Socky socks! - Updated 3/10/15

[NeedleAndFork]

It's been absolutely ages since I knit anything, but I'm finally feeling motivated again.. so I've wound up a ball of yarn, picked out a pattern, and I'm raring to go!

Here's the pattern I'm planning on knitting...



And the yarn (which the photo absolutely does not do justice to)..



Off I go to cast on!

[karen4bells]

How cute are those---would make great slippers too!!! Where is the pattern from??

[NeedleAndFork]

How cute are those---would make great slippers too!!! Where is the pattern from??

It's a free pattern!! You can get it from here

I'm discovering that knitting uses completely different finger muscles than cross stitch does.. and this pattern's giving them quite a workout! Nevermind that the start of them is as fiddly as all get out - I'm making finger pretzels as I try to work that toe. But the toe is sooo pretty, with the pattern going all the way to the edge, it'll be worth it.

[calico]

My goodness those look so intricate to knit! I tried knitting socks once (bought a book) but found it difficult to do. Sometimes when I revisit something it's easier the second time round so I may have to do that someday. I had better luck crocheting slippers but they don't have the same look.
These are gorgeous and I hope you share pics of your progress...

[fccs]

Oh, those socks are so cool! I love socks...I've crocheted socks before...but really they were slippers and I just wore them around the house until I wore them out. I've tried knitting but it just seems to take so much attention.

[NeedleAndFork]

My goodness those look so intricate to knit! I tried knitting socks once (bought a book) but found it difficult to do. Sometimes when I revisit something it's easier the second time round so I may have to do that someday. I had better luck crocheting slippers but they don't have the same look.
These are gorgeous and I hope you share pics of your progress...

Give it another try! In fact, here's my recommendation for the best pattern for new sock knitters..

http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEwinter02/PATTfuzzyfeet.html" target="_blank

You essentially knit a really big sock out of thick yarn, and then deliberately shrink it in the washing machine. I've used this pattern to teach several people to make socks because it is extremely forgiving - as long as you get the basic shape down, any mistakes disappear in the wash when you felt them. Once you learn how to knit the basic parts of a sock (cuff, heel, toe) then most sock patterns are essentially the same thing, but with stitch patterns thrown in to dress them up.

Just make sure that you use yarn that is 100% wool and that is NOT marked as superwash, as superwash yarn has been treated to be safe to machine wash and it won't shrink/felt. I like Patons Classic Merino - it's fairly cheap at about 6 bucks a ball and you can get it at joanns or micheals.

[DahliaDoll]

That's really a beautiful pattern. I have knit socks, and I can do magic loop, but I certainly don't have the skills to complete that pattern. I hope you will keep us updated on your progress.

[Oriettait]

That looks like an amazing pattern, will be looking forward to see your update

[NeedleAndFork]

I decided to try to get a better picture of the color of the yarn since the first shot I took really sucked. So here's what an evening of knitting and trying to make sense of the pattern got me..



The color is MUCH more accurate in this picture. And I am very happy with the pairing of yarn and pattern. There's just enough variation in the yarn to be interesting and not be flat, but it isn't too busy to obscure the pattern. I just love semi-solid kettle dyes for patterns like this.

One of these days I'm going to have to try this method of dyeing on floss too!

[stitch addicted]

Wow! Just beautiful.

[rcperryls]

Those socks look great! My feet would be very happy wearing them (one of my GDs used to talk about how pretty shoes and\or socks would make her feet happy).

Carole

[starshine123102]

WOW those look incredible!

Thank you again for all your wonderful advice getting me through my first pair of socks, I'm very happy with them!

[DahliaDoll]

Wow! I wish I could some and knit beside you and have you teach me how to do that!

[calico]

Oh cool! Thanks for the link to the beginner socks, those look like fun to make and I wanted to try felting too

Your socks look awesome so far!!! Great yarn! What is that wooden form you have them on?

[NeedleAndFork]

Your socks look awesome so far!!! Great yarn! What is that wooden form you have them on?

They're a pair of cedar sock blockers. The etsy seller I got them from doesn't seem to make them any more, but I have a pair that look like this with a leather cord attaching them to each other.



Most knitting needs to be blocked after it is done to be properly finished so after I finish a pair of socks, I soak them in warm water, wrap in a towel and squeeze out as much water as I can and then slip them onto the blockers to finish drying. This smooths out the knitting and evens it out, making lace and cables lay more evenly. You can make a pair out of just about anything, wire coat hangers shaped into a sock with the hanger part at the top of the leg work really well, but I just love these. When they're not in use, they hang in my closet by all my woolens. And they're great to photograph socks on!

Wow! I wish I could some and knit beside you and have you teach me how to do that!

You can do it! It's mostly twisted stitches and a couple of different double increases and double decreases, none of which are difficult on their own, just fiddly when they're all crammed in together but that's what makes the pretty pattern. The pattern's a freebie, so you can snag it and give it a try - In fact, if you want to play with it, I'd suggest ignoring the actual sock part of the pattern, and giving the chart a try using maybe a smooth sport or DK weight yarn so you can see what's going on and do a couple of repeats of the chart pattern to get the hang of it. Then you can start the socks with the pattern in them! I've done that quite a bit when faced with a pattern within an item that I know will challenge me - I work the kinks out in a swatch first so that I don't have to tink and start over on the actual item. As much as I hate swatching, I know it's an absolute necessity in knitting to get things to fit right and look good.

WOW those look incredible!

Thank you again for all your wonderful advice getting me through my first pair of socks, I'm very happy with them!

You're very welcome. And your socks look fantastic too! Did you ever find yarn for a pair for yourself?

Those socks look great! My feet would be very happy wearing them (one of my GDs used to talk about how pretty shoes and\or socks would make her feet happy).

I'm not that much of a shoe person.. give me a comfy pair of boots, a pair of sneakers and some sandals and I'm good in the shoe department. But I love love love my socks. Even before I was a sock knitter I used to buy all kinds of wild socks. Learning to knit them just added to the addiction. It makes me all kinds of happy to have colorful wool socks in all kinds of patterns on my feet, whether they're visible or not. Except in the hottest part of summer, all I wear are hand knit socks.

[NeedleAndFork]

Update time! I've not been knitting on these nearly as much as I hoped to over the last week, and the pattern isn't as easy to memorize as I'd hoped it would be so I'm making slow progress. That said, I absolutely love this pattern..



I'm going to make more of an effort to memorize the pattern so that I can work more fluidly at these. I think in part it's because I don't love the way the designer has charted the pattern, so I'm considering recharting it myself in a way that makes more sense to me.

[littleturtlegirl]

They look amazing!!!!

[karen4bells]

Very pretty!!! Such an intricate design!!

[Mabel Figworthy]

Whata gorgeous pattern, and the colour is jewel-like!

[Sarah Gixxer]

Beautiful work! I am a knitter myself although I'm sorry to say it's a few years since I knitted anything. This is a lovely pattern and I love the wool you chose.