Even the sheepies are only just peaking out over the top! My first toe-up socks - the garter stitch toe and heel are fun :-)
These rockin' socks from the club were originally designed with large reversible cables on the legs, and they were originally knit that way, but as they were way too tight, had to be unraveled. The revision involved continuing the ribbing up a few inches, then switching to k2p2 ribbing for extra snuggness.
February 2008 Archives
From Handknit Holidays, the first stocking took about a year. The second one went faster as I was motivated to finish the pair. Haven't worn them with a skirt yet, but with the rolling factor makes wearing them under pants slightly difficult. Stockings are always so appealing, but not all that practical! There is something so graceful about a long sinewy stocking next to a short sporty sock. Also the temptation to use hand-dyed yarn for so much solid stockinette meant that each skein varied in color slightly, resulting in a pair that doesn't exactly match. Another difficulty is the continuous shaping done "invisibly" in the lace/cable pattern down the back of the leg which requires careful attention, especially over the course of a year!
Using a different yarn than specified resulted in a tighter knit, creating "knee-high" rather than "over-the-knee" stockings. I think that the top coming to just under the knee stays up better, however.
I had the Summer '06 IK magazine sitting around for awhile, then suddenly felt totally compelled to make the Icarus Shawl. From beginning (November '07) to end (December '07), the heathered lace weight wool and stockinette was a joy to feel moving through my hands. The typical construction begins very simply as shown here, View image, to the feathers at the end which come to life after blocking...
Although I wore this during winter, it is very lightweight, so without layers, a summer night is probably ideal!
