Orange You Glad?

I decided to give two at a time toe up socks another try. I started with some safety-orange colored cotton, because you can never be too careful when trying a new technique. I used Judy's Magic Cast On and then turned to a Wendy Johnson basic toe-up sock pattern for guidance.
I couldn't decide which increase would work better, so I hedged my bets and used both M1 and pfb in different places. These are mirrored M1 increases at the toe .
and these are kfb increases at the gusset
Looking at the results, I can't really say there's much of a difference. The M1 inc seems to blend in a wee bit better, but only if you're looking really up close.

As for general impressions on the technique, I love that clever cast on. Also, the potential for leftover-minimization is pretty enticing. I gave up on the two-at-a-time business pretty quickly.
As soon as I finished the toe increases, I switched to an 11" circ, in the process dropping down one needle size to a US00/1.75mm needle, because I knit even looser on a circular needle. Magic loop beats the pants off double points, but there's nothing like the speed of non-stop circular knitting (at least as soon as the gusset increases were done and I ditched the stitch markers). I'm working on the second sock now. I feel safer already.