Sunday, June 11, 2006

Martha's Vineyard Socks

Last fall, Sarah and Joe brought me some yarn they picked up on their vacation on Martha's Vineyard. It was locally produced, and came with no label. I liked it, but I've had a lot of trouble making it into something. I first tried a Matt Shepard scarf but it felt too stiff. Then I tried iPod mittens, but I had trouble controlling the gauge.

Yes, it shows a severe lack of imagination, but of course, in the end, the yarn became socks.


Plain, thick, brown, wool socks. Knit toe-up with a star toe and PGR heel. Circumference is 42 stitches, so that took a bit of thought on the heel (I don't usually work heels on an odd number) and on the ribbing, since 42 isn't divisible by 4. The ribbing is K2, P1, K2, P2. Neat effect.

The socks were intended for Joe, but I incorrectly guessed that his feet were the same size as mine, and these will be too small for him. If I pick out and reknit the toe, I can make the sock shorter to fit Sarah. Or I could keep them for myself. These ~are~ kind of a cruel gift: socks that have to be hand-washed and laid flat to dry.

2 comments:

Unknown said...

Yes yes, hand wash, dry flat, truely a pain. But wool socks keep your feet so much warmer than any of the new thermal materials. You just can't beat them.

Tallguy said...

Really nice socks! But I think they had best stay at your house, since no one else will take care of them the same way you will. It would be cruel to the socks to give them to someone else. No, best they stay there.

You'll just have to find something else to get for Joe... he probably won't mind WoolEase!