Details:Pattern: A had been dropping hints for a while that he'd love a pair of handknitted socks. I decided some time ago to make a pair for his special birthday, since it only really comes every 4 years, and what could be better than a unique design just for him! So I designed my own, albeit fairly simple, sock pattern. I picked up the vikkel braid from Nancy Bush (last seen on husby's Spey Valley socks) and did a simple rib, narrower for the cuff and wider for the leg. Also good as I didn't have any measurements for A's legs/feet so the rib gives a bit of stretch.
Yarn: Brown Sheep Wildfoote Luxury Sock yarn, in SY-39 Master Grey, and SY-38 Forest Fog for the contrast toe - 2x50g balls of the grey, and a small amount of the green for the toe. The yarn is a little scratchy to knit with, but softened and bloomed beautifully after a good long soak in SOAK wool wash.
Sticks: 2.5mm on the leg, changing half way down to 2.25mm, to allow for some calf-shaping. I started off with 2.5mm 30cm Addi circular, but couldn't hack the teeny tiny circ, so magic looped instead, which I found much easier.
(here is the sock taking in the view from my desk at work)
Time: Sock 1 was done from 7 October 2007 - 6 November 2007, sock 2 from 12 November 2007 - 25 February 2008, with a fairly big break so I could do my Christmas knitting.
What I learnt: That I love leaving myself plenty of time to do gift knits. I had to hurry myself along a little towards the end, but I really did have a good long time to do these, which was great, given that they are bigger than I usually make socks both in leg length and foot length.
15 comments:
Yay for gift knits! Hooray! They really do look so manly and solid. Very nice design. I agree about the yarn, as you know, having found the same thing myself when I did it. I hope he loved them!
What a lovely gift! I can't get over how well the toe seems to blend in. Is it because of the light? I had to look so closely to see where you changed over. I hope he loved them!
PS Bells & I were commenting at the same exact time (I always get a kick out of that). Didn't mean to repeat! :-)
They are really sharp looking!
What lovely socks & an awesome gift. Very smart of you to give yourself plenty of gift knitting time. And I love how you used ribbing to make the socks sure to fit. Brilliant!
Such a nice gift, and I love the masculine color!
I forgot to mention the colour change this morning. I think you are a creative genius. But you knew that already;-)
Ditto to what Amy said re commenting at the same time!
They are nice. Well done with your stash honesty in the last post too.
What a great and thoughtful present! I bet he loved them!
Oh yes, very nice design! What a thoughtful gift!
There's nothing like a pair of handknit socks. Very nice.
The socks are, as some of my more enthusiastic friends would say, sweeet! I'll bet A loves them and never takes them off. And what a great gift for such a significant birthday.
Oh, and I wish the view from my work desk looked more like the view from your work desk.
Great socks - lucky A.
Lots of time is for sure the secret of happy gift knitting.
Gorgeous socks, even better in real life. Thanks for taking the time to make them for H. Something for him to treasure and me to admire.
As the lucky recipient of the socks, all I can say again is thanks so much - they're beautiful to look at (love the green "speckles") and lovely to wear. They fit well, and don't leave sock marks around my calves like others!
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