Yesterday afternoon, I finished my second pair of socks ever, and the first pair that I will wear. And I will wear these often! I am a sock knitting convert!
At first, I though my aversion to sock knitting stemmed from the small gauge. But that doesn't make sense... I knit 5 pairs of fingerless mitts on size 2's with fingering weight alpaca. And I'm knitting a sweater of sock yarn on 1's. Then, awhile ago, while sorting laundry, it came to me. I only wear ankle socks or knee socks. Absolutely nothing in-between. So why did I knit the first pair to be mid-calf length? (I'd say the fact that I took a year-long break between the first and second sock might have been a hint that I wouldn't like them, but then that would mean that there are about 10 projects upstairs that I won't like once I finally finish them. And I know that's not true. It can't be.)
So on the way to Madison last week, I cast on for a pair of socks from a really neat skein of yarn I'd had in the stash for awhile. It was a skein of
Ancient Threads Sock Yarn that I bought at the
Elegant Ewe in Menominee, MI. Ancient Threads Farm Yarn is naturally dyed with botanical and insect based dyes. I used the yarn on the left in the top photo. I am still thinking about a project for the other skein.
After a few false starts (including tearing out an also completed sock to about 2 inches after the cast-on, I waited until we returned home, and dug out my borrowed (thanks, Mom!) copy of "
New Pathways for Sock Knitters" by
Cat Bordhi. This book is pure genious, and allows you to knit socks custom fit for your feet. I finished both socks in about 6 days, and also worked on other projects. That busted the myth in my head that socks took a long time to knit. So I now present you with proof that I did, in fact, knit and wear a pair of socks!
I knit these toe-up, starting with
Judy Becker's Magic Cast-On, which my just be the most useful bit of information I gleaned from "New Pathways". That is saying something, as the book is chock-full of useful techniques and tips. I use this cast-on exclusively whenever a pattern calls for a provisional cast-on. It really is magic. I then used the
Riverbed Master Pattern from the book, knit to the end of the heel, worked in the round for a few rows, throwing in a couple of short rows along the back, and topped them off with an I-Cord bind off. Check out my
Ancient Threads Anklets Ravelry project page for all the details!
