Yesterday:

Today:

Taking this side-view photo of my own foot took some reaching and stretching. I’m a little surprised that it turned out as well as it did.

I may knit a few more rounds, but it’s usually around this point where I prefer to end my socks and bind off.  A secret to knitting up a pair of socks really quickly:  make them short.

I got a little further with the Red Hots sock today.  The pattern I’m using is from Socks from the Toe Up by Wendy Johnson (of Wendy Knits).  It’s so simple and easy that even though I think about trying a different heel (like Cat Bordhi’s sweet tomato heel or the Sox Therapist’s fish lips kiss heel), I always come back to this basic pattern.

I finished knitting the gusset:

And turned the heel:

Now I just have to knit in the round for a few rows, throw in some ribbing for the cuff, and bind off.

Last night I was tidying up around the living room and came across the Red Hots sock that I started back in February.  I’d been knitting it for my friend Kim, but it caused me so much frustration (I wrote about it in Day 92’s blog entry) that I set it aside and knit a new pair for Kim instead.

At the time that I had stopped knitting the sock, it was too long and I needed to rip it back a few rows.  I guess I needed a few months to put some emotional distance between me and that sock.  Today I decided that it was time to get back to it and finish what I started.

To refresh your memory, here is what it looked like:

To make the process easier, I threaded my circular needle through the stitches where I wanted to shorten the sock.

Then I started unraveling until I reached the cable.  Simple!

Of course, I had to rearrange some of the stitches so that they were all facing the right way, but it wasn’t a major hassle.  I knit a row on each side, and now it looks like I’m ready to start knitting the gusset.

I’ve decided to knit these socks for me.  This particular sock has caused me enough grief that I am determined to tackle it and finish it, and I am going to wear it proudly as a trophy, damn it.

Even though summer is right around the corner, and then it’s pretty much open-toe sandal season.

Sigh.

I’m taking a break from crochet and going back to the knitting needles for a little bit.  Anyway, I thought you might enjoy seeing a new project.

You may recall that the last pair of socks I finished knitting was for a friend of mine.  Today she sent me photos to show that the socks had arrived and that she was putting them to good use.  At the time that I was knitting the socks, I purposely didn’t match up the stripes because I thought they would have a lot more personality with mismatched stripes.  Seeing them on Kim’s feet, I think I made the right choice.

Pura vida, Kimito!