This is a tribute to my northern neighbors.

Inspiration: In my younger years, I spent many wonderful summers in western Ontario, Canada where my grandparents had a log cabin home on a pristine spring-fed lake abounding with natural beauty and wonders. Whenever seeing the Maple Leaf emblazoned on the National Flag of Canada, my memories of those happy times I spent in Canada resurface. And thus, when offered the opportunity to design socks as a tribute to my northern neighbors, a maple leaf motif seemed an obvious choice as a focal element.

For these socks, I interpreted the maple leaf in a textured lace stitch. The yarn over’s loosely define the outer edges of the leaves; the twisted knit stitches and decreases define the stem and main veins, and the knit-purl texture serves double-duty of further defining the interior of the leaves plus giving some resiliency to the fabric to enhance the elastic fit about the leg..

The socks begin with a pointed lace bias-ribbed border, symbolizing the ties that this self-governing country retains to the British crown. The ribbed border then transitions into a field of overall maple leaves encircling the leg. As a nice feature for wearing with open-back sandals, I designed the heel to transition back into the bias-ribbed pattern. If you prefer a plain heel, of course, feel free to substitute. The maple leaves are carried into the instep and taper to a point as the solid fabric of the foot takes over to complete the sock.

Click to download a free preview of the cover page as published in the HeartStrings single pattern edition