Baby Steps

I mentioned awhile ago that I was going to be making knee socks for one of my nieces. The pattern I liked the best is done toe up, something I've never tried before. I got kind of clammy and anxious thinking about it, but realized that I didn't want to stagnate in my comfortable little niche, so rather than track down a top down pattern, or try to convert the pattern I liked to top down, I decided I was just going to have to try something new.

Just like I did when I first tried knitting socks, only about 2 years ago.

I thought it prudent to practice first, since I needed to learn two new-to-me things (the toe and the heel) and I didn't (and don't) want to mess up big time on my niece's socks. So I made a practice sock. Sort of like a gauge swatch, where you check to make sure you are getting the proper number of stitches per inch to make a garment that will actually fit.


Here's the toe. I was reasonably pleased with the toe. I ended up using what Wendy Johnson calls the Easy Toe in her article on the subject of toe up socks on Knitty.


Here's the finished sock. I had, as so many have before me, trouble picking up the wrapped stitches on the short row heel. Yup. I've got the traditional Hole Problem. Phooey. Plus I'm not wild about the way the ribbing looks, all stretched out and blah. Now, you know I am a one-sock-at-a-time knitter, and I always finish a pair before moving on to the next pair. Right?

Well, I asked myself if I could bear to spend the time knitting the mate to the practice sock (which, since we're on the subject, looks a little bit, well, little. As in, not fit for human feet kind of little. Don't you agree?). The answer was HECK, NO!

Tune in next time for a progress picture of the Actual First Knee Sock.

Meanwhile, I'll leave you with this:


Mittnz. Pair Number 7. Yes, these were knit with sock yarn on size 2.5mm needles. For Pair Number 8, I am knitting the Fetching wristwarmers from Knitty.