Embossed Leaves Socks

Pattern: by Mona Schmidt in Interweave Knits Winter 2005/2006
Materials: Knitpicks Essential (75% wool/25% nylon. 231 yards) in color Grass (23695). Much less than 2 skeins - about 280 yards. 2 Size US1 (2.5 mm) Addi Turbo circulars.
Gauge: 8.5 sts/in in st st relaxed.
Finished size: 6.5 in circumference, 7.5 in from back of heel to toe relaxed (and unblocked *slap on the wrist*). Nice and snug on my 8" circumference, 9" long, size US women's 6 narrow feet.

Started: March 19, 2006
Finished: April 3, 2006

Notes:
Followed pattern except I used a long tail cast on instead of tubular cast on since I didn't print out the tubular cast on directions. I also didn't meet gauge at all, but that's okay because my feet are smaller than the finished size in the pattern. I also only did 3 pattern repeats on the leg instead of 3.5 and I did a total of 3.5 pattern repeats on the foot instead of 4.

Discussion:
This was another nice lace motif to make for mindless knitting with beautiful results. This was my first attempt at a heel flap, and though I've never made socks for myself to have another heel type to compare the fit to, I think it fits just fine. I actually find the short row heel to be much easier to execute than picking up stitches on the side of the heel flap. I guess I'll just have to make another pair of socks for myself to see if the short row heel fits me better.

I also found that cutting the yarn after knitting the heel flap and before picking up stitches was a bit inconvenient. The next time I do a heel flap, I'll probably pick up sts on one side of the heel flap, knit around the instep sts and then finish picking up sts on the other side of the heel flap rather than cut the yarn. I hate weaving in ends unnecessarily, even if it's just 2 more. But for my first go at the heel flap and gusset, I thought I'd go ahead and try to actually follow the directions.

The toe is actually quite pretty. I wasn't sure if the extra work involved with this star/swirly shaped toe was worth it over a standard flat toe, but at least there was no kitchener involved!


I'll admit it, the socks are probably a touch too small, maybe by like 1/4 inch or so. But given that you had to end on a specific row to get the toe shaping to line up right, I'm okay with the guesstimate that I made. I actually like the fit since I'm pretty sure I won't have the bunching up in my shoes problem that I often have with athletic socks.

Oh yeah, and in case you were wondering how I guesstimated 280 yards used, I got a FOOD SCALE for my birthday. Pocket sized and perfect for estimating the amount of left over yarn. I think this means I have enough for some anklets...

Previous posts about this project:
Answers to burning questions on March 28, 2006

Answers to burning questions

So waaay back when, I posted a teaser which led some to wonder, what the heck does that mean? God has a backhoe? What in the world is a backhoe? Well, it appears that unless you have worked in construction or possess a Y chromosome, it's likely that you don't know what a backhoe is. Or at least by name. If you type "backhoe" into yahoo, this is one of the first hits you'll get:I dunno. I guess it's possible that this is could be an excavator, but I'll leave it to the heavy machinery people to argue this one out. I mean it to be that oversized shovel that's digging and clanging away at 6:00 am across the street and severely depriving me of good REM sleep.

I digress. Anyway, DF and I make the drive up 395 fairly frequently and 9 times out of 10, car coma hits and I pass out about 30 minutes into the 4.5 hour drive. But for some reason, right around Olancha, I wake up just in time to see this:

A giant pile of red dirt. We are convinced that this must be evidence that God exists, and that he has a backhoe. Cuz, c'mon people, who else can make a perfectly shaped pile of dirt of THAT ENORMITY?

I digress. The point of this story though (for a knitting blog anyway) is that much knitting was accomplished this weekend. I had cast on for the Embossed Leaves Socks in the last issue of IK while flying cross country (again) last Sunday. I tell you, sock knitting is SO great for taking on the plane with you. And, it's also the perfect car knitting companion. I think DF likes it because it keeps the both of us awake. I knit instead of pass out so I can keep him company while he drives. Although I think he'd propose that it's not my scintillating conversation that's keeping him awake, but rather the aroma from my feet as I try my socks on:
I am pretty pleased with the results so far. This is my first attempt at a heel flap and gusset for socks, and I think it went okay. The designer specified garter stitch edges for the heel flap and I have a hell of a time picking up stitches in garter stitch. I think I'll omit the garter stitch next time and/or add a slip stitch edge on the heel flap to make picking up stitches a bit easier. But look, no holes at the heels! I tried to take a picture to show the decreases on the bottom to turn the heel because I think they look a bit wonky, but my camera skills in a moving car are pretty lame.


Next up: look, it's a stuffed sausage toy!