Some of you asked for details on the one-handed fair isle technique at which I arrived. Here's a feeble stab at a description: I hold both yarns over my left index finger, just as I would with one yarn. One color is, generally, toward the outside and one generally toward the inside of my finger. I consistently pick the grey yarn from over the green, and the green yarn from under the grey. Picking from under is no problem, the needle just sort of gets in there and grabs the yarn. Picking from over is a bit more tricky. For this my left thumb can be of some assistance - occasionally I use my thumbnail to kind of pull the top yarn forward nearer the needle. This doesn't make sense to describe without pictures, but if you try it you'll see what I'm saying. Every 6-10 stitches you need to readjust the yarn tension, but if you're used to knitting Continental this is really no extra trouble. I'm still refining this technique - keeping tension is by far the hardest thing about knitting this way, since both yarns are traveling to the left but you're only actually using one at a time, one will always be a bit looser than the other. I tend to think this will mostly even out once the piece is blocked, but who knows.
Added**: I recently tried the whole knitting inside out technique, and it appears to be very helpful in maintaining proper tension.
Now, on to the work in progress. Here's the best I could do progress shot wise on a greyer-than-grey rainy morning:
First off, I kinda messed up. See the white stripe between the two motifs? Yeah, uh, that's supposed to be green. It's no biggie in my book, just yet another testament to my inability to properly read charts of any kind.
Generally I'm having a lot of fun with this pattern. It's entertaining to watch the motifs emerge. I'm still experimenting with my fair isle, especially tension-wise, so the gauge is probably less-than regular.
And though all of that is tolerable, I may frog this and begin again. There are the two things above - the white stripe, and the half-a-calf it took me to arrive at the proper gauge for appropriate floats that don't gather the fabric. A couple of the floats in this sock are even a bit overzealously loose, like, i could wrap it around my finger. But all that I could live with. A bigger consideration is sizing.
This is a "unisex" pattern, and I've gone down a needle size and in yarn size from that suggested in the book. But take a look at that sock: all the decreasing is done in one round to preserve the pattern. And I've done that decreasing. No more decreasing. Now it's clear to me that my ankles are pathetically skinny and my feet pathetically narrow (this all does not apply to my knees and thighs, thanks very much genetics), and that being so, the current circumference of this sock just is not going to work around those parts of my leg. Apparently, it's true, I do not have a single body part on me that meets some kind of remotely standard specification. This can make knitting problematic.
The upper sock fits but there's some room in it. So today I'm going to sit down with the pattern, do some math, and see what I can come up with. If I can make it work, I'll probably start again (and be totally okay with that). The other option is, of course, going down to a size 1 needle, either on a new stocking or for the rest of the current stocking. I wonder how much shrinkage that would really result in, though?
For those who've completed this pattern: was it baggy around your ankles?
Oh, and one more thing: check out the cute little duck hat our friend Mike Topper made, which is graciously modeled by his greyhound! We hope it was made for a child, and not for the dog. Because even in Park Slope, that would be crossing a line.
Posted by jess at November 22, 2005 9:04 AMthe duck hat is indeed made for a child!
Posted by: Mike at November 22, 2005 10:47 AMHa! That duck hat is awesome! Those stockings look great too. But of course from the picture you can't tell anything about the fit and the floats. I hope you're able to get it work out, even if you have to frog it.. better to get it right than to have those issues burn a hole in your mind.
Posted by: Angela at November 22, 2005 12:40 PMThe duck hat made me smile. The stockings - mine were a tad loose around the ankles, though they fit my (disproportionately stumpy) calves really well, both above and below the decrease. I'd suggest...swatch with US1s :(
Posted by: eunny at November 22, 2005 1:27 PMI think it's worth a try to go down a couple of needle sizes for the ankle. What size are you using now?
I'm happy to read your detailed posts, because I also have skinny ankles, and want to knit those socks eventually.
Posted by: Rebekkah at November 22, 2005 1:41 PMThe sock looks gorgeous. How about another decrease in the ankle area to make it smaller?
Posted by: Diana at November 22, 2005 3:48 PMSorry about your domain/spam problems. I dropped by yesterday and your site wasn't up. Figured it was something you were fixing.
I like the way your sock is looking right now, but like you I'm a perfectionist and I'd frog... you may already have noticed also that the further along you get with knitting, the better your floats are.
It's probably better to have a sock that's looser than too tight, because you can always shrink it a bit in the dryer.
Posted by: MJ at November 22, 2005 4:17 PMThe socks are looking really great! I can't wait until I have some FOs - I'd really love to try a FI project. And that duck hat is so darn CUTE! One of those would be great for a boy (there are so many things that are cute for girls but not boys).
Posted by: Laura at November 22, 2005 5:30 PMSocks are looking great, even on a gray morning, and thanks for describing your technique!
Posted by: grumperina at November 22, 2005 7:24 PMthe socks are coming along great. i want to knit a pair of fairisle socks, but i'm not too great at keeping the tension loose enough and i'd be afraid they would never stretch over my foot.
the duck hat is so cute. i wouldn't put it past little old ladies in manhattan to think it was for a dog. i saw a lady pushing her little dog around in a stroller last week. sick sick world.
Posted by: melissa at November 22, 2005 11:06 PMThose really are emerging to be lovely stockings. I'm really interested in the methods you described, too, and are curious to try them.
Posted by: Michelle at November 23, 2005 7:44 AMThe hat is definately for the dog - greyhound owners are strange like that :)
Posted by: Lesley at November 24, 2005 9:26 AMI love the hat! Oh, if only I knit--6 kids and I don't knit...shameful.
I DO love your site! Fabulous! Thanks for sharing so much of yourself!
Posted by: Anne at November 25, 2005 7:54 AMi think the sock is beautiful! i've knit a lot of socks, but none in fairisle. if you're not happy with the floats, maybe go ahead and frog. are the floats loose enough that your toes will snag them pulling the socks on?
i'm not familar with the sock pattern you are using, but in the name of fairisle, watch out for less stretch. so, though you may want a tailored ankle, just make sure that if there is some patterning in that area, the the fabric has enough stretch to get over you heel/ankle areas. (boy, i sure like to talk about things i don't have 100% experience with, ... but, i'm a suspicious knitter!)
good luck with the sock. i've been craving some knee-hi's.
well awesome knitter slash law person,
Thanks
why?
well I am an art student in my final year of undergrad... I was on the edge of a freak out because I had so much to do to apply for grad school, and work, and paint, and do laundry (which is a constant day to day fight... I vow one day when I have a washer and dryer of my own i will love the and cherish them with all my being.)
ok to the point
so I found your site and it is cute and fun and smart
cool... you know that
but then! I had an epiphany (sp?)
you are a law person and you still manage to knit and vent and yada yada yada all the good stuff
so I found a little balance and picked up a project and finished a scarf
and then I bought some great yarn
and I made some tragic mittens... but it was ok because that happens...
anyway and now I have made a blog...
url included...
I'm not doing that creepy copy thing... swear
I just wanted to say your blog helped me to set aside the crazy and do some of those things you gotta do to chill
the 3 paintings I've done now that I have been knitting again sold right out of my studio
there is something to be said for taking a chill pill
wow... this little post makes it clear why I paint to express myself
tragic mittens and a tragic blog lol...
Rachel
-mixed media painter
-procrastinator
-cumpulsive thanker
Your socks look great. Great explanation for the fair isle.
Posted by: Estee at November 25, 2005 4:19 PM