Once Upon a Sock: August

I recently came back from the US.  My plan was to have two completed pairs of socks on my return. Ha, ha, ha.  On the plus side, the rainbow socks I was knitting last month are now finished.  (Photos to be added when it's not late at night and I can take some decently lit photos).

What I have nicknamed my 'sunset socks' kept going wrong and have been ripped out at least three times. (The third time, I realised I hadn't ripped back far enough, so I had to rip back even further.  I don't know if that counts as four times?)  It's getting a bit boring now.

The socks, on leaving Paris

The socks taking in the view at Hartsfield-Jackson airport, Atlanta (the busiest airport in the world)

The socks, coming in to Charleston WV

Recovering from jetlag on my first day in the US. 

At this point in knitting, I'm at the heels.  I wanted to try a short-row heel, using slipped stitches - as shown by Arne and Carlos in their video here and in the pattern for the Lifestyle Toe-up Socks.  I don't like short row heels, as they don't fit my feet too well - so I've done a gusset increase.  It could work amazingly, or it could end up a mess.  I've put lifelines in, just in case.  Past experience says that things are more likely to go wrong without a lifeline, so I'm optimistic.  

Whilst I didn't finish the socks by the time I got home, they did get a good view of New York.  One of the things on my list of things to do was to find the John Lennon memorial in Central Park.  There was a man there with his guitar, so I took half an hour to knit and listen to him singing.  Then I walked to Knitty City where I joined a group of ladies who were knitting hats for charity.  It was the perfect way of finding balance in the big city.  We talked about socks and ways of knitting - and they let on that Mina Philips - aka The Knitting Expat used to visit there, when she lived in New York. 

The Imagine memorial to John Lennon

Inside Knitty City - I was very restrained in my purchases! 

I have another pair on the needles - which will also need a lifeline before turning the heel - and once both the current pairs are off the needles, the next pair are queued for cast-on!

On the first Thursday of each month - a group of us all get online and blog about socks.  Paula's blog has the explanation - and the link-up of blogs is right here if you want to read more about socks - or would like to join us.  

I hear they make good ice-cream there

This morning, I fly out to Iceland, and I cannot wait.  The first part of the trip is for The World Scout Moot.  This is an international event for young people aged between 18 - 25.  The general format is that everybody starts off in one location, then move to a second location, known as an expedition centre (Kenya in 2010 had three or four; Iceland has ten) before all joining back up together in a final location.  In this case, our final destination is Úlfljótsvatn Scout Centre (where my friend Amy will be staying with a group of Guides just after we leave).

I've spent most of the prep time (up until the last fortnight or so) feeling entirely under prepared.  I didn't go to the first briefing weekend and I slept through half of the second.  I hadn't slept well on the Saturday night, woke up with a headache and halfway through breakfast felt like I was going to throw up.

Half asleep in a tent; exactly how I expect to look in Iceland

I have a two bag allowance for both the outbound and homebound flights.  On the way out, my tent will be my second bag, and I'll be taking this pouch in my rucksack.

On the way back, this pouch will be opened out into my second bag, containing my tent

Oh look - lots of lovely space.  What on earth could I put in there?!   Since my friend Jane wants to knit this sweater (PDF) from Istex and I want to knit the Lauvisa jumper by Karie Westermann I don't think filling the bag is going to be much of an issue. If I can find any Icelandic related stitch markers, or nal for nalbinding, then so much the better.

Of course, I've prepped all the essentials:

Yarn: Opal 20 Years, Kerzen/Candles colourway
Patter: Flying North by Maria Montzka

The pattern is free on Loveknitting and is called Flying North which is exactly what I'll be doing.  As we're above the Arctic circle, there'll be a lot of orange and yellow sun, and orange is the colour of the moot, so it all works out quite nicely.

I've got a list of stuff to do - including a thermal spa (it's been a horrifically stressful week; I'm surprised I've cried as little as I have).  I've been told about the Icelandic Phallalogical Museum which sounds right up my street.  As part of the trip, I'm going to be snorkelling in (or near) Thingvellir National Park.  As it's a Scouting event - there will be badges.

Naturally, I'll be visiting The National Handknitting Association of Iceland.  This blog mentions wool being available at the grocery stores, which is something I want to see for myself and this blog mentions Icelandic yarn with silk.

 I need to be on the train in about an hour and still haven't bought my insurance.  (Yes, I've sorted my knitting, but not the important stuff; priorities!)  I've got a three hour flight which will be dedicated to sleeping rather than knitting.  I have no idea how all my gear fitted into the rucksack, but it did.  

Let's do this.  See you on the other side - with photos and yarn! 

The weekends appear to be running away with me....

I don't quite know what's happening to the weekends at the moment. A couple of weeks ago, it was spring and now we're mid June. I may have blinked once too many times. 

I went to visit my sister; we went swimming and shopping and to the theatre, and walking in the hills. When you see the number of shades of green that are possible, you understand where Noro get their inspiration from:

I didn't tell my sister this; she was already a little put out at me knitting in the car, rather than looking at the view.  (As a side note, I've never bought Noro yarns in the UK.  Cannot wait to go find them in Japan). 

Even the grey clouds had a kind of beauty to them:

Not quite fifty shades of grey - but certainly more than one

We had lunch overlooking Sugar Loaf Mountain, which I'd only previously known through song lyrics No photos for that one, you'll just have to have the lyrics.

Other people may have seen trees against a light green/yellow field.  I saw a Fair Isle border to something or another:

There was also a yarn shop.  (I only found it as it was next to the pub where I was waiting for my sister, on the Friday evening.  I wasn't actively looking for a yarn shop, it just happened)

Yarn shop, of course, meant yarn:

Which then got taken, a few weeks later, to Switzerland...

Where I laughed about the place names:

And went for a hike up a mountain with some German scouts:

And I generally reminded myself what it's like to be outside London:

This is the route we took - the village at the bottom is where we started out.

This is where we had our lunch

Julia, one of the German scouts took photos of almost every waterfall, so I did the same too!

Of course, there was knitting - but that's for another time.