2 Sock Slippers Down, 3 To Go

I've finished the first two pairs of sock slippers that I am making for the guys for Christmas.  It has not been as easy as I thought it would be.  First, the kits for the slippers could not be used.  The soles were not going to be long enough for the men's feet.  I had to take them back and make soles of my own.  I kept one kit to use as a pattern.  I went to the store and bought some leather and fleece to make my own soles.  I wanted to use suede like the kits had, but I was unable to find suede.  I got black and brown leather, because I had already bought the yarn to go with black and brown soles.  I think they will be okay.  They may slip a little, but they are for men, not children, so I think it will be fine. The other problem I encountered was with the first pair I started.  I was using 100% sport weight yarn and I used the largest size pattern.  It was way too big, so I set that slipper aside and started another pair.  This time, I used the other yarn I bought which is a lighter weight yarn, and used the smallest pattern size.  I think it looks like it will fit a man.  I tried it on and it is way too big for me, but my foot is considerably smaller than the men's. I finished that pair, and then I went back to the wool pair.  It is still a little wider than I think it should be, but it is certainly smaller than the first one I made.  Now, the two pairs are finished.  Hurray!

This is the wool pair.  I am showing it this way so you can see the bottom of the sole.

This pair is with the weight of yarn that was called for in the pattern and like the rest will have.

I will continue to work on these until I have them finished.  Three more pairs to go.  It seems that I can finish one slipper a day, so it shouldn't take too long.  I am also working on a secret project that will take a considerably much longer time to finish.  I work on it a few rows a day to get about an inch more completed. It is sixty inches long, so it will take some time, but it will be worth it in the end.

Madeline's Sweater

I finished the sweater for Madeline, my sister's great granddaughter.  Now that I have finished it, I will be able send it and the horse and cowgirl to her this week.  It is always so nice to complete my projects.  I encountered a few problems with this sweater.  The pattern I was using has always been pretty true to gauge, so I thought it would be this time, too.  However, my yarn must have been a much lighter weight than I have used in the past.  After completing the hood, I could see that it was smaller than I wanted.  I planned on making it the six month size, but it was coming out more like for a three month.  I didn't want it to be that small, because I didn't think she would get much use of it before she outgrew it.  I decided to use the stitch counts for the one year size and hoped it would be more like the six month.  It worked pretty well to do that, so I had to take out part of the hood and enlarge it.  Now, it looks pretty good, and should be more useful than it would have been if I continued to make the smaller size.

I wasn't sure if I would like the crayon buttons because of the cable pattern, but I think it looks nice with them.

Next on my list of things to do is to get started with the men's Christmas sock slippers.  I will also be working on a secret project that I will not be able to post until after Christmas.