SS09 Mini Socks: Progress Report

I am making good progress on knitting mini sample socks for The Crafts Meow, a vendor at the upcoming, now world known, and much anticipated, Sock Summit 2009.

I am using my wee tiny sock pattern on size 2s and trying a size 1 with more stitches on to get a large enough mini sock to make nice samples the can be seen and touched in her booth.

The needles I am using in these pictures are Harmony woods from Knit Picks in a size 1, 4-inch length. They are interesting to knit with, you have to keep your hands on them because they are so lightweight that if one slips away they are difficult to find. You may also want to sandpaper the ends of the occasionally.

The size 2s that I use are Bryspun double points that will be accepted on the plane. Unfortunately they do not make them in any smaller sizes and the ones I really like (Kollage square DPNS in 5-inch length) are metal and I don't dare test the TSA folks at security with those. So they will go in the checked bag and I will use the others for the plane.


She has lovely yarn both in feel and in colors. I am enjoying knitting with it and can hardly wait to see what new dye lots she brings to the show.

I hope you all have lots of color and softness in your lives!

Thong Socks

I found the pattern "Flippant" on Ravelry one day and thought they were a darling idea. I wear thong flip flops as house shoes during the warmer weather and love them. So I decided to try a pair of these out of Cascade Fixation.

I cast them on today while I was waiting for my student at the shop today. I made really good progress on them, following the patterns version for size, as the picture shows and they are being guarded by my wee devil duck dpn holders.

The pattern got lots of giggles from the shop staff. And somehow a question came up about a "whole" sock to which I answered that I will be attending the Sock Summit which encouraged full out guffawing.

I did finish the first Flippant however it is too big for my foot and I found out they will not fit inside my thong because it will be too tight. So that project has gone by the wayside.

I hope everyone is finding fun projects to keep them busy!

Note: scenic shot is from the driveway of the shop in Woodland Park looking at Pikes Peak.

Sock Summit Registration

With only 71 days to the opening of Sock Summit in Portland, today is the day registration opens for the much anticipated SS09.

With all the excitement and tension among the more than 2,000 members of the group on Ravelry, I think I am waiting until at least this afternoon to try to go on and claim the slots I want. Since I have decided that I want to sightsee as well as take some skill classes, I am going for the one-hour slots. This will give me time to practice the new skills without missing out on any of the other fun. At least this is my plan.

I'll let you know how this worked for me later.

Later: after the dust settled on the crashed server (it only took 5 minutes to bring it to a screeching halt) I watched the group board at Ravelry and tracked the tweets from the organizers until I thought it was save to dive in the pool. I managed to get the five 1-hour slots I wanted and a ticket for the Opening Reception on Thursday night. My payment was accepted and I received a confirmation email later in the day. I count myself very fortunate considering the many horror stories that were shared by the other participants. It looks like all the classes sold out the first day. So my airline ticket is purchased, my classes chosen, my hotel room booked (by my roomie - thank you) and some contacts made for fun sightseeing adventures.

I am very excited about August in Portland! I hope you have great things to look forward to this summer!

WooHoo! Wee Tiny Sock Received

Yesterday I received a card with a beautifully knit wee tiny sock from Connecticut. She says it is her first WT sock as well. She did a fabulous job. I am glad she joined the swap to show off her work.

The yarn is Mountain Colors Bearfoot. I have wanted some to make socks out of before but now that I see how it knits up I am definitely adding it to my "want to have in my sock yarn stash."

I hope you are seeing beautiful things in your world!

100 Days to Go

Only 100 days to what is being billed as the biggest Sock Knitting event in the universe. (I have no idea if the world has recognized this designation but the Ravelry group has). I think we are all still contemplating how many of us will be on the server when registration opens and if it will hold.

In preparation for this event, I have been learning how to knit wee tiny socks to swap at the event, designing and creating the wording for Moo Cards that I will order next month, and reviewing the other places (knit shops) and non-knit attractions I want to see in Portland.

I am done with one Wee Tiny Sock Swap which will be mailed to the recipient in DC today. It was fun putting together the package and getting to know her better. I hope she enjoys it. Once it is received I will post the picture of the package ingredients.

I hope you have fun adventures planned for this summer!

Discovery: Wee Tiny Socks!

I have discovered the wonderful world of wee tiny socks. It all came about on the Ravelry group that is discussing the upcoming Sock Summit in Portland this year.

This is the identifier that was suggested to participants to make so it easy for everyone to recognize their fellow sock knitters in transit to the event and while cruising around Portland in August.

What a great idea! And, to top it off, the group decided that it would be even more fun to knit enough of them to swap with other knitters, similar to the Olympic pin swap that is so popular. The group also suggested sliding a Moo Card into the socks that will be swapped. Another way to make more like-minded friends.

The first ones I have knit were done on the smallest size needles I owned at the beginning of the week - size 1. The pattern calls for size 0. These turned out so cute that I went out and bought the correct size needles and will be using those to participate in Wee Tiny Sock Swap that begins tomorrow with the receipt of my swap partner.

I really enjoyed creating the Frankensock in miniature. I have the materials to make myself a pair in my size but wanted to test the trimming technique sooner. I think it turned out really cute.

I hope you have discovered something fun this week!