Eye of the Partridge

I finished the heel flap on the first January Mystery Sock while on the train last night. Or at least I thought I had. I got a little distracted from counting four-row repeats of the Eye of the Partridge pattern, and the light was too poor to accurately count the slipped stitches at the beginning of each row. So I think there might be 36 rows, instead of 32.

I began the heel flap on the second sock and had the same distractability [spell check says that’s not a word?] at Knit Night. Plus, the flap is narrower than I think it should be; I used the number of stitches specified in the pattern, rather than half the stitches on the needle. [I added another eight-stitch motif when casting on for the cuff, to allow for the beading and my cankles.]

I very much like the fabric that Eye of the Partridge produces, particularly in this yarn, which is fine but not skimpy. The pattern would be shown to greater effect in a handpainted yarn, where you would see a tiny checkerboard pattern because of the alternated slip stitches. I am thinking that my next pair of Koigu socks will be cuff-down and have the Eye of the Partridge heel flap, even though I prefer toe-up socks.

I think I will be frogging these heels and starting over. I think the frogging will happen as soon as I log off the computer, while the tub fills. At least the frogging of the first sock; I don’t want to think of the tangle that would result if I frogged both socks and let them bounce around in the knitting bag all day. And I think the re-knitting will happen once I get home, where there will be no Trainman and no Knit Night conversations.

I needed the fellowship last night far more than I needed knitting progress, so I am quite the happy camper. Just not sure what I want to do, knitwise, today. I am tempted to print off the pattern for Brother Sushi’s cashmere cowl and grab my needles, just in case the yarn arrives today and is in a ball and not a hank.

Speaking of cashmere, I wore my purple cashmere Flared Lace Smoke Ring yesterday for maybe the second time. Loved it. Love the yarn, loved making it, love the color. And have decided that I want a pair of purple gloves, probably those cabled ones I saw. At the moment, I can’t remember if I saw them on brooklyntweed’s blog or on Franklin’s. I have very short, very curved little fingers, a legacy from my father and his mother and who knows who before that. It will be lovely to have gloves that do not have half an acre of empty fingertip on each hand.

And I want lots and lots of purple socks. I think I will buy more of the purple tweed that I used for LittleBit’s first socks, and some of the Gloss fingering weight in purple, and some Koigu, and and and...

Not that I’m tired of red. The day that happens is the day they carry me feet-first out of the chapel.

Must run the tub. Now. Or I’ll be driving in to work today. I didn’t set the alarm last night; that’s how tired I was. But I only overslept 13 minutes. Still a little tired, and my left foot is just the tiniest bit swollen.

Tonight I am staying home and cooking; I’m really looking forward to that, as well as the fixing-of-the-heel-flaps. I wonder what amazing adventures will happen between now and then? Can’t wait to find out!