Tuesday, March 2, 2010

Purlicue Socks Knitted (Cat Bordhi)

The first pair of socks in "Personal Footprints" are called Purlicue.  Purlicue being an odd word,which Cat says describes the distance between the extended thumb and forefinger.  She also says this measurement just happens to be a good height for a sock leg.  Every stitch in these socks is knit.  I knit mine on size 1 (2.5) addi Turbo Lace needles.  The yarn is Crystal Palace Mini Mochi yarn, 80 % Merino Wool/ 20% Nylon, 195 yds/50g.
 
I knit the first sock on the right in the picture cutting the yarn at the ankle and then knitting the heel, then reattaching the yarn for the leg, so it changed the sequence.  The sock on the left was knitted by leaving the yarn attached and knitting the heel with the left over yarn from the first skein, thereby saving the continuous pattern  for the top of the leg.  I did this to test the results, Cat did her socks like the left sock. I do like the continuous pattern on the left sock much better.
  
I did not like knitting with the Mini Mochi as much as I thought, it is not a tightly twisted yarn and I had a tendency to split the yarn at times.  I love the colors, but am not in love with the yarn for knitting.

 
I finished knitting the socks about 11PM on February 28th. It took me about 16 to 24 hours to knit them.  I am not a fast knitter.  I taught myself to knit from a book many years ago, and tend to try to figure out how to do things on my own if I cannot figure out what the pattern is saying.  Cat's instructions are very clear and helpful with lots of diagrams, so it's not a problem figuring out what she means for you to do.

Now on to the next pair, I had to order the yarn online as I could not find it in the local yarn shop.  There is a lovely yarn shop near me, in Mt. Holly, called Woolbearers (you can find them at www.woolbearers.com or www.woolbearers.net) and they carry an extensive selection of yarns. 
 
  The yarn Cat selected for the second pair of socks is called Fleece Artist Woolie Silk 2-Ply (65% wool, 35% silk, 100g/437yds). 
  
I anxiously waited for this yarn to arrive, and when it came, I was not disappointed, it is a luscious yarn.  I have started my second pair and it knits like heaven.  The colors are gorgeous and the yarn is soft and luxurious.

 
  
  
  
First I had to wind it into a ball, which took about an hour, I did it by hand, as I do not own a yarn winder.

 
This is my ball after I finished winding the yarn. 
One pair down and 25 more to go!
 


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