In which I dream about socks

Literally. Saturday evening as I was getting ready for bed, I paged through my latest stack of library books, ending with Vogue Knitting's The Ultimate Sock Book. And there on page 163 they were--the most beautiful socks I have ever seen. Now, let's be clear: I do not make socks. I rarely wear socks. (They don't work so well with heels.) I do, however, have a beloved pair of cowboy boots that I wear often and a lovely pair of handmade socks would suit them well. That's why I perused the book in the first place. Flipping through a book about sock knitting is, for me, akin to trying to read a book in Mandarin. I can admire the pictures, but that's about all. (Remember, I don't knit in the round.)

But these socks! Embroidered stockings, to be precise, and absolutely gorgeous. I lusted for them, and if you wonder why, look here. Gorgeous, aren't they? But I looked at the instructions and sighed. While I fully intend to become a better knitter at SOME point, those stockings are far beyond my ability, and since I have a book to write this summer, I won't be improving my skills anytime soon. (When I'm writing, I like undemanding handwork. When I finished work on Friday I sat watching "The Birds" while I altered two skirts and put a zipper in by hand, which sounds rather accomplished, but wasn't at all. The point was, I didn't have to read a pattern or count anything.)

Oddly enough, when I fell asleep Saturday night, I dreamed of those socks. I walked into a shop and there they were, hanging from a peg, perfectly made and just waiting to be taken home. I took them off the peg and they were mine, in that instant and fairy tale way of dreams. The dream dictionaries I consulted seem to think that dreaming of socks means that one has received big news or is protecting one's foundation. I just think they were part of the great cosmic stew of subconscious--something pretty to warm my feet.

Comments

[Lynnette Kent]

Those are gorgeous socks. Could you purchase black socks (say, in cashmere?) and embroider them yourself? You wouldn't have to count, at least.

Lynnette

[kristen]

I thought the same thing- buy some embroidery floss & create a fun pair for yourself sans the actual knitting!
I happen to LOVE socks- thanks to my poor circulation, my feet are always like ice cubes.

[Hillary]

You can definitely learn knitting in the round...it's just like straight, flat knitting except that you don't turn your work after every row. It just goes on and on and on in spirals. For me, it's much faster than flat knitting. I think that's the most difficult part about circular knitting: it's (relatively) easy to make a stopping point at the end of a flat row, but with the spirals, it's much easier to say "oh, just a few more rounds" and forget to stop.

And, of course, you could always embroider some commercial socks, as suggested above, if you want to avoid the sock-knitting. :o)

[KD]

You are right about sock knitting instructions. I have been knitting since I was a teenager and pestered a neighbor, who was accomplished in all areas of needlework, to teach me (my mother, a card carrying N.O.W member was horrified and very scornful that a daughter of hers would want to learn anything so old fashioned and homemaker-y). In the ensuing years, I have done a lot knitting, but never socks. Never, that is, until one day I passed a yarn shop window wherein were displayed the most cheerfully charming pink socks with tutti frutti colored cuff, heel, and toe. I had to have them. I had to make them. I made haste into the shop and acquired yarn, pattern, and a packet of double pointed needles. The proprietess assured me that the pattern was simple and as an experienced knitter I would have no problem. Hahaha! I certainly did not have a problem knitting with four needles in the round, but how to turn the heel was a mystery to me no matter how many times I read through and tried to follow the directions. The way I learned was by sitting next to the wonderfully generous uber knitter/needlewoman neighbor who took me through the mysteries of turning the heel one stitch at a time. I now know how to knit socks and knit lots and lots. If you would like, it would be my pleasure to knit a pair of socks for you and your cowboy boots.

[TeresaB]

Socks are so much fun to knit and lovely to wear, nothing like the socks you buy in the stores. Those are amazing socks and it would be a shame to hide them in a pair of boots don't you think? Those socks would be hard to knit for someone else unless they were close by since they probably need to be shaped to the calf.

Interesting that you dreamed about socks.

[KD]

Not necessarily so Teresa. When you are knitting socks in the round with 4 needles, which is what I think this pattern requires after reading the supplies list, there will be no pausing in the midst of construction to try the sock on and make adjustments for calves, ankles, or particularly long toes. Unless the sock has a seam up the back, what you need are measurements: length from heel to toe, length of the body (anklet, mid-calf, knee, over knee, thigh-high, etc...), possibly the widest width (usually the calf) and slenderest width just to be sure that no pattern adjustments need to be made, for example: I have to reduce by a full quarter the number of stitches used when knitting socks for my daughter who just finished her first season as a professional ballet dancer and is very slender with elegant ankles and narrow feet. Also, there are quite a few sock yarns available today that have a bit of elastic fiber spun into the yarn so that there is a closer fit when the yarn is knitted up. You don't need the recipient to be nearby to make the sock, you just need good measurements and yarn with a bit of snap. At least, that has been my experience.

However, Ms. Raybourn I must apologize for my enthusiastic presumption. I love knitting socks and have knitted lots, including pairs for people who are not family or friends but inspire me to offer like the ballet master who invited my daughter to study at the Hungarian Ballet Academy in Budapest, a surprisingly short powerfully built man who claimed to have the ugliest of dancer's feet and who taught one of the most electric and entertaining dance classes. He got spring green socks.

Perhaps the most convenient way to acquire your dream socks would be to go to your local yarn shop and inquire if they have a list of knitters-for-hire. Many shops do--especially useful for half-finished projects!

[Deanna]

I didn't think it was presumptuous at all--I thought it was charming! In fact, I tried to e-mail you, KD, but it bounced back to me.

[TeresaB]

KD, those might not have increases in them for the calves, but the one's I've seen, or at least the ones that I've seen that I liked, did. So, I was making some assumptions too. I've knit socks for other people, usually for an exchange, but never lovely long socks like those. Now I'm curious how they are constructed and will have to hunt down that book and look at them.

[KD]

The offer stands and the email as it appears in the address box is correct.

Teresa, you are correct. Click on "View Details" to the right of the photo of the sock and the details revealed will include the notation that the socks are knit from the "toe up with shaping at the calves." What I have not figured out how to do is have the recipient try the sock for fit mid construction--but then I have never knitted socks for one of those noodley-limber acrobats from Cirque de Soleil who probably could insinuate a foot through the relatively rigid triangular boundary created by #3 double pointed needles. So I must rely on measurements.

I do know that the yarn cited for the sock is a type that has stretch and snap-back qualities--and is a very nice yarn to work with(machine washable too). At the bottom of the Fixation section of the Cascade website (www.cascadeyarns.com) there is a photo of a "Spirit" costume knitted up with Fixation yarn for a production of The Tempest. Definitely no bagging issues with this yarn. And I love the color selection. Should you wander over there, check out the free patterns. I was surprised to see one for a waist cincher/garter belt.