It's All About the Socks

That's it today.. socks.

In my last post, I wrote about trying the toe-up socks from IK's Summer 2007 issue. And the knitting so far this week has been all about the socks. Well, mostly.

Here's a progress picture, taken this morning.

The almost completed sock has been moved on to double-pointed needles, for sizing rather than ease of knitting (although I must admit, I'm finding this sock easier to work on now that it's on dpn's). The foot and ankle area of the socks have been knitted on 2.0 mm (US 0) circulars, using the Magic Loop technique. I'm knitting the remainder of the leg on 2.25 mm dpns, just to give a bit of ease on the leg. The sock feels really nice on the foot (yes, of course I've tried it on!), nice and snug, but I'm afraid that the leg might be a little snugger than I like. Hence, the switch to the slightly larger size.

The heel.

I lent my sister my copy of Priscilla Gibson-Robert's book, "Simple Socks, Plain and Fancy", the one Ann Budd used for the heel shaping. I couldn't follow PGR's directions for anything. They made no sense to me whatsoever (brain fart, perhaps?) Ann Budd's directions, complete with drawings, however, worked perfectly for me. Maybe it was the step-by-step, numbered paragraphs, that did it for me. For my first real short row heel, I'm satisfied.

I did do one thing differently than the heel shaping called for. In it, PGR and Ann Budd use a p3tog through the back loops. I simply purled three stitches together. Unless you know of an easier way to p3tog tbl, that doesn't require the use of bodily manipulations, I'll stick with p3tog.

The toe.

I really like the cast on I used for this one. The pattern uses an Eastern cast on, which I tried, but really didn't like doing. This one looks good and it was easy. As well, the instructions, on Knitty's web site (I'll put the link in my sidebar for convenience), were clear and easy to follow.

For the cast off, when I get there, I'd like to try the tubular cast off. I've printed up a sheet of instructions on the how-to, and have a couple more web sites bookmarked. A friend here uses that cast off on her toe-up socks and I really like the look of it. As well, it seems to have a good amount of stretch to it. So, I'll give it a try. What the heck? This pair has become an experiment in progress, so why not complete them as an experimental pair, right?

Leslie asked if I've tried Queen Kahuna's cast-on. Yes, I have. It's fine, but I think I still like Judy Becker's Magic Cast-On better. It "feels" easier to me. Makes no sense at all, really. I guess what it comes down to is a matter of personal preference.

The Beachcomber Tunic, incidentally, is complete. I've already worn it a couple of times and love it! When it first came off the needles, it felt a little snug. Crochet seems to work up more tightly than knitting, but once blocked, the top fit perfectly and softened up beautifully. When I can pin my photographer down (no, wait... that's for another area of the house), I'll get him to take some pictures of the tunic on me. Knitted sweaters just don't look good on the hanger; they need to be ON a body to truly show them off.