Sock of the Day, Chablis, Udolpho

Sorry it took me so long to get to today's post- I hate when work gets in the way of playing online (which is so much more fun than working). Not that I have a whole lot to say today, but here goes:

These socks were knit with yarn hand-dyed by my friend Betty, from Betty's Loft. If I remember correctly, she only had one hank of this mauve/gold/brown variegated worsted weight wool/mohair yarn (probably Brown Sheep), which isn't enough for a pair of socks. But I fell in love with the colors and bought it anyway, and then happened to find a ball of solid mauve Brown Sheep wool/mohair in my stash, plus some solid brown for the heel and toe (gotta love big stashes). The cuff and foot were knit in stripes (which you can't see- that's one good accidental color match). I used my usual worsted weight pattern (48 sts, size 5 needles, short row heel over 24 sts, star toe).

These socks have held up very well (it's the mohair- that stuff wears like iron), and they're very warm, cushy, and comfy, and they have a nice halo (which didn't show in the photos). Betty often has one-of-a-kind hand-dyed yarns in her shop, and they're always gorgeous.

Since we're in wine mode in Taylorville, we started a 3 gallon batch of Chablis too. This one will be a lot less fiddly than the Chokecherry/Riesling, since there's no fruit-pulp involved (and therefore no straining through pantyhose). We began with a can of Chablis concentrate, and only had to add water and sugar, and the usual additives (acid blend, and yeast nutrient). I stirred the yeast in yesterday afternoon, and by this morning, it was bubbling merrily away. We get most of our winemaking supplies from Northern Brewer, by the way. We are very happy... hic... customers...

And The Mysteries of Udolpho are progressing, if progress is the word I want to use. Probably, it's not. But finally, something spooky happened: a doggie startled the heroine.  wooooooooooo