I forgot to beware the Ides of March the other day. Rats.

I’m working along on the Sunflower sock — here it is as of this afternoon.

I’m about to start the ribbing.

The back is plain — here’s a side view that shows that:

And just for fun, a close-up of the toe!

We decided that Sharon would knit hers in a different color, so you can see that the flower doesn’t necessarily have to be a sunflower if yellow is not your thing. Here is the start of Sharon’s sock:

It can be a pink daisy!

This yarn is Chameleon Colorworks Bambino in “Rose.”

In answer to your queries, we will be selling this pattern through The Loopy Ewe when we complete it.

There was a question in the comments yesterday if the Nanner Sock can be knit top down using the charts “as-is.” You could, but your nanners would be oriented in the opposite direction. I worked up a quick up-side-down nanner sock chart, here, in pdf format.

Beware — I was tired when I did this and I don’t know if it actually works because I did not knit a sample. But it might work.

In other news, I came home to find Lucy celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in a somewhat alarming fashion.

When I asked her about it, things got ugly quickly.

I’ve probably used that blog post title before, but it is appropriate, so there it is again.

Thanks for all your kind comments about my blog’s new look. I had nothing to do with it, of course. It was all down to my wonderful web guru Daisy. Well, I did things like pick the banner I liked the most, and offer suggestions for what I wanted on the menu bar below the banner.

You know . . . the heavy work.

It’s always nice to have a little spring cleaning!

Speaking of the menu bar, have a look up there — there’s a new item for travel & teaching schedule. There are a few things posted on the page and I’ll add more as they are arranged. So feel free to check back often.

In celebration of the new blog, I’m giving you a freebie. Don’t get too excited — some of you already have it.

It’s the Nanner Sock Pattern (pdf) that I designed for my Plurk buddies. I’ve had a lot of requests for it, so I’ve posted it on my Free Patterns Page, so it is now available to one and all.

ETA: You can see a pic of the Nanner Socks at Flickr here.

And speaking of socks, I turned the heel on my Sunflower Sock. Here it is:

And from the side:

And a sunflower close-up:

Lucy sez:

“Thank you, Miz Phyl!”

Last week I did an interview with Deb for her Knitting Scholar site — check it out here. Thanks, Deb!

I finished a stealth project I’ve been working on so embarked on something new: a sock. I know. Shocking, isn’t it?

But this sock is special because the design is the result of a collaboration between another knitter/sock designer (Hi Sharon!) and me.

It all started when Sharon did the sock pattern for the March offering of The Loopy Ewe sock club. She consulted with me a bit on the design and we had a lot of fun emailing back and forth. So we decided to collaborate on a sock pattern. We’ve spent a few weeks emailing the charts back and forth and each of us making tweaks and changes to them. Finally this past week we have the pattern the way we like it. So here my start of “Sunflower Socks.”

I’m using Lorna’s Laces Shepherd Sock in Butterscotch on 2mm needles.

I actually started out using Socks That Rock lightweight in 24 Karat. But the sucker striped, and I did not like how it looked. It obscures the pattern way too much. Here’s a look at it:

Teddy had to get in on the act and model the new sock:

And Lucy is primping in hopes that Spring will be here soon!

Hey, thanks for all your kind comments about my upcoming book. I’m very pleased with it and I hope you will be too.

Just so you know, the book includes a techniques section with step-by-step illustrated instructions for all the techniques you need to know to knit toe-up socks. You can knit these socks on dpns, 2 circulars, or magic loop. There is a total of 23 patterns — some plain sock templates, easy, intermediate, and advanced lace, textured gansey socks, cables socks, and some sportweight socks. So that’s it. In a nutshell.

I can tell you right now, I’ll be doing a book signing at Knit Happens in Alexandria, VA on Saturday April 18, beginning at 2pm. It’ll be an informal event, and I’ll have the actual socks from the book for you to take a look at. I hope to see as many of you there as possible. Bring your socks.

As far as other appearances goes, it’s a work in progress. I’ll be teaching at The Loopy Ewe Spring Fling in St. Louis, MO the following weekend and will be teaching at the SWAK Knit Out in Guthrie, OK in mid-May.

And I just confirmed last night that I’ll be in Charlotte, NC to hang out and sign books and teach at Charlotte Yarn the first weekend in June. More details about that will be forthcoming as the plans are developed.

I’ve got a few more teaching trips to plan, so I’ll keep you posted. Because I have this pesky day job, travel will be spread out over the next few months — I can’t be away every weekend and still manage to work during the week because I am old and tired. And because Lucy needs her momma.

About those kneesocks . . .

A whole bunch of you showed interest in a pattern/tutorial for kneesocks that fit, so count on that becoming a reality, all in the fullness of time. I’ve got some other things I need to take care of before I can get that written up.

And of course I started a new bloggable project too.

This is Susan Lawrence’s lovely Fountain Pen Shawl from the latest issue of Interweave Knits. I’m using the pretty green laceweight I blogged about last week, and went down 2 needle sizes from the suggested size to a U.S. 4.

In other news, I won the lottery. See?

And Lucy is in lap-kitty mode.

Since a number of you asked, I asked Potter Craft about the possibility of showing y’all a preview of Socks From the Toe Up here on my blog.

There will be a preview of the book on the Potter Craft website a week or so before the publication date (April 14), but in the meantime, they kindly sent me a few of the photos from the book to share with you.

Diamond Gansey

These socks knit from Louet Gems fingering weight in the “Aqua” colorway.

Sheri’s Posies

These socks are named for my favorite purveyor of yarn and knit in Fleece Artist Basic Merino 2/6 Sock in the “Teal” colorway.

Serpentine Socks

And these sportweight socks are  knit from Fiesta Boomerang in the “Painted Desert” colorway.

And that’s not all! Potter Craft sent me a pdf to make available as a free download the pattern for one of the easier patterns:

Diagonal Lace Socks

Here’s the pattern in pdf format: Diagonal Lace Socks. Enjoy!

Lucy Sez:

Look at my socks!