Sunday, August 13, 2006

My first sock!



The weather has turned cool and damp, so my thoughts have turned to sock knitting. I didn't feel like starting this while the weather was hot, but yesterday I decided to give it a go. I had a long road trip to Oxford, and used the time to tackle the class sock in Sensational Knitted Socks, as recommended by Thea.

I was surprised how easy it was. I've read so much about the dreaded 'turning the heel' and the instructions for socks always seemed so complex, but this book breaks it all down into simple chunks and as long as you take it slowly, it seems fine. Have to concentrate though - I had to stop suddenly as we hit the outskirts of Oxford and I had to navigate, and it was tricky to pick up again.

So fuelled with the test sock success, I'm going to pull out some sock wool and try the full sized version. My DH was fascinated that I conjured up this complicated looking thing from my needles, but was slightly concerned that it stands up on its own - in his words, 'it's more of a boot than a sock really'. Maybe I should relax the gauge a touch...

3 comments:

Unknown said...

Congratulations on your first sock! I love to knit them and drive the family and friends nuts... But they are the ones that ask for them at Christmas too!! They are addictive!

Kish said...

I told you that it was addicting lol! I really love the Sockotta yarn and size 1 or 2 needles. They don't have that "stand-up-on-their-own" issue. Interestingly, I find working on the smaller needles and thin yarn much easier to do than some of the bulkier knitting. Glad you enjoyed making the socks. I am anxious to see what you come up with next!

Thea said...

Your first sock looks great. My first sock had some problems. I guess the first problem was I was using a pattern written in German and while my spoken German was at that time very good, I did not know many knitting terms in German, nor had I knit for several years. I was doing the heel flap and in the turn I missed 1 word in the instructions (the word turn). They came out funny looking, but fit ok. Your little sock looks tons better than mine did. I hope you like making the full sized version.