Tag Archives: Slipper Socks

Socks and Slipper Socks

Posted on June 3, 2007 | Comments Off on Socks and Slipper Socks

This has been a busy week on the sock knitting front in my house. About a month ago I purchased some Instant Gratification Sock Yarn from Hill Country Yarns. The colorway I chose was Country Carribean. My original plan was to make them on size #7 needles. Thanks to the wise advice received from the Socknitters group at Yahoo, I chose to make a gauge swatch and use much smaller needles. They are now being made on size #2 DPN’s. They were on 2 circular needles for a while so the stitches would not come off the needles while I was recovering for a few hours in the hospital from a test.

The first one was started on Thursday, May 31. Here is a picture of it a couple of hours ago:
second-socks.jpg

This is the fastest I have ever made a sock. It looks a lot neater than the my first pair. The stitches are more even and there is no hole at the start of the gusset. It is also proving to be much easier.

I also finally got the end of the toe woven in on the first pair today.They turned out fine considering the fact that this was my first time making socks. Here are some pictures:
First socks

First Socks again

These were made using Trekking Colorway #135. I used size #3 needles for these. The next time around with this yarn I will use smaller needles. The stripes do not match, but that was done on purpose. I wanted to make them without cutting the yarn in between them just to see how they would look. I am happy with them. Now that they have been washed and dried in the dryer, they are soft and comfortable. They are great socks and will be worn with pleasure. :)

Here is a picture of the completed pair of slipper socks made for my husband:
Slipper socks
I used Red Heart Worsted Wt. from my stash. Making them served as extra practice in sock making since they are made from a basic sock pattern on size #7 needles. He has been wearing them happily despite the unmanly color.

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Knitting & Priorities

Posted on May 19, 2007 | Comments Off on Knitting & Priorities

Since returning to the working world, I have been faced with the fact that it takes effort, at least for me, to keep my priorities in order.  I will explain.

I am glad to be back at work for a lot of reasons, of which money is only. There is a sense of being needed and wanted by colleagues and co-workers that is  important. There is also the normal sense of being busy that I thrive on. This means there is no time for boredom. :) The list could  continue almost infinitely.

However, this is where knitting and the fiber arts come in. I realized this week that I have not picked up my beloved hooks or needles in the past 2 weeks. Even though I needed a break from them, 2 weeks is feeling like forever. The last time was during a trip to a local emergency room. While there, I nearly finished the second sock of my very first pair ever. It only needs about 15-20 more minutes of work. There are other projects in various stages of completeness. None of them have been touched.

Sure, I have enjoyed the break in many ways, but something is missing in my life.  Could it possibly be the pleasurable feel of hooks and needles? I think so.

Now the problem has been identified. My course of action is simple. It’s time to pick up where I left off, at least sort of anyway. Completing the sock will have to wait until there is time to sit at the kitchen table and do it properly. I just happen to have some empty size # 7 DPNs and a lot of acrylic yarn. The combination of the two will make a great pair of slipper socks to be donated to a local charity. The hard part of this is going to be choosing the yarn and casting on the first stitch Once that is done the rest will be easy.

There are errands to be done today that are saved for my weekend off. Since we are dong them as a family I will have sitting time in the car. This means fiber time, or in this situation, knitting time.  I will see how far I get later today.

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Slipper Socks and LIfe

Posted on April 13, 2007 | Comments Off on Slipper Socks and LIfe

The second slipper sock is almost finished. It only needs to have the final stitches on the toe woven in. My original plan was to finish it today, but there were not enough hours in this day to accomplish that.

Most of the morning was spent cleaning. First on the agenda was  deep cleaning in the living room. All of the furniture that I could move was moved, dusted and vacuumed behind. The floor of the entryway was washed by hand. The kitchen floor and the hallway were also vacuumed. It was a time consuming project even with help from my family.

The late morning and early afternoon hours found us running errand such as grocery shopping and taking recyclables to our town’s Recycle Center. These were not exciting or fun tasks but are just part of life.

There was a little knitting time this afternoon to work on a scarf that has been on the needles for a while. Between the socks and slipper socks, there has not been enough time to complete it. I will post pictures another time.

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More Knitting

Posted on April 8, 2007 | Comments Off on More Knitting

I am most pleased at the moment. The gusset on the second slipper sock has been started successfully! I was very careful this past week at my knitting lesson to make sure I understood the pattern and could knit from it without anyone around to  interpret it for me.  The fact that I did this is encouraging. It means that the next pair of socks I make from it will be able to be done on my own.

I will post pictures of the completed slipper in a couple of days.

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Socks, Slippers and Life

Posted on April 8, 2007 | 2 comments

It feels like it has been forever since I have written here. Life has been busy as usual.

My first sock is finished!! Here it is:
Finished Sock

The owner of Hearthstone Knits, Georgia, helped me finish it off a couple of weeks ago. I threw the sock in the air very shortly after completing it. Then it was tried on and admired by those nearby. It felt like such an accomplishment.

The second one of the pair was started before I left the store. Part of my reasoning was that I wanted to avoid Second Sock Syndrome. The other part of my reasoning was to make sure that I cast it on correctly and didn’t have a problem.

I was able to the second one done without help up to the point of turning the heel. At my knitting lesson this past Wednesday my questions were answered. I felt silly taking notes as Georgia shared her knowledge of sock knitting with me. She was patient as I did this.

Here is a picture of the second sock in progress:
Second Sock

I am working on the gusset and should be able to complete the sock in the next few days.

There is more to this story than this. Since I had reached a stopping point on the second sock, I decided to start a slipper sock, using the same pattern with fewer stitches and larger needles and yarn. My intent was to have a teaching and learning tool. I dug out some Red Heart Worsted Wt. in a light color and a pair of size 7 dpn’s. I was able to turn the heel accurately on my own. I got stuck on how to pick up the stitches for the gusset. The only other time in my life that I had done this was on the first sock.

The slipper sock and the regular sock went to the knitting lesson with me. Georgia understood and showed me on the larger needles how to pick up stitches on both items. I finished off the first slipper sock Friday morning. Here it is:

Slipper sock

Despite its faults, it is still a wearable item. My husband has graciously said he will wear this and its mate around the house. The off white is not his favorite color, but he has been promised a more manly pair before winter. The mate to it is in ready to have the gusset started. My goal today is to do that later today.

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