Knitting Content, Finally!

I finished my Deathflake socks a day or two ago. Actually I finished them twice, the first time one foot was longer than the other so I ripped back and fixed it.

Stats: Deathflake Socks from this chart
Bamboo and Ewe in Red
Berroco Comfort Socks in dusk
Size 3 US needles


December's challenge at SKA on Ravelry is to use up those leftovers, I have started with the stripes from my Miss Marple Socks, some cream that I don't even remember what socks and the grey from Deathflake....so far so good. This will be my first short row heel and I am hoping that it turns out ok.

Now on to Gifts for Knitters part 6!

Many of the yarns I like to knit with come in hanks rather than balls. This is better for the yarn as it doesn't stretch it while it is lounging in my stash. For a long time when I wanted to convert that hank into a ball to knit from it was the chore of one of my children to hold the hank so that the yarn didn't get tangled, and then I saw this:
This swift can come apart in a jiffy to store in a cupboard, although mine seems to live all put together on a side table! This one is from The Knit Store, but if you are handy you could probably take this general idea and make your own version.

The countdown is on for Christmas at my house....we finally got some decorations out!

Please forgive the picture issues with those I "borrow" from other sites, I don't know how to resize them when they are someone elses!

~M

Not that I think every knitter knits socks

Many times I have heard sock knitters bemoan the inability to remember the steps in grafting toes! This little gift from KaratStix could help. And if your knitter is not a sock knitter, well tune in tomorrow I have a gift idea for them too!

If I am lucky we might even have some knitting content. :)

~M

Managing Stitches

Now that your knitter has needles and yarn he/she probably needs something to help manage all those wonderful stitches. Snag free stitch markers are a must for the lace knitter on your list, something to keep those pattern repeats straight without catching on the fine yarns we like to use.


found here

Stitch markers come in all sorts of different designs.


and here

From simple rings of metal or plastic to highly ornate decorative works of art.

Or make your own, here.

Of course I won't mention that a ton of knitters out there use nothing more than scraps of yarn tied in a circle!

~M

Did she see me coming?

Check out today's post from, none other than, the Yarn Harlot...Scroll down a little, you will see what I am talking about!

Now I have to try and keep my Gifts for Knitters different than hers, which as the Harlot has some really great knitting taste could be hard.

Now on to what I had planned to post about today. :)

So far we have needles and blockers designed for socks so what better for day 3 than sock yarn? But how do you pick, how do you know what your knitter loves? Although there are plenty of expensive, inexpensive, dramatically and subdued colors of sock yarn my first tip is BUY ENOUGH FOR A PAIR OF SOCKS...check the labels folks, look for the yardage because there is nothing worse than trying to match dyelots long after the yarn was bought. *Or in Stephanie's case, ever.* If the ball of yarn you are holding suspiciously has less than 400 yards, do everyone a favor and buy two. Better yet, buy the balls with more than 400 yards.**

Webs has a ton of sock yarn to pick from, all at discount prices. Pick a color and go shopping, maybe if you are lucky the socks that are knit from those precious balls will end up on your feet.

~M

*the beginning of today's post talks all about matching dyelots.
** one of the knitting creeds is you can never have too much yarn, but just in case you get too much there are many monster sock patterns out there for leftovers.

Gifts for Knitters 12/2

Every sock knitter on your Holiday gift giving list is in need of some of these! Picture shamelessly stolen from here.

Sock blockers come in all sorts of materials and sizes, with prices ranging from free to several tens of dollars. I have some of these But they are not what were wished for by Amanda in yesterdays comments. If I am reading her request right, she is asking for something from here and there are many to pick from.

Of course we shouldn't leave out the glove knitters, they make blockers for them too!

Still no knitting content to share, there is another pair of socks in the works but so far they just look like three rows of ribbing!

The question is still out there...What do you, the knitter, want for the holidays?

~M

Way back when

Way back in 2004 the Yarn Harlot did a special posting in December, several of them actually with guest spots by daughters, of Gifts for Knitters. When I have nothing better to do, or I am trying to distract myself from finding new patterns to knit or work on the things that are already on my needles I will look back at those posts and think to myself "Wow, if only (insert name of whoever I want to buy me something) could look at that I might get (insert name of cool thing here)".

So how's about we all join in, leave me a comment with something that you the knitter would like for Christmas and we can make a whole Advent of Gifts for Knitters.

I will start us off with :



Square double pointed needles. I got to test these out last summer and while I thought the cable joins on the circulars ...well let's be lady like...were not up to Addi Turbo standards, the double points were wonderful to use. Many knitters knit on a single swatch over the course of TNNA, and to tell the truth even with different hands, different tensions and different knitting styles, you couldn't see where one knitter started and another left off. (I might have hedged my bets to make sure someone wraps these up for me for Christmas, the only question is which child will wrap them!)

Kollage needles can be found here If the knitter in your life hasn't tried them, maybe they should. :)

No knitting content from me today, still slogging through some hidden knitting!

~M

Things to do when you should be......

I should be knitting samples, I have the yarn, the store owner even sent me the needles when I moaned that I didn't have the right size. I have knit the first one, started the second and yet I find myself dreaming of other things.

What should you dream about when you have honest-to-goodness someone-is-waiting for this knitting to do? Well I started by begging the designer I know for a sock pattern, ok I didn't quite beg, just mentioned I was being distracted by sock patterns so she sent me another one to distract me some more (it's pretty, The Drama Queen will love it in purple for Christmas, maybe I can push said designer to publish it so I can share.) and then I distracted myself some more.

Deathflake is a chart that is available both on Ravelry and here. It reminds me of a certain nephew of mine so I pulled out some needles and knit it upside down as part of a cuff down sock. The prototype is nearly done, once it is I will have him check it for fit, already I know of a couple of changes to my basic pattern I want to incorporate into the next version...which then is the question. What do real designers do with their prototypes that don't quite work??

~M