Socks!

So I decided to finally bite the bullet a few days ago and make my first pair of socks. I cast off the first one yesterday and that's when I realized I wasn't making socks. I was actually making slippers for my step-mom. See, my sock slipper's cast on was waaay too loose. Note to self: US size 5s are just a smidge too big to be used as a cast on base for a sock slipper made on size 2 needles. Also, if your gauge is off by about 1/8th of an inch you can probably just keep knitting like you normally would. No need to your stitches so loose that the opening ribbing will fall off your ankle. Unless of course, you're knitting slippers for a step-mother who has high blood pressure which causes her ankles to swell up. In that case, feel free to disregard what I just wrote.

Maybe once I finish this pair of socks slippers, I'll make myself a pair that's actually cast on properly and that fits. Maybe.

Afghans

I want to make a blanket. I have no idea what I want it to look like beyond I'd like it to look cool. I don't know if I want to knit or crochet it. I'm leaning towards something patchwork so I can carry it around. I know I know I know. If I'm going to be doing a patchwork afghan I should totally start crocheting my granny squares again instead of resigning myself to having plush, fuzzy coasters. But it takes a lot of yarn to do those and I can't carry them around easily. So I guess that means I should reball them but I haaate doing that because it means I have to spend a few hours holding an empty water bottle and winding yarn.

So, before I resign myself to a lifetime of granny squares and crochet hooks, are there any suggestions for a nice knitted afghan I could work on? One thing I am considering is making a memory afghan. Whenever something happens I'll knit myself a square commemorating it. But that would be a more long term project than what I'm looking at. So maybe my granny squares and the patchwork at the same time? And when am I ever going to do my socks? Actually, I'm going to do my socks at work (I have a new job as a receptionist and it is AWESOME!) as soon as I finish my mother's birthday scarf or run out of yarn for it and have to go buy more. Stay tuned, same bat time, same bat channel!

My Knitting Confessions

So here's the thing, if I were to make a list of my knitting skills, I have a lot.

No really, it's true! Think about it, I can:
-Knit
-Purl
-Cable
-Increase
-Decrease
-Make bobbles
-Knit in the round
-Use DPNs
-Write patterns
-Design garments
-Knit over 500 rows of garter stitch without attempting to stab myself (on that note, I'm over 50% done with the Doctor Who Scarf!)
-Read patterns
-Make ribbing
-"Get" gauge
-Take gauge
-Pick up stitches
-Rescue dropped stitches
-Join wool without tying or weaving in ends
-Sew on decorations
-Crochet two pieces together
-Block
-Knit and purl backwards (in pattern!)
-Knit with two different colors of yarn so that one side of the item is patterned one way and the other side has the opposite color scheme

And well, you get the idea. Don't get me wrong, there are still lots of things I'd like to learn to do. For one thing, I'm hoping to get up the balls to make a pair of socks this week. It's mostly the heel-turning that's flustering me, plus the fact that I don't know how much yarn I'll need to cover my feet. If I were being totally honest, it would be the yarn more than anything. I'd also like to make a wedding ring shawl before I get married, but first I need to master the finer points of lace. I am okay with that. I think learning things makes us grow as people. But if I were being really really honest, there is one thing I can't do that I'd desperately like to do and that I am bothered by not knowing:
Which stitch is knit and which is purl.

Don't get me wrong, I can perform both. I can perform both in a pattern. I can do both backwards and forwards! But I can never remember which one is which. Whenever I am reading a pattern, I have to grab one of my knitting books (lately it's been Knitting Without Tears by Maggie Righetti, primarily because I haven't finished it so it's sitting next to my bed...plus it's illustrated) and go back and read the section where either knitting or purling is described. Immediately afterwards, I forget which is which and only remember what the stitch for the pattern is. This is an absolutely idiotic failing on my part. Who can't keep two simple little stitches straight?! I'm doing a scarf for my mother right now that involves cabling every six rows and bobbling every 12 rows and I don't even need to use a row counter! But I still for the life of me cannot remember whether the forward stitch is knit or the backward one.

That is my True Knitting Confession. What's yours?

Learning

So here's the thing, since I was largely self-taught in the knitting department (beyond "this is how you knit and this is how you purl") anyway, I have very little experience following patterns or doing things that weren't made up by me. I basically spent 3 years making scarves. As a result of this, I'm not exactly the best pattern reader the world has ever seen. I understand the abbreviations and when I don't I know where to find help with the terms, but largely I'm not the person you want making you that extremely complicated cable cardigan (or really ANY cardigan or other variety of sweater). So where to go with this? I'm going to learn. And you're going to watch me!

Right now, I'm working on a test knit for someone. As soon as that is done I'm going to make socks! I found some nice toe-up patterns until I learn how much yarn I need for myself at which point I'll try some of the cuff down variety. After that, I'm going to try some lace. That's the big one. I've always wanted to make lace but never had the cajones to try. Well, that's about to change my friends! At some point, I really want to make a lace stole to wear when I get married. Sooner or later, I'll end up making myself a sweater too. But this entry is boring and needs more boobs, so I'll stop now.