Knitting Blogcast #12 | The Woolly Wordsmith
Finished socks, a self-drafted pattern, and a summer tee
Welcome back to the twelfth iteration of my knitting Blogcast. Here, I share my knitting makes. Today, I am going to show you what I made in January 2025. Thank you for being here with me.
Today’s quote comes from my first five-star read of 2025 - Lessons in Chemistry by Bonnie Garmus.
“Courage is the root of change—and change is what we’re chemically designed to do.”
― Bonnie Garmus, Lessons in Chemistry (2022)
In our lives, it is all too easy to remain in comfort, but once we step out of our comfort zone, we can really start living.
Finished Objects (FOs)
India Socks by Jane Carr (Ravelry: India Socks)
In January, I finished a pair of socks that I began self-drafting while travelling through India at the end of last year. You can watch the vlog here and read the post here.
I used the 4ply sock yarn by Art Viva by Mary Jane, a 75% Australian merino and 25% nylon blend. I picked out a colourway with mostly earthy blends in the skein. However, once I started knitting with it, I discovered these gorgeous vibrant blues and purples come through just for a couple of stitches every now and then. I loved the final fabric and colours and I can’t wait for winter to be able to wear these socks.
These socks were my first self-drafted pattern. I decided to base the pattern on a 3x1 broken rib pattern. I wanted to knit toe-up using a heel flap and gusset. I also knew that I wanted to add a cable into the design and an interesting cuff.
I ended up with a simple cable up each side of the sock, carrying over into the cuff. While it was not necessarily exactly what I had pictured in my head, I was really happy with how they turned out for my first time self-drafting a pattern.
Jarvis by Kate Atherley (Ravelry: Jarvis Socks)
In January, I also completed my first pair of lace socks - the Jarvis Socks by Kate Atherley. I used Passioned Flower’s Tendril in the colourway Olive. It is a blend of 60% alpaca, 20% Australian merino, and 20% nylon, so I will be interested to see how it ends up wearing because the fabric seems very soft for a sock.
After completing one sock, I realised that I didn’t follow the pattern correctly for the cuff. Due to the lace pattern, I needed to increase the stitch count for the cuff, so my first attempt ended up being too tight. After ripping it out and redoing it, I was very happy with the fit. The twisted rib of the cuff is absolutely beautiful. I’m definitely interested in using more twisted rib in the future because I love the way that it stands out against the knit stitches.
The fabric and lace pattern bloomed so beautifully after blocking. This is another pair of socks that I can’t wait to wear once winter begins in Melbourne!
New Cast-Ons
Sunshine Tee by Andrea Gaughan (Ravelry: Sunshine Tee)
Quite a while ago, I purchased two skeins of the Great Ocean Road Woollen Mills Summer Fiesta, which is a 70% merino and 30% linen blend yarn. I went for one skein of the Ocean Blue #2 colourway and one skein of the Oatmeal colourway. I purchased these with the intention of making a summer shirt. After spending a lot of time scouring Ravelry patterns, I decided on the Sunshine Tee by Andrea Gaughan.
I am loving the Summer Fiesta yarn. It is quite rustic (I can still see some of the linen fibres!) and the colours are working together perfectly. I have finished the back panel and I’m close to being done with the front panel. The pattern is very easy to understand so far and it has been a very enjoyable knit all around.
I am hoping to complete this soon so that I can still wear it for the summer that we have left here in Australia.
Up Coming
Once I finish the Sunshine Tee, I intend to begin working on a pullover that my mother has requested for mother’s day. It’s going to be a 4ply pullover with a circular lace yoke. I’m yet to solidify a pattern, so if you have any recommendations, please let me know!
As always, thank you so much for joining me today.
Until next time,
Jane
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