Finished socks!

Yay! I finally actually finished something! I've been in a real starting mode, not so much of a finishing mode, so it feels good to actually accomplish something. My husband has already left for work and I finished these last night after he went to bed, so a self-portrait is all I could manage this morning, plus I slept in them last night. So, here's a bad photo of a rumpled pair of completed socks. Pattern stats:

Pattern: River Rapid Socks by Sock Bug
Yarn: Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in Tahoe (gifty from SP7!) - 2 hanks (I have A LOT leftover - what does one do with leftover sock yarn, variegated, in several different colorways?)
Date started: 3/16/06
Date completed: 3/23/06
Overall thoughts: I LOVE, LOVE Shepherd Sock yarn - it is my favorite of the ones I have used, although I've got Koigu and Vesper in my stash, so we'll see. The pattern was really good. The toe had odd shaping, but I went with it and I'm happy enough with it. I didn't make any modifications to the pattern that I can remember, although when I'm making socks, I'm sort of a renegade and tend to do my own thing without realizing it.

I also received my yarn for Starsky in the mail yesterday. Gotta love WEBS and that fast, fast shipping. Plus, they don't use UPS, which is wonderful because then I can actually get my packages. When I opened the box, I thought, they sent me the wrong yarn! The color was totally off from what I thought I bought, so I was a little crushed. But, I've decided it's OK. It's dark, so I'm hoping the cables show up OK. It's VERY soft and wonderful, knits up well and is light as a feather. The weight is one of the main reasons I chose it. It weighs less than 1/2 of Sierra and the Polar I was considering using. If there's one thing I can't stand, it's a heavy sweater dragging towards the ground under its own weight. They get so stretched out that way. That's one of the reasons Big Wool is so wonderful - it's lightweight and heavenly, but I digress.

I've been a real devil lately about buying yarn. I'm always on a yarn diet, and I'm ALWAYS cheating on it. In addition to what I bought in Boston, which you've seen, I also ordered Debbie Bliss Alpaca Silk DK (for $4.18 a ball!) to make the Fair Isle sweater from Interweave this issue (subscriber only pattern), Big Kureyon to make Hudson and Claudia's Handpainted sock yarn from Kpixie. Ugh! I'm going to have to sleep in the garage to make room for all of my yarn! Worst yet, I've been really busy with school this week, so I haven't knit a ton. Get crackin' girl!

I'm really looking forward to tomorrow! Again, if you're in San Diego, please come down to Rebecca's coffee house at 30th and Juniper in South Park, across the street from the Grove. We'll be there knitting on Saturday starting at 1 p.m. See you there!