Just a few more rows... And then a little taper at the top (mostly because picking up a whole row of stitches straight is a pain, so I decided I'd just decrease it away and make a curve)... And it's done! Oh, and then at the end I noticed the cable coming off the side was a little frayed, so I took my tail and duplicate stitched over it to be extra safe. Again, totally not invisible, not subtle, but it will keep the sweater in circulation for a nice long time. I'm trying to decide if I want to [...]

I have a cheap cotton sweater from some fast fashion place (maybe Old Navy, maybe Target, I'm not 100% sure, it's at least six or seven years old).  It started life as an actual wear-out-in-public sweater. Then after a year or so, it transitioned to a pajama sweater (I know, some people loathe cotton sweaters, and they're not what you want to wear if your goal is to keep warm, but they're my favorite thing to wear as pajamas, and I am the boss of my pajamas, so I get to wear them if I want).⁣ And now...well now I've worn [...]

So I really do mean it when I say I mend my socks. Every time I take them off, I check for thin spots.  If there's just a little thin spot, I'll wash them first and then mend them.  If there's an actual hole, I'll fix them before I wash them because washing them with a hole can make the hole bigger (which is maybe gross? but whatever...it's just socks...you can wash your hands after). I strongly prefer catching it while it's just a thin spot because then you can just duplicate stitch over it.  (This is the bit where [...]

So The Boy knocked on my office door, brow furrowed, injured socks in hand.  Now these socks are old...like nearly ten years old.  And they've already been mended once.  But they are still in surprisingly good shape, and I'd much rather darn them than knit a whole new pair.  So I fixed them. For a hole like this I need a couple of locking stitch markers (I use these (as always, amazon links are affiliate links), love them to bits) and a tiny crochet hook (I have this set, which comes in handy more than you might think for someone who [...]

So for a good solid year after I broke my leg, I either had to wear this oh-so-stylish compression brace or my ankle was puffy enough that knit socks were tricky to wear.  Which is Something Of A Disappointment if, say, you have a giant basket of hand knit socks that you love dearly and wear constantly. But...just lately...the ankle has started behaving itself, and I'm back in my socks.  These are particularly stretchy and so were one of the first ones back in rotation.  I noticed they had a tiny little bit of a thin spot on one of [...]

So have I mentioned that I really really really hate shopping?  And how I hate clothes shopping most of all?  I work for myself, from home, in the middle of nowhere, and yes I work in my pajamas like 98% of the time.  And by pajamas, I mostly mean 'things that were once proper clothes but got worn enough that I can't bring myself to wear them in public anymore, but also can't throw away because they're soft and cozy.  And because even that is not enough shopping avoidance, I actually will mend them when they start to come apart. This [...]