Raspberry Azure, FO.

Yarn: Colinette Jitterbug in Raspberry
Needles: Bamboo dpns, 2.50mm
Pattern: Azure by Deb Barnhill
Started: December 2007
Finished: January 2008

Notes: These were my first FO of 2008 and toe-up socks ever, and I'm pleased to report that they were relatively painless. The patterned heel flap was a little clunky (but still lovely) the first time round, but by sock no. 2 it just zipped right by.

Everyone thinks that these socks are actually cabled! The surprise on their faces when I tell them that all that twisting is done with clever increases and decreases is priceless.

I couldn't ask for a nicer pattern to take the edge off the somewhat crappy yardage of the Jitterbug. Now I do have another skein of it lurking in the stash...

Who knew?

I finished my Raspberry Azure socks yesterday, and I was meaning to start on Elfine's Socks today, but somehow this happened:

Yes, that's a decent bite out of the first leg of the Snowflake Socks from the Fall 2007 Interweave Knits.

Look, I'm as surprised as anyone here, as I've been a closet non-fan of colourwork socks -- "let's keep the colourwork where we can see it and where it won't get walked on," -- but come on! Look at these socks! I'm totally in love and I'm already making plans for knee-high socks of a similarly patterned nature. Who knew they could look this good or be this much fun?

Progress, or lack thereof.

Progress continues on the New Mitten, albeit slow progress. Not quite "progress" in a geological sense, but pretty close. Have a picture, in the hopes of becoming distracted:

Ok, I know these are US 0 (2mm) needles, but I also know how quickly mittens like these tend to work up. It seems the trick to quickly producing such a mitten lies in actually picking it up once in a while. Working on one's Raspberry Azure socks will never result in a new mitten/mitten pattern that everyone can enjoy. No, the only good that will come out of that is proving to oneself that toe-up socks are a perfectly feasible (and fun) sock-making method (ps--> They're nearly done!)

Back to the mitten, erm, at least what there is of it at present (which, let's face it, isn't that much.) That's a fishtail cuff, which, aside from having a delightful name produces one crazy delightful faux-entrelac cuff. What else...oh, did I mention that this one is going to have a gusset thumb? Ever since I made those Komi Mittens I have had a Serious Thing for highly-patterned gusset thumbs (and seam stitches!) so the New Mitten is being treated to both.

I've really got to polish off those socks and get to work on the Mitten. It's got a surprise or two to reveal that I can only hope that everyone will enjoy as much as I do.

Something Fresh.

This is huge; yesterday I finally got around to learning the Magic Cast-On. I have no idea why I never bothered to do this sooner, because it's easier than any other similar cast-on I've ever tried. The world of toe-up socks is my oyster!

I celebrated by neglecting my Xmas knitting and starting a new sock:

This is Azure from the latest Knitty. In an amazingly fortunate twist of fate I had the exact yarn that the pattern calls for -- one skein of Colinette Jitterbug in Raspberry.
The Jitterbug had been waiting patiently at the bottom of my stash for quite some time, as the yardage is just a little on the short side. Toe-up socks will allow me to make the most of this entire skein, which is just as well because I really like the colourway.

Now to get through some more of that Xmas knitting so I can have a guilt-free sit-down with my Raspberry Azure socks.