socks!

[firecat]

My third pair of socks, first pair of worsted-weight socks, first pair that didn't follow a specific pattern. I'm getting better, but I still haven't figured out how to get rid of the holes at the edges of the heels where I turn the short rows. Next time I'll try the flap-and-gusset heel.

Made from Ellen's 1/2 Pint Farm worsted superwash wool, 1 ball red and 1 ball red and gray stripe. I used #3 casein DPNs. They were lovely to work with, except you can't hold them in your mouth or they start to melt.

Comments

[surelars.livejournal.com]

Yay! Beautiful.

[firecat]

Thanks!

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

Very cool. One day I hope to be brave enough to make socks.

[firecat]

Thanks! They are mostly easier than they are made out to be, IMO, except for this holes in the heel problem.

[annaoj.livejournal.com]

Are you using the short row heel pattern from the universal toe-up socks pattern? My tricks for not getting holes at the edges of the heels are these: I use the directions here (http://misocrafty.squarespace.com/journal/2006/9/21/short-row-heel-tutorial.html) for the actual heel turns, and then at the end of the heel, I don't do the turn for the final purl row, but instead knit the front of the sock and then pick up the wrapped stitches when I get back to the start of the heel.

Let me know if these make sense! :)

[firecat]

Thanks! I tried various short row heel instructions I found on the web, including one with instructions to knit the front of the sock before the last wrap (I did the heel of one of the socks about three times), but I didn't find the "PSSO the wraps" idea.

Do you also pick up any extra stitches when you start knitting in the round again?

[snippy]

Wow, socks! I am not brave enough to try socks yet.

[firecat]

They aren't as hard as people make them out to be, IMO, except for getting rid of the holes in the heels!

[prairierabbit.livejournal.com]

Lovely! I am a sock coward, but am starting to ponder a sweater.

[firecat]

Thanks! I find sweaters harder than socks...mainly because I don't have gauge conquered yet, so they always fit differently than I thought they would.

[theycallmebeth.livejournal.com]

Those look amazing!! So warm and comfy. I love the colour choices too. :)

[firecat]

Thanks! They are really soft.

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Nice! Worsted weight socks go fast, which is always nice.

[firecat]

Thanks! Yes! And I need a lot of cushioning on my feet, so they are better for me. Most of the sock patterns are for fingering weight though, so I guess I'm on my own if I want to get fancy. :)

[jinian.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I like fingering weight myself, but it'd be fun to have more options. There are a couple of nice worsted-weight patterns in the Green Mountain Spinnery Knitting Book. The first socks I made were from there.

[firecat]

Thanks!

I'm taking a sock designing class at the Knit & Crochet Show in Oakland next month...

[19-crows.livejournal.com]

I like those colors a lot.

[firecat]

Thanks!

[mjlayman.livejournal.com]

Oh, very nice!

[firecat]

Thanks!

[innerdoggie.livejournal.com]

Very pretty!

I was at a dinner recently where everybody except me and my SO were knitting socks. You'd have fit right in! (And you know some of the people, too!)

[firecat]

Thanks! (Sounds like I would have liked that dinner.)

getting rid of holes

[firstlight1.livejournal.com]

Hi! I stumbled on your journal by accident. I'm an avid knitter and last week, I discovered a trick for getting rid of the holes around the heels.

Follow the instructions for picking up stitches. Then knit a normal round. On the NEXT round, when you knit the stitches for the last row, also pick up the tops of the stitches that you picked up around the heels. The trouble is that the loops are too big & stretchy from that pick up row, so they need to be picked up twice, basically.

I hope that helps! Happy knitting!

Re: getting rid of holes

[firecat]

Thanks for the tip!