Happy Autumn! It seems I took the summer off from posting. Hey, life is like that sometimes. So, I’ll be posting now and then with projects I finished long ago, such as these socks for my husband. He was quite enthusiastic about the first Oliver socks I knit him, but I didn’t like how the ribbing buckles over the stockinette part of the front of his foot.

The idea with this pair was to continue the ribbing down the front of his foot to see if that would ease the buckling. As it turns out, it doesn’t do a thing! Now we have a different sort of ribbing, but the leg bit still bunches and buckles at the foot. Hrmmm. At least the design change lets me keep the pairs separate in the laundry, though I’m not sure if that’s a good or bad thing. It’s probably a bad one, once he wears a hole in one of the socks.

Details:

Started:	9 Oct 2010
Finished:	2 Feb 2011
Pattern:	Oliver by Marlowe Crawford. Link to pattern on Ravelry here. It was $7 US when I bought it.
Yarn:	Superwash merino fingering weight yarn in ‘latte’ from the Yarn Gallery. I got a size 10.5 US men’s pair of socks from one skein with plenty left over.
Needles:	US 1 / 2.25 mm
Notes:	72 sts around. These were made with 9″ cuffs, which John loves. My Ravelry project page is here.

Hey, everyone. I have not fallen off the surface of the earth, and I have been making things. Whenever life gets a little too crazy, I forget to do some of the things I like to do, like talking with you all. I did, however, remember to pay the bills, so I guess my priorities are in order somewhat.

So, to distract you all, here are some pretty socks!

These are Pointelle, from Cookie A’s latest book, Knit. Sock. Love. I keep on meaning to design some socks, but there are so many lovely patterns out there that I end up knitting someone else’s design instead. This pair is a birthday set for my lovely mother, who has patiently waited for some hand-knit socks for years. Now that I’ve completed this pair, I’m going to have to knit another set for myself – I love the look of this sock, and the pattern is easy once you get the hang of it. You just have to pay a bit of attention, like with many of Cookie A’s patterns.

One hint I found on Ravelry that I used for this set is Cat Bordhi’s “Hungry Stitch” method for the ssk lines. Don’t try this on the ssks in the lace section (ask me how I know), but the hungry stitch works a treat for the lines going across the sock in the plain section.

The yarn is Cascade Yarns Heritage Solids in Lilac. I purchased it mostly because it was solid, and I wanted to show off the pattern, and because it was in my mom’s signature color. The yarn was a little less springy than I’m used to working with, and I’m chalking it up to the nylon content (75% merino, 25% nylon.) Still, it was pretty yarn, and worked up well.

Details:

Started:	8 Feb 2011
Finished:	11 Mar 2011
Pattern:	Pointelle by Cookie A.
Yarn:	Cascade Yarns Heritage Solids, color 5614 (lilac)
Needles:	Metal dpns from Knit Picks
Notes:	Hungry Stitch ssk from Cat Bordhi helps the leg look great on these socks. Size is women’s US 6.

Happy New Year, everyone. It looks like the new year here will be even busier than the old one. I’m feeling a mite discombobulated, so I’m not even going to attempt to string this last set of projects into any sort of meaningful theme. Let’s just call it a brain-purge of all the 2010 projects I never got around to showing you.

Another lizard shirt, this one in blue. This one is made the same way as the first one was.

Rice packets! I put these in my sugar jars and laundry detergent to keep them from getting hard if a little moisture makes it into the jar. They make a huge difference, especially in my sugar jars. Without these little guys, we have to chip the sugar out!

A set of 2×2 rib socks for me. Yarn: Zen String Loopy Legends in Laurie’s Carolina Morning (100% merino wool – 3-ply light fingering weight. Needles: US 1.5 (2.5 mm) dpns

Notes:

Women’s US size 6: 2×2 Rib, Cuff down, 64 sts. 6â€� cuff Heel flap worked in heel stitch over 32 sts for 32 rows. Heel turn: 1 (RS): sl 1, k16, ssk, k1, turn. 2 (WS): sl 1, p3, p2 tog, p1, turn. Continue heel turn. Work foot to 7 1/4â€�. Work toe decrease every other round until 32 sts remain. Then, work decrease every round until 20 sts remain. Kitchener. Ravelry link

There’s another bat just like Glidey around here somewhere, but he was lost almost as soon as he was completed. Someday he’ll turn up and I’ll get a picture.

Also, imagine a pile of this yarn. I finished up the fiber, but have no photos yet.

May your new year be happy and bright!

-Stacy

Here are the last of the Olivers. Or, rather, I should say the last of the Olivers for a while. This is a nice, simple, attractive pattern, so I’m sure I’ll see it again. These are for J, who picked the glittery, loud yarn from my sister’s stash all by himself (hi, sis!). He adores them, but doesn’t really want to wear them because all that glitter also makes them a bit scratchy. Please note that he’s really sensitive – your mileage may vary.

I got quite a lot of practice in left leaning decreases over these three pair of socks, including a sort I’d never tried before – the ‘slip yank twist knit, or SYTK’ method from TECHknitting. I’ve decided that my personal favorite in stockinette stitch where you’re decreasing every two or three rows is a good old ssk with a twisted knit in the non-decrease row. It’s amazing how well that twisted knit stitch helps to even out the decrease line.

My folded and much marked-up Oliver pattern is currently missing, so I’ll just promise to post my new numbers for the socks when I come across it. You can find my size mods for the first pair of boy Olivers here (same size; yay twins.) I do recall that I made this pair a bit wider, and they could still stand a smidge more room in the width department. John’s man-sized Olivers are here.

Happy Weekend, everyone!

Details:

Started:	17 Dec 2009
Finished:	25 Jan 2010
Pattern:	Oliver by Marlowe Crawford. Link to pattern on Ravelry here. It was $7 US when I bought it.
Yarn:	Berocco Sox Metallic.
Needles:	US 1 / 2.25 mm
Notes:	Modifications to make it boy-sized: My kid’s foot is about 7â€� around and 8 1/8â€� long – child’s size US 3.5 / EU 35.5. 52 sts. 5â€� cuff. I’ll add the other details if/when I recover my notes. My Ravelry project page is here.

The Oliver sock pattern was such a hit with my husband that the boys caught his enthusiasm. Last Thanksgiving week, I found myself stranded in Ohio with no access to a local yarn shop (it was closed.) Facing a nine-hour drive back to North Carolina sans knitting, I called my sister the day before Thanksgiving, and she agreed to bring over a ball of sock yarn on Thanksgiving so I could work on some plain-Jane socks on the way back home.

I should have anticipated what happened next. After the wonderful chaos that was Thanksgiving, I sat down and was offered not a skein of yarn but a traveling yarn shop to choose from. Both of my boys chose sock yarn from Aunt Karen’s magic bag of yarn and I cast on for these Ollies during the trip. Thanks, Karen!

The yarn has a short repeat, so it was relatively easy to try and match the stripes. The matching came out better than I anticipated – right down to having the heel turn in all blue on each sock! The socks weigh 50g, but I did dip into the second skein of yarn, so buy two if you’re going to do 9 year old kid-socks in this yarn! The first skein made it through one sock and the cuff of the second. There was a little left over, but I thought it was a good place to match stripes for the rest of the second sock.

I am currently working on my third pair of Ollies, which is rather unheard of. I’m not sure I’ve ever knit three of one thing in a row before, let alone six of them. Details are below, as usual. I’ve included changes for whittling down the Oliver to a child’s size.

I wish you and yours a very happy 2010.

Details:

Started:	27 Nov 2009
Finished:	16 Dec 2009
Pattern:	Oliver by Marlowe Crawford. Link to pattern on Ravelry here. It was $7 US when I bought it.
Yarn:	Patons Kroy Socks Jacquards in colorway 56603. It took about a skein and a half to make a child’s size US 3.5 / EU 35.5.
Needles:	US 1 / 2.25 mm
Notes:	Modifications to make it boy-sized: My kid’s foot is about 7� around and 8 1/8� long. 48 sts (will do 52 next time). 5� cuff. Heel worked on 24 sts for 24 rows. Heel turn row 1: s1, p12, p2tog, p1 Heel turn row 2: s1, k3, ssk, k1 Gusset / foot modifications: Work as written through round 13. Round 14: knit. Round 15: Repeat rnd 9. Rnds 16-58: Repeat rnds 13-15. Work the rest as written (would change a bit about where the slant starts next time, to have it closer to the middle) until 1 1/4� from finished length. Work toe: dec every other row until 24 sts left, then every row until 12 sts left. Kitchener. My Ravelry project page is here.

Happy holidays, everyone!

My husband has found his sock pattern. And by ‘his’, I mean ‘the-one-I-shall-knit-for-him-again-and-again’. This clever pattern isn’t difficult at all, though it helps to keep track of what row you’re on. The sock has increases on the bottom and decreases on the top that result in both sides of the sock wrapping around the foot at an angle. This sock really hugs the foot, and John loves it. Here are a few photos and the details for those of you looking to make foot-huggers.

The lovely yarn comes from a hand-dyer out in Colorado. You can find Kimberly’s shop right here: http://www.catmtn.com/tyg-online/.

May your fingers be swift and clever, and your holidays relaxed and bright.

Details:

Started:	2 Oct 2009
Finished:	18 Nov 2009
Pattern:	Oliver by Marlowe Crawford. Link to pattern on Ravelry here. It was $7 US when I bought it.
Yarn:	Superwash merino fingering weight yarn in ‘latte’ from the Yarn Gallery. I got a size 10.5 US men’s pair of socks from one skein with plenty left over.
Needles:	US 1 / 2.25 mm
Notes:	I accidentally decreased until the foot was 70 sts instead of 72. Oops. They fit, but the next pair will have 72 sts on the foot. These were made with 8″ cuffs. My Ravelry project page is here.

These socks have been done for a while now, but under wraps until I could deliver them to my sis. They are a basic 2×2 rib sock pattern, worked toe up with an eye of partridge pattern on the heel.

I worked toe up so that I could make ridiculously long cuffs without fear of running out of yarn – K. likes to roll her cuffs down.

2×2 patterns are nice and stretchy, so it’s almost guaranteed to fit your recipient. I was nervous with this pair, because they almost fit me, and my sis is a size and a half up from where I am. However, the fit was great! Simple ribbing is great car or conversation knitting. I was also not about to do complex lace or cables with this beautiful, busy yarn. Why put in the work if no one can SEE it? That said, I moved right on to some cables on my next project so as to wake up a little.

I had to throw one more photo in – this is a detail shot of the eye of partridge heel. I love this heel pattern with handpainted yarn!

Details:

Started:	21 Aug 2008
Finished:	2 Aug 2009
Pattern:	Toe-up, 2×2, eye of partridge heel, gusset increases done as in Hubby House socks. See notes section for numbers and measurements.
Yarn:	Cherry Tree Hill Supersock Merino (yum) in Tropical Storm
Needles:	US 1 / 2.25mm
Notes:	I have detailed measurements jotted down on a piece of paper somewhere; I’ll add them when I find it!

Although flashy socks are fun, they don’t quite go with the office chinos and polo shirt. Enter the plain rib, or ‘boring enough for work’ socks. These socks have a bit of wear already, because John absconded with them as soon as they were off the needles.

I’m finding that I don’t hate making ribbed socks as much as I thought I would. They are great car knitting, because I don’t have to think about them. Endless rows of garter stitch, though, still drives me around the bend. What’s up with that?

Details:

Started:	12 Mar 2009
Finished:	4 May 2009
Pattern:	Improvised. 2×2 rib at top; 3×1 rib for the rest of the sock. Slipped stitch heel. Worked top-down with a heel flap. I’ll add specific notes when the slip of paper I wrote all the stitch counts and measurements on surfaces.
Yarn:	ShibuiKnits Sock, in ‘sand’.
Needles:	US 1.5 (2.5 mm) knitpicks metal dpns.
Notes:	Ravelry link to project.

Remember these? I finally got around to writing up my notes into a pattern. You can click here to download the pattern for free. If you try it and have any trouble (or even if you don’t!) please let me know.

This is a sock sized for a man’s medium foot (size US 10.5 / EU 44.5) and worked with sport weight yarn. If you want to make them to fit a woman or child, they aren’t hard to alter. The foot works on a 4-stitch repeat, and the cuff on an 8-stitch repeat, so it should be relatively easy to change things up to fit almost anyone.

Hi all,

Just a quick note – I finally got my ducks in a row and wrote up my sized-down version of Grumperina’s Jaywalker socks. It’s posted here with Grumperina’s permission. My scaled-down version fits a kid in the US toddler 13 (Euro 31,
UK 12) range.

You can find it at the top of my free stuff page. Have fun, and let me know if you use the pattern and something doesn’t make sense.