Sockssssssss

I adore hand knit socks.  They are so comfy.  They are so pretty.  They are practical and yet a luxury.  My only problem seems to be that they come in pairs and I am prone to second sock syndrome.   That fact is the reason I was so proud of myself for whipping up the Hermione's Everyday Socks using Hedgehog Fibers so quickly last spring.  The yarn was from an exchange years ago and I was doing my best to knit with stash yarn.  I had had my eye on the pattern for a while for its simplicity and I had just finished The Weekender sweater by Andrea Mowry and I was ready to knit something smaller.  Smaller doesn't necessarily mean less stitches though.  I read somewhere that the average pair of hand knit socks is around 17,000 stitches.  If you are ever gifted a pair of hand knit socks you should appreciate a few things.  First, sock needles are tiny.  Tiny needles plus a bazillion stitches means the gift giver really really likes you.  Second, its takes a lot of willpower to make the same pattern twice in a row.  True story.  Thats why Second Sock Syndrome exists.  As knitters we often want to move on to the new and exciting and knitting the exact same thing we just finished AGAIN is an exercise in perseverance.  

That is what happened to this little tiny sock pictured here.  First I made a pair for big sister.  Then I started a pair for little bugs.  But I didn't finish the pair and by the time I dug them back out again they were too small and sister was ready to pass down her pair.  I really should go ahead and knit the second tiny sock and give the pair to someone.  It's such a bright and fun yarn.

In the fall of 2020 I signed up for a test knit for Drea Renee Knits for her new DRK Everyday Sock pattern.  I figured having a deadline would help me power through that second sock (it did, but I still stressed about it!) and sister bear would have a new pair of hand knit socks that would fit a bit longer.  The ribbing on these socks gives them a nice fit with room to stretch as she grows.  Thats a win.  I used a sock set from Southern Skeins that came out really pretty. I enjoyed seeing the speckled yarn knit up and the contrast of the toe and heel.  I had not done this style heel before and I liked it.

In honor of wanting to get great pics for the test knit, because that really is part of being a test knitter, I treated myself to kid sized sock blockers from Knitting Left.  They are so cute.  

Maybe I'll get around to knitting myself a pair of the DRK Everyday socks soon.  I haven't made myself anything with contrasting heels and toes yet, mostly because I really hate having extra ends to weave in but I do like the look.  As soon as I finished these though I had to whip out some really quick Christmas knitting.

Next up on my quarantine sock journey I started a pair of Thicksgiving socks.  I figured instant gratification socks with bigger needles and yarn held double, what could be better?  Well they did whip up quickly but I discovered that I don't really love the forethought heel.  Its ok, but I didn't really know how much to account for the forethought heel in my foot length and these socks definitely came out a bit bigger than intended.  I would definitely knit the thicksgiving socks again, in fact the pattern comes with three different variations and eventually I would like to get to all of them.

No sooner did I finish these than I was back to my sweater addiction and I would look at and think about socks but didn't cast any on until after I finished my STRIPES sweater.  In a moment of sheer silliness I decided to start on the Clearly Determined socks.  I thought a speckled yarn instead of a variegated would be better for the cables on the sock but it turns out the yarn I chose is still just a bit too busy for the braids down both sides of the sock.  

I didn't even finish that pair though before casting on boot socks for my brother for his birthday.  I ended up doing a twin rib from a sock recipe  book I have and using up a lot of odds and ends to make them.  I had a couple skeins of very olive green Happy Feet and some leftover bits of brown Happy Feet, royal blue cascade sock yarn, leftover light blue and brown sock yarn from a pair I made myself a maroon mini that I used for the toes and cuffs.  They worked up fairly quickly and softened up nicely when I soaked them for blocking.  Hopefully not too much!

Since starting to type up this blog post, I have actually done another pair of boot socks, back to the thicksgiving pattern again, but this time using the ribbed pattern in the trio.  Maybe its time for the cabled pair next.   I have also finished the first Clearly Determined sock but immediately fallen into second sock syndrome.  Oops.  Right now I really have the summer tee bug though!

So I am wondering, do you knit socks?  If so, what is your favorite sock pattern?  Whether its still a goal, a challenge you bested, or a sock pattern you go back to again and again, I would love to her about it.