Moving!

I've decided to move this blog to Wordpress. Blogger is fine, but Wordpress has better templates and more toys to play with. Come visit me!

Fun with circular needles

Did I say fun? I meant it in the most sarcastic way possible. If I ever consider buying a set of Boye circular needles again, I give you permission to flog me with a carrot. The join between the needle and the cable isn't smooth, and there's a bump where the needle widens, so it is a fight to get the yarn onto the needle. It makes for slow, frustrating knitting, and I'm not enjoying it. I think I'll put them on ebay or something, because they're brand new and I can't use them. Only issue is that the one set I've tried doesn't have the size marked on them, and I tossed the package like a moron.

Anyway, I've heard good things about Knit Picks circular needles. Specifically the Options series, which is interchangeable. But then, the Options are more costly than just buying fixed circulars, so I ordered the fixed circulars in size 6, 7 & 8, which are the most common sizes in worsted weight projects. Hopefully I like them as much as others do! Shipping is reasonable too. Bonus!

If these don't work out (which I really hope they do!) I may buy a set of Addi Turbo needles on ebay. They're pretty expensive though.

Slippers

Hubby has cold feet. So he asked me for some knitted slippers. I hunted high and low for free patterns, but couldn't find any that I liked, so I bought a pattern from Fiber Trends.

Anyway, I finished knitting them last night after a false start where I messed up and made them 9 rows too short on the soles (I misread the pattern) so I had to take them apart. Today I sewed the pieces together and felted them.

I've never felted before. It was fun. A bit scary, because if you screw up the felting, they are no good to you. And you can't take them apart again. I just about had a heart attack, because the washing machine had started the spin cycle and that can cause permanent creases, but no harm done (this time!).

Here they are, in all their fuzzy glory...



They have to dry still, and I doubt he'll be wearing them tonight considering how long it takes wool to dry. The wool is Lion Wool in "Ocean Blues".

As a new knitter, I am glad I used this pattern. It was well-written, and forced me to try some new techniques. I now know how to ssk, k2tog, m1, and pick up stitches, as well as how to felt.