Knits

Well, I finished one of the socks. Hurrah.

Notice the lack of any excitement in that statement?

Moving to the DPNs definitely helped me speed things up and move them to a state of completion. However, remember when I alluded to the fact that after I turned the heel, things seemed a bit tight? Well, I should’ve been smarter and realised that they weren’t magically going to grow.

I wasn’t smarter because I consulted the pattern several times, as well as other toe-up patterns because it just seemed the gusset and heel couldn’t possibly be stretchy enough, but all the patterns said the same thing — no increase in the number of stitches in this area — so I thought maybe something would happen when I did the rest of the sock. I can get my foot into the sock just fine, but I cannot pull the heel over my heel. It’s just too tight. I know I have a high instep, but with something pliable like a sock, this generally doesn’t cause a problem. I think despite the other toe-up patterns I consulted, the problems lies in both the yarn I used and the pattern. The pattern has zero give to it. The yarn is 100% wool so it has some natural stretch, but it definitely doesn’t retain it’s shape (you should see the state of the boyfriend’s socks) and it’s so fuzzy from being handled during the knitting process.

I’m really disappointed as I like the pattern and I think it works really well with this yarn because, as evidenced in the ribbing at the cuff and the boyfriend’s socks, this yarn has a tendency to pool in a spiral pattern. For whatever reason, this pattern helped negate that fate and really allowed the variations in colour to be spread around the sock. I’m not sure what to do. For now, these are going in the knitting basket because they’re really making me feel defeated.

I want to knit other toe-up sock patterns because I really like how the toe came out and getting to choose how high up I want my sock to go without fretting that I’ll run out of yarn, but I think I’m going to run into the same problem. I just can’t figure out where the problem lies. My short row heel looks fine and I did as the recipe said. All I can figure is that I need another inch or so in that gusset which means adding stitches, but how and where?

I’d really like to hear if other people have had this problem with a toe-up up sock or a short row heel. If you’ve knit a top-down sock with a short row heel, have you increased the stitches you worked or was it half the number in the leg?

I’m definitely going to have to swatch something tonight and hopefully cast on as I’ve got a trip ahead of me and nothing else really on the go that I’d want to take. I may even swatch for my sockapalooza socks… Here’s some things making me happy

Dakota in a box — A field of blue bells in the woods somewhere between my house and The Boyfriend’s — Travis’s new album which came out in the UK today

And I am so not a pink girl, but I really like these Converse and am tempted to get them!