day to work work work on my socks.

I plan on ripping out the shell, as the wool just isn’t working for me. It has curled an unbelievable amount at the hem, even with the specified amount of ribbing.

I’ll remake it later on with a cotton- or linen-based yarn (and will lengthen it by adding more ribbing to stop the curling!).

Back to the socks…

(Photo from Berrocco)

I have been thinking about this yarn for weeks. I’m convinced it will knit up with some wicked stitch definition and, as I discovered this morning, it’s machine washable. Does it get any better than that?

I have an idea for a sleeveless pullover/vest thingie and I pretty much know the stitch pattern(s) I’d like to use but, so far, I’ve only knit one upper body garment … a somewhat unsuccessful tank top.

Do I splurge on this yarn, knowing that it might not work out since I wouldn’t be using a pattern, or do I do a test knit of the vest using an inexpensive yarn?  And if I do the test knit, will I end up doing the final knit knowing that it will leave me with two identical pullovers?

What to do, what to do…

Thanks to Debbie for letting me know about an error in the Kathleen Cowl pattern.

The original instructions called for the pattern repeat to be two times after the completion of the initial pattern, for a total of four pattern repeats in the entire work. However, the cowl as illustrated has only a total of three pattern repeats.

The pattern as originally published read:

Work rows 1 through 12 twice more.

It should read:

Work rows 1 through 12 once more.

The PDF file has been updated with this change.

I’ve just finished watching the inauguration of my foster country’s newest president and, as has happened before, his words have filled me with hope. Foremost among those hopes is that the media will allow my neighbours to put aside thoughts on the colour of Mr. Obama’s skin and to focus on his words and the very important tasks ahead of us all.

What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

Americans have every right to be proud of the huge step forward that came about on November 4th but that progress should not become the focus of Obama’s presidency. Rather, I hope we can all set his ethnicity aside as a non-issue and realise that the true victory in his election was the opportunity it presented to “pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.”

Now let’s roll up our sleeves and get to work.

These socks came out of my desire to use a particular stitch pattern found in Karen Hemingway’s “Super Stitches Knitting”. Her peapod stitch really appealed to me and so I went on a quest for a yarn that would show it off with some wicked stitch definition. Happily for me, Crystal Palace’s Panda Silk turned out to be the perfect yarn for this pattern and, after adapting the pattern for knitting in the round, the combination has made a beautiful pair of socks.

You can download the pattern here: Peapod Socks.

Finished Size

To fit a woman’s medium foot

Materials

v 2 skeins Crystal Palace Panda Silk

v Set of 5 US#00 double pointed needles

v Tapestry needle

Gauge

18 stitches and 26 rows = 2 inches in peapod pattern.

Notes

v I found the Panda Silk to be somewhat finer than other sock yarns and so the gauge is quite tiny. If you’re not interested in knitting so many tiny stitches using such tiny needles, I think you could probably get away with casting on 48 stitches onto US 2 needles and reducing the number of pattern repeats to four instead of six. I haven’t tried this myself so, if you give it a go, let me know how it turns out.

Abbreviations

BO bind off

CO cast on

K knit

k2tog knit two stitches together as one

Rnd round

SSK slip 1 stitch knit-wise, slip next stitch purl-wise, knit the two stitches together through the back loop

YO yarn over

* starting point of repeat

Stitch Guide

Peapod Pattern

Row 1 K

Row 2 K

Row 3 K4, k2tog, k1, yo, *k9, k2tog, k1, yo*, repeat until 5 stitches remain, k to end

Row 4 K3, k2tog, k1, yo, *k9, k2tog, k1, yo*, repeat until 6 stitches remain, k to end

Row 5 K2, k2tog, k1, yo, *k9, k2tog, k1, yo*, repeat until 7 stitches remain, k to end

Row 6 K1, k2tog, k1, yo, *k9, k2tog, k1, yo*, repeat until 8 stitches remain, k to end

Row 7 K

Row 8 K

Row 9 K5, yo, k1, ssk, *k9, yo, k1, ssk*, repeat until 4 stitches remain, k to end

Row 10 K6, yo, k1, ssk, *k9, yo, k1, ssk*, repeat until 3 stitches remain, k to end

Row 11 K7, yo, k1, ssk, *k9, yo, k1, ssk*, repeat until 2 stitches remain, k to end

Row 12 K8, yo, k1, ssk, *k9, yo, k1, ssk*, repeat until 1 stitches remain, k to end

Eye of Partridge Stitch

Row 1 Sl 1, p35
Row 2 Sl 1, *k1, sl 1,* repeat from * to end
Row 3 Sl 1, p35
Row 4 Sl1, *sl 1, k1,* repeat from * until 2 stitches remain, k2

Pattern

Cast on 72 stitches; divide stitches between three needles. Join in round and place marker (if desired).

Cuff

Work in k3,p1 rib for one inch.

Leg

Work Peapod pattern six times (approximately 5”). Knit 1 rnd.

Divide for heel flap by transferring 12 stitches from one needle to each of the other needles. There should be 36 stitches on each needle with three stitch patterns centered on each.

Heel flap

On one needle, work heel flap in Eye of Partridge stitch for 36 rows. Set up heel turn by purling 1 row.

Turn heel

Row 1 K21, ssk, k1, turn
Row 2 P8, p2tog, p1, turn
Row 3 Knit to 1 st before gap formed on previous row, ssk, k1, turn
Row 4 Purl to 1 st before gap formed on previous row, p2tog, p1, turn

Repeat rows 3 and 4 until all stitches have been worked.

Gusset

With a new needle, pick up and knit 18 stitches along edge of heel flap.

Knit across instep needle.

With another new needle, pick up and knit 18 stitches along edge of heel flap. Knit 10 heel stitches onto this needle.

Transfer remaining heel stitches to first gusset needle. You should have 28 stitches on Needle 1, 36 instep stitches on Needle 2, and 28 stitches on Needle 3.

Gusset Decrease Round

Needle 1 K until 2 stitches remain, ssk
Needle 2 Work in peapod pattern
Needle 3 K2tog, knit to end

Row 1 Work dec round
Row 2 Knit Needle 1 even, work Needle 2 in patt, knit Needle 3 even

Repeat Rows 1 and 2 until 18 stitches remain on Needles 1 and 3; 72 stitches total.

Foot

Knit Needle 1, work Needle 2 in patt, knit Needle 3 until work is 2 inches less than desired finished length. End with either Row 6 or Row 12 of Peapod stitch.

Toe

Divide stitches evenly between four needles; 18 stitches on each needle.

Toe Decrease Round

Needle 1 K until 4 stitches remain, ssk, k2.
Needle 2 K2, k2tog, k to end.
Needle 3 K until 4 stitches remain, ssk, k2.
Needle 4 K2, k2tog, k to end.

Knit 4 rounds even.

Work one toe dec rnd; 4 stitches decreased. K one rnd. Alternate toe dec rnd with even rnd five more times; 48 stitches remain.

Work toe dec rnd every row for four rows; 32 stitches remain.

With Needle 4, knit stitches on Needle 1. Combine stitches on Needles 2 and 3 onto one needle.

Finishing

Cut yarn leaving a 12 inch tail. Using Kitchener stitch, graft remaining stitches together. Weave in ends and block.

Foremost in my task list these days has been trying to deal with the skunk that has invaded our lives.

While out for dinner on Monday evening, a skunk decided to take a shortcut through our yard. Obviously, the dogs were not pleased with the idea of a trespasser (well, maybe they were pleased!). We pulled into the driveway after dinner and, upon leaving the truck, could smell a fairly strong scent of skunk.

All I could think was “I hope that’s not in our yard…”

When we opened the front door, it was as if the skunk had let loose inside the house, not outside. Four days on and it still smells like skunk in here. Tuesday was spent washing dog laundry and making new dog beds for those beds too old to make it through a heavy-duty laundry cycle.

Worst of all, I’ve had a headache ever since the skunk attack. Maybe I’m allergic to skunk juice…

Despite that, I’ve still been able to work on some fairly tiny stitching. For a short while, I had no small project on the go so I decided to make some “leftover socks”…socks made from yarn leftover from making other socks. I’ve only got one finished and, as they are leftovers, I don’t feel like I have to finish the 2nd sock on any sort of schedule.

I picked up some Crystal Palace Panda Silk and cast on another pair of socks. That’s them on the right and I am absolutely loving them. The leg pattern is from one of my stitch pattern books (Super Stitches Knitting by Karen Hemingway) and the heel stitch is Eye of Partridge.

Here’s a close-up:

Once they’re finished, I’ll likely write up the pattern.