The Gold Hill Socks that I started just before going to Las Vegas are finished, finally, and here they are! I wrapped these up last night, mostly at Tangle Thursday knitting night, but a bit after I got home, too.

This is Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock in the colorway “Gold Hill.” I knit them on US#2 Inox Gray needles. The pattern is basically a 2×2 ribbing, but every other knit pair of stitches is twisted in baby cables every 5 rows.

I made these to be “clog socks.” The 2×2 baby cable pattern continues on the heel flaps. I’m rather proud of the way the cables twist over the ends of the gusset rows. Not bad, eh?

I’ve heard of others having problems with Lorna’s Laces pooling. These did pool a little over the instep, but when on it’s not very noticeable. On the whole, I’m pleased with the way the colors knit up.

This was my first experiment with this yarn. Even though I swatched (really!) I made about three false starts with the gauge too big before settling on 64-stitch rows. I have skinny feet, and the socks are still a little big and the heel could be shorter. But I don’t care. I’m wearing them anyway.

I’ve started a new pair of socks in the “Vera” colorway, and I’m going to try 60-stitch rows. That should be just about right, I think.

Welcome to everyone finding their way here via the Knitting Blogs Webring.

And a special welcome to my ring neighbors, exile in knitville and Knitting on Trial.

Sit down! Put your feet up! Stay awhile.

And (shhhhhh… don’t tell) the socks are almost done!

Look! Look! I have a finished object!

OK… so it’s not a very big finished object. But it’s an object. And it’s finished.

The idea for the tiny little socks bookmark I borrowed from the free pattern on Cat Bordhi’s website. I made my own pattern up as I went along. The yarn is a bit of Wildfoote left over from the Waffles With Brown Sugar socks I made last year. It only took a few yards. US#3 Inox gray needles.

Click the pic to see the bigger version in a pop-up.

It was fun and fast — my idea of a great knitting TV knitting project. I’m not sure I like the gusset-and-flap heel. Simple short row heels might work better. I think I’ll do another one that way and see. I also might have used smaller needles, but my #2’s are busy right now.

The bookmark is posing on Mary Thomas’s Knitting Book. This is one of my favorite references, even though it was first published in 1938. Ms. Thomas covers the basics thoroughly but economically, and I always learn something new every time I open this book up. (Clicking on that link takes you to Amazon.)

Yeah… OK… this is the semi-obligatory year in review thingy.

In the completed objects category (drum roll please):
— 5 pairs of socks that I will actually admit to
— 4 bags
— 3 pairs of fingerless gloves
— 3 scarves
— 2 sweaters
— 1 clapotis

That’s 18 finished objects, or about 1-1/2 per month. Not bad. I’m proud of myself. 😆

In a more traditional vein, here’s the rundown of the year by month:

January: First completed knitting project in about 30 years; new car; driving with #1 Son and his learner’s permit

February: PI’s first big hit from spam bots (may they be consigned to the lowest circle of hell!)

March: Dead water heater, dying refrigerator, leaking roof – ain’t home ownership fun! And my cousin passes away. Not one of the year’s highlights.

April: Major WordPress upgrade; John Paul II passes away and Benedict XVI is chosen; more nefarious bandwidth-sucking spam bots

May: PI’s 1st blogiversary; PI’s new look; #1 Son’s first “real” suit; Chili fingers at Wendy’s; melting destruction of #1 Son’s printer

June: #1 Son graduates from high school, becomes a licensed driver and moves out for the summer; new position; Wacko Jacko has his day in court; first ride on the Canby Ferry

July: Sandra Day O’Conner resigns; woman drives car down stairs (partially down, that is); Scotty beams up; the Viewmaster water tower comes down, PI had our 10,000th visitors

August: Knitflix; the PI FO Gallery launch; my African violet blooms for the first time in three years; PI moves to new server; #1 Son does not go camping; we visit Fort Clatsop before it burns down (no connection between those two events)

September: Katrina; #1 Son moves home; road trip through Oregon, Idaho and Washington; Myst V is released

October: Cold weather comes; distractions from Woodland Woolworks; Judy needs more time

November: Car woes of #1 Son; Westgate closes; Thanksgiving adventures at B’s house; Harry Potter with kids who shouldn’t be there

December: The local news media try to make news out of the remote possibility it might snow; new camera; Autistic Youth’s whirlwind west coast tour is a success; Christmas with grandpa and grandma; Las Vegas

And that was what I did last year! If interested, you can find the particulars on the History page.

And that’s why I’ve been mostly absent. But here’s a teaser pic from the vacation gallery that I don’t have up yet. This is a place in Death Valley called Badwater. It’s the lowest point in the western hemisphere, being 282 feet below sea level. The water isn’t potable, but very rare snails and little guppies live in it. The white band out in the distance is a dried lake bed. The white is salt and alkali. And, yes, the sky really was that blue. Click the pic for the bigger version.

In knitting news, I’ve progressed a small way up the ankles of the Lorna’s Laces socks. There hasn’t been a lot of knitting time, unfortunately, but I still hope to have these finished fairly soon. And then I’ll have something to put in the 2006 finished objects gallery!

In techie news, I’m working on an update of PI to the latest WordPress version (2.0). It’s not yet ready for prime time, as I’m having problems with a plug-in that I need to have working. Hopefully that will be resolved in the next week or so. Then, if all goes as planned… you won’t notice anything.

#1 Son and I are back from our annual trek to Las Vegas for the holidays, and a fun time was had by all. I’ll post later about the trip, which featured a tour of Death Valley on an unbelievably gorgeous day. But this is a picture I took just before we left. I had put my carry-on bag up on the bed to pack it, turned around to gather up a few things I wanted to take, and when I turned back this was what I found.

Do you think that Moo Cow wanted to go along with us? She wasn’t too happy when I removed her from the top of the bag so I could pack. And which bag is your’s ma’am? That would be the one with cat hair all over it.

That’s a standard-sized carry-on bag that she is taking up most of the side of. Moo is, shall we say… big boned and “fluffy.”

And lest anyone think I did nothing but gamble, drink, take tours, go to shows, and otherwise goof off (all of which I did), here’s some proof that knitting was also accomplished. This is the Lorna’s Laces sock I started awhile back in the color called “Gold Hill” – a fitting color for Las Vegas, I thought. As you can see, I have progressed a lot! I made it around both of the heels and started up the ankle.

If the heels look a little strange, it’s because I used the same ribbed faux cable pattern that is on the instep. I’m rather pleased with the way that it’s coming out. Once the socks are blocked, it will look a lot better. The colors pooled a little bit over the gusset increases, but on the whole they are behaving themselves admirably.

The soscks are a little big on me, but I plan to wear them anyway. A lot. They’re not so big as to be uncomfortable; just a little looser than I usually prefer.

Happy New Year to everyone!