Siberian Iris Socks for FREE!

Just a quick note to let you know that my Siberian Iris Socks are now available for free through Ravelry. It took me long enough, but I finally got it all done! If you're at all like me, you start to crave smaller projects this time of year. Admittedly, socks are not exactly "seasonal" but I knit them at this time of year anyway. You should too.

On socks...

You know, I never really did understand why people would make lace socks. It seems kind of pointless, right? I mean, putting holes in your socks on purpose? So imagine my surprise when my sock design for Elinor's Socks Revived contest formed in my head and it was lace. Lace? Yup, lace.

These will be called the Siberian Iris socks, and they will be available for you sometime in mid-April, if all goes according to plan. Siberian Iris make me nostalgic for the clump that we had in the house I grew up in. They came from my great-grandmother's garden but did not make the move with my parents. I loved them for their beautiful dark blue-purple color and their delicacy. They are quite small, unlike the usual iris you might see coming up soon. Think the difference between paperwhites and daffodils. (By the way, is the plural of "iris" irises or iris?)

These socks are meant to evoke the Siberian Iris petals through the curving V's which run down the back and front of the sock and the "beard" (the fluffy raised part that runs down the middle of the petals) by use of a raised, eyelet ribbing and the side panels. They have a stockinette heel and a wedge toe. Though the socks are lace, the pattern is very simple to memorize - there is only one chart for each size. Ok, two charts. But the other is the ribbing chart, which totals eight rounds. You can handle that, right? The only lace stitches used are yarn-overs and decreases.

And the reality of spring is that it's not as warm as we like to pretend that it is. Given a choice, I would run around barefoot all year long, but sadly I have chronically cold feet. I will consider these socks to be a good compromise between warmth and the feel of air moving over my toes this spring.

Note: The movement of the stitches can be preserved without the lace by replacing the yarn-overs with a lifted increase, a tip I will include in the final pattern.

Caroline's Mini Mittens

Sometimes, mittens just aren't practical. For instance, mittens are completely useless in Indonesia, which is why I designed these mini mittens for my family's exchange student, Caroline, who leaves for Indonesia today after staying here for a year. These are meant to be a reminder of the place she left, but you can make them in cold places too. Use them as Christmas decorations - in fact, with less than 2 hours invested in the pair, you can afford to whip up a couple of pairs and give them as last minute presents.

Caroline’s Mini Mittens

Materials:
Knit Picks Palette in Bark (MC) and Red (CC)
4 US1 dpns
Yarn needle

This is just what I used on my mittens. Gauge absolutely doesn’t matter here. In fact, I didn’t even make a gauge swatch, so throw caution (or your gauge swatch) to the wind and just jump in. Use whatever leftover yarn you have. You’ll only need bits and pieces here. Fingering weight will work best for tiny mittens, but heavier yarn and bigger needles will only mean your Mini Mittens aren’t quite so mini.

Ribbing
CO 18 st in CC
Arrange with 6 stitches on each needle, and join for working in the round.
Row 1: Work 1 round k1, p1 rib.
Row 2: Change to MC, knit 1 round even.
Row 3-6: k1, p1 rib.
Row 7: Knit one round even, increasing 1 st at the end of each needle (3 sts inc, 7 sts on each needle).

Thumb Gusset
Row 8: K10, inc 1, k1, inc1, k10
Row 9: K one round even
Row 10: K10, inc 1, k3, inc 1, k10
Row 11: K even
Row 12: K10, inc 1, k5, inc 1, k10
Row 13: K even

Hand
K10, place next 7 sts on waste yarn, CO1 across gap, k10
Change to CC, k3 rounds.
Change to MC, k3 rounds.

Finger Shaping
*K5, k2tog*
K one round even
*K4, k2tog*
K one round even
*K3, k2tog*
K one round even
*K2tog*
Cut yarn leaving 6 inch tail, draw up remaining stitches

Thumb
Place held stitches on needles, pick up 2 stitches. (3 sts on each needle)
K 5 rounds
*K1, k2tog*
*k2tog*
Cut yarn, draw up remaining stitches

Finishing
Weave in loose ends except for CO tail. Tie the mittens together with the leftover cast on tail and hang jauntily from a handy corner.

Genius

I'm not sure I have many people to convince that Elizabeth Zimmermann is a genius, except those who've never heard of her, because you can't deny her incredibly practical approach to knitting - which has up until recently been an incredibly practical skill. And those of you who've never heard of her? Where have you been? Get on the boat already!

I read both Knitting Workshop and Knitting Around this weekend. I devoured them like novels. Even the patterns, I swear. Knitting Around almost is a novel, combining patterns with "digressions" on Elizabeth's life. I've always loved to hear stories about the way that things used to be back when my grandparents and their parents were young, so it's only fitting that I was so involved in Elizabeth's story.

Her patterns make so much sense. She acknowledges the fact that everyone fits differently, and is fully aware and even encourages you to do what works for you. We knitters all know that we alter patterns to a greater or lesser degree even when the pattern seems set in stone. Well, no more. No more for me. I have a freakishly long torso, and I'm not going to pretend I don't anymore!

And in the spirit of taking a pattern as a guide and not a set of rules, I've started a hat for my brother. He found this yarn in a hippie store in Santa Fe and asked if I'd make him a hat. Well, how could I say no?

The yarn is 55% hemp 45% wool, and it smells distinctly of hippie, if you know what I mean. That sort of incense-y, hemp-y, tie-dye-y, kill-your-television-y kind of smell. I have no idea who manufactures this stuff. There's no company name on the ball band, just "Hemp Yarn." And it just proves how much I love my brother because, dudes, this stuff is something akin to knitting with grass. Let's just say, I wouldn't want it near my head. I hear hemp softens up with time, and you can bet your behind I'm going to steam the heck out of it in order to attempt to turn it into something someone might want to wear, but I make no promises.

And, being a boy, he had to choose the least interesting colors (chocolate and curry yellow, according to packaging), and the most boring design. Stripes! No fun colorwork, no zig-zags, no stylized X and O patterns. Stripes. Stripes! What is it with men and their inability to admit that they might like colors? I mean, blue is even stretching it for this one. And he chose straight ribbing down to his ears, so there's not even a turned under hem where I can stitch something fun. Like his name.

But I love him, so I'll try to not screw this one up. I've done most of the math and meausuring necessary, assuming I get gauge (5 st per inch) so I just need to get gauge and cast on.