Next finished item.

You've seen the first of these before, but here's the completed pair of the "Bordello" socks:



I like the pattern and I like the colors. The yarn is a little different - it's one of the "seacell" yarns, which I think makes it a bit warmer (and it seems a bit less breathable than pure wool).

The pattern is very similar to (but fewer stitches than) the famous Jaywalker socks by Grumperina. (I think also, the relative positions of increases and decreases are swapped, but I could be wrong on that).

I thought the yarn was roughly sportweight - it certainly seemed heavier than Opal or other sockweights I've worked with - but I see on Ravelry and elsewhere it's described as a "sockweight." (The pattern I used had 60 sts on size 2 needles and could not have been any smaller. There is a smaller size on the pattern if you have tiny calves and feet but it would not have worked for me).

I plan on keeping the pattern (it is printed on a little oaktag "sleeve" that came on the yarn) and using it again with other yarn that will work (I have some sportweight Socka self-patterning yarn in the stash - quite a bit of several colorways, in fact).

****

I'm still thinking about the next sweater. I pulled out the yarn and the pattern for the Airy Cardigan and I'm considering swatching for it. I think the yarn I am going to use (Jo Sharp Rare Comfort Mohair) is a bit hairier than the GGH Soft Kid (and it may be a bit thicker as well). I'm hoping that doesn't lead to problems when it comes time to drop the stitches in the edging, but we'll see.

It's another one of those "knit the edging first then pick up a bazillion stitches to knit the body perpendicular to how the edging's knit." Which reminded me that I still have poor Samus tucked away somewhere. I'm almost done with the edging for that, and then I could pick up stitches. I should also get that out and work on it some.

Instead of swatching last night, though, I worked some on the quilt-in-the-frame. I do want to get this one done THIS YEAR (finally) so I think I'm going to try once again to devote at least 10 minutes a day to working on it.

And another New Year's "resolution" of sorts - I've been working on a doily from "Kyuuto: Japanese crafts, lacy crochet." This is one of the books I bought over Christmas break - I kept putting it back on the shelf and then going back to it. I told myself I didn't need a book on lacy crochet - I had tried it before, and I wasn't very good at it. But then I reminded myself: that was back when you held the working yarn wonky and your gauge wasn't very consistent, and you've changed that now. And I thought again: there are probably hundreds of old doily and other lacy patterns free on the internet. And I reminded myself: yes, but this book is so cute. And it has a couple of neat "useful" items in it as well as the doilies and other pretty things.

So I wound up buying it, and when I was coming back home, I made a quick side-trip to JoAnns fabrics for some crochet cotton (and was dismayed that they didn't have "Knit-Cro-Sheen," which I had decided was the correct size based on the hook size required...but I bought some other brand in a comparable weight and started.)

It turns out that that jar of "vintage" hooks I bought a year or so ago in McKinney has most of the sizes I need. I'm using a "3" right now - it's a short old steel hook and it makes me happy that it's being used - I tend to feel that old tools don't really have a "life" unless they are being used for their purpose.