I'll have a blue Christmas and like it

I did it! I finished my Blue Christmas socks!

This isn't the super glam photoshoot - I haven't even blocked them yet.  But I did finish them and I'm so happy because it took me just two weeks to do it - 14 days exactly.  Yay!  I was really hoping to pull off one more pair of Vesper Sock before the first shipment of the current Knitterly Things club arrived in the mail, and I made it.

While I was knitting these, I finally accepted that a 2.5mm square needle does in fact produce a slightly larger stitch then a 2.25mm round needle.  And as a result, the socks I have been making with the 2.5mm squares are more pebbly inside... or, as one might say, a little more aggressive in their foot massaging than the ones I used to make on my KnitPicks Harmony needles.

I don't know what I feel about this.  Or rather, I feel a lot of things, and I don't know which of them takes priority.

Here are some of the random thoughts producing all these feelings:

My hands are happier with the squares.

My purse is happier with the squares too, because the travel needles I use are so short and fit so perfectly into it.  Of course, I could buy 5" rounds from KnitPicks to replace them. H'mmm.

Buying more rounds would be a lot more fun if I hadn't just bought two more sets of squares so I can have even more socks in progress at any given time.

Even Vesper sock yarn, which is superwash and holds up really well, does felt a little in the foot over time (especially if that time involves hours spent walking in lined rubber boots.)

Felted socks are totally smooth and comfy to wear, and worst case, my square-knit socks are bound to end up feeling at least as good as a new pair of round-knit ones... eventually.

I really love the way a new pair of round-knit Vespers feel.

I really don't love knitting with round sock needles now that I've met the square ones. 

Gah.

Well, at least the socks look great.  The colours are so cheery together, don't they?  I just love them and I love the festive feeling I get looking at them.

And to finish off today's thoughts on Christmas-y knits, here are some new ornaments I acquired this year:

This felted mini sock is from the nice shop near our cottage (I did advance planning back in August).

Pete is kind of stymied by the notion of a snowman picking up coffee (he'd melt!) but I just think this one from Tim's 2012 collection is adorable.

Stay tuned for the glamour shots of the socks with feet in them, assuming I can think of any exciting new way to display plain-knit stripey socks, and have a great day!  with or without coffee-drinking snowmen.