K'done: slipper socks

Whoa. July is pretty much done. August is right around the corner. How'd that happen?

Pattern: Raggtøfler, by Tina Haugland, but heavily modified!
Yarn: some remnant Knit Picks Stroll Tweed, in Firecracker Heather
Needles: 2.5 mm / US 1 1/2

When I found out that I wouldn't be teaching in Spring like I have for the past four years, the four months I suddenly had for summer seemed like an amazing rest. I was going to have so much time for knitting! While I have been knitting, it hasn't been as productive as I thought it would be, and while some of that is because I've been spinning too, it's not as though I've created mountains of yarn either. The sad truth is that time just has a way of getting away from us, I suppose.

Either way, the other night I was thinking about my practice of carrying a pair of socks in my handbag during the summer months, in case I needed emergency foot coverings that weren't my sandals, and I thought to myself, a pair of shortie socks might be better suited for this, they take up less space. Then, whammo, I was suddenly obsessed with the idea of turning some remnant yarn into a pair of dainty slipper socks - no leg at all, so much less bulky than socks, not that socks are a huge space eater or anything. I did a quick search for free slipper patterns on Ravelry, and settled on these, but made major modifications:

• I used sock yarn - the pattern calls for DK yarn, so the pattern gauge went right out the window. I settled on a gauge that is a touch looser than what I usually do for socks, and let my not-insignificant sock knitting experience guide me on stitch counts. (I knit over fewer stitches than I normally would for a sock, because that got me what I wanted for the garter section - I figured the looser gauge would grant enough stretch for it to fit, and it looks as though I was right.)
• I wanted a more slipper-like shape, so I knit the garter section to be probably longer than what I would have gotten following the pattern (you know, if I had been working the pattern gauge).
• I added a cable cross to the part where you join to knit in the round, just to tidy it up a touch.

I probably could have gone even farther with the garter for an even bigger foot opening. Maybe next time. If there is a next time. I don't know how much need I truly have for these. But I'm glad to have the one pair.

Now, the question eating up my headspace: can I spin 150 g of fibre and ply it and another already spun 150 g in the next four days? I've got me an idea I want to play around with.