Wednesday, September 9, 2015

Yarn Along:

Not only did I finish up these socks, but I also read the last few pages of Ross Poldark.  In one of the final chapters, a drunken party guest makes a bet that he can treadle on Elizabeth's spinning wheel.  The description of the wheel is spot on, but on one point, the author blundered.
"'You'll break it, John,' said Elizabeth, smiling.  'You're too heavy-footed.'"  
I'm pretty sure Elizabeth would not have been smiling.  If it had been me, I would have throttled the lot of 'em.
In other news, I have successfully reined in my insane urge to buy yarn to make matching socks for this dress (rather than just buckling down and finishing the dress itself).  A new level of procrastination avoided. 
 
I quickly found some good matches at Baby Gap, which is doing its level best to make sure all babies have some squishy garter stitch in their lives whether a knitter loves them or not.  I'm dreading the inevitable query of, "And did you make the booties?"  No.  No, I did not, dagnabit.
Now that I'm working on the yoke of the dress, I need a side project or two for when conditions are not optimal for involved knitting--i.e. when my children are awake or I am eating chocolate.  Is it any wonder this thing is not done yet?  I pulled out two hibernating projects--some striped leg warmers
and my TARDIS socks.  These have the distinct advantage that I'm not super excited to knit either of them, which ought to insure that the dress gets done by the deadline (9/26).  But there are forces conspiring against me.  Today this arrived in my mailbox:
It's a sock blank, a swath of machine-knitting that the dyer has splashed and stamped all over.  You're supposed to unravel it as you go, knitting the kinky yarn into a subtle, speckled wonder of a sock that is one of a kind.  From beside the couch, it sings its siren song to me as I knit stitch after stitch in plain, sad white.  I'll hold off as long as I can, using it as my big reward once I finish this gown.  That is, unless I succumb to temptation.

26 comments:

mamasmercantile said...

The socks are beautiful and the dress is stunning, looking forward to seeing the end result in all its glory.

Tracey ~ Clover said...

Your socks are so pretty, that is a great looking pattern.
I am intrigued by your sock blanket and will be looking into
that more, it sounds fun. Not to add to your temptation, but
I would have a hard time not casting on.

andrea @ This Knitted Life said...

cutest little dress ever. You must finish! And I love the new socks!

Caroline said...

The sock blank is fantastic - I know what you mean about trying to not get side tracked! The white baby dress is stunning - lucky baby!

Donna said...

There would be no smile on my face either if somebody was messing with my wheel! Your socks are perfect for this time of year. Great colors!

Pom Pom said...

Wow! You're good! The baby dress is beautiful. What a loving gift.
TARDIS! I really should get addicted to Dr. Who.
Thank you for sharing your lovely knitting. You must be fast!

Unknown said...

I especially love the sock blank! i don't know if I could resist! Beautiful projects! Thanks for sharing.

elizabeth said...

beautiful dress!!! well done!!! you CAN DO IT! :) lovely other knits and as always I love your sense of humour... speaking of chocolate, I think I Need to find some in my pantry....

Elizabeth said...

ooh lovely blank!

Misty Cottage Crafts said...

Totally with you on the spinning wheel - it drives me nuts when people treadle my wheel madly.
Love, love, love the sock blank. I've never come across one of those before.

Eileen said...

WOW, the socks are wonderful and the dress amazing!

willfulmina said...

The temptation was irresistible. I have most of a cuff done already...

willfulmina said...

Thank you! I hope I can finished it up for next week.

willfulmina said...

Thanks! It helps to remember that if I don't, this baby can't get baptized. No pressure, but......

willfulmina said...

She's definitely something special.

willfulmina said...

Good, I'm not the only one who thinks so!

willfulmina said...

Doctor Who is so fun. I've made a few things inspired by it over the years, including a washcloth with daleks on it. EXFOLIATE! EXFOLIATE!

willfulmina said...

Maybe I'll bribe myself--one row on the gown, one row on the sock...

willfulmina said...

Enjoy! I think I'll break out the ice cream!

willfulmina said...

She is a genius, that Gale.

willfulmina said...

After it happened one too many times, I decided to hide my wheel in a closet. It's too bad because I love having it out and get more spinning done if it is more accessible.

willfulmina said...

Thank you! I just finished up the yoke and cannot stop admiring it!

Lucy Bowen said...

I've never heard of a sock blank. What a great idea! I hope you get your yoke finished.

Rosemary said...

The flowers on that sock blank are so pretty, it seems almost a shame to unravel them!

I enjoyed knitting TARDIS socks for my brother, except his feet are so. dang. big! And he has wide calves, so I had to alter the pattern a little.

willfulmina said...

I did! Working on the sleeve borders now. I'm so close I can taste it!

willfulmina said...

I know--I wish I could have both somehow. It's definitely an exciting process, if a little bittersweet.