Jim's first pair of Anniversary Socks are finished.

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Originally uploaded by missizii

The first 80% of this project was a lot of fun. The last 20% sucked. There are 6 repeats of the cable pattern around the ankle. Whereas on the foot, there's just 3 repeats on the top of the sock, and plain stockinette on the sole. So the cuff, even though it is significantly shorter than the foot, seems to take about three times as long. And these are toe-up socks, so the slow part is the last part to finish. So those last 45 rows were the very longest part of this project. According to this blog and Ravelry, everything but the ankle of the second sock took 3 weeks. And the ankle of the second sock (about 45 rows) took 3 weeks.

Jim is very happy to have his socks, I think. He wants something equally as complicated for his second pair of anniversary socks, but I'm trying to talk him down. Maybe the second pair of anniversary socks will coincide with Christmas. I have two baby showers (for the same darling baby) between now and the beginning of November. Add in Christmas presents, and I'm rather unsure of the second pair of anniversary socks.

Jim's socks nearing completion

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Originally uploaded by missizii

The second sock has only two more repeats of the Knotty or Knice pattern. Here they are on Jim's feet. It's so nice to have the socks nearly done, I've spent nearly a month on them.

In other news, I have a cast on my leg. I sprained my ankle in July, and it hasn't healed. So I have a cast on it for three weeks. I'm not sure how this will affect blogging, but it might. I'm barely mobile and marooned on my couch - not much fun. Hopefully I'll get a ton of knitting done. I'm missing the shop hop however, which is rather disappointing.

First Sock Nearly Completed

JimsSock.jpg
Originally uploaded by missizii

Jim's first sock is nearly done. And once it is done, then I'll have to cast on and knit its pair. There is a knitting superstition that if a knitter doesn't cast on for the second sock in the same sitting as she casts off the first sock, the second sock will never be completed (perhaps never even started). I'm not usually superstitious, but not finishing the second sock is such a grave matter. So now, when I sit down to knit on the first sock, I make sure that there is enough time, should I finish it, to cast on for the second.

Jim doesn't want trouser socks, he likes them shortish. Jim says that trouser socks always fall down around his ankles anyways, so just leave them that length. I contend that if the socks were perfectly fitted, they would not fall down, but they are his socks, and he shall have them the way he wants. This means, most sorrowfully, there will be no lovely cabled increases up the back of the calf. I will have to make a pair of these for myself, just so I can do the increases up the back. It also means I will have one completely unused ball of sock yarn, since I am using pretty much exactly one ball per sock, and I have three balls of yarn. The third ball was to make each sock trouser sock length.

What does one do with a single ball of sock yarn? Other than grow a third foot, I mean.