01 June 2012

Tadpole Socks

I have finally finished a new project!  All of that travel time earlier this week certainly added up to a lot of knitting and ultimately, a beautiful new pair of socks!


The pattern is Tadpole by Jenna Swanson.  It was such a fun and quick pattern to knit.  I don't usually knit top-down socks because they frustrate me, but these pretty much flew by once I got to working on them.  The stitch pattern chart is only 10 rounds long and look so pretty (although not exactly like tadpoles).


The yarn is so beautiful and vibrant.  In fact, it is so vibrant that half the time I have tried to photograph it, it overwhelms my camera's sensors.  The red is particularly explosive as you can see above.  The yarn is Lang Yarns Jawoll Magic Degrade, a fingering weight 75% wool and 25% nylon.

My only huge complaints with the yarn is that it is a little too thin (not quite fingering) and single ply, making the resulting fabric a little thin.  It is also a little too scratchy for my tastes, at least for my feet.  Lastly, it was not designed to produce matching socks (not that I mind).


Aren't we so lucky to have access to such an amazing range of colors of yarn to choose from?

Speaking of color, the newest episode of Radiolab is about the science of color and it is one of their best episodes yet.  Did you know that butterflies see more colors than we do?  In fact, they see colors we cannot even imagine.  I won't ruin the surprise of which organism can see the most.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend!

18 comments:

  1. Crochet with RaymondJune 1, 2012 at 4:32 PM

    I love the pattern! They look wonderful :O)

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  2. Those look awesome! They're so cheerful. Sorry to hear they're a bit scratchy, since they look super cozy. Maybe they'll soften up with a dunk or two. Happy weekend!

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  3. Oh I absolutely love those socks! The color is so beautiful and vibrant, congrats on finishing them! I can't wait to watch the program thank you for sharing it.

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  4. Very jazzy socks! I think it's ok if they don't match, but it can be frustrating if you want a pair of matching socks and the yarn is not designed to do it.

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  5. They are so colorful! They look so soft, too. It's a shame they're scratchy. :/

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  6. scratchy....hmmm...I've heard you can use conditioner to make yarn softer but have not needed to try it yet (http://www.ehow.com/how_6154854_make-wool-yarn-soft.html if you're feeling adventurous). Thanks for the information about radiolab.

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  7. WOW! Love your new socks!! I personally love the non-matching look. :) Awesome work, as always!

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  8. Such fun socks! I love how they don't match, and the pattern is so pretty! Great job :)

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  9. The socks are fabulous - I have the pattern in my library and think I should give this a go too!

    Just downloaded the podcast as I am intrigued to hear about the colours - I would have never thought that there is anyone/anything that can see more colour than us!

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  10. Nicely done! I too advocate for non-matching socks. I'm encouraging the "complimentary socks" trend. After all who needs the pressure! Now I'm going to look at all the colors. Thanks for sharing, and have a great weekend!

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  11. such pretty colours! i dig the non-matchy-ness. so nice!

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  12. These are beautiful! I love socks that don't match. I did a pair of lace socks and ran out of red yarn in the middle of the second sock. Instead, I used a variegated blue yarn that I had to finish it up. Coincidentally enough, the only time I got the lace pattern correctly was during the section of blue... Builds character, I say!

    :)

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  13. Loving the pattern! The yarn is much fuzzier than I expected - but it is super pretty - maybe they'll soften up with washing and wearing....
    You got to love a bit of travel time to get socks done! I am already planning what socks I will do on our drive to France this summer... yay!!!!

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  14. Your socks are gorgeous! The yarn is so pretty. I've never seen it before.

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  15. Those are nice socks! I am going to check out the pattern now!

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  16. I love the socks! The stripes are fantastic :) Red is a horrible colour to photograph, it always wants to go radioactive on me :/

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  17. The socks turned out great! And the colors are brilliant! Not matching makes them interesting and fun.

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  18. Wowzers those colors are poppin'! My husband likes them; he said, "I would rock those socks. I'd be pimpin' those socks."

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