Tag Archives: sock knitting

And this is why you swatch.

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OK.  Mistakes were made.

I was all stoked last week about making myself a pair of comfy socks.

Mistake 1-  After going on and on about all of those lovely, tried-and-true sock patterns, I decided to go off script.  Why?  Who knows?

Mistake 2- I decided to make the socks cabled.  Why?  When have I ever made cabled socks that weren’t a disaster?  Never.  Cables are the best- I love them.  They make wonderful, dense fabric that’s extra-thick and cozy.  I don’t want extra-thick fabric on my socks.  They have to fit inside shoes.

Mistake 3- I didn’t swatch.  Like an idiot.

Actually, I kinda did swatch.  I swatched the pattern (with different needles and different yarn).  IMG_2820I was thinking about using the cable design in a sweater or something, but I decided after I was finished with the swatch that it would be better for a sock.  I still maintain these are very cute socks.  But compared to my usual sock gauge, they’re way off.

Mistake 4- When I first started thinking I’d made a mistake, I just kept going.

About 3 inches in, I thought “Huh.  These are looking a little slim.”  But did I stop? No!  That would have involved admitting defeat, and having to problem-solve.

Anyway, long story short, I have one sock.  It’s a lovely sock.  It’s tall and blue and has a cute all-over cable pattern.IMG_2828

And it’s nowhere close to fitting me.  I’d show it to you on my foot, but you don’t need to see that.  Just trust that the cables are stretched beyond recognition and it barely stretches over my calf.  It’s real sad.

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Now I just have to decide what to do next.  Do I rip it back, and go back to a tried-and-true pattern?  Do I continue and work up a second one in the same pattern, and give it away to a smaller-footed friend? Do I ball it up and leave it at the back of my WIP drawer until I forget how I made it?

All equally good choices, I think.

What would you do?

First Sock Syndrome

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We’ve all heard of Second Sock Syndrome– that affliction that makes it nigh on impossible to make yourself knit the second sock of a pair.  I admit, sometimes I get a little flare-up of SSS, but it’s something that I try really hard to avoid.

But, I have to admit that I live with a related affliction.  Something just as (if not more) deadly than Second Sock Syndrome, but perhaps a little less common.  I’m here to raise awareness about FSS.  That’s right: First Sock Syndrome, otherwise known as Cuffonly Sockitis.

I realized that I might be having a bout of FSS this weekend when I went to grab a set of my favorite sock needles for a new project (5″ bamboo US2 dpns, if you’re wondering). I have 5 or 6 sets of these needles, so I figured I’d be able to just grab some from the jar on my bookshelf and go on my merry way.  But no!  I couldn’t find a single needle!

It turns out they’re all being used in socks.  And not second socks.  That would be too easy- just a couple hours work to free my needles and finish off a brand-new pair of socks!  Not a single sock in my house is past the heel.  They’re all firmly stuck mid-way down the cuff.IMG_0193I don’t even remember starting this sock.  I think I started it literally before we moved… almost 4 years ago.IMG_0195And this one… I don’t even know what to say. IMG_0198It looks like I started it, got bored with it, put it down, picked it up again, completely forgot what pattern I was working, and just guessed until I got a couple more inches knit.  Look!  You can clearly see where I totally forgot what I was doing.IMG_0202.JPGClearly, I have a problem, and clearly, I’ve got some knitting to do to finish/fix these socks.

Or maybe I’ll just go buy another set of dpns.

Do you ever get FSS?

Pattern: Socks for Everybody

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I’ve got a heck of a surprise for you guys!

It’s big news!  Exciting news!  Guess what?!

I wrote a book!Look at that!  It’s got my name on the cover and everything!

It’s a super-comprehensive “how to knit socks” book!The book is basically one big old recipe for making socks of every possible variety.  You want to make top-down socks with cables? Covered.  Want to make toe-up socks with stripes? No problem. Are you thinking about baby socks with afterthought heels? Done.

Socks For Everybody is a big a la carte instruction book that lets you make any sized socks using any yarn you prefer with any heel/toe/cuff/design combo you want.

I’ve included tons of tutorials detailing how to get through the trickier parts of sock construction (with lots of beautiful pictures to help you on your way), making this book perfect for people who have never quite gotten up the guts to try sock knitting before.Sure, this book is great for people who are new to the amazing world of sock knitting, but it’s also great for experienced sock knitters who are looking for help with designing their own socks.  I’ve included instructions on custom-fitting socks to your feet (and your yarn), as well as tips on picking the right heel/toe combo and design elements.I think this book has the potential to become a great resource for any sock knitter- a book that you can come back to again and again, whenever you need a new, customized pattern for that next pair of socks.I’m super happy with how this book turned out, and I really hope that you guys are as excited about it as I am.

If you want your own copy of Socks for Everybody, head over to Knit Picks.  (Or, if you prefer an e-book, follow this link.)

It’s in the bag

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I’m flying through socks right now.  I’ve got two separate socks from two distinct pairs on my needles right this second.  I’ve even started a new pair of socks without finishing the first pair… something I never do.  It’s like I’ve been bitten by some sort of sock bug.  I’ve contracted a terrible case of sock-fluenza.  I’ve been stricken with sock-itis.

It’s a problem. (Not really.)

Because of my sock-itosis, I’ve been schlepping my sock bag around a lot, and I thought I’d give you a tour of what I carry with me when I’m on a sock binge.I’ve got a handful of sock bags, but I think this one might be my favorite.  It’s tough- I sewed it out of poplin and scraps of cute green quilting cotton.  It’s nice and roomy, but still compact enough to fit in my purse.  And, it’s got a nice big zipper to keep my knitting safe and sound as I schlep it around town.

Open it up, and all this fits inside!  Two big skeins of yarn, a half-finished sock (plus needles) and my trusty notions kit full to bursting with scissors, tapestry needles and stitch markers.

(OK, if I’m being honest, my bag also contains this Snickers wrapper from when I got real hungry at work last week and had to stop for a candy bar.  I’m a grown up, so I can eat candy when I want.)It’s not terribly exciting-there isn’t anything super surprising in my bag, but it still is pretty satisfying to know that I can keep a whole project with me at all times.

Ollie thought it was cool, too.Do you carry a knitting bag?  What’s in yours?

Mystery Vacation and Vacation Knitting

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Have I mentioned that I have the World’s Best Husband?  Because I do.  I really do.  (Sorry, this post isn’t going to have a lot of knitting in it… oh well!)

So, my 30th birthday was this week (yep, I’m officially a grown-up now), and instead of going out to eat or having friends over or renting out the roller rink, my husband decided to do something flipping amazing for me.  He planned a secret vacation!

All I knew going in was that we were heading out of town for about a week, and a few days before we left, he told me to pack for the beach (which was lucky, because I was 100% convinced that we were going to Portland).

I packed my bags, and made sure to bring plenty of knitting (because you never know), and we headed to the airport.

I didn’t take a picture of my face when he finally told me where we were going, but it was something like this:

7241270_f260Because we were going to Hawaii!  Kauai, specifically.  5 days of beaches, snorkeling, tropical drinks and hiking in the rain forest.  OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAIt was utterly delightful.  And I didn’t even end up sunburnt! (As a super-pale Seattleite, this is a huge victory.)

And while sunbathing and swimming isn’t terribly conducive to knitting, I did get most of the way through my Diagonal Lace socks (two 6-hour-one-way flights) help with that!  I’ve just got a little bit of cuff, some finishing and a quick blocking, and they’ll be done!

Yay vacation!  Yay socks!

Manly Socks

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Here’s the annoying part about being a knitter:  When people learn about your hobby, they all want knitted things for their birthday/Christmas/Arbor Day.

And here’s the sick part about being a knitter:  You want to make stuff for everyone.

For example,  my father-in-law is notoriously hard to find gifts for, so when he mentioned to me that all he wanted for Christmas was a pair of hand-knit socks each year, I couldn’t help but oblige!  I even had a pair of fairly large manly-looking socks in my stash of finished projects in a lovely burgundy-brown color.  Easy-peasy!

He loved them, and wore them the rest of Christmas break (which made me very happy-it’s always great to see your work being appreciated).  But there was a problem:  They were WAY too small.

Not too small that he couldn’t get the socks on or anything, but my knitter’s eye couldn’t help but notice that the sock was pulling across the ball of the foot and the heel was much too close to the toe.

It drove me nuts!  I pulled out a couple skeins of sock yarn from my suitcase and started working on next year’s Christmas Socks then and there (what?  Don’t tell me I’m the only one that travels with a selection of yarns and needles.).

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Unfortunately, these socks are slow going, for many reasons.  First off, I kind of forgot about them for a while and they hid somewhere in my knitting studio.  Second, I’ve been crazy busy with a bunch of pattern writing and haven’t had time to finish these guys.

But most of all, these socks are annoyingly large.  A few extra stitches per row and several inches longer than my standard socks.  And, I picked a cool-looking, but annoyingly complicated basket-weave stitch.  It all adds up to very slow going,

Ugh.

Oh well, at least I have 5 more months to finish them!