Every now and then I get a question in the comments, but I don’t think too many readers get to see the answer if I just respond in the comments, so I’m going to try posting a little Q & A section every now and then.

The first Q is from Mary:

I have a question for you–can you tell me where you got your adjustable metal sock blockers?

My sock blockers are all from the thrift store. I know that’s no help to anyone, sorry. All of mine are made by Lee-Rowan Co, and every now and then I see a pair on eBay. The good news: it is ridiculously easy to make your own custom sized sock blockers. Or, if you like to work with wood (I do) you could also make yourself a gorgeous wooden set of blockers. Trace a pair of socks onto a piece of 1/4-inch birch plywood, cut out the shapes, sand it REALLY well, and finish the wood however you like.

I finished Erik’s neck warmer thingie the other night, and I want to show you how I made the top hem (the cast-off edge) look identical to the bottom hem (the knit-in one). There are plenty of tutorials on the web for the knit-in hem, so I won’t go into it here, but I haven’t seen the identical sewn-up version anywhere, so here you go. As always, you can click the photo to see it larger.

Here is the knit in hem, as viewed from the front.

Here is the knit in hem, as viewed from the back.

Now to set up for the sewn-in version, knit your garment to the desired length, knit your turning row to match your knit-in hem (if you have one), and knit your hem to the desired length LESS ONE ROW. You will be sewing your final knit row. Finally, cut your yarn with a very generous tail–at least long enough to go around your work four times. Better to be safe, than too short. Thread your tail onto a blunt needle, and proceed as follows:

Step One: Pass needle through first stitch as if to knit. Take the stitch off the knitting needle, and pull yarn all the way through.

Next, fold up hem and stitch up through back of matching stitch.

Third, stitch down through adjacent stitch to the left, and purlwise back through first knit stitch that you removed from the knitting needle. Pull yarn all the way through, and repeat from first step, moving one stitch to the left.

Tada!

It looks identical, because structurally it IS identical. Yay for twins!

Even though most of my fun stuff is packed away already, I do have a couple little projects stashed around the house to work on. Erik wanted a new beanie and neck warmer thingie (I don’t know if it is spelled gaitor or gaiter, so thingie it is). I love a man who can’t go to war without some tactical hand knits. I’m using Wool-Ease yarn, because it’s so perfectly suited to the harsh abuse I know it will get. It is easy to wash, and the wool helps the garments maintain their shape and loft (fluffiness) much better than acrylic alone. It is also less sweaty than all-acrylic.

I tried something new for the top of the beanie. Instead of fastening it off like normal, by drawing yarn threw the last few knit stitches, then drawing it up and weaving in the end, I grafted the last 12 stitches together using Kitchener stitch. It made a nice flat secure top. It will be comfortable under a helmet, and I don’t have to worry that a hole will form.

The thingie is just a simple tube. It can’t be tight, or it will be uncomfortable, and the edges need to have a bit of stability or they’ll curl and be bulky. A knit in hem seemed to be the best answer. I have a few more inches to knit on this, then it will get crammed into Erik’s sea bag with the rest of his couple hundred pounds of gear.

We are full on into packing mode, deadline mode, and getting ready for deployment mode. On the one hand I’m feeling a little bit insane, and on the other it’s a bit of a blessing–there’s no time to slow down and feel bad about the upcoming deployment.

The kids are taking all this excitement very well. Olga was a bit concerned that the storage unit was like a giant trash compactor, but now she understands that we’ll get all of our stuff back eventually, so she’s helping me sort through toys and blankets to pack. Gavin still lives in Oblivious Land, so as long as he can climb in and around, and drive his cars over the boxes, he doesn’t really care what else is going on.