Knitting Myself a New Wardrobe

I've finished my first raglan and immediately started designing another. I think it's going pretty well so far. I tried it on and it fits like a glove. I'm hoping the shaping continues to surprise me. I'm making it in Caron Simply Soft Grey Heather, and surprisingly, the yarn is gorgeous. I don't know about you but I find some of the Simply Soft colors soft and silky while others feel like cheap Red Heart. The dark green, garnet, grey heather, and black all have excellent feel. The white and pale yellow, not so much. Anyway, I digress. I started off using Pamela Costello's Incredible, Custom-Fit Raglan as a basic guide to casting on neck stitches. I found the instructions difficult to follow however, and soon abandoned it for the cast-on instructions for the Short Sleeve Lace-Cable Raglan Sweater. This was a great help in figuring out how to knit the back and sleeves before casting on the neck stitches. Beyond these two sites for cast-on advice and a cable pattern from the Harmony Guides, the rest is from my little ole mind. I love the way it's coming together, and I can't wait to get to the underarms so I can move a little faster. By then I will have almost 350 sts on my needles! Oh, I'm knitting the Caron on 24" size 5s for a tighter fabric:) It's horribly bunched up so I will be buying longer needles tomorrow. Here's a picture of the progress:


I have also been working diligently on the Rhiannon socks. I love how the pattern can accomodate my 17-inch (yes, 17-inch) calf and 9-inch ankle. Knee socks NEVER fit my legs, nor do boots, but I've given up that battle long ago... After the tortuous set-up row for the Fold Over Cable, I almost scrapped the whole project. A really loose extra row helped facilitate all the twisting and pulling required to "set-up" the cables. A bit fussy for my liking, but I guess it looks alright. This project is going so slowly it feels like I'm knitting in reverse, but I'll keep at it. The cuff only has 33 more rows left. I can make it. I know it. I'm hopeful. The yarn is nice to work and is knitting up really beautifully, so its worth the effort thus far. Here's where I'm at presently (yes, the gradations are part of this heathery yarn!):