Road to Rhinebeck 2022 Socks

Hey Everyone!

Yesterday afternoon I finished up my pair of “Road to Rhinebeck 2022” socks, two days after Rhinebeck ended, not that I got to go anyway.

This was the second year I ordered the “Road to Rhinebeck” sock set from Bumblebee Acres Fiber Farm.

The finished product

The main colorway is “Road to Rhinebeck 2022” and the accent colorway was called “All the Wine”. They came as a set and are no longer available to order. The yarn base is the Coquette base.

The Coquette base my favorite yarn base to order colorways on from Bumblebee Acres Fiber Farm. I like this base because it is a 3 ply fingering weight so it knits up the thickest, cosiest socks without being too thick.

This morning, just before sitting down to write this post, I washed up this pair of socks as well as the pair of Crackling Fire socks I finished recently. I used the Wool and Cashmere Shampoo by The Laundress New York to wash these socks. The scent is called Cedar, but I don’t know exactly how cedar specific it is, but it has an amazing woodsy scent to it that I love. I love this wash for new socks. For socks I have worn and need to wash I prefer using the original Kookaburra wash that has and smells like tea tree oil or Outback Gold wool wash that also has tea tree oil. I prefer either of these two for socks I have worn because Tea Tree Oil is an antiseptic / anti bacterial / anti fungal properties to help kill any funk that might be in my socks and want to grow and cause problems for my feet.

Monday evening, I hadn’t really felt like finishing up the Road to Rhinebeck socks so I cast on the first of many Christmas socks. I decided to start with the yarn called “little drummer boy” it is the darkest of all then Christmas yarn I recently ordered, so I decided I would tackle it first before our weather and days get much darker and dreamer, leaving the brighter colorways to work as the days get even shorter and rainy.

With the socks I just cast on, I went back to my good ole’ trusty wooden needles that I prefer. I definitely do not like metal needles.

Using Metal Needles

Hey Everyone!

It has been years since I used metal knitting needles, and quite honestly I hated using them back then.

A few months ago, when I was in a yarn store a few months ago the employee made a blanket statement that I took some issue with. She had something along the lines of “all experienced knitters prefer metal needles”. I didn’t say anything, but in my head I was like “excuse me? I have been knitting for almost 25 years, and I prefer wooden needles”

So I bought some metal DPN’s (double pointed needles) and after one sock, I can honestly say that after nearly 25 years of knitting, I can’t stand metal needles. When I finish the sock I am working on (in order to keep a consistent gauge), I will not be using metal needles any longer, and going back to my preferred wooden ones.

One of the things I hate about metal needles is that they are slippery. They are constantly slipping out of my knitting and don’t hold onto the knitting or slipping out of my hands, so the control isn’t there. I have also had larger projects stick, and have to yank on more on straight metal needles than on wooden needles. It also depends on the type of yarn you are using.

So no, not all experienced knitters like metal needles. Some of us prefer wood / bamboo needles.

What I like to tell people when I get asked which one is best, is that in my opinion plastic is useless and a pain in the butt, though the choice between metal and wood / bamboo is really a personal preference.

KnitPicks Order

Hey Everyone! 

This past Friday, December 9th, I had put in an order through KnitPicks for some year and double point needles. 

I had ordered 4 skeins of KnitPicks Palette yarn in Finnley Heather and 4 skeins of KnitPicks Palette yarn in Marble Heather. The Finnley Heather is more of a light grey, while the Marble Heather is a medium grey. I should point out that I am not usually much of a grey person, though in the past 3 years it has grown on me since I worked at a knitting studio a few years ago. While I worked there my favorite yarns were the 100% cashmeres made by Todd & Duncan. I wouldn’t expect anything less than amazing yarn from a Scottish Company, and that is where the yarns shipped from. My favorite color we had was called “Storm” which was a very dark grey or an off black. 

The Palette yarn is 100% Peruvian Highland Wool. I love working with Wool, and love how the woolen projects turn out. 

I also bought a 6 set pack of double point needles, containing: US Size 0 (2.00 mm), US Size 1 (2.25 mm), US Size 1 (2.50 mm), US Size 2 (2.75 mm), US Size 2 (3.00 mm), and US Size 3 (3.25 mm). I am wanting to try making more socks. That is part of why I bought more DPN in multiple sizes. The last two pairs of socks I had knit were still too loosely knit, and my feet were still frozen. That is part of why I am going to try knitting socks with wool and using smaller needles, like the size 0 or the size 1’s. When I thought the 2.75 mm size 2 needles were small the 0 and size 1 needles are so small, which will mean tighter knit and warmer socks. 

My obsession with socks really comes down to the fact that I really enjoy trying new projects and the fact that I need some good winter hiking / boot socks that will keep my feet warm without being overly thick and uncomfortable. 

End of October Knitting Projects

Hi Everyone!

I am back with a new Project of the Week, and a new day for the Project of the Week Series. Beings that for the time being anyway, I don’t work on monday’s I will be doing my Project of the Week posts on Monday’s instead of Wednesdays.

This past week I have been working on hats for kids in need, and an infinity scarf for myself. I have not been getting a lot of work done on the projects during the work week because I have been busy, and friday night I went out of town for a baby shower after I got off of work.

For the baby hats I have been using a skein of Bernat Baby Sport yarn in Candy, and for the infinity scarf I am using Lion Brand Jiffy Yarn in True Red. For the infinity scarf I am also using the moss stitch to give it some texture, and I am knitting it with size 11 needles.