Tossing Daleks in the frog pond

dalekfrog
Originally uploaded by Paula knits

Extermi...glub...glub...glub.

I decided to give the Dalek socks a try. The third attempt is in the middle of the picture.

There were two rules: I could not buy any yarn to make the socks. It all had to come from my stash. The problem with this rule was that I had to use both light fingering and fingering weight yarns to get the colors I needed. The weights are similar, but different enough to cause trouble two different weights showed up in the same row.

That brings us to rule 2: the object of the exercise was intarsia practice. I wanted to do this as smoothly as possible. My first try (the partial sock on the right) was positively lumpy so I started over. The second try was less lumpy, but had some other troubles I decided I couldn't live with. I did save the top band. That's the only success so far. I used intarsia in the round. I finally got it through my head how that should work. It's a little lumpy at the moment, but I think it will smooth out in the wash.

It probably sounds like a lot of bother for a pair of socks that no one will ever see. It's fun in an odd way plus it is good practice for a project coming up next month.

FO Friday

tuefeets
Originally uploaded by Paula knits

This is all that was finished this week. They are my Tuesday footies.

Not much of anything else got worked on because I got a big bag of fluff from Desert Garden Farms. It's a Monty Python themed spin-along and my fiber is Spam-colored. I love it, but am starting to not be as obsessed with pink as I have been. What will my new favorite color be? Maybe one of the footie colors? Stay tuned.

Whovian Crafts

I'm on this big Doctor Who kick lately. It's a British science fiction show that originally started in the 1960s. I've been watching a whole bunch of old shows on DVDs. One of the Doctors (they change periodically) is known for a ridiculously long knit scarf. It has inspired the show's many fans to knit the scarf and make other crafts, too.

I made the scarf about, ummm, 30 years ago. It didn't make the move with me from Colorado to Georgia. I didn't think I'd have a use for it here. Now I want to make another one, but want to do it in fingering weight yarn with half as many stitches wide.

I got the idea of making a box for all my sock-making tools in the shape of the Doctor's space travel vehicle, the Tardis. I planned to make it similar to a sewing box I'd made back in my cross-stitching days. It has four flaps that are connected on the base. The box lid holds the flaps up and closed. I've got the design drawn up and know what materials I'll need, but haven't gotten father than that. A couple of weeks after working up the design, I happened upon this sewing box. Mine wasn't intended to be exactly like this one, but it the ideas are similar enough for me to be very surprised. I guess there are too many crafty Doctor fans for there to be many truly original ideas. A tip of my fez to the person who designed it and shared all of her work via those zillions of Flickr pix.

I've got another project in the works, but it isn't knitting or fiber related. If it works out, I'll be using it in an upcoming swap. It's going to be a secret until then.

If these projects plus all my non-Who projects weren't enough, now I want some of the Time Traveler sock yarn from Knit Picks. It's self-striping and is in six of the seven colors of the original Doctor Who scarf. They've not mentioned the inspiration for the colorway, but the description of the yarn lets those of us who dig the Doctor know what it was.

I'm off to watch the latest disc from Netflix. I'll be digging through my stash to see if I've got the right colors for some Dalek socks.

FO Friday the 13th

FO Friday the 13th
Originally uploaded by Paula knits

Two Fridays in a row with completed objects, who woulda guessed?

The two endless BFL braids are done. They hardly look like the same fiber, but they are. If I had it to do over again, I think I would alternate between the braids when spinning so I could use all the yarn on a single project. I think if I alternated rows with the yarn as it is, it would come out stripey.

The little creature is part of the Braiiiins Gang, three glow-in-the-dark mini zombies. I haven't decided yet if they will be part of the project I made them for.

The toe is from Monday, the first of seven anklets from a Knit Picks kit. I had to change how I did the heel because the pattern as written didn't fit my big fat feet. I came up with a workable solution. It isn't elegant, but it works.

Am I being unreasonable?

I'm in this swap. As part of the swap, we hand make something for the person we are sending stuff to. The minimum amount of time to be spent on whatever we make is 1 to 2 hours. Most people seem to work more than that amount of time. They make things like arm warmers, dish cloths, and amigurumi. Once in a while someone will make socks or a small shawl. I've sewn several project bags, and they seem to be acceptable offerings.

The current version of the swap has me partnered with someone who wants an afghan. She calls it a rectangular shawl, but it's really an afghan. She has not given any other suggestions for her handmade item. She doesn't want a pattern in it, just stockinette or garter stitch.

Am I being unreasonable to not want to spend the money or time (with a pile of woolly fabric in my lap during the hottest summer in years) knitting myself into a coma?

FO Friday