Of Men and Socks

Man, B's feet are big.  His socks are big.  Heed this warning:  fingering yarn and men's socks are not a good combo.  Consider yourself warned.

I managed to sneak in several solid hours of work on his socks this weekend, and this is all I've got.

Each round is comprised of 144 knit stitches across two socks.  It's a slow, slow slog.  I may need to join Mason-Dixon Knitting's Slogalong to help motivate me.  They're also a tad too big, though B (saint that he is) insists they're fine. 

Part of me wants to rip them out (again!), which would win me two things:  better fit and a more interesting pattern.  I had already cast on before "Senational Knitted Socks" arrived, and my stitch count doesn't match any of the patterns until I get to the cuff.  On the other hand, I could just decrease a few stitches and keep going.  Do I have enough yarn to keep going?   Decisions.  Decisions.

The yarn, by the way, is Lana Grossa Meilenweit Fantasy, color 4730.  It seems a bit stiff, and I worry that it might be scratchy.  But everyone says it softens up after washing.  I'll let you know.

Socktopia

Meanwhile, I joined Socktopia in April in time to submit my Dreamsicle Socks for the April theme: "Orange You Glad I Didn't Say Banana?".   This is my first knit-a-long, and already I really enjoy browsing everyone's finished objects.  The yarn.  The patterns.  Awesome.

Socktopia's shtick is that you aim to knit one pair of socks a month according to a theme.  There are several themes to pick from, so don't fret if you aren't an orange fan.  This month's theme includes "Fiesta" in honor of Cinco de Mayo.  Since I'm originally from San Antonio, TX (home of Fiesta), I couldn't resist.  Perhaps not so surprisingly, I have just the right yarn too.  I'm keeping this project secret until I'm finished.  Stay tuned.

In the Mail

I finally got around to ordering the Cabled V-Neck sweater pattern from Angel Yarns in the UK.  You may recall that I need a pattern for my Rowen Cashsoft stash.  It seemed silly to ship a single pattern over from the UK, so I added a skein of TOFUtsies and another of Lucy Neatby Celestial Merino to my order.  I'm also keeping a watchful eye on the Get Knitted sale bin.  Get Knitted stocks a nice selection of gucci yarns, which are hard to come by over here in Europe.  My radar is fixed on the Colinette Jitterbug and Fleece Artist Nova Socks. 

# of projects on needles: 3, # of projects destined for frog bin: maybe 1, # of projects on deck: 2

Comments

[Heather]

Yes, I now only do worsted weight socks for my husband on size 4 needles, I can't take the monotony of it!

Your socks are cute, btw...

[Jen]

Yeah I might need to commit sepuku before these socks get me first. ;) They are truly mind-numbing, even more than his sweater which is k6, p1 slogfest. At least I'm using size 5 needles for that.

In any case, I need to do some way hard math to figure out how much yarn I'm going to need to finish B's socks. I think I'm at serious risk of running out, and I'm not really keen on buying another skein.

Thanks for the kudos on the socks. I like the colorway for B - very manly, yet goofy. So him. At least the goofy part. ;) We're thinking of doing the the waffle rib pattern for the cuff. OK, so all I really need to do is push through the foot. Mush. Mush.

[Elinor]

Oooh, what a slogalong. I always TRY to make man socks with worsted or sport weight yarn on smaller needles for that precise reason. Your socks look great!!!

[becky]

Now that is some great yarn- I'm a regular sock ripper myself. i pretend it's like the monks who make great sand mandalas only to sweep them away. It works while I frog. Not so much when I'm casting on again. bigger yarn-bigger needles-bigger socks- I might just "get" this knitting thing eventually.

[Jen]

Glad ya'll like the socks. I started calling them Flap Jacks b/c at the moment they're kind of the shape of small pancakes. Not sure why I keep naming socks after food...

I *just* finished trying to figure out whether I'll have enough yarn to finish them up. According to the chart on p. 9 of SKS, I'll be about 50-75 meters short just based on the amount in the skein. So these are going to be short socks, but I believe they'll clear his ankles. I think I'm goint to push through and see what happens.

If they're too short, I'll probably have to post some stash for sale or swap. I have too many manly colors in fingering weight yarn. I do have some wee nephews I can knit for, but I haven't had much luck finishing prezzies for the kids before they grow out of them.

[Jennie]

Oh girl, I soooooo know how you feel. I lovingly made my dear BF some socks and they drove me bonkers. I actually had to frog the first one because things just weren't lookin'/fitting right and it was a moment for me since it was my first frogging session ever. :(

But after all was frogged and done, I really am happy I did frog because they turned out better and I don't have that linger feeling of what if's. BUT he isn't gonna be gettin' another pair anytime soon, they ended up being 12 inches for the leg and another 12 inches for the foot, this all knit up on US1's eek. I call them ogre feet. LOL

If you haven't added any more rows to the socks, I say go frog and since you have your new SKS book to work with you can pick out an awesome pattern to do and make it a better fit. :)

[Jen]

Hey Jennie, I decided to keep on keeping on - I'm interested in seeing what happens. B, did I mention he's a saint, will wear them no matter how weird they end up being. And they're only a tad too big anyway, though he claims they're snug. He's so telling me what I want to hear. ;)