Helen Mathey-Horn's Blog, page 14

Socktober 10

Or 10-10-2020 is the date. Love when numbers do that.

Some yarns are memorable. And while I like the matching of the stripy part with the brown of the foot, I cannot recall where I got either yarn. So just enjoy.

The weather is turning cooler. Another pair of socks is on the needles, but for me as my husband looked at the color of the yarn and was ‘meh’. They will be another ‘thick’ pair, similar in a way to the upper part of these socks. I really do like the colors in the above socks.

Socktober 9

I’m still having a hard time remembering it is October not September. Where did that month go as nothing important was done or happened. Perhaps that is why is seems like it should still be September…nothing happened.

So sock of the day…

Something orange(ish) for October? Again these were for my husband. As you might have figured out, he doesn’t mind colorful socks, so that makes it fun to knit for him, in spite of his LONG feet. I don’t know what the yarn was but it might have been Opal as they tend to have pattern making yarns that end up looking very much like these. I have another ball of it on my desk that might be next after I finish a few other pairs.

I found my first Opal yarns in Germany and really enjoyed how they knitted up. One of my young neighbors saw me knitting at the local pub and asked me about the yarn. She only got black or blue socks from her knitting grandmother and liked the idea that she could have socks knit in other colors. Not sure if she convinced her grandmother of it.

I have also knit from their Hundretwasser line created based on the art work of Hundretwasser. He was born in Austria but lived/painted in New Zealand.

This link will take you to a Canadian wholesaler (I know you need retail, but put in Opal and you find plenty of sites). I included the link so you can see the variety and kinds of color patterns Opal has created with their yarns.

And interestingly enough a couple of quotes from Hundretwasser that seem timely.

“When we dream alone it is only a dream, but when many dream together it is the beginning of a new reality.”

“You are a guest of nature – behave.”

Well, I learned a few things today writing about this sock. Thank you.

Socktober 8

I love the color of these. They are made from sock gradient skeins. Two matching skeins each specifically long enough for a sock. ‘Gradient’ as they were dyed starting with one color at one end of the yarn going to different color at the other. They were knit from the green end to the blue toes and as you can tell by the heel section they matched up very well.

The edging at the cuff end is a ‘picot edging’. You knit a few rows (probably 5 on my socks) then do a row in which you ‘knit two together and then yarn over’ repeating this until you are back to the start which will be the next round(row). The next row and any after you knit. You will use the ‘knit 2 together, yarn over’ as the fold of the cuff. It give it those little ‘points’.

After I’ve done the ‘picot’ edge row I knit the same number of rows as before the picots (5 usually) and then I knit the next row by knitting together one stitch on the needle with one cast-on stitch. so that my top edge is hemmed and no sewing is needed later. To do this you pick up (on your left needle) a stitch from the cast-on row and knit it WITH the next stitch on the needle. You continue this until you have knit around and are back where you started. You SHOULD come out evenly with the number of stitches you had to pick up and the stitches on your needles.

You will still have to bury your cast-on tail of yarn at the cuff and the tail of yarn you end with at the toe, but that is nothing more than you would do with any sock. If it is too fiddly for you (knitting to the cast-on row) simply use what remains of your cast-on tail to sew the cast-on edge to the leg of the sock on the inside.

I love doing the picot edge. It looks ‘fancy’. It is easy. Well, some might think the knitting a row with the cast on row is a pain, but I find it easy enough and I LOVE the finished look.

Easy fancy socks due to using a gradient dyed yarn and a picot edging.

2nd Post for the day October 7 ISWG

I almost forgot AGAIN. First Wednesday of the month is Insecure Writers Group. This month’s prompt is…October 7 question – When you think of the term working writer, what does that look like to you? What do you think it is supposed to look like? Do you see yourself as a working writer or aspiring or hobbyist, and if latter two, what does that look like?

I’m still a hobbyist (at least according to my tax filer). Yes some books are published, but are they making big bucks?…Next question.

I would like to look more like one of the writers of ‘yore’…an Asimov or Christie. You know the prolific ones! Who spent hours a day working.

I’ve got the ideas, but I need to tie myself to the computer and finish/pound them out. I used to spend evenings and summers doing that, but once I retired and had all the time in the world, I’m not so disciplined.

I guess this month’s prompt is a good kick in the butt.

Thank you for the kick goes to…The awesome co-hosts for the October 7 posting of the IWSG are Jemima Pett, Beth Camp, Beverly Stowe McClure, and Gwen Gardner! Click on the icon below to see other answers to this month’s prompt.

Socktober 7

These I knit for my husband. Notice the very long feet. This yarn is variegated white and gray with just a touch of green (olive). Makes me think of Ireland and if I remember the yarn may have been called Blarney Stone.

We did get to Ireland…three times. Stories associated with each trip. One of the times was during the Foot and Mouth disease outbreak so you could only ‘go’ certain places. Blarney Castle was one of the ones you could visit, but you had to walk over a disinfectant mat on the way in. I believe we visited there at least twice. I painted Blarney Castle on one of the visits (probably the second) and climbed the castle to kiss ‘the stone’ on another visit. Kissing the stone once is enough. The grounds are lovely and of course there is a ‘woolen’ shop as you exit. I love a country that has/sells wool and woolen goods.

Socktober Day 6

How about a really mismatched pair? They started out matched, but somewhere after the heel the yarn was no longer matched. I know they look really strangely shaped but they actually fit my husband well. Perhaps not my prettiest socks but they function. I don’t think this yarn was Noro yarn, but something like it. It is both thick and colorful like Noro.

Socktober Should be Day 5

Let’s cut to the chase.

Looks like a slight snag on one of the socks. They do get regular wear. Also the ‘white’ bits at the bottom are not part of the socks, but the blanket they are laying on. What happens when you think you’ve taken consideration of all factors in your photo.

This is another variegated yarn of blues with a hint of a soft peach.

Socktober October 4

Second sock and I’m still off by ‘2’. These were another pair I knit many years ago. I like the variegated yarn I used. These are top down and the pattern called for doing that pattern you see at the top all the way down to the heel. Yeah, nope. I liked it well enough but just too complex to be restful so I did it as an upper edge than used the stitch in the column for the rest of it. It was a twisted stitch and that was enough for detail and to keep my concentration. These have held up remarkably well.

Socktober Day 1 on Oct 3

There are lots of things to celebrate about October including Halloween at the end which this year I think I will forgo. We have two families on our street with children and I’ll do something special and deliver to them, but otherwise I think it will be lights out here.

But if you are a knitter or spinner there are other events during the year…most of which are in person and were naturally altered to virtual or cancelled. There was Tour de Fleece (a spin each day during the Tour de France) but I didn’t get the energy up for it. But now I’m trying to make an effort and it seems like Soctober was something I could do.

Main idea – You knit a pair of socks in October. Well that is no problem. If I’m really motivated I can knit a pair of socks in about 5 days maybe less. If I’m not motivated…well that’s why I have multiple double point knitting needles. Just saying.

So I’m a few days late on starting but I thought I would post a picture a day of a pair of socks I have already knit. Some of these were done a few years back and some just came off the needles a few days back. Most are some blend of wool but I have no idea which breeds. Many have nylon in the yarn to make them tougher. And the one that I should have used for October 1 is bamboo.

Socktober 1 – I knit these a while back, but not more than 15 years ago. They are the bamboo yarn socks. If the soles look a little brownish these socks have occasionally been worn without shoes and are slightly stained as a result. They have held up pretty well, but I’ve taken the picture from their ‘good side’. They have holes in the toes that I need to darn. Yes, I darn socks. After that much work I’m not beyond putting in a few more minutes to fix a hole. It is relaxing in a way similar to knitting.

Tell you what, I’ll take a picture of before and after when I darn these socks. So you get the good side for today and a promise.

I should also tell what the pattern is, but these were made back so far that I don’t even remember where I pulled the pattern from. The socks have columns of eyelets which I think are rather nice. I have thick ankles (always have – and another story) so most of my socks are pretty thick in the leg. A great advantage of knitting my own is that most store socks are way too tight. And knit from the top down which is the way I prefer knitting socks.

These are a little faded over time and the soles are a little brown from wearing without shoes. The thread was originally light and dark turquoise with light and dark lavender. I still like these and they’ve had hard wear over the years.

These give me the feeling of an archeological find. They might have been dug out of the remains of a hut or a grave. Maybe even found in a Danish bog, lol.

So I shall call these Day 1.

Fall is Coming

I think I’ve done my ‘fall chores’. Looking at the long range temperatures last Friday I decided it was time to bring in my orchids before it got too cold. But before I could do that I needed to buy ‘puppy pee pads’.

What?

You know, those pads you can put down so a puppy will won’t destroy your house floors before they learn to do their business outside. They are perfect for putting down under my orchids when they are indoors. I have a tray under the stand, but even so I put the pads down, because…well water splashes sometimes and I really hate having to get down, figure out where I spilled, move things to get at it and… well pee pads save me a lot of hassles and protect the wood floors.

So the pads are in place, the plants are in place and there is even some room if I decide to bring in a couple more of the ‘big’ containers. I just did not feel like any more lifting for right now. I may be playing roulette with those, but we shall see.

I have always liked all kinds of flowers but felt like orchids were one of those expensive, difficult, fussy plants. On the whole I’ve found them to be pretty laid-back as far as plants go. A pleasant surprise.

I hang some from an arch on the east end of my porch where they are protected from the direct overhead light by a layer of shade cloth (greenhouse type) and a climbing rose. They get morning light, plenty of air and if not regularly rained on I give them hose water. The others fit on a three layer stand and some other spots at that end of the porch. It would be cool if I could have a small greenhouse built onto the back like the guy I recently bought wood orchid pots from. But that’s probably more than I could manage. This works and except for the twice a year moving not a problem.

My hanging baskets come a local orchid enthusiast. They are really great and I’m glad I could get more baskets this fall. I’ll do a transfer of orchids next spring before I put them out again.

Do I have orchids die on me? A few. But I kind of treat them like ‘cut flowers’. My mother’s attitude towards most potted plants you can buy in a grocery store was, ‘You bought them for the flowers, but they are quite likely to die in your house because you aren’t really equipped to provide the specialized environment they need so just think of them as cut flowers.’

Well, dang it, when they didn’t die and even started putting out flowers the year after, it became a challenge thrown down by the orchids themselves…let’s just see if we can keep this going! So now lots of orchids, orchid food, orchid potting mix, orchid pots/baskets and a few other concessions and here we are hauling them in for the winter. Maybe I should think about a greenhouse…hmm.

And for color here is probably the last of the hibiscus flowers for the season.