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Guild Sock Swap!

Oh, how much fun can a group have in one day? Our Mid-Michigan Knitting Guild had their sock swap Tuesday. We often have over 30 people, perhaps 50, at guild meetings. I’d say at least a third of us participated.

The first picture is of as many feet/socks as we could fit in one picture. Fun, huh? And such variety!!!

The second picture is the pair I got from Sweatergirl/Tracy. She just became a mommy for the first time less than a month ago. Yet she got this pair done in plenty of time. I really like the way she used the short-row heel as a design element, with the stripes in the cuff.

This pair is dense and warm yarn, which is very soft. I am guessing it may be alpaca, or a blend of alpaca and wool perhaps. It looks hand-dyed. The bulk of the yarn is a sort of hot berry color, and the contrast has blueberry mixed with the pink berry as interest. It looks like she might have used a short-row toe as well as a short-row heel, something I’ve never done before. And the very top of the cuff is a variation on a rib that I don’t recognize. Maybe it was a special decorative cast on followed by just a few rows of 1-1 rib. Whatever it is, it doesn’t roll and it looks decorative without being lacy. I like these sox very, very much! I’m going to wear them a lot, I’m sure… there is no such thing as too many warm sox, as I’m sure you know.

The last picture is the sock (notice singular, not plural) that I gave to Handknitter/Sarah Peasley. I was knitting the toe (top down) for the second one when I had to leave for the meeting (all the knitting is done now, and I need to finish ends on that second sock… we are going to meet for tea so that she can have a whole pair).

Sarah was a very good sport about getting only one sock. She wrote me and said she wore the one sock to the grocery store on the way home from the guild meeting. OK, she convinced me she liked them! (I hope she’s not too upset with me for sharing that little bit of information… but it did make me feel good to hear it.)

As mentioned before, these are Debbie Bliss Baby Cashmerino (the purple) and the contrast/variegated yarn is Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock. The cashmerino is a thicker yarn than the other, but it worked out fine. I really like how my LynnH No-Purl heel (close stitch wide Dutch heel) shows off the multicolored yarn. I need to figure out something that is more compatible with that look, for toes. Today I just did the standard stockinette, which is pretty but there must be a slip stitch or something I can use on toes to mix up the colors more, yet that doesn’t pull the fabric in tightly from side to side. I haven’t played with that yet but I may.

The colors for Sarah’s socks just didn’t turn out very true this time. The purple is a bit periwinkle but more gray than blue, if that makes sense. This picture looks positively clear-pastel on my screen, not as subtle as in real life. The multicolor looks right on my screen, but not the solid. The pics on May 15 look more accurate if you wish to check that out.

In the end, I did like the almost-matching yarn in fairisle squares, once I added the heel and toe in the same multicolored yarn. Notice I also did a Knit 3/Purl 1 rib underneath the multicolored part of the leg. I get a bit nervous when I knit for folks I don’t know as well… I can knit for me, or Brian, or Mom, without a pattern and I can sort of tell when it will fit by looking at it. With other folks, I have learned that a little ribbing goes a long way to adapt for different sizes. Often I take the rib down the whole top of the instep, right to the toe. This one seemed OK with just the leg being ribbed. Sarah seemed to like the detail… or at least she noticed it.

I make things up on my needles as I go. This is not what I started out with in my head. However, I was scared of running out of cashmerino yarn and so I changed gears part way down the leg. I think it turned out just fine. Sarah is saying and doing the right things to make me think I did OK.

And the act of knitting for someone… well, it’s an act of love. I feel loved by Tracy’s work on my behalf (with a new baby, at that). And I very much enjoyed the chance to do loving work for my friend Sarah, who I just don’t see much any more.

2 Responses to “Guild Sock Swap!”

  1. Sarah Says:

    Thanks for my new sock(s), Lynn!

  2. Donna Says:

    Lynn

    I have seen your sock patterns sold individually. Ever think of putting them all into a book? They are beautiful.

    Only made three pair of socks in my limited four years of knitting, but more are on the horizon.

    My order would be there should you ever compile.

    Happy Knitting

    Donna