Pans & Needles

10:45 am - May 19, 2012 -

Sixth time’s the charm, and trip knitting!

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So, it turns out that even when a rule is self-imposed and you’ve decided it’s arbitrary, there are consequence when you break it. To wit: remember how the other day I was all excited about starting the Colour Affection shawl  but really had to because it was Tuesday and Tuesdays are for my sweater? Well, yeah. I finished the decreases for the waist and then decided that maybe that fulfilled my sweater obligation, and then cast on for the shawl.

Well. I read the pattern (a point in my favour, I think) and then decided that a 4mm needle for fingering weight yarn seemed awfully big. I like a tight gauge, so I thought I’d knit this on a 3mm needle instead. So, I cast on, using a cable cast on. As soon as I saw it, though, I thought that’s too tight and pulled it off and re-cast on with a long-tail cast on. Nice and stretchy. Well, yes, but then you have to M1L and M1R in the first row, and that’s super awkward with a long-tail cast on, so I ripped it off again and then tried to cast on more loosely using my preferred cable method. Well, tiny needles and tiny wool and tiny stitches does not make picking up stitches very easy and somehow in the process of picking up the second one, I managed to drop all of them. That’s quite a talent, right?

At that point, I decided that maybe Veera was on to something with the 4mm needle. So I went and dug one up and cast on again, once again using the long-tail cast on. Of course, then I tried to pick up stitches and realized that it wasn’t going to work well, so I ripped it off again and switched back to the cable cast on (are you keeping up? That’s five times I’ve cast on for this so far – thank goodness it’s only 5 stitches to start with). Anyway, that seemed to work, so I started the pattern. I was about 9 rows in when I thought I had a problem.

It looks more like a pouch than a shawl, right?

See that? I’m a big believer in the magic of blocking, but I just wasn’t convinced blocking was going to save me. My edges just seemed too tight. It was puckering. I was convinced that when I was finished and took it off the needles the edge wouldn’t block straight, but would instead give me a hump. That is not what I want. So, I ripped it off my needles. Of course, though, as soon as it was off, this happened.

Oh wait, the pouch fanned out just the way the pattern indicates it should. Rats.

Apparently, it was fine. But, because of the picked up stitches and whatnot, I decided to rip it all the way back to the beginning and start over. (Aside: I just want to say that the Madelinetosh held up like a pro during all this ripping and reknitting and I didn’t have to cut off any of the old yarn, which is excellent since I’m already slightly worried about yardage.)

Anywa, when I started to notice what I thought was a hump forming, I took to Ravelry to read other people’s notes. It seemed that everyone add a YO between the first and second stitches of the row, and then dropped it on the way back, so make for a looser edge. I figured I’d try that, just to be sure. I added the YOs for the first six rows and then stopped doing them because I didn’t like the way the edge looked. I have decided that, since the edge was actually fine even when I thought it was too tight, that if I just pay attention and knit the first two stitched loosely, everything will be fine. So far so good. (Yes, I went with option A. I feel good about it.)

I don’t want to jinx myself, but I like how this is looking.

This puts me in a good place for my trip knitting. Did I mention I was going away? Well, I am. For two weeks! I am beyond excited. My trip involves three countries and two very long travel days, so knitting and books are required. I’m still working on my trip reading, but my trip knitting is all arranged.

Obviously, Patio Affection is coming. It’s garter stitch, and not pattern intensive, which is perfect for the plane and any driving we do. It’s big, though (or it will be), so I decided I needed a smaller project too. Also, on the off chance I get a little tired of garter stitch (it’s been know to happen), I decided project 2 needed to be sort of fiddly. So, I decided that this lovely ball of Indigodragonfly Sock would become the famous and ubiquitous Monkeys, which I have not yet knit.

Indigodragonfly 100% merino sock, in colourway “Tiny Bloodsucking Dancer” (their colourways have the best names).

Pretty good, right? I’m going to pack the Monkey project away in my checked luggage, just in case, and keep the shawl in my carry on, at least for the initial travel day.

The thing is, though, I needed to sort out my project bag situation. I have my standard (and very pretty, if I do say so myself) bag for the socks, but Colour Affection requires three balls of yarn and is going to grow. I poked around and didn’t come up with anything besides something ugly (like a grocery bag) or silly (a cloth bag in Christmas fabric) when it hit me: stuff sack.Thus, this 5L stuff sack from MEC is now my shawl bag, which will expand as amy knitting does (it’s also pretty much water proof and made of 30-denier rip-stop nylon, so my Addis shouldn’t poke through).

Sock bag (by ZigZag stitches) and stuff sack (by MEC), all rolled up.

5L is pretty big, as it turns out.

Really, I’m only going away for two weeks, so this will for sure be enough wool. Yes?

Sock wool on the left, shawl wool on the right. It’s kind of a lot, isn’t it?

Categories: in progress, Knitting Tags: , , , , , ,
10:26 am - May 18, 2012 -

In season asparagus risotto

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Oh yeah, remember how a chunk of this blog is supposed to be dedicated to food? Yeah, apparently I forgot too. Well, that’s not totally true. I work five evenings/nights a week, and it just so happens that in the last few weeks, my two nights off have meant either going out for dinner or L cooking, and although I like cooking, I’m certainly not complaining about that. Anyway, asparagus are in season, and that is pretty much impossible to resist, so I put my foot down this week and said I was going to cook.

Ontario asparagus.

There are lots of delicious ways to eat asparagus, but one of my favourites is risotto. When I was home in the evenings more often, risotto was one of my go-to meals because, once you get comfortable with it, you realize how easy it is. Truly, risotto is not difficult, but it does require a little attention and comfort with free-form cooking. Once you get the basics, though, you can make it with just about anything, which is another plus, since it will carry you through the various local growing seasons without any trouble.

Anyway, here’s how I do it – this isn’t a typical recipe because, as I said, it’s kind of free-form, but I have numbered the steps and bolded the ingredients.

Asparagus Risotto (this will serve two or three as a meal, increase rice, etc. for more people)

Creamy and delicious.

1. In a saucepan, heat up some vegetable stock (well, if you eat meat, chicken stock is fine too). I try to keep some homemade stock on hand for this sort of thing, but if you don’t have any, the boxed stock from the grocery store is a good second. If you need to use bouillon cubes, in a pinch, that’s okay; I would use slightly less than recommended, though, because cubes tend to be more salty than other options. You will need slightly more than twice as many cups of stock as you use rice. So, for 1.5 cups of rice, heat up 3-4 cups of stock.
2. In a wok or high-sided frying pan, melt 1-2 tbsp of butter over medium-high heat. Add a little olive oil to keep the butter from burning and add a finely-diced onion. Cook for five minutes or so, until the onion is soft and translucent. Add three or so cloves of garlic, minced. Cook until you can smell the garlic, another two or three minutes.
3. Add 1.5 cups of arborio rice (yes, there are other risotto rices, but they’re generally more expensive and more difficult to find; arborio is fairly ubiquitous now – basmati or other similar rice will not work, so don’t bother). If the pan seems a little dry, add a bit more butter and toss the rice with the onion and garlic until it is well coated. Let it toast for a minute or two.
4. If you have some white wine kicking around, this is a good time to add a half cup. If not, don’t worry. Using a ladle, add enough stock to cover the rice/onion/garlic (about a cup). Let it bubble down to a simmer and give it a good stir. The more you stir, the creamier the risotto, so don’t shirk on the stirring. This is a good time to get the asparagus ready (by which I mean, wash it, snap off the ends, chop it into bite-sized pieces, and set aside).
5. When the liquid starts to diminish and the mixture starts to thicken, add more stock, adding it by about a ladleful at a time and remembering to stir. The idea is that by slowly cooking it, the rice will take on the flavours in the stock and release its starch into the liquid, thus creating a yummy, creamy meal. Adding stock by the ladleful allows you to control the amount of liquid in the pan, so you don’t end up with a really liquidy mess at the end.
6. Grate some cheese. With asparagus I like an extra-old white cheddar, but it’s up to you. I usually grate about 1 cup.
7. After you’ve added two or three ladlefuls of stock, taste the risotto. You’re mostly interested in its texture. It’ll start out hard and kind of crunchy, but when it gets to the point that it’s soft enough to eat, but undercooked enough to still feel a little grainy on your teeth, add a half ladleful of stock and the asparagus. Keep stirring and tasting. (Adding the asparagus late means it won’t overcook.)
8. When the liquid has receded, taste it again. If the rice isn’t soft all the way through, add a little bit more stock; if it is, add the cheese. Turn the heat down a little and stir the cheese through so it melts into everything. If it seems a bit liquidy, let it cook a little longer (but not too long, or the rice will overcook!). Bear in mind that the cheese will solidify a little as it cools on the plate.
9. Season with salt and pepper and serve!

This method will work for any risotto. Some veggies you may want to prepare beforehand (like roasting a squash) but by and large, you add them at the same time and pair them with a cheese you like.

Are you already a risotto fan? What are you favourite pairings?

Categories: Cooking, Recipes Tags: ,
2:54 pm - May 15, 2012 -

The yarn wants what it wants

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About a week and a half ago I went into Lettuce Knit and picked up a ball of Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label Fingering Weight in the colourway Mallard. I had just finished my mirror-cabled socks and, even though I knew I had my mum’s scarf to start, I just wanted to have a little something in the stash to look forward to. Every once in a while I click over to Tanis’ website and just drool over the colourways, so it seemed like a good choice. I didn’t really have a pattern in mind, but that wasn’t the point. So I bought it, brought it home, and ever since then I’ve been thinking about it.

Tanis Fiber Arts Blue Label fingering weight 80% superwash merino, 20% nylon in Mallard. (Yes, that’s Ganymede in the background. She refused to give up her window seat just because I wanted to do a photo shoot. Cheeky cat.)

The thing is, even though I was thinking socks when I bought it, this yarn just doesn’t want to be socks. Now, in the past I have sort of rolled my eyes when I heard a knitter say that about wool. I mean, come on, right? You’re the knitter, it’s the wool, it’ll be whatever you want it to be. But no. I have come to see the error in my ways. I love this wool. I love this colourway. I love knitting socks. But somehow these three parts weren’t adding up to a whole.

And then it hit me – just the way it’s probably hit thousands of other knitters – this yarn wanted to be worn somewhere visible, set off by two other contrasting by complimentary colours. Yes, this yarn wanted to be the Colour Affection by Veera Välimäki. I have been pretty in love with this shawl since I first saw it, but I just don’t think of myself as a shawl person, so I didn’t buy the pattern or obsess over colours. But lately, as the weather has been getting nicer, I’ve been thinking about it more and more. It’s not a triangular shawl, I told myself, so I can wear it as a scarf if I want to, with the option of draping it pashmina-like around my shoulders when the sun goes down. I am picturing this as a patio shawl (Patio Affection?), and the more I imagine myself wearing it, the more I want it.

So, this morning I called Lettuce Knit. I had been browsing Tanis’ colourways and picked my ideal three and I wanted to know if Lettuce Knit had them. They didn’t, but then Megan said they had Madeline Tosh sock in too, and some other sock yarns, and I figured what they heck, I’ll just go check it out. It’s a gorgeous, gorgeous day today, and I don’t have to work, so I hopped on my bike and rode down. After much deliberation (and there was a lot – another woman who was in the store had never heard of Colour Affection, but after helping me pick my colours and then looking at the pattern, she too decided she must knit it and then we picked her colours; this is why I love Lettuce Knit so, so much, but I digress), this is what I picked to go with Mallard:

Madeline Tosh Sock, 100% superwash merino, in Charcoal.

Madeline Tosh Sock, 100% superwash merino, in Candlewick.

Now, of course, comes the tricky part: what order do I want them in. Basically, I have three options (not counting the flipped versions of these, just picture them in the other order (They’re stacked with mc at the top, then cc1, then cc2).

Option A

Option B

Option C

Personally, I am leaning toward Option A, because I like the idea of the neutral as the anchor and then having a bright band of that yellow at the bottom. I haven’t cast on yet (it’s sweater day, remember? Torture!) so you still have time to change my mind or bolster my decision – foolishly I thought buying the yarn was going to be the hard part!

Categories: in progress, Knitting Tags: , , , , , ,
12:01 pm - May 14, 2012 -

A Proper Mother’s Day

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I don’t have kids, but it was my birthday yesterday, and since I’m the oldest that means Mother’s Day this year fell on the actual anniversary of my mum becoming a mother. In the year I was born my birthday was actually a couple of days after Mother’s Day, so my poor mum had to wait a whole year for it. Now though, I like to think that the waiting has paid off.  Unfortunately, what with my parents living in Nova Scotia and me living in Toronto, I didn’t get to see my mum over the weekend – instead, L and I did birthday stuff.

I had to work yesterday (I’m a copy editor at the National Post, and since there’s a Monday paper, I have to go in on Sundays to work on it), so we did birthday stuff on Saturday. As t turned out, the weather was so lovely all weekend that either day was basically the dream of a Spring-born. Obviously we had to take advantage of the 20C weather, so we bicycled to Kensington market, bought picnic supplies and then bicycled down to Toronto Island (well, we took the ferry, but you know what I mean).

One of my favourite things about the ferry is its life jacket ceiling. So reassuring.

We spent the afternoon on the Island, eating a lot of delicious bread and cheese, bicycling around, tossing a Frisbee, and admiring the lovely houses. Then we bicycled home (it’s just about 8 km each way to the ferry, entirely downhill there and thus, entirely uphill back, so it wasn’t as lazy a day as it felt). After a nap, we went out to meet some friends for drinks and dinner and, I have to say, it was just the kind of low-key fun day that I always hope my birthday is going to be.

Our bicycles resting under a Norwegian maple (according to the sign) while we ate our picnic.

I didn’t get any knitting time on Saturday, though, so on Sunday I went with L to a Frisbee practice before work and while he ran drills I sat in the sunshine and knit. Remember those 67 stitches I cast on last week? Well, they are (hopefully) going to turn into the Autumn Leaves Stole by Jared Flood (rav link). I’m really enjoying the knitting and it has been flying along (I’ve had about two hours total to work on it and I’m halfway through the first chart) and then yesterday, while I was knitting in the sun, I realized something was wrong.

Can you spot the errors?

Can you see it? There on the right – the garter stitch border is not, shall we say, consistent. I do this when I swatch sometimes (you know, forget to knit the last X number of stitches on a purl row) and I thought I was catching myself as I went along, but apparently not. I’m planning to give this to my mum for Christmas (I am starting early this year!), so while I might have decided I didn’t care that much if it was for me, I decided that I should rip it back and do it properly for my mum. Have you ever ripped back lace knitting? It’s terrifying, what with all those yarn-overs and k2togs and whatnot.

So many live stitches – thank goodness Ganymede was otherwise occupied.

I ripped back 10 rows (there’s no picture, because I was too tense) and then, when I picked up the stitches, I only had 61. I counted again. Still 6 short. I checked, and there were no obvious dropped stitches, all my yarn-overs had survived, but there were definitely only 61 stitches where there should have been 67. I decided to start working the chart, since I assumed it would become clear where the missing stitches at least should have been, and yes, when I hit the middle of the first leaf (where it’s slip1, k2tog, psso), there was no stitch to slip. I found the dropped stitch (which had basically melted away), picked it up and kept going. Sure enough, this was the case for every leaf but one. I’ve now reknit those ten rows, plus two, and I’m pleased I decided to rip back when I did, rather than waffling as I continued to knit, which is what usually happens.

Totally worth it, right?

An hour’s work just to end up back at the beginning. Oh well. By the time I get to the end I’ll be glad I did it.

Categories: in progress, Knitting, Out and about Tags: , , , , , , , ,
10:41 am - May 10, 2012 -

Adventures in Winding

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I own neither a swift nor a ball winder. I’m not (yet) a prolific knitter, so this hasn’t been a huge issue for me so far. Mostly I buy my yarn at shops where they will wind the wool for you, which is an incredibly generous service for a small and often bustling shop to offer. For a couple of bigger projects, though, I bought my wool at a larger shop, and they do not offer a winding service.

For comparison’s sake, a proper swift and ball winder set-up, as demonstrated by the nice people at Gaspereau Fiber Arts.

I thought of all those “hold my skein” jokes and then wondered how long it would take me to wind, say, the 1200 yards of fingering weight yarn I needed for my sweater. Or, indeed, the three skeins of Cascade 220 I need for my most recent endeavour. I did a little mental math, decided that I value my relationship too much to put L through that much skein holding and decided to figure out another way. My solution: an office chair. It isn’t quite ideal, but it does spin and hold a skein nicely, and I can wheel it over to where I want to sit while winding the wool by hand.

This system has been working quite well, and then one day Ganymede walked into the room while I was happily winding away (and watching the Season 2 finale of Fringe because, Pacey Witter!, and also, winding wool is not very exciting). Naturally, if you’re a little cat and there is wool moving around, you want in on it.

Oh my gosh. Best day ever!

Do you think, if I tried, I could eat it all at once?

Listen, it would help if you stopped pulling it away from me.

I fought her off as best I could, but man, she is so cute that even when she’s bad it’s hard to really be mad. At least she didn’t chase the balls the couple of times that I dropped them, right?

In the end, her interference didn’t cost me too much time or pain (her claws are quite sharp), and I went from this

Cascade 220 Heathers in colourway 4008.

to this

in not too much time at all. If I start needing to wind more yarn than this per project, though, I might just have to invest in a proper system. Ganymede’s reaction alone would be worth it.

Category: Knitting Tags: , ,
3:56 pm - May 8, 2012 -

Mirror Mirror, Cable Cable

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I was going to wait for a nice sunny day to photograph these before posting, but I am just too excited! My mirror-cabled socks are done, and they are just exactly what I wanted them to be.

It is really hard to take picture of your own socks, especially when the details are on the sides of your legs.

You know how sometimes you decide what you want to knit before you find a pattern, and then you search and search and search and nothing comes up? Well, I spent a long time clicking through Ravelry patterns before I had to concede that the socks I wanted weren’t there anywhere. Maybe they’re too basic, I don’t know, but whatever the case, they weren’t there. So, I made them up. As I said, they’re fairly basic, but they’re just the blend of pretty and plain that I wanted, and although they were an easy knit, they were just interesting enough to keep my attention.

Also, I totally had enough yarn in the end. More than enough, as it turned out (remind me of this when I’m knitting my next pair of socks and have a similar fit of worry).  Just in case you wondered what happened.

I will post nicer pictures when the weather improves, but until then, here they are.

Details
Pattern: Mirror-Mirror cabled socks by Me
Yarn: Malabrigo Sock in colourway “Boticelli Red” (the real colour is somewhere in between the shades of these photos)
Needles: 2.25mm Clover bamboo dpns

I haven’t written this up as a formal pattern, but I might, since there doesn’t seem to be one out there yet. Would you want to knit these? (I have a sneaking suspicious they may become my go-to sock.)

For the first time in a long time, I don’t have a sock on my needles right now. I’ve got the sweater (goodness knows that isn’t going anywhere fast) and I’ve cast on a new project, but since it’s literally just 67 stitches on a needle right now, I’ll wait to show/tell you about that until it’s more interesting to look at.

Category: Knitting Tags: , , , ,
12:36 pm - May 2, 2012 -

Bread Check

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Remember how I said I was going to start making bread on the regular? Well, so far so good. I would guess that I make about 60% of our bread (this is an average because L eats way more bread than I do and buys bread to keep at the lab; I eat almost entirely homemade bread, unless I’m feeling lazy and then I just go to the bakery), which is not too bad.

Mostly I’ve been making the overnight, no-knead French loaf, which is a really easy staple as long as I’m on the ball enough to plan ahead.

I tried something a little different the last time I made this and substituted a half cup of flour for a half cup of flax meal. It added a really nice nutty sort of flavour and still rose beautifully.

But, because there are mornings when I get up to discover all the bread has disappeared overnight (or something), and I need bread for something before tomorrow, I’ve started trying some other recipes (as I said I would). I bought a very nice bread pan (tin?), and the first right-now loaf I made was Honey Wheat Bread, which is an easy and delicious loaf for sandwiches and whatever else you might use bread for.

Not bad for a first attempt, I thought. And not too sweet, either.

The recipe is for two loaves, but I only have one pan (for now), so I halved it thusly:
1 cup lukewarm water
1 cup whole wheat flour
1 1/4 tsp yeast
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 cup honey
1/4 cup canola oil
2-2.5 cups all-purpose flour (I actually ended up using just under 2 cups)

I followed all the other directions as-written, except, obviously, dividing the dough into two equal portions. The results were awesome, but I will have to work on my rolling technique in the future, as I ended up with a large air pocket just under the upper crust. Otherwise, though, I cannot recommend this recipe highly enough. Next up, I think, will be this Light Wheat Bread, which takes a little longer, so it will have to be made on a day when I’m kicking around the house.

After that, I’m not sure. What are your bread standbys? Any chance you have a great raisin bread recipe you wouldn’t mind sharing?

Categories: Cooking, Recipes Tags: ,
11:52 am - April 27, 2012 -

Very. Slow. Progress.

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I know the key word there should be “progress,” but mostly it just feels like “slow.” Anyway. Remember all that time ago when I said I was casting on for a sweater? Well, I actually did that. And then I got distracted by socks and life and it languished. It’s my in-the-background project, so I was alright with it not being a priority.

Last week, though, I decided I should dedicate some actual time to it, otherwise it was just going to be a background project forever, and nothing is less motivating than returning to a project that seems to be going nowhere. So, Tuesdays and Thursdays are now for sweater -knitting only (well, and work and cooking and all that other stuff; it’s more like any knitting that gets done on those days must be for the sweater). It’s been two weeks, and this is what I have to show for myself:

April 10, barely beyond the ribbing and before my dedicated sweater knitting plan.

April 20.

Today

This is Buckwheat by Veera Valimaki and I am being unoriginal and knitting in the same colourway she did, which is Malabrigo Sock ochre (had I seen Boticelli Red at the time, things might have been different). To get gauge I had to go up to a 4.5 mm needle, which means the wool and needle pairing are not exactly natural (tiny wool, biggish needle), so I feel the need to hold everything more tightly than normal, which is slowing me down.

I’m not quite at the waist shaping, which means I’m just far enough along to start worrying that it won’t fit. I have no reason to think this except that I tend to think this about everything  knit right around the point that I’m far enough into it that ripping back seems unfathomable.  Thus, I will not be ripping this and will instead persevere with the assumption that I’m being crazy and everything will work out.

Categories: in progress, Knitting Tags: , ,
11:40 am - April 25, 2012 -

City of Craft is an enabler

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The City of Craft Spring show was on Saturday, and you can bet Wendy and I had a countdown going. We got there shortly after doors opened and man oh man, the talent blooming in Toronto is just astounding. I have always loved going to craft-type shows where local artists sell their work, but since I began knitting in ernest I have developed a whole new appreciation for the ingenuity, dedication, and type committed to the work.

This is all a lead-in to say that it was a morning of purchases galore. I don’t shop much in my normal life, so I don’t mind splurging every once in a while, especially when it’s one beautiful handmade things – or things with which to make beautiful, handmade things. This is the beauty of the City of Craft setup: not only are you presented with gorgeous finished pieces, but crafters are notorious enablers, so you can fill your boots with supplies too.

Here’s what I got:

1 pound of fabric bits and two little bags of vintage buttons from The Workroom:

Green fabric! Check out those guitars...

Blue fabric! I love the elephants.

Buttons that have pairs.

Buttons that don't match.

I have no real plan for these except that I will need buttons for the sweater I’m knitting and I think some of the fabric might become napkins.

More vintage buttons from a vendor whose name I have completely forgotten (is it you? Please let me know):

Six unmatched buttons in a similar colour, in a similar size.

A lovely little notions pouch from Bookhou, whose prints I’ve been admiring for years (I also bought a little cloth wallet, but it’s in my purse in the other room and I’m being lazy):

Notions pouch!

These did not come with it.

And, drumroll please, a needle roll from Knotted Nest:

Unrolled.

Rolled up.

A drumroll for a needle roll might seem a bit over the top, but I have been looking for one of these (ie: one that’s pretty and interesting AND holds several sizes/types of needle) for months, to no avail. And I don’t mean casually looking. I mean scouring Etsy and knit shops and blogs. So, thank you Knotted Nest for ending my search in such a beautiful and satisfying manner.

Aside1 : When I got home and proudly showed L all of my purchases, he sort of looked on with casual interest until I got to the needle roll and then he said, “Oh no.”
Me: What?
Him: I guess it’s serious.
Me: What?
Him: You’re really serious about knitting.
Me: Well, yes. Also, this doesn’t mean I have more needles, just that they’ll be better organized.
Him: Still. Now it’s serious. You’re a knitter.

Aside 2: When we were leaving, Nicole (who was working the door) asked to see what we bought. One glance into my bag and she laughed. “You like green, huh?”

And that, my friends, is what we call a positive result!

Category: Out and about Tags: , , ,
10:21 am - April 23, 2012 -

Nine grams of leeway

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I finished the first cabled sock yesterday, which was a moment of great satisfaction that quickly turned to concern. Knitting cables takes more wool than knitting flat. I knew that. Knitting at a really tight gauge takes more wool. I knew that too. I did both of those things anyway, and when I looked down at my completed sock and then at what was left of the 440-yard ball of wool, I got a little worried. The ball, you see, was really small. It definitely seemed like less than half of what I started with. I thought back to my wastefully indulgent long-tail cast-on, and how generous a tail I’d given myself to Kitchener the toe and I got worried. I tried holding the wool in one hand and the completed sock in the other for comparison, but it was too close to tell.

My first reaction was to head to my LYS to pick up an insurance skein. I figured I wouldn’t need it until at least the foot, but still, planning ahead can’t hurt. They didn’t have any. After that, there was only one choice: buy a scale. And look! It turns out I might be okay.

Finished sock = 45 grams

Remaining wool = 54 grams

45 grams is definitely less than 54 grams! I agree that it’s strange that the numbers are flipped, but I don’t care. That’s nine extra grams! If I can knit exactly the same sock a second time, I’ll be fine.

After this success, I basically wanted to weight everything. I thought about weighing Ganymede, but she gave me one cold look that said not a chance, so I settled on my tea cup.

Half a kilo – I guess that's normal?

Obviously, this isn’t relevant to anything. But I am pleased.

After all the weighing was over, I turned my lights out for Earth Hour and knit the ribbing for the second sock by candlelight. It turns out, oddly, that I actually don’t mind knitting 2×2 rib  as much when I can’t see it. It’s also a good rhythm, and allows you to feel your way along, knowing whether or not you’ve accidentally dropped a stitch in the dark. Also, it looks nice, no?

Bad for my eyes, but nice to look at.

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