Casting on…..

Gosh how much trouble I always have with casting on, in the round, or rather the joining and first round. Took me about 4 attempts. I used the cast on suggested in nonnontsn’s project

It felt familiar, think I may have done it before but perhaps from a different video. I think I’ll try a different one on the next pair, I really need to find a cast on method that makes the first row of knitting a little less frustrating.

Heel procrastination

So after getting going with the cuff (2k2p) and leg (knit knit knit!) I was enjoying the process very much, the yarn changing colors, and just knitting on merrily. Then I got to the purple that meant it was time for the heel and I got a little nervous. This meant it was no longer a ‘pick it up and just knit’ project. I hadn’t definitely decided on the heel (what do I know, I’ve never done socks! Do the prescribed short row heel like Regia/Arne & Carlos say? Or follow the pattern I linked here?) and I went into procrastination mode. Thankfully not too long, I’ve now started on the boomerang heel!

Heel mishap

So, part 1 of the heel worked up without any hiccups. Unfortunately that is not the case for part 2. I forgot a double stitch and had to pick back two rows, then somehow messed up the double stitch on the other side in the process of picking back, which threw me off completely. Also I thought I had some yarn overs next to some of the double stitches, which I dropped, but I think those were actual stitches, because I ended up three stitches short. I frogged the second part of the heel and carefully picked everything back up.

Notes: I found two discrepancies between the written pattern and the video - when knitting up the double stitches of row 1, the video indicates that the first of the second set of double stitches is knitted normally, the rest in the back loop. The written only mentioned the back loop for all those stitches.
Also, the written pattern only indicates one row of knitting after the double stitches have been knitted, while the video shows two.

I started off with 64 stitches, so the heel part is 32. This means according to the pattern my sections are 10 12 10, plus 2 extra stitches from the other half on each side to prevent gaps.

Let’s make a bit of a chart for the second part of the heel so I can count everything out properly as I go.
This table will indicate the stitches that should be on the left and right of the double stitch for section 2, before turning. To calculate this I take the pattern as written, add 2 stitches to the middle section. The left and right stitches will include the 2 extra stitches on the needle to not confuse me while counting ;)

Not sure if this will make sense to anyone else but hopefully it will help me!

Also, left and right is seen from the right side of the work.

Middle = stitches to knit/purl (including double stitch)

Hmm… seems there may be a mistake in the written pattern, as row 20 is a knit row there. I’ll check the video.

Heel done

Almost without a hitch. I was missing one stitch in the end. The chart above was correct, after the (purl) round 20 it’s just knitting around again. I ran out of the purple heel color and the end of the that purl row, so I think I won’t do a row in the heel color before starting on the actual heel on the next pair.

Almost at the toes

I ordered myself some Addi 2.25 circulars (rocket lace) to replace the somewhat kinked kntipro carbonz I was using. One of the joints on those was snagging so I had to be very careful about which way around I was using them so that needle didn’t need to be moved backward during knitting. I really like the Addis. I’ve seen several videos using DPNs and I don’t like the idea so I’ll stick with magic loop.

I got to the final purple part before the foot was long enough to start the toes, I somehow expected to start the decreases while still in the orange but my feet are not that small. I check three ways where I am, measuring from the heel, using a cardboard foot template and trying it on, just to see if it all adds up. So far so good, I’m still a bit below the pinky toe on both my foot and the template and I’m at 18cm.

Toes

Started the toes after 20cm, 9 rows into the purple.
When I was at 8 stitches and ready to bind off I found the sock to be just a bit tight around my big toe. I ripped back to row 11 (48 stitches total) and will make the decreases a bit more gradual, probably something like this:

Rows 12-13 knit
Row 14 decrease (44)
Row 15-16 knit
Row 17 decrease (40)
Row 18-19 knit
Row 20 decrease (36)
Row 21 knit
Row 22 decrease (32)
Row 23 knit
Row 24 decrease (28)
Row 25 knit
Row 26 decrease (24)
Row 27 knit
Row 28 decrease (20)
Row 29 decrease (16)
Row 30 decrease (12)
Row 31 decrease (8)

This should increase the length at the end by about 1cm.

On the next pair I’ll knit a bit further before the toes (21 cm ;) )

A sock!

I finished the first sock using the adjustment above. The shape looks a bit pointy but it fits quite well.

I used this Kitchener stitch video on the final 8 stitches.

I’ve managed to cast on the second sock in one (very tense) go and am on my way with the ribbing.

Sock 2 - Cuff

I wasn’t thrilled with the ribbing on the first cuff. On this one I tried to keep it the same but I did knit it rather tightly. The result is a tighter and slightly longer cuff than sock 1. It did bug me a little but this is a learning process and my first pair of socks…. I may add a little elastic to the first sock later on to equalize the cuff tension.

Sock 2 - ready for heel

The leg of the second sock is a teensy bit tighter than the first sock. This may be due to the needles, I switched from Karbonz to Addi rocket lace during the foot of the first sock and this sock I’ve only done on the Addi’s. Again, I’m chalking it up to a learning experience and try not to let it bug me that they aren’t perfect.

Working on the second heel now. I’ve found it’s getting a bit addictive. May be due to the fact that there’s stitches on both needles so it seems wrong to stop….

Sock 2 heel

This time the heel went a lot smoother. On the first rows of the second part I was again missing a stitch after purling the double stitch. I think I found the problem, I didn’t drop anything but I mistook the stitch right before the double stitch as being part of the double stitch and purled them together. After that all went well with careful counting.

Finished

Yep, my first sock is definitely a bit messy and loose compared to the second. Hopefully I got the swing of things. Now I just need to find a cast on I don’t hate for pair 2!