Sock Madness Round 5

 

Ribbed, cabled socks with a touch of embroidery. What is there not to love? This round was another clearly charted pattern and a speed race for the finishing spots. I was approved about spot 3 of my team of the 7 spots available to go into the next round. The pattern was already released when I woke Wednesday morning, so Europe and the like had 8 hours head start! I was able to complete my pair (including an unplanned 4 hour nap) by Thursday afternoon.

Evenstar Socks by KnitJoyz (ravelry name)

Sock Madness Round 4

 

These socks looked deceptively manageable. Most of the sock is plain knitting, but there are two panels of brioche; the rib knitting, not the bread. They are worked intarsia style. The main color goes all the way around each round, but the contrast works once each round forwards or backwards.

 I did get tired of flipping the sock around for just five stitches at a time, so I started working the stitches in reverse, then placing them onto the working needle. Eventually, I figured out how to throw with my left hand (I’m a “continental’ or “picker” knitter - hold the working yarn in my left hand). This improved my speed and felt more comfortable than switching around and around, potentially dropping stitches.

Finished and approved.

Brintarsia by Renee Strouts

Thoughts on cup shaping for a person with a rounder torso

 Had a thought, wanted to bounce it off you, might be a run away train with no destination yet.

- My torso is basically flat on front, where my breasts start, then slants back. This is made most obvious by the way my breasts point out about 90° to each other when wearing a bra made for “typical” breasts (straight out in front on flatter torso). You know the one? You lay down the bra and the wires are flat and two perfect mounds look great sitting there. Not me.

- My wire has to be larger than someone with a flatter torso because it is not just going across, but also back. Think of the cross edge of a right triangle, it has to be longer than the two edges to join both points.

- The wire basically is meant to be worn across a flat torso. What size would mine be if set across parallel to the front? (Way smaller!)

- Therefore my pattern should also have a long flat area in the cup side. If I use two wires to help build the cup pattern itself, then perhaps it should be the smaller one used to set that smaller portion of my breast balanced, as I was initially instructed to get a balanced even cup (which resulted in nips pointing out, rather than forward).

Then, I can add back in the portion between the two wires to support the side of my breast which would be added to an already shaped public side of the cup.

Thoughts?

Sock Madness 2025 Round 3

The socks this round seemed straightforward. A well charted pattern that started off tricky, but was quickly rhythmic. After closing up the toes, I noticed that I had dropped a stitch, causing one sock to have 5 stripes of ribbing, whereas the other had six. I had to open the toe and drop a couple stitches back to fix the error.

Finished and approved.

Itamaraty Socks by Anna Zuravleva

Sock Madness 2025, Round 2

 

I found the construction of these socks rather amazing, they are worked flat in this zigzag pattern. Closing the first flat portion gives the leg of the sock. The zigzag is continued flat down the instep (top of the foot), and then the sole of the foot is closed with the contrast color back and forth along the bottom.

Finished and approved.

Chattahoochee by Shuyi Wu

Sizing on Undies Patterns

 I have been trying to sew undies on and off. Since the Mentorship started with us trying to fit our bottoms, it’s been a niggling thing. As the brassieres get closer to fitting, I consider making a matching bottom, but they generally have issues. Every pair has had fit issues that generally go right up my crack. Baby got back, but apparently designers don’t. 

Over the weekend, I decided to try something new. I sewed up a Tuesday Boyshort. Instead of measuring “my size” and making that, I measured and then printed out the next size up, and the size after that. I compared these to the Bravo Bottoms 2 Boyshort that I’m supposed to fit in. The larger of the sizes in Tuesday were just a smidgeon smaller than the BB2 shorts. Two sizes larger than what my hips measure into. 

I wasn’t sure how they would fit, so I didn’t even change the thread on the machine. But, I now have a pair of boyshorts that pretty much fit right off the pattern. And, green ones in time for St Patrick’s Day. 🍀

Sock Madness 2025 Round 1

 These warm socks don’t fit me. I couldn’t find my 1.5 DPNs, so just used the 1s. They are helical knitting with cables - cabling tightens the fabric- and intarsia heels. So fun to knit!

Finished and approved.

Day & Night Socks by Alena Malevitch 

Team Umbrella Octopus

 

Last night (my time zone), the teams were announced and I searched for a pattern for my mascot. I found 3 free patterns, and chose this one because I like the way the umbrella is formed with the little nubs for the octopus arms.

Pattern: Umbrella Octopus