Work Sock Joy

One more finished thing before the end of the year.

This pair of socks makes me happy.  It feels like a good old fashioned farm sock and that makes me think of my dad. He wore your basic farm socks for many years.  I remember them washed and darned.  I may have even darned a pair once. Beyond a doubt, my dad's socks are part of my pleasure making Sock Monkey Cabin Blankets.  And no, we are not going there again. Maybe.  But I do like the old fashioned look of them and look forward to wearing them on Christmas day.

On Saturday I worked on the Mrs. Hunter's pattern sweater for a while.  I have to tell you one thing I really like about this sweater.  It uses ONE ball of yarn at a time.  And Sundays Hacho sweater knitting?  One ball of yarn at a time.   It's a huge relief.  

So many of the things I have knit lately have had multiple balls of yarns being used at the same time or being swapped out and switched in or carrying multiple balls to distract from any possible variations in hand dyes.  

No more twisty yarns or tangles from the bag.  

It is going to look much more like this for a while.  

A single ball of Hacho.  A single ball of Regal. 

This is really nice to think about because after Christmas, I am thinking of a scrappy yarn project with an entire tub of yarn balls.  I am just thinking about it, mind, but it's a tub of yarn that would be nice to make into a something.  Probably a blanket. Might even look nice as a Sock Monkey Cabin style blanket, marled and colorful with cream.  Maybe.

An Empty WIPs Bin

I don't know where the day got to yesterday.  It just flew by.  There was Christmas stuff.  There was knitting stuff.  There was box making.  The tree is not finished yet, but will be today.  No photos of it but look what is photo worthy!  

I am so pleased with the boxes.  Or I will be when the middle row is replaced with slightly different boxes.  They do the job and they look tidier than piles of stuff on the shelf.  My only problem is that not all my cookbooks fit here.  There are a bunch on a shelf in my room.  I still have to make some cord holders for appliance cords, but that should get done today. 

And knitting too.

I did keep working on my socks.  There was not a lot of knitting though.  The weather is changeable and snowing and my hands were not up to a lot of it.  But socks.

I really love how these socks are turning out.  I didn't find them inspiring when I first started working on the grey and red but now?  They make my heart beat faster.  

It is time to get to work and get the tree finished.  Then some relaxing knitting.  And dreaming.  Because this is the season when you get a guilt free seasonal cast on!  It could be a Christmas cast on.  It could be a New Years cast on.  Possibly both, but it's guilt free.  Right?  Or am I thinking wrong.  Besides my WIPs bin is looking empty ( I moved the overflow to my room so we can put the top down for visiting) and if your WIPs bin is empty...

Boxes

I did not knit a single stitch yesterday.  Not one.  

I spent my day in the sewing room not sewing.  I worked on the box project.  My second shelf of boxes has been an utter failure.  They don't fit the shelves and I can't understand why.  I made all the changes needed to make them fit, twice, and they ought to fit.  But they don't.   I have one plan left and I know it will work so that is what I am going to do.  

I get a lot of large boxes from a certain large vendor and I was planning to cut them down to size and cover them to make the two bottom boxes.  While I was mucking about, I realized that three of the smaller boxes ( which are packed inside the larger boxes.  I know.  It is weird. )  fit the space I am trying to fill perfectly.  All I need to do is cover them. That bottom row is well under way.

And that is what I am going to do for the weird row of boxes.  I am going to gather more of the boxes and will cut them short and cover them.  And that will be the end of my fabric box making career.  It is taking too much time from my knitting.