A lovely online now offline friend (you know what I mean by that right?) Trish of Made by Patch blog recently won this book in a giveaway by Christine Perry aka Winwick Mum with a bundle of other goodies, but as a newly minted sock knitter she had already bought a copy. So, she offered this one to me. What a lovely surprise!
I haven’t forgotten my 16 for 2016 list and am still keen to try knitting a pair of socks, but do have a few reservations. I’m not worried about the knitting part, since I know from all the successful pairs I’ve seen posted on Social Media that Christine’s instructions are fabulous. I think you’d have to have a brain of custard to fail. (Watch this space…) It’s whether I would actually wear handmade knitted socks. I don’t think I would out with boots and shoes; they just seem like they’d be too thick. But I can envision myself pulling them on in the chilly evenings to wear at home. Would they become very fluffy walking about on carpets? I already seem to spending quite a bit of time picking up massive bobbles of woollen sock fluff…but that’s another subject, ha! Am I going to get even more electric shocks, the sock yarns seen to have a fairly high nylon count. I already jump and squeal a lot of the time. When I’m in London some days I get a shock every time I touch a handrail. I’ll just have to knit a pair, try them and get back to you.
I was intending to make a cowl from this library book
but the one cable stitch forward or behind was really annoying. It’s me I know, I like knitting but only if it’s not too tedious, but either that one stitch just kept slipping off the cable needle or the whole process felt clunky. If I tried the dropping the stitch method, without using a cable needle, I worried that it was then twisted. Life’s too short and I decided that if I don’t enjoy making something, I stop. Why waste time on something that’s not fun? It’s not as if it was a vital cowl; I have a basket full of them and scarves. For the last few winters they haven’t really been worn. I really miss our heavy white frosts and icy mornings. The winters are noticeably warmer, with wetter milder weather.
If you have an alternative pattern suggestion for a 90 stitch cowl using 6mm needles with a 3-2 rib already complete, please comment below. I won’t frog the knitting for a few days, then it’s a goner!
I’m joining in with Ginny’s Yarn Along again.
The Little Room of Rachell 
Socks are knitted with 4ply yarn and I don’t find mine too thick. A little thicker than shop ones but not a problem and they just feel so soft and comfortable almost caressing!
I’ve never heard of any other yarn being used – perhaps people do knit extra thick ones?
I have known people use dk from their posts.
Welcome to sock knitting!
How lovely that Trish was able to share the socky love with you! I wondered whether I would be able to wear hand-knits at first too, and my first pairs were for my husband. He loved them so much that I decided I would give them a go – and now I don’t wear anything else! You can knit socks with 4ply, 6ply or 8ply (DK) – you can go even thicker than that with aran weights too if you want to. 4ply is a bit thicker than shop-bought socks but feels nice and cosy in your boots. There are lots of very soft yarns around and you need the nylon content to stop them wearing through too quickly. There are other yarns that combine different breeds of sheep to replace the nylon content such as Blacker Yarns’ Tamar yarn which uses Wensleydale wool instead (the long fibres replace the nylon – sounds amazing but true – I’m just at the start of learning all about this!). Socks are fab for picking up and putting down so I am sure that over the course of the year you will manage at least one pair! xx