Witches Garden

Another pair of socks for the orphanages in Kazakhstan via the Motherless Child Foundation.  These were knit with an ancient ball of Opal sock yarn which I picked up on the cheap some years ago at www.littleknits.com . The pattern is by Sonja Koehler and the link to the pattern is on Ravelry.  It is available in both German and English.  The pattern is easy to knit, but slightly boring due to the moss stitch.  I saw one photo where the knitter knit the back of the sock in stockinette. 

Knit on, merrily!

It's been a while...

...exactly a month less one day since I've posted last.  I have been busy, however with knitting, ripping out, knitting, ripping out, and knitting.  Somewhere in the vastness of the Internet, I found instructions for these:  Dryer balls.  Yep, you read correctly.  And here is a photo of said dryer balls:

If you click on the link above, instructions will appear magically.  You can use these felted balls instead of fabric softener sheets.  It actually works, provided the load isn't too heavy.  I made four balls, but will make another batch and have enough for larger loads.  Of course, if you like the smell of dryer sheets, these will not give you that lovely Spring-time aroma.

The link above will lead you to the instructions; however, there really is no magic to it and despite the blogger's exhortation to wind the balls "just so" you don't have to.  The instructions call for worsted weight Fishermen's Wool.  But you don't have to go out and buy that either.  I used repurposed feltable, fingering weight yarn from projects that just didn't work out.  I just had to wind more yarn to get the same size.  Also, I knotted the yarn together when it ran out and continued winding.  The only thing I had to do was to do the exact opposite of my mother's instructions.  Instead of winding the ball loosely, the balls of yarn had to wound really tight.

Oh, and if you have cats who like wool, shut the dryer door after removing the wash or the balls may end up in the cat's food bowl.