Wednesday, February 7, 2018

Making Socks

Since my foray into crochet last year, knitting was a natural progression. However I have enough scarves and beanies so decided to go for the next most useful thing socks. I know a beginner knitter rarely starts with socks but in my opinion it was the most useful thing to make. Something that I would use regularly.

I began to look into how to knit socks and what was the simplest way to knit up a pair of socks. I inquired from sock knitters at the Seattle Modern Quilt Guild and Jaci Bartol pointed me to the book Socks From The Toe Up by Wendy Johnson. I would not say this was the easiest read but I stuck to the simple sock pattern. 

For the supplies I got some expert help from my local yarn shop Tea Cozy Yarn. Jean is extremely helpful and set me up with some Addi Rockets in size 2mm and 1mm. She recommended that I start with 2mm circular needles and once I am comfortable for the next pair switch over to 1mm circular needles. I picked Perfect Pair Regia sock yarn by Arne and Carlos for my first pair. I must say it was not the perfect pair of socks but wearable and I loved them.





After the success of the first pair I decided to make a second one. This time I felt brave enough to use the 1mm circular needle and try making two socks at the same time so that I have two socks the exact same size. I picked this lovely aubergine hand dyed yarn from Tea Cozy Yarn. The advantage of having a LQS a short walk away. It felt absolutely luxurious. This time I decided to add a bit of texture to the sock and followed a diamond pattern.


I absolutely love this pair. Purple is my favorite color and I seemed to have embraced it more in yarn than I ever did with quilts. With this pair done I decided it was time to up my game a little more and quickly started on the next pair, cable socks this time. Once again Jean hooked me up with a cable needle and I see cable socks in my near future.


Operation sock drawer is in the works for 2018. Maybe it is time to upgrade my skills and knit a cardigan perhaps. I would love one in ochre.

4 comments:

  1. Impressive! I love that you wanted to do it so you just did! They're beautiful!

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    1. Hah having all of you around me inspires me to push the boundaries and learn new things.

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  2. Beautiful socks Rachel! I'm envious of your talents!

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