MG: socktober fescht-ed too

Fawkes Footlets
pattern: my own version of the Interweave Summer 2005 Padded Footlets (scroll down). yarn: Knit Picks Essential (75% superwash wool, 25% nylon)--nearly one ball of burgundy, snippets of fawn. needles: 2.25mm; 2.00mm for ribbing.

toe-up: provisional cast-on with shortrow toes, cuffs hemmed with EZ's sewn cast-off (picking up a stitch from an earlier row during bind off). knitting with this yarn was not a dreamy process--a bit splitty and stringy, probably due to the nylon content. they will be durable socks though. the color is hard to capture; it really is a nice, deep burgundy in person. i'm well pleased with these little socks. yay, Socktoberfest!

MG: third go

the little red footlet has suffered many froggings, but this version is for keeps. all it needs is a mate, who would like to be born before the end of socktober.


rigid stitchmarkers--plastic or metal rings--and i don't seem to get along. they slip surreptitiously off needles and require scrunching to maintain tension. i usually end up abandoning them for knotted pieces of scrap yarn, which are less than ideal...

so i made some stitchmarkers with elastic beading cord (the clear, rubberband-y stuff), crimping beads, and teardrop glass beads. i love them so! they are rigid enough to hold shape for easy transfer yet pliable enough to hug stitches. the rubbery texture also reduces mysterious disappearances into the folds of my comforter. my needles feel fancy.

MG: uninspired

once upon a time, there was a little footlet. it was an innocent little red footlet. some stressed perfectionist came along and ruthlessly frogged said footlet despite nice comments and kind testimonies of lovely people on its behalf.


but then little red footlet re-emerged, phoenix-like, out of crumpled, frogged yarn to henceforth be known as fawkes. (as you can see, evil mastermind--clawed paws and all--approve)

this is my third sock in contiguous projects. i'm restless for something big, but knitting ennui has seized me. feeling uninspired. fawkes stalled; i swatched linen for a warm-weather cardigan, and the swatch lingers unwashed and unmeasured...

spinning continues unabated, thanks in part to lovely new fibers to play with.


books who improved my cotton longdraw: The Ashford Book of Spinning (scroll down). a nice book of basic terminology, materials, and techniques. wools, carding, wheel parts, fine versus bulky, wpi, twist angles, plying, dyeing. includes photos for short backward draft; short forward draft; medium draft (what Simmons calls point-of-contact?); and long draft.

Paula Simmons' Spinning and Weaving with Wool. a lovely book with abundant information. carder porn, wheel porn, spindle spinning, wheel spinning, Great Wheel spinning, weaving, even building your own wheel and loom. sections on fine spinning, heavy spinning, overtwists, consistency, and speed. includes photos for short draw; long draw (found this one a little vague); unsupported long draw; and point-of-contact long draw.

some things i learned:
a) over-the-fold is not so much a drafting mechanism as a fiber position in contrast with spinning from the tips. over-the-fold is often done longdraw, but spinners also spin shortdraw from the fold. other fun things in this category are rolags and punis.
b) i'm usually an over-the-fold, point-of-contact, longdraw spinner.
c) shortdraw can be done backwards (fiber-supply hand drafts) as well as forwards (front hand drafts, i.e. inchworm).
d) there are many many variations on the longdraw.
e) Simmons' point-of-contact hand position was particularly helpful. i realized--for me--longdraw from the tips works best with the back of my hand (towards the pinky) as the pulling force, while the thumb and index finger (and sometimes middle finger) press gently on the fiber supply. the opposite is true for over-the-fold.

i now know the wherefores of Lendrum quill heads. i covet one, for cotton spinning... and maybe plying. i've also been spinning shetland (mmm... shetland). made a sample card this time; it really helps!

larger version here

MG: deep breaths

research stress and deadlines kicking my butt. not much knitting. here is a footie i'm on the verge of frogging. i may or may not be displacing frustration:


proof i finished Karenina but had trouble getting good photos (lack of light, PJs, and all):




details and better pics (hopefully) later. take care.