10/20/23
The dark purple shade of this yarn is hard to describe. The color is actually called “Eggplant” aka Aubergine. I like the latter the best, it sounds foreign and unusual, although the word is found in the British dictionary.

I started this pair of socks yesterday. I was on business in the far-west suburbs of Chicago and had about 3 hours to kill between appointments. Therefore I decided to go to the largest yarn shop in the entire Chicagoland (at least in my book), the Wool and Company in Elgin. They have couple of charming corners set up with couches, chairs and tables - perfect for sitting down and knit in the company of others. The store management actually encourages it. They even don’t mind if you work with yarn bought elsewhere!
I bought this yarn and a set of size 1 Karbonz needles (which I needed anyways) and sat down with a group of lovely ladies to knit and chat for couple of hours. I had a wonderful time and i hope to see them again soon.

About this pair of socks. I have already used this slightly textured pattern once before and really like the result. Actually, I have also named that first pair after a food - Buttercream - https://www.ravelry.com/projects/mariolac/hermiones-every....
The pattern is very easy and it is free! BTW, big thanks to the designer - Erica Lueder!
I am knitting these socks top-down with a picot folded edge.

01/28/24
I am back to this project and have just completed the first sock.

This is what I have done:

• Cast on 72 stitches on size 1 needles
• Join in-the-round and knit 10 rows in stockinette
• Make a row of k2tog, yo all around, which becomes the folding line with picots
• Knit another 10 rows in stockinette
• Join the cast-on edge with the stitches on the needles. I used size 0 to pick up the stitches right below the cast-on and knit them together with the stitches on my main needles. This creates a very nice, folded edge with picots on top.
• After combining knit 2 rounds plain.
• I knitted the leg for about 5.4” measuring from the top of the picots. I used the Hermione’s textured stitch for the leg.
• To strengthen the back of the sock right above the heel I did a shallow (18 rounds, about 1” tall) heel flap on 1/2 of the stitches (actually 35 stitches to balance the pattern) using a slipped stitch “eye of the partridge” pattern.
• At the time of starting the flap I also started small gussets on both sides of the flap, which eventually added 9 stitches to each side, that is 18 stitches to the circumference of the foot. The increases were placed ever other row.
• I used a reinforcement acrylic for the short row heel. The heel was started on 35 stitches and continued till 9 stitches were left between the short row turns. I did 13 sets of short rows. 13 +13 + 9 = 35.
• After the first part of the heel was done I did 2 full rounds all around (without the reinforcement yarn) to combine the wraps and to set the base for the second set of short rows.
• After completing the entire heel I had 90 stitches on the needles. I knitted 4 rounds all around and then started decreasing the gussets on every other round.
• I decreased to 70 stitches for the foot and continued with the pattern on the top and plain stockinette on the sole. After few rows I decided to decrease a bit more and decreased 4 more stitches - 66 stitches all around for the rest of the foot.
• After the last pair of decreases I switched to 2x2 ribbing on the sole (had to actually increase 1 stitch to balance the ribbing). The purpose of the ribbing was to draw-in the fabric a bit right where the foot arch is. I continued the ribbing on the sole for 2” and then switched back to plain stockinette keeping the pattern on top of the foot. Stitch count was 33 top/34 bottom.
• Toes - once again I used the reinforcement acrylic. I decreased 1 stitch right before starting toes to have an even number of 66. 33/33 (top/bottom). Kept 4 stitches intact b/w decreases. Decreased every other row till had 15/15, then decreased every row till had 9/9. -Grafted using my favorite Kitchener method on the needles.

So the first sock is done and I will make an identical second sock. However, since my goal is to come up with a perfect sock design to suit my needs, next time I would adjust the above with few small changes.

• The heel flap could be little taller - probably about 1.5”
• The gussets should little smaller - no more than 7 extra stitches on each side, that is 14 extra total.
• Considering the above the gussets should be started little later, probably about half way through the heel flap (depending on the row gauge).
• The heel should be done on more stitches to make it deeper and wider. I will try 42-44.
• The heel short rows should end with more stitches in between (to avoid the pointy heel), probably 10-12.
• The ribbing on the sole should be started sooner, probably about 1/2” after finishing the heel.

The big question is - WHY to go to ALL THIS ROUBLE where there are thousands of wonderful sock patterns readily available? The answer is somehow complicated.
I have been knitting socks for quite a few years and at this point can honestly say that I do not need to use a pattern at all. I can just take a suitable yarn, a set of 5 DPNs and start knitting! Till about few months ago I was quite happy with a basic sock design with a slipped stitch heel flap and a small triangular heel with side gussets. The problem was that virtually all of my hand knitted socks develop holes right where the heel ends and the sole begins. I have been mending these holes, but that is not a real solution. I wanted to use a reinforcement yarn of some sort to strengthen the heel. I also wanted to make the heel larger. I am a big woman and my feet are proportional to my height. In short, I wear size 10 shoes and consequently large socks. On top of it, my feet are wide and my arches high. Also, my ankles are often swollen due to a very advanced post traumatic arthritis. In fact, my left ankle is so bad that it doesn’t even bend much anymore. I am awaiting a surgery to correct this.
In conclusion, I am very particular in my shoe and socks choices. Store bought socks seldom work for me. They are not only too small, but also too tight around the ankles. Therefore I have been toying with the idea to develop a perfect sock to suit my needs. And it looks like I am getting there! Needles to say, this does not mean that I will be limited to some plain and boring socks. On the contrary, I intend to use many of the beautiful patterns I have collected over the years. It is just the basic structure and fit that I keep changing and improving. It is exciting!