Tuesday, February 14, 2012

Zelda Gloves for Jeffy

Jeffy got The Legend of Zelda: Skyward Sword this past November, and playing it has been a family affair. By that I mean that all 3 of the oldest kids wanted to watch him play every moment of the game, so if someone was missing, the game didn't get played. Which meant it took him longer than it might have otherwise. Which also meant he was playing it during prime gift-giving season (winter holidays and his birthday). Since he knows I like to knit him things, he asked if I could make him a pair of Zelda gloves. They had to be "just like on the game" (see lower image). Luckily, I already knew of (and had made) a pattern for fingerless gloves which he liked and which fit him, so I just made up my own chart for the Tri-Force symbol (those are the 3 golden triangles on the back of the hand) and adapted the glove pattern appropriately. Recently he had just worn un-darn-able holes in a pair of socks I had made him a couple of years ago, but I was loathe to throw them out since the leg parts were still good. Lo and behold: these gloves required a long, grey cuff. I just cut the feet off of the old socks and repurposed the leg section of the socks into the cuff part of the gloves. (This also made the knitting go much faster, since half of it was already done.) The fact that he's been wearing them since I gave them to him suggests to me that they pass the test.
Pattern: Cigar by Kerri Cadd (adapted)
Yarn: Cuff - Dream in Color Classy in "Cocoa Kiss"; Hands - Cascade 220; Tri-Force Detail - Diamond Luxury Pilar

Thursday, February 02, 2012

Magic of Britain Socks

I started these socks mumblemumble months ago with the intention of knitting them while I was on my trip to England with Rachel. I wanted something that would encompass the different qualities of the UK - the myths, the nature, the ancient symbolism. I found this yarn in my stash, and it had the colours of earth and sky and stone and water, and then I found this intarsia pattern called "Celtic Spiral" which pretty much sealed the deal. In my head, I was going to do all kinds of knitting while over there; the reality was that I didn't do quite as much as I had thought. I did work on these socks on our Stonehenge Day, though the only photo evidence of that is when we were at Old Sarum. These are awesome socks; they go perfectly with jeans; the yarn is not overpowering yet still interesting; and the celtic spiral detail adds a certain magic (even if it does make them a little tight getting on and off). I love them.
Yarn: Araucanio Ranco Multy, with spiral in Patons Kroy Socks 4-Ply in "Gentry Grey"
Pattern: Celtic Spiral Socks by Catherine Devine (modified)