I’ve had really good luck with Knitpicks Stroll Sock Yarn. A good variety of solid colors, wears & washes well, and inexpensive. I made a pair of socks for my dad for Christmas '09, he wears them at least once a week when it’s not hot out, my mom washes and dries them, and they still look new. If you want something a little more expensive, I’ve found that Spud & Chloe wears really well, although I handwash my socks made out of this (it’s officially machine washable). Pretty colors, too.
ETA: ha ha, Hello Again :). Great minds and all that.
Oh dear. I’ve buckled down and gone trying to refresh my memory of knitting by doing a cabled armwarmer on DPNs. (The other one was made years ago but I never got to finishing the second one. cough) This will be interesting.
I’ve got the toes of two socks done thanks to watching the wedding and The King’s Speech last night. I bought a book about knitting two socks at a time on one circular, it’s easier than it seems once you get the cast on done and if you can follow magic loop.
Movie with my friend tonight means I have more knitting time too. This is more knitting than I’ve done in far too long. Plus a new store JUST opened up (today!) so I had to go visit. Cute, smaller than the other but it shows where some of the other ladies from the old group disappeared to. Nice to see them and add a little to my stash.
Tonight I finished the socks for my sister I’ve been working on for the last year. No, socks don’t really take a year – but these are knee socks, plus I did several other projects – at least three hats, plus I’m halfway through a scarf I’m making for Freckafree and about to turn the heel of the first of a regular pair of socks – intermittently during the year. I am never, ever making another pair of knee socks – way too tedious.
I’m about to be forced to quit smoking (I literally can’t afford it), and I’m thinking about renewing my knitting. It’s been a good three or four years since I stopped…I still have my minimal stash and a couple of good circs and dpns. I may just do a sampler scarf first off to refresh my muscle memory for various stitches.
I have a blanket pattern I want to do, the yarn picked out etc… but I keep thinking ‘You can’t even finish a sweater for yourself… how will you finish a blanket???’ lol
Of course, I caston a ten stitch blanket in March, and frogged it in April when it had become a 15 stitch blanket that didn’t lay flat and looked too crappy to gift to charity.
The “replacement” blanket is now about 2/3rds done and is well into the bore me to tears stage.
Which didn’t stop me from casting on a Hemlock Ring blanket, which will also end up baby sized.
Of course one stitch at a time! My problem is I’m such a flibbertigibbet that those stitches get spread over all the different projects I have on the needles and nothing big seems to get done just the smaller projects.
Eh, This bag I am making for my karate school’s earthquake relief fundraiser REFUSES to felt. W.T.F. I used Wool of the Andes and Cascade 220, two of the most reliable felters out there. GRRRRRR.
Ok, kids, third time’s the charm. I am going to felt this thing come hell or high water. You can see it in its unfelted form here