Abstract Fiber

I’m knitting again, this time for Abstract Fiber in Portland, Oregon. A parcel arrived through the post the other day, with two gorgeous skeins of yarn for me to use. The one on the left is Smith Rock, and on the right is Lady Macbeth, both 4ply weight hand-dyed superwash merino.

I’m sample knitting the Spring Forward socks from Knitty with the Smith Rock colourway, and also test knitting a pair of fingerless gloves with the other colour. The yarn knits up beautifully, although I had to go through a long and frustrating evening of hand winding it into balls before I could get on with the actual knitting. After two days’ work, here’s the progress on the socks so far.

I really like the pattern, although it doesn’t show up too clearly in this photo. It’s very simple to remember, perfect for someone like me who likes to watch telly while knitting. I tend to get lost in lace patterns quite easily if I’m not concentrating, but it would be very hard to go wrong with these socks. There are only two simple pattern rounds, and every other round is plain knitting.

I’m hoping to get these two projects finished off quite quickly, as another parcel arrived on Friday – Debbie Bliss Rialto Aran for the final test knitting project on my to-do list. Unfortunately I can’t reveal anything about this one at the moment, apart from the fact that it includes lots of colourwork and charts, so it will need my full concentration!