November's Inspiration - Monet

A few of you suggested Monet and this particular piece fit so well with this month's surprise, I couldn't pass it up! I hope you enjoy this month's inspiration - The Artist's Garden at Giverny . I haven't started dyeing the yarn yet - that's coming very soon - but we haven't touched on some of the colours in this painting yet so I'm excited to get them onto the yarns!! This month will be another new yarn base...and it's just way too much fun to send out new yarns to everyone almost every month. I'm always looking for fabulous yarns and I've come across a few so I am quite sure we will have a few new ones for the next little while!

Hope everyone's doing well - Halloween will be here very soon and then it's November already! Wow, time flies! I'm so enjoying seeing everyone's projects too - you are all such a talented bunch of knitters! :)

Picasso sock!

Here is the top of my finished Picasso sock. I used the lacy mock cable sock pattern and I really like how it came out. There is no pooling around the gusset. The stripes just got wider as I was only doing the pattern on the top of the foot. I think the yarn and pattern compliment each other well and they are so soft! And I love telling folks that they are made with sea weed (so I stretch the truth a little). They always sniff them as if they can smell it.

November's Coming!

Next week will be November 1st already! Wow. Thank you everyone for all your suggestions on the art piece to use for next month...I had someone in mind and a few of you suggested him too so it seemed like a safe bet so off we go! It fits well with the surprise insert too so everything came together nicely.

Have a great weekend everyone! I'll let you know who it is next week :)

Let's Talk About November...

Anyone have some art pieces they are just dieing (no pun intended) for me to dye? I have a few ideas but sure would love to hear some suggestions from everyone too! No polls this time...will take some suggestions and see what intrigues me when I look at the art piece. I'm such an inspiration dyer...it'll just hit me what I want to do.

Leave a suggestion in the comments so I can take a look...November is quickly approaching!

Coming Along...

Slowly but surely! One down, one to go! I used to have an aversion to variegated yarns that pooled and did weird things on the sock but in real life, they aren't so bad and seem to take on a character of their own. I probably should've knit a few socks before I decided that too...LOL My sock will definitely be a one-of-a-kind that's for sure! Onto sock #2 after I finish the second sock of another pair. I promised myself I'd finish that first before finishing these...sometimes you just have to do that...bargain with yourself to avoid SSS...LOL

Have a great weekend everyone!

Ravelry, Anyone?

I just got my invite to Ravelry, and while I was exploring, discovered that there was no group for the Art Walk Sock Club - in other words, us. So my question for my fellow Art Walkers is this: Do we want to start a group on Ravelry? I don't know how many club members also belong to Ravelry, and of those who do, who would be interested in joining a new group. And I don't really know yet what's involved in starting a group (or how to do one of those lovely headers). So now that I've gone and completely rambled on, if you're interested in starting a group for the Art Walk on Ravelry, just post in the comments.

And thank you for your consideration.

NOTE FROM ROXANNE: There is a group...LOL! Click here. Thanks Inky for wanting to start one...totally awesome of you!! :)

Here I am

It's great to get the invitation to blog....

River Rapids Socks - WIP

I have another sock on the go! I'm using the River Rapids pattern (PDF link) and it's coming along quickly...I'm about to pick up stitches for the gusset! I'm curious to see how the colours will wind themselves around the sock for the gusset and foot...multi-colour yarns always intrigue me that way!

Anyone else cast on the merino/SeaCell yet? I'm so curious to hear how you like knitting it.

October's Three Dancers Spoiler

For those of you still waiting for your yarn, do not click the photo unless you want to see the yarn up close and personal and have the colours revealed to you!

I can't wait to see what everyone does with these yarns - I am working on the River Rapids pattern and have one pattern repeat done so far on the leg. I tried with size 2 US DPNs but it was too loose so I have gone up to the size 2.5 US DPNs and so far, so good. Don't forget the exclusive discount for the ART WALK members if you need a set. You can find them here and if those run out, I am taking pre-orders here which will have a wee wait time for the needles but I will get them out to you as soon as I receive them (about a week or so).

I'm already planning for November and have another surprise up my sleeve so stay tuned!

P.S.: Invoices went out today for all those who were clubbers for October - appreciate payments by October 15 or close to that date so the yarn can be planned for November 1's mailing. Thanks everyone for making this sock club so much fun!

toreador scarf

Cast on 201 stitches on size 3 needles, join and knit around in seed stitch (k1,p1) for six inches. Drop 10 stitches, bind off ten stitches. Drop 1 stitch, (draw up a long loop to give you enough room to ravel out this stitch.) bind off ten stitches, drop 3 stitches(draw up a long, long,long loop ), bind off 10, drop 1, bind off to within 35 stitches of end, drop 1, stitch, bind off ten stitches, drop 3 stitches, bind off 10, drop 1, bind off to end.

Ravel down those dropped stitches. Thread a blunt point darning needle with about four feet of yarn and weave it over and under the threads of those dropped stitches. (I pick up one set of overs and keep them on a knitting needle. this way, I can just run my darning needle along the knitting needle and save half the time of picking up. Use the knitting needle to push the weaving thread down, then push it up to the top of the weaving to get it out of your way. Don't pack the threads too tightly together or you will make a stiff place in your lovely soft, light scarf.)

Then I blocked the scarf still in a loop to straighten out those threads where I dropped 10 stitches. When dry, cut across the middle of those threads and tie in bundles of five to make fringe. Tah dah!!

Rainy Day Delivery

I was worried that the yarn would come today, while I was at work, with a big storm rolling through in the afternoon. Usually my mailman puts the boxes on the front porch and we don't have an overhang. Much to my delight the yarn did come, and he stuck it in the mailbox :) Absolutely beautiful!

October Treat

I can't believe my eyes when I opened the package this morning - the colors are amazing & the yarn is gorgeous - so smooth & soft & the sheen on the yarn makes it look exquisite - I just can't stop admiring it! Thanks so much Roxanne for this wonderful treat as I have my own Picasso - you are a genius!

Starry Night modular scarf

I've finished! knit on size 1's with six repeats of the basic big square, two half squares design. And then ten dollars worth of beads to make it a bit more feminine. And since everything is better with a kitty, here is Miss Pepper, ignoring the scarf.

Blast from the Past

Well, it finally happened. Despite the fact that I have a gazillion trillion quite a few socks on the needles, I cracked and cast on Toreador. And not being content to knit just a sock, I had to tweak an established stitch pattern (normally, I don't like to think that much). Meet Interesting Path.


(OK, so not all that much extra thinking was involved.)

I'm very pleased with how my tweaking is playing out. For those of you who are curious, the pattern I tweaked was Winding Trail I felt it might be too meshy for my taste.