Keeping You in Stitches

By Elaine and Sandy

How “Bout Those Sox!!

We know the baseball season is over so this is not about the Red Sox or the white Sox. It’s about wool socks, but we thought the title just might pique the interest of some men out there who might think about coming to Tuesday Mornings at the library.

So—wool socks… First, they are not itchy and second if they are knit of merino wool, they can be machine washed and dried. (Two concerns addressed) Hand knit wool socks are comfortable in both winter and summer. They absorb moisture and even when wet, they are warm because they allow your feet to breathe. They can be wildly striped or sedately one-colored. They can be lacey, cabled, or patterned with animal figures, leaves or argyle – they can be anything you want. They have a true heel and the fit is wonderful. Wool socks wear well and darning can extend their lifetime. Always keep a small piece of yarn in case you need to darn your socks. Don’t know how to darn? Well, we can show you.

Colorful self-striping yarns are widely available and affordable too. We Type A people like the stripes on our socks to match in the pair, but there are sock kits which direct you to deliberately miss-match the color patterns. For finer knit socks, choose fingering weight wool and size 1-1 ½ sized needles. Heavier winter weight socks are knit in DK or sport weight yarn and size 3 needles. Usually the fiber contents are 75% merino wool, blended with a synthetic material for greater strength and elasticity. Warning! Buying pretty sock yarn can be addictive, but we’ve read than an accumulation of it doesn’t really count as ‘stash.’

Socks can be knit on two needles and seamed up the back, but more often are knit on multiple sock needles in sets of 4-6. It does take some practice to maneuver the needles at first. We’ve knit two socks at the same time on two circular needles held parallel. Sonya knits her socks on one long circular needle folded into what is called ‘the magic loop.’ Whatever technique you choose you still will be rewarded with a great fitting, long wearing, and very good looking pair of socks.

You can knit socks from the top down or the toe up. Top down sock knitting requires that you weave the last rows of stitches together with the “Kitchener stitch” a.k.a grafting.

Kitchener stitch can be quite confusing. One set of instructions tells you to turn off the phone, put out the dog and make sure your spouse is outside before you begin. Knitting catalogs offer instructions for the Kitchener stitch cleverly printed on jewelry so you can have them close at hand. Knitting socks starting at the toe and working toward the cuff eliminates the Kitchener, plus it allows the knitter to extend the length of the leg as much as desired until the skein runs out. It’s great to have choices when it comes to sock knitting because there are so many wonderful sock patterns and yarns too. Some knitters will make several single socks and then go back and knit the mates later to avoid getting bored. Instructions for knitting socks are quite amusing in that they begin “Make two.”

So, how about those Sox? We would love to show you how to knit your own and you will love making and wearing them. There’s nothing like a pair of hand-knitted wool socks to make your feet smile!