pair #41 - these are opal sweet&spicy3 kiwi socklets for my husband. i showed you the first one in my last sock post (which was exactly two months ago now as i start writing this post - i may finish it tomorrow because it's late already).
they have been in the wash at least three times already but it's really getting too warm for handknitted socks now. at least for my husband - i still wear them at home. after having worn basically nothing but handknitted socks since september last year i start to find wearing commercial socks rather not so nice... i hate it actually, but with some spring and summer shoes it can't be avoided because said shoes are too tight for handknitted socks (and it looks stupid) but they can't be worn without socks either. as soon as i get home i rip these thin, slipping, a-seam-at-the-toe-having socks off my feet and put lovely handknitted ones on, and since i wear mostly ankle socklets now that it's warmer (unless it's raining - then i put on the cozy slouchier ones) i don't get too hot and my ankles don't get "choked" by too much material around them.
pair #42 is another pair of little socks for T made from three or four year old christmas sock yarn. T selected it because it was the one with most red in and it sparkles - both highly desirable qualities he says, which i totally support...
pair #43 is opal yarn again, sweet&spicy2 in watermelon. i made this pair for my mum for mother's day (which is in may in austria). i used a modified cuff drops pattern which looks very cute on ankle socks too, i think. by the way: this is the first pair of socks i ever intentionally matched.
whenever i give socks as a gift i like to make my own band to wrap them in. since papercrafting is one of my other passions i usually have all the supplies ready anyway. i usually try to match the band with the theme of the socks or the taste of the recipient (as far as known) a little.
for this one i used some cardsock, tore one edge to mimic bite-marks in a slice of melon and inked it up at the bottom - the peel - with "crushed olive" and "peeled paint" Distress Ink, faded it out into white and came in from the torn edge with "barn door" and "picked raspberry" to achieve a pinkish kind of bright red. i splattered the whole thing with water to get some interest, and black ink just over the top for the seeds. i'm really pleased with how it turned out, i have to say... i like making little things special as well as big and "more important" ones and i know my mum appreciates it. this sock-band hangs on her cards-and-other-nice-messages display as a matter of fact.
(i usually write the care instructions either on the back or the inside of the band, and at the end of this post you can see another one of the sock bands i did.)
pair #44 is yet another opal, sweet&spicy3 saffron. if you look closely at this pair's colour changes and the pattern of the kiwi socks, you will probably notice that it's the same only in different colours. the saffron colourway is one of my most favourite ones yet - the picture does not do the beauty of the colours justice. usually i don't like to work with very similar or the same yarn for too long, but the opal sweet&spicy yarns are so diverting in a way. it's ridiculously exciting to watch the colours and the pattern change as you work which made these socks especially fly off my hands.
because i liked the cuff drops pattern on the watermelon socks so much i had to try it on the saffron too. some of the bobbles turned out two-coloured which i thought was great!
pair #45 is made from Austermann Step 0219 and the colours remind me of skittles sour.
it has aloe vera and jojoba oil in it, which is supposed to be good for the feet and last up to thirty washes. i felt like it was very hard to knit with - very slippery and it was hard to keep an even tension. the pair took me forever to finish because it was so hard on the hands. i modified the mojo sock pattern for these to make them fit better. i'll talk about that more soon. i also made them with an afterthought heel because i wanted the colour repeat to stay intact on the top of the socks.
i have used this afterthought heel technique before and i like it very much. many patterns for afterthought heels instruct you to insert waste yarn which is taken out to create the gap where the heel is knitted into. using lifelines and actually opening the knitted fabric after picking up the stitches except for two on each side, as shown in picture above, creates a very neat and clean heel "corner" with no holes that need to be closed later on.
i start with the heel in the center of the sole and when i've worked around the corner - where the yellow stitches are in the above pic - i knit three stitches and then knit the tail end from opening the fabric together with my working yarn for about five stitches. i do the same on the other side with the other tail end. this makes sure that everything is nice and secure. the rest of the tail ends are darned when the heel is all done and i don't think any of my heels done this way will ever come undone.
i've added a list of links in the right sidebar where you can find all the instructions i use (to various extent) to create this heel. i will keep adding to this list whenever i find tutorials that i keep returning to.
pair #46 is made from the leftover opal kiwi yarn. it's a tiny pair of socklets with a rolled edge. the pattern could not be simpler: 15 rounds in stockinette - no ribbing; heel, foot, toe - done.
this tiny ball is all that is left over. when i was working on the second sock i did worry a little if there would be enough but it worked out. oh, and this pair accidentally matches, starting from the heel, because there was a knot in the yarn. i think it's great to know that i can get a pair of socks each for my husband and myself out of 100g of yarn. both our sock sizes are about average i think, but even for two bigger pairs it would still work if you made contrasting heels and/or toes.
pair #47 is made from NEXT Sock Yarn "samba" 4254. these are 50g balls of very soft single spun yarn which i had left over from my circle cardigan.
i was reluctant to knit socks from this yarn at first because the only single spun sock yarn i've had good experiences with, as far as sockmaking is concerned, is Schoppel Zauberball. most single spun yarns that are marketed as sock yarn are actually only sock yarn weight, which means they have about 400-425m per 100g, but are not really suitable for socks because they are often rather artsy, thick and thin, and don't have the elasticity 4-ply sock yarn has and which is needed to make well fitting socks.
i had two of these left and used one to make my mermaid doll. and when she was finished i thought i'd just give it a try and make another pair of little socklets with the other ball - because i loved the yarn so much.
i made them with an afterthought heel again - actually the first socklet pair that i tried this heel on and it turns out that it makes the socks fit even better. the crystal heel is bigger, rounder and more cup shaped than the heel i usually do, which keeps the rolled edge of the socks higher up and from slipping down. i just love it and will use this heel for all the ankle socklets i plan to make. there will be more...
also: as far as i can tell so far this yarn seems to hold its shape when knitted far better than i thought it would - especially when i compare it to the other pairs i have made from single spun (other than Zauberball).
while making these socks i went a little crazy taking pictures of the ball of yarn as it changed colours. it was really lovely to watch:
and when there is only rather little yarn left the ball takes on a cute kind of flower shape:
currently i'm working on a pair of socks that matches my seahorse:
i enjoyed working with this yarn very much and there is plenty left for short socks. the first one turned out a little too big for me so i decided to give them to my mum who will love them...
ever since i started knitting socks i stopped during the summer months. knitting very much feels like an autumn-winter-spring-occupation. i did slow down with my knitting - and dolls have taken up some of my time - but all in all i'm quite surprised at my own perseverance and i don't seem to want to stop even though we're full into summer now... but it hasn't been really hot yet so that might still change. we'll see...
happy yarning everyone!
EDIT: the seahorse pattern is by lalylala.