It’s been 3 months since my last instalment of my Project Knitwear series, so I figured it was high time for an update. Full disclosure: I have actually finished the shorts to match my Flutterbutt Shirt from the last post, but, to be perfectly honest, I can’t fathom the thought of trying them on to take a photo in this chilly weather. I think I’ll keep that one until the weather starts getting a little warmer again! Anyway, I thought it would be nice to have a festive edition of Project Knitwear, so here we are.

This time, I’m tackling socks.

Table of Contents

• The Pattern
• The Yarn
• The Knitting Process
• New Techniques
• Final Thoughts

The Pattern

I really wanted to make festive socks with a colourwork component for this project. After some searching on Ravelry (you can find my Ravelry account here), I settled on these Snowy Nights Socks by This Handmade Life. I thought that the colourwork design was so pretty and elegant (as far as socks go), and I knew I would get lots of wear out of them. I also thought it would be a good idea to go with short socks, because of what happened last time I made socks… Many years ago, I set out to make my first ever pair of socks. I made the first sock quite happily, but the horrifying realisation that I had to do the whole process all over again nearly broke me. I figured if the socks are shorter and take me less time, I might not be quite so heartbroken over having to do it twice? Maybe?

The pattern has 2 sizes: medium and large (is that normal for sock patterns? I have no idea! Surely feet come in more than 2 sizes?!). I made the medium socks for myself (I have UK size 6 feet) and knitted 48 rows for the foot (before the colourwork). Speaking of colourwork- the pattern also comes with two different charts, but I couldn’t find a picture of the socks made with the second chart at all, so I just went with the one I recognised from the photos. In the yarn listing, it does reference a ‘sample with chart 2’, but I can’t see it anywhere? Weird.

The Yarn

The suggested yarn given in the pattern is Sandnes Garn Sisu in the shades 5962 and 1001. I’d love to try this someday, but it was easier for me to get a hold of some Drops Fabel Uni Colour. I used the shades Blue (107) and Off White (100). I enjoyed the yarn, but I haven’t used a lot of sock yarns in my time so I didn’t really have anything to compare it to!

The pattern doesn’t tell you how much yarn you need, which I thought was a bit strange. I weighed the yarn before and after (something I always forget to do, but am trying to get into the habit of) and I ended up using about 23g of the main colour (blue) and 4g of the contrast colour (white) per sock. That meant that I could have gotten away with 1 ball of the blue wool for both socks (Drops Fabel comes in 50g balls), but I had purchased two- just in case. Does that mean I have to make another pair of socks…?

ALSO, I didn’t bother doing a gauge swatch, because the gauge was given for ribbing in the round, which I know is notoriously hard to measure. I just used the recommended needles (2.5mm) and hoped for the best- luckily, it turned out fine! I was thrilled, because, as you know, if you’ve read the past 2 posts in the series, I despise swatching.

The Knitting Process

Honestly, these socks were a lot more straightforward than I expected them to be! Admittedly, I would have gotten into a complete pickle with the heel if I didn’t have my mum to explain it to me (I had never heard of a wrapped stitch before??), but, luckily, I did have her, so I survived. I had been a bit apprehensive about the colourwork- I’ve done some colourwork before, but never in the round (and not particularly well) so I was a little nervous, but it wasn’t bad at all- it was even enjoyable! I did make sure that I knitted those sections from the inside, to make sure that the colourwork wasn’t too tight, but other than that I just followed the chart and hoped for the best.

The one big problem I had with these socks was the heel. My first sock was okay, but on my second sock, my wrapped stitches left quite large holes all along one side of the heel- specifically, the side of the knit rows. Honestly, I’m not quite sure what happened, because I didn’t do anything differently for the second sock and my tension is usually pretty even? I know there are lots of different heel constructions out there, so I think I might try out a different one, if I ever make socks again, and see if it suits me better.

New Techniques

There were quite a few sock-related techniques that were new for me with this project- I really feel like I’ve learned a lot (even if I’m not sure I would use some of them again…). Previously encountered techniques (that I actually remember doing before) are marked with an *:

• German twisted cast on
• Short row heel (using wrapped stitches)
• Toe shaping
• Grafting stitches (for the toe)
• Following a colourwork chart*
• Colourwork in the round

Final Thoughts

I’m really happy with how these socks turned out- they fit perfectly, the colourwork was much less of an ordeal than I thought it would be AND I didn’t even struggle with Second Sock Syndrome at all! Perhaps I am just a more patient knitter these days. Anyway, I’m really proud of my socks. Now I’ve taken all the pictures, I can start wearing them- just in time to appreciate their festive design!

I hope you’ve enjoyed the third instalment of Project Knitwear- I’m already starting to feel more confident when it comes to knitting things to wear! Now, what to make next…?

If you're interested... 

You can purchase the Snowy Nights Socks pattern here. 

You can find the project page on Ravelry for my Snowy Nights Socks here.

Can you believe we’re halfway through Blogmas At Home? Time really is flying, but it always does this time of year, right?

Gemma

xxx