the first shipment of my personal sock club '09 has arrived, and has been knit.Noro Kureyon sock, shade S184
a plain and simple personal pattern - 64sts, 6x2 garter stitch rib with a heel flap and standard toe.
I really wanted to keep this sock simple and showcase the beautiful colours of the yarn.
Little did I know that the yarn was not going to behave :(
The first sock was the one shown on the right. The colours graduated into one another reasonably well, although I was disappointed with where the purple/orange/pink section ended up, hidden on the gusset and heel for the most part.
This however, was not the fault of the yarn, merely my poor planning on where to cast on in the skein. When the first sock was finished, I dutifully wound off the remainder of the ball until I reached the same section of the repeat and cast on the second sock.
Have a close look at the sock on the left. See at the ankle where the turquoise meets the lilac? There's a big hunk (ie teal) of the repeat missing! Ticked off, I kept going, hoping it would not be that noticable. Now look halfway down the foot. Yes. Another section (ie indigo) missing between the pink and the aqua!
I'm so mad about this. This skein of sock wool was not some budget crap. One of the reasons you pay the high price for Noro is the way the colours repeat. More the point, this wasn't even one of the infamous "Noro knots" you may have heard of - it was just the way the colours had been plied together!
I had been so keen to try this particular sock yarn, but in all honesty, I wouldn't bother with it again. Aside from the problems I encountered with the colours, it's got a very rustic ply, so if you tug on the working yarn too hard it breaks. The resulting fabric is a bit ho-hum and in my opinion, doesn't look like it's going to hold up to wear very well.
so boo-hoo for my first sock club shipment. I went straight to my club's customer service department and demanded my next shipment early as compensation ;)
Very obliging, that customer service department.
and p.s. thank you for all your lovely comments and encouragement for Lily's foray into knitting :) I'm pleased to report that she is going great guns, having attempted to cast on and off without assistance. As one friend noted; the stash is no longer safe!
