"Real" Toe-Up Socks are Done

Yay, my first "real" socks are done.

Here's my fat kitty Dixie helping model them:

I've definitely been bitten by the sock bug. I recently bought enough yarn for three more pairs. The next pair will be with Noro Kuryeon sock yarn and itty bitty needles.

"Real" Socks - Knitted Toe-Up

So now that I've cut my teeth making these funky socks, I'm ready for some real ones.

I actually bought this yarn a year or two ago along with a pattern from Knit Purl in Sudbury, MA. They were doing a sock workshop while I was there. I figured I can't be too much dumber than all the women around the table, so why not give it a try. It's taken me this long to actually get started.

The sock pattern, which is toe-up, is from Art Yarns, but I don't see it on their website. The yarn is their Handpaint Stripes and this is the color. It's a heavier yarn that most sock yarns, and the needles are #5, making this a less painful sock-knitting foray than it might be otherwise.

The "Learning Experience" Knit Socks

I decided it was time to learn to knit socks this year. I learned how to knit in 1981 in between my sophomore and junior years in college. My grandmother taught me to make a "scarf," which was basically just a long knit-purl thing that curled up and looked silly.

So after 30-something years of knitting (and no, that does NOT make me an expert) it was time to tackle the perils of straight needles and make socks. Everyone else is doing it, and they look so wonderful. And I could actually wear socks, unlike the sweaters that just make me too hot these days.

I needed an easy pattern. So I found the Tropical Punch Slipper Socks on Ravelry. The pattern was clear and well written, but I didn't follow the instructions and used a single strand of yarn (Noro Kureyon) instead of two. So they came out kind of funky.

But they served their purpose of getting me over the sock hurdle. Now I'm ready to knit some socks for real (and I will follow the directions). The next time I do the Tropical Punch Slipper Socks I'll follow the instructions and make some nice slippers as a gift for someone.

Because Anonymous said the blog needed more cat pictures, here's Dixie modeling the Noro socks: