FO: Fell Walkers

It's been a while since I've posted a crafty project.  It's summer (still?), I just don't feel like it.  

I did finish a pair of socks that I started on the trail though.

I went for a stash-dive and picked out a nice ball of Opal Shafpate and cast on for the Reverso socks from the most recent Knitty.

I cast on during the train ride to Carlisle and I was pleasantly surprised to see that they were fell-colored!  What a serendipitous choice for a hiking take-along.   

Not my hairy arm, btw.... 

Or my hairy legs....

I am usually hesitant to try out new techniques when it comes to sock construction.  I'm a bit lazy that way.  I don't like to think too hard when I'm making a pair of socks, as I knit them on the go and dislike fiddly things.  These were worth it though, and an idea that I had been contemplating for a while: how to make a pair of socks that can be worn with the smooth knit-side fabric on the soles without having to do a ridiculous amount of purling.  

Easy: make them inside out!

You start at the cuff in mistake rib pattern.  Instead of gusset increases, you do Cat Borhdi's ceder construction, which puts the increases at the heel instead.  Once you start the heel turn, you flip the socks inside out, and continue in the mistake rib.

So now you have a pair of socks that there is no right or wrong side out!

The only awkward moment was grafting the toe and weaving the ends in, as I tried my best to hide it.  They are cozy, warm stretchy socks that would easily fit a variety of foot sizes, so great for gifting.  They also didn't take too long at all as far as socks go.

The yarn is 75% superwash, 25% nylon, so they should wear well for years.  If not, it's going to be a mess for me to try and patch these up, as I generally count on the repair work to not be seen on the inside.

Now I'm somewhat obsessed with self-striping sock yarn.  For years, I favored intricate cable and lace patterns on my sock, which pairs well with the hand-painted variegated yarn I love so much.  Intricate patterns tend to get lost when you have yarn that stripes heavily, so doing plain socks or some texture works better.

I love them so much, I cast on another pair of stripe socks as soon as I was done.  The bug has bitten once again.  

FO- Knetted Socks

I finished a pair of socks recently. They are from the Socks that Rock club from last fall. Begone, sock yarn! You will languish no further in my stash.



The yarn is BMFA medium weight in "River Rocked". The skein is absolutely gorgeous- so many great fall colors in there.



Predictable, it knitted up kind of muddy, but I did love this pattern. The linen stitch diamonds helped show off the colors.







The pattern is "Knetted", by Cat Bordhi. She does such unusual, creative patterns. This one had a heel that I can only describe as a "happy face". It's "U" shaped, and it fits really well, and it eliminates the need for gusset shaping. And the toe- there was no Kitchener stitch involved. There was a series of decreases the spiraled down to nothing. Really ingenious. They look kind of funky without a foot in them, but they are actually really nice on.

Oh, and I started this for Socktoberfest. I forgot to take pictures of that event. It's our annual sock-knitting and beer-swilling evening at the local Teutonic establishment. We do it on a Monday night, and everyone backs away from us and leaves us alone.

This is yet another skein gone for my A-Z stashdown challenge. I actually noticed a dent in my sock yarn bin the other day. Oh, that's only because I've used 12 skeins of sock yarn up since this challenge began last spring.

These are going to be gifted, as my sock draw is full. The medium weight yarn is a bit too thick to shove into a pair of shoes, so these would be great house slippers or an outer layer boot sock. I grew up in Maine, and buying your winter boots a size too big so you can fit another thick wooly layer of sock is the norm.