Things have been quiet here, and I apologize for that. I’ve been finishing a book (one that doesn’t want to end) and trying to complete some knitting projects, too.

I finished these socks, finally, but still don’t like the feel of the yarn. It’s Estelle Sock Twins, which comes in two balls, each with the same gradient. (That’s a Ravelry link.) I found the yarn splitty.

It looks like a gradient, but the colour transitions are quick: I think it’s more like steps of colour instead of a steady gradation. You can see the change from the last blue bit to the dark orange in the third stripe from the top on the right: the blue/orange just ends. The finished socks look the same, so I’ll just use the old picture:I knit them toe-up because I wanted to use up all the yarn in the gradient. This time I used the Ann Budd tutorial from Interweave Knits. It took me forever to get around to knitting the second one, because I still don’t like knitting toe-up socks. This is about the tenth pair I’ve made and I just don’t enjoy the process, no matter which pattern I use. It’s probably because I have to check the instructions all the time, while I’ve knit so many cuff-down socks that I just knit away. At any rate, they’re finally done and that’s a good thing because I got my needles back.

I cast on a new pair of cuff-down socks in Fleece Artist Trail Socks, a yummy yummy yarn, in a delicious colourway—Nightshade. (That’s a Ravelry link.) The colour hovers between brown and purple, with a few flashes of other colours that end up making a stripe.

I’m just doing my usual sock thing, casting on 72 stitches, working 72 rows, turning the heel etc. This time I did 6×2 ribbing and added a cable twist every 12th row. It makes the counting easier to the heel, although I hadn’t planned it that way. I just wanted to mix it up a bit.

I also worked on the sleeves for my Juicy Gloss cardigan, but discovered once I’d knit one to the elbow that the sleeves would be too wide. I frogged it back and recalculated, taking an addition 8 stitches out of the sleeve at the underarm, then decreasing more rapidly than the pattern specifies. I’m reaching the elbow now and am much happier with the fit. I’ll show it to you once the first sleeve is completed.