Now it's finished.

So, last time I was whining about how I couldn't finish my Kristi socks because I'd run out of yarn. Well, I finished them the very next day, thanks to the kindness of the nice lady at Blueball Mountain and the speedy service from the United States Postal Service. (And that's the truth - no sarcasm here. At least today, anyway.) I mean, I think I was on the phone with the yarn shop around lunchtime on Friday, and the little box was waiting for me Saturday when I got home from work. It was amazing! As soon as I could rip open the package (and it was a diabolical little box), I got back to work closing those toes.

I added the new yarn to the sock where I only had a 3" yarn tail, and a few rounds later the second sock ran out of yarn, so I added on from the other end of the ball to finish that one. Once I completed all my decreases, I grafted the toes closed, wove in my ends, then put them in the tub for a wash. Finished, washed, and blocked! Whee!

Since the socks were finally finished, I decided that it would be a good time to start preparing for Sock Summit. Never mind that it's just about the only thing I can talk about - I haven't looked at my class requirements since I registered. I'm taking three classes at Sock Summit: Anne Hanson's Holes in our Socks, Lorilee Beltman's Seismic Socks, and Anne Berk's Intarsia with a Twist. I'm really looking forward to all of them! Each class has a little homework, so that's where I'll be focusing most of my knitting attention for the next two weeks. Thing is, I have to choose some new patterns, and that's where the power of the internets is overwhelming me a bit. There are so many choices!

I've looked through my Ravelry queue and through the pattern database (a couple times) and I can't make up my mind. I think for Anne Berk's class, I'll take an argyle sock pattern I saw a few months ago in Piecework Magazine (which it turns out she wrote!). In the magazine it's seamed, but I think I read on one of her project pages that she has done argyle socks in the round, so I hope she'll share how she did it during the class. For Lorilee Beltman's class, I think I'll do her Ankle Panes sock - they look like they'll be a good introduction to her vertical intarsia technique that she'll be teaching. I've had her Thistle Plaid socks in my queue for a while now, but I think simple will be good enough for class knitting. As for Anne Hanson's class, I just can't decide. There are all kinds of lace sock patterns out there, but I think I might take a look through my stitch dictionaries to see if anything looks interesting. The class will have a bit about design in it, so that may be the way I'll go. I'll probably take another look through her pattern shop while I'm at it, just to make sure there isn't something there that I want to work on for the class.

This process has made me dig through my sock yarn to make sure that I have the appropriate yarn for my classes, which has made a mess of my living room. For the most part, the instructions have said I need smooth yarn in light colors, and I do have some, but I'm not sure that what I have is quite right. I'll probably take all of my Cascade Heritage (3 light colors and 1 dark) as well as all my Kollage Luscious. I'll probably leave the Classic Elite Alpaca Sox at home, as it's probably not smooth enough for these classes. I'll also take my bag of leftover sock yarn as well, which I think will be good for playing around with. Hand painted and striping yarns will be staying home. Gah! So many decisions! I should take a breather.

That's all the mania I think I'll share today. Next time, maybe I'll talk a little about having started the Damask shawl (which I hope to be able to wear at Sock Summit) and whether I've completed the Monkeybread scarf (which is moving fast). Until then, friends.