Flat Feet socks are done!
On the left are the socks in their pre-blocked stated, along with the remaining flats. The socks weigh about 30g each, leaving about 2 – 25g flats for a pair of footlets (or a scant 6″ each). Editor’s Note: I wear US Size 6 / EUR Size 37 shoes (when wearing socks). I also prefer short socks (4-6″ above ankle bone). So your personal mileage will vary, depending on your foot size. There is definitely enough yarn for average sized feet. This is a guess, since I don’t really know what “average” is.
In the photo on the right, I have a sock (left) that has had a nice hot bath in Soak, and hung up to dry overnight; and one unwashed sock (right). You can see that the sock grew slightly, and most of the texture has been removed by its hot soak in the bath. Had I used a sock blocker, I’m sure that all the texture would have been removed. But since I don’t own any sock blockers, this will have to suffice.
Update: Grace said that she couldn’t see the details on the pre/post blocking well, so I have included a full sized photo.
Some additional notes and thoughts on knitting these socks:
- I finally read all of the fine print on the tag that came along with the Flat Feet. They recommended US #3 (3.25mm) needles with a gauge of 8 spi. They must knit very tight or I’m a very loose knitter. I used US #0 (2.00mm) needles to achieve a post block gauge of 8.5 spi. As I said in my earlier post, I couldn’t accurately measure my gauge pre-blocking due to the puckering effect of my knitted fabric. I had to go by look and feel. But if you force me to give you a number, I’d say it was about 9.5 spi.
- I knitted the first sock with my KnitPicks Harmony Wood needles. I have to tell you that it was a chore. The combination of the extra pointy ends on the KnitPicks needles and the knit then unraveled yarn made for a lot of swearing when I split the yarn. I switched to my Addi Turbos (regular, not lace) for the second sock, and all was well. No more splitting the yarn. I was able to go back to mindless knitting while I did other things. Don’t get me wrong. This is not the fault of neither the KnitPicks needles nor the Flat Feet yarn. It’s just a case of wrong equipment for the task. You’ve been warned.
- I did more research on the knit-dye-rip-reknit thing, and found that this technique was first published by Rebekah Younger in a July 1995 issue (p. 68) of Threads, not invented by Nancy, as I stated in my earlier post.
I’m very pleased with this pair of socks. It has given me some wonderful ideas. Fortuitously, my sister just bought a knitting machine, and has offered to put my niece to work on knitting some blanks. Perhaps I can get some sock blanks for further experimentation. Maybe I can even knit some lace shawls.
Final Project Notes:
Yarn: Flat Feet by Conjoined Creations
Needles: US #0 (2 mm); KnitPicks and Addi Turbos
Gauge: 8.5 spi
Pattern: Variation on my generic toe-up socks with turkish cast on; increased up to 64 sts; yarn-over short row heel over 50%; and sewn bind-off.