the Akamai Knitter

For Eye Candy Friday I thought that I’d share more than just yarn. On Wednesday I drove to Kailua and took the scenic route. This is a small islet off the Waimanalo coast. I don’t drive this way too often anymore as part of the road is literally crumbling into the ocean. The Department of Transportation are making repairs on the road, but I’m not sure what they can do or how they can fix it since the ground there is so sandy. I hope they’ll be done soon as it’s my favorite drive on my side of the island.

I did get a lot of knitting done in the car on that Wednesday and I would have posted my progress, but I experienced some technical difficulties with my template yesterday. Many thanks to Wendy at yarnporn.com for all the wonderful help and continued support.

Opal yarn for the Opal!

I got this yarn from Simply Sock Yarn and I have to thank Wendy from Wendy Knits! for plugging them on her site. I’m not sure what pattern I’m going to use for these socks, but I do have Sensational Knitted Socks on order from Knit Picks, which I’ll hopefully get either this weekend or the beginning of next week. I’m not sure if I’ll start on these right away or start working on the Wyvern Socks in Koigu. I’ve had the Koigu for many years and I think it’s way past time for me to get to using it. Thanks to Barbara for turning me on to the Wyvern pattern.

The colours in this Opal yarn are really a far cry from my usual repertoire and I think that’s why I love it so much. I’m not sure my wardrobe has much in it to match, but I’m sure I’ll find something. I suppose it would be considered crazy and insane to go shopping for clothes to match this wonderful yarn, but hey, am I an obsessed knitter or what? Luckily I do have a pink shirt that I bought in a frenzy of fuschia love that I think will match well.
I’ve been largely uninterested in knitting shawls at this time. Mainly because it’s been rather warm and I prefer to knit small things that don’t crowd my lap with heat. I will try and do a few rows today though. I don’t like to let things sit for too long or it becomes harder to get back to it. I’m not sure how long it takes for a project to sit before I really consider them a UFO. How long do you let a project sit before you call it a UFO?

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The love affair I have with lace socks continues as I work on Hedera. I started yesterday and I’m using Stahl Socka in Color 9423 on size US1’s or 2.25mm. The tiny needles really hurt my hands so I only knit a few rounds at a time, but the pattern is so fun to knit that it’s almost worth it. I’m trying really hard to not be a hypocrite and knit through the pain.

I tried to get a closeup shot of the stitch pattern but my camera just wouldn’t cooperate with me. It’s another deceptively simple stitch that looks a lot harder then it actually is. There are only 4 rows to it and 2 of those rows are “plain” rows.

One other thing about working on tiny needles is that I used to have such a deadly Chinese death grip that one of the needles almost has a 45 degree bend to it! It’s rather alarming to think that I had such a tight hold on them that they bent to such an extent. The other needles also have a bit of a sway to them as well. I’m not sure if you can really see it in the picture, which is another reason why I want to get a better camera.

So I have 2 pairs of Knit Picks Classic Circulars on the way to me. Their affordable price makes me feel a little better about my formerly abusive ways with needles. Over the years my tension has really changed. I used to knit really tightly now I’m a very loose knitter. I wonder if my knitting philosophy has changed with my tension? It’s something to muse about.

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