KnitburoKnitburo

on knitting and wearing

socks

Gifting socks

This Christmas was the first time I knit a pair of socks for someone else. It’s incredibly convenient my recipient and I have the same shoe size, but I’m not sure I’ll be knitting socks for anyone else anyway. Hats and scarves and even gloves are easy and ‘normal’ things to give but I think hand knit socks are a bit too niche even for most of my otherwise extremely knitworthy recipients – they require that extra bit of care and commitment (to not wash your laundry too hot and know they might not fit inside all your shoes, that is) that make me worry they’re slightly too fussy to give to most people.

I was planning on following a pattern because there are so, so many pretty ones that I want to try but in the end I decided to make something up myself… of course. I wasn’t getting great stitch definition with texture so I went for a simple bit of lace in a grid pattern, which is something I explored in a pullover earlier this year although I had to figure out a different stitch that would be flatter and more comfortable when worn inside a shoe. I actually tried a Fleegle heel for a change but it didn’t work well at all and I just didn’t have the time to keep experimenting, so I reverted to my trusty Fish Lips Kiss heel in the end.

From the ground up

When I first started knitting I couldn’t understand why anyone would knit socks. Spending all that time just to stomp all over your finished knit with your feet, what. Eventually I started making sweaters and suddenly socks started to seem like very enticing, quick little projects. That, and I started to wonder how much warmer I’d be if I started to knit everything I could.

It turns out socks aren’t quick after all, with the tiny needles and the tight gauge, but mostly because I suffer from intense second sock syndrome. I’ve finished some socks within a couple of weeks, but usually each pair takes me a lot longer. In the end though that might be exactly why I’ve grown so fond of making them. I tend to get a bit obsessed when I’m working on a sweater, especially when the end is in sight, so it’s nice to have something else to work on for just a few minutes at a time. Socks are where I switch over from being a project to a process knitter, although really the ‘process’ I enjoy the most in this case is simply stockinette over and over and over again, which I can put away when I get bored.

These chunky little socks were a nice little surprise, they were finished before I knew it. 3.25mm needles, crazy! Of course that second sock did take much longer than the first but I feel like I only sat down a couple of times to actually work on them and poof, a pair of socks. Each one took 1 skein exactly so they’re a little bit short but they’re for wearing at home so I think my ankles will survive. I was hoping to make a second pair as a gift but to make those in a bigger size, I’ll have to do a contrast heel, toe and maybe ribbing too, as I only have 2 skeins left. I should cast on soon, can’t be without a pair of socks on the needles anymore.