another dose of east and west

it has been quite a while since i wrote about it, but i am still slowly by surely knitting my way through Knitted Socks East and West, this lovely book:

my most recent pair, samurai, are quite lovely in every way and invoke very awesome imagery, if you ask me!  :)

the yarn is a cotton nylon blend (kollage yarns luscious), which is a change from my usual wool or wool/nylon socks, but they turned out comfy and lovely.  

(and no, those are not my hairy legs, they are the legs of my only-slightly-unwilling model/b-friend).  

personal footprints

after making personal footprints for myself, i was completely in love with this "made to fit" method of knitting socks, and decided that the b-friend needed a pair as well.  one part cat bordhi's amazing method + one part tina's fabulous yarn = perfectly fitting socks, which are worn (i think) more often than any of the other hand-knitted socks i've ever gifted:

portland gussets

i finished these lovely socks a few weeks ago and haven't had a chance to take photos until recently. yarnissima is wonderfully talented sock designer, and the yarn is hazel knits, so pretty much an unstoppable combination.

knitting socks east and west - pair # 2

last weekend i finished my second pair of socks from my current favorite knitting book, knitting socks east and west. these are the geisha lounge socks.

i once again have to recommend knitting a pair of socks with heavier yarn and larger needles. not too big - these were knit on addi lace size 2 needles, with debbie bliss baby cashmerino, which is kind of a heavy sport weight / light dk weight. Because the cuff is so short, and the heel turn comes up after only a couple inches, i knit the cuffs and heels 1 at a time on 2 circulars, and then finished off the gussets, feet, and toes 2 at a time on 2 circulars.

the cashmere in this blend is absolutely lovely. i really could put these socks on and not get off the couch all day (okay, so, that's not really a challenge for me on any day, but adding the cashmere socks to the mix makes it really, especially relaxing).

new project(s): knitting socks east and west

i don't think i've ever met a knitting book i didn't like.  most books contain at least one pattern i'd like to knit.  even without that single purchase-worthy pattern, some books are so inspiring to look at that i can't pass them up, even when it is unlikely that i'll actually ever knit any of the patterns.  and then there is that rare, but joyous occasion when i find a book that is filled to the brim with patterns i want to knit.  

this is one of those books: Knitted Socks East and West: 30 Designs Inspired by Japanese Stitch Patterns

i recently finished knitting my first pair of socks from this book, the pattern is called inro.

the other thing that makes this project a rare knitting phenomenon for me is that i knitted it with precisely the yarn called for by the pattern.  even the same colorway.  

i highly recommend taking a break from knitting socks with fingering or sport weight yarn and giving worsted weight yarn a try.  of course, the practical use for the socks is limited (sitting around in all your free time, in front of a fire in a log-cabin-type scenario?)  BUT BUT but, they go SO FAST!  It is quite amazing and gratifying, and aren't they lovely?

which leads me, at long last, to my point!  i am undertaking the project of knitting all (not really all, the majority) of the socks in this book.  at this point, the ones i know i am excluding are the anti-socks.  ("anti-socks" def. = socks without toes; socks without heels; socks with some weird toe configuration, e.g., a split down the middle to encourage wearing socks with flip flops, which i am, fundamentally and morally against.)

footprints

i just finished (well, last week) the most magical and lovely socks.  have you tried knitting a personal footprint a la Cat Bordhi?

here are my very own personal footprints and they fit like a glove!  or, well, er, a footprint, actually...

this is a quite brilliant way to knit socks.  you start at the toe, increase until it is wide enough for your very own foot, knit straight, increasing as needed to fit your instep, knit straight again,  all the way until you're ready to start decreasing for the heel, which is a basically just the same as the toe (in reverse!).

along the way you make a nifty notation with some scrap yarn:

and THEN, both bravely and magically, you get out your scissors, cut that little marked row open, hold your breath, catch those stitches on your needles, and knit up a leg!  voi la!  socks: