FO: Three-take Jaywalkers

Pattern: Jaywalker, in MagKnits, by Grumperina.

Yarn: Ruby Sapphire Yarn's Ruby Superwash Yarn, Nina Colorway.

Needles: Size 0 bamboo DPN's.

Time: Received the yarn as a Christmas gift, casted-off on May 3rd.

Mods: None.

Notes: I think I just assumed that I had measured my gauge at some point, and went from there. So these socks are a little...tight. Not too tight to wear, but they could be stretchier. I got to the heel of the first sock using the smaller-size pattern -- way too small. I began again, in the larger size, and didn't like the pooling. By the time I realized, on the third try, that the socks were going to be a wee bit small still, I had no other choice but to keep going.

I've worn them a few times, trying to get as much of them in before the summer hit. I love them, but oh my, the pooling! The pooling and I just did not get along. This project really drove home to me the idea of matching the yarn to your project -- I don't think the pattern or the yarn showed the other off particularly well, although both are lovely.

I also picked up a "farewell North Carolina" skein of sock yarn on my last trip to the Carrboro Farmer's Market (where Chapel Hill Creamery was sadly out of Carolina Moon!). Say hello to this little beauty, Three Waters Farm's fingering weight Merino, in Forest Floor. I couldn't help myself. I think this may be destined for Monkey-ness.

That's right, I'm leaving NC. Next week I head to back to the homestead in New Jersey, to finally fully move out of my parents' house. I spent my time after college traveling back and forth across the country, carrying only what fit in my Honda Accord. I should be there for a few weeks, catching up with friends and my favorite northeastern sights, as well as checking out all of those incredible yarn stores I've missed out on while away. After that, it's a blank slate. Maybe some travel, maybe to the northwest. At some point I hope to have a job -- but not too soon.

Amanda's meme to come!

Most recent podcast: NPR's All Songs Considered.
Currently listening to: Regina Spektor, Begin to Hope album.
What I should be doing: Applying for jobs.

Change is the only constant

I have just turned in the last final exam of my graduate career. It's strangely... mellow. A sort of lovely, mellow joy, with just the slightest touch of melancholy. Last Friday I turned in my Master's Project, the culminating experience of my graduate experience. All that's left between me and graduation is Western Field Trip, a week-long class trip to Washington State -- not a particularly stressful class. I celebrated with a very indulgent weekend that involved little time at the computer, dinner parties, quite a bit of cheese-eating, wine-drinking, BBC-miniseries-watching (six wonderful hours of it), and of course, knitting.

At a celebratory barbecue, a rare fellow knitter and I met up to discuss the Urban Aran, and picking up stitches for the collar. My poor Urban Aran! It's been so lonely, but now I'm ready to go at that collar and seam it up. Exciting!

This turning point in my semester happily coincides with another exciting time. It's time to pick a new project! With the Jaywalkers nearly complete, I'm looking for another project to bring on WFT for the round-trip flight and a fair amount of time in vans. So -- socks, or shawl? Socks may be more mindless, and better for travel, but I'm itching to do lace...

The contenders

Socks:
Monkey
Hedera
Toe-up of my own design

Shawls:
Kiri (pattern here, better pictures here)

Yarns:
I'm falling more and more in love with this yarn I bought at the Carrboro Farmer's Market from Three Waters Farm. A 50/50 merino tencel blend, the shiny tencel lends the purple and green colorway an iridescent sheen. I knit up small gauge swatch yesterday and the short color repeats look just lovely. I bought the skein for socks, but I'm thinking about picking up another and making a shawl.

Also up for socks, Emerald from RubySapphire Yarns, and Marrakesh or Brick House from Fearless Fibers.

A new skein showed up (with excellent timing) on Thursday, and spent the night reposing next to my computer at school while I pulled a nearly-all-nighter. Isn't it lovely? It's Laughing Rat Studio's silk/wool laceweight in the twilight colorway. I've already begun to knit this up into the Kiri shawl, my first real lace-with-laceweight project.

Most recent podcast: Wow, I can't even remember.
Currently listening to: Cloud Cult, The Meaning of 8
What I should be doing: Returning three weeks of email.