Socks, socks, socks and more socks!

It's time for me to come out of the closet and admit I am a sock-o-haulic. I made some socks several years ago (try a couple of decades ago) and was not overly impressed. I found them awkward and not very satisfying. So I turned back to knitting sweaters.

Fast forward to two years ago.

I was casually wandering the shoppe, thinking about possible projects to start, when I was stalked by the infamous Bex-ter. "Have you ever tried socks?" she asked innocently. "Yes," I said, "but I didn't really care for them." "Ah, but have you tried TOE-UP socks?" she inquired.

Hmmmmmm. Toe-up....You know how it is when someone speaks to you like an equal, like you know what the heck they are talking about, and you are too embarrassed to admit you haven't a clue what they are saying? Well, I had one of those moments, but carefully concealed my ignorance, or so I thought. In some sort of backhanded way Bex casually let drop in the conversation what was different between toe-up and cuff-down socks, and why she preferred toe-up. Hmmmmmm. It sounded interesting. "Do you have a pattern?" I asked....

I have some suggestions to make first socks easier for the neophyte sock artiste. First, don't try to save money buying cheap cotton yarn at the discount store (which, yes, I did do). I kept running out and buying more and my cheap socks got rather expensive. I also learned (the hard way) that cotton doesn't stretch and recover well, i.e. it is not elastic. Wool, on the other hand, is very elastic compared to cotton. It springs back wearing after wearing and wash after wash. Some permanent stretch over time is inevitable, but over all, wool is your best general sock yarn. It lets your tootsies wriggle, your arch lengthen and shorten, and the balls of your feet expand and contract as your footsquooshes against the sole of your shoe. Be sure to consider how you will want to care for your finished socks--you will probably prefer "super wash" wool which can be machine washed and dried without felting (shrinking into felt doll slippers).

At first glance wool sock yarn may seem either too costly or too much of a pain to launder. But really it doesn't have to be. After my first toe-up adventure, I decided to try some more knitting. I checked out the selection of knitting books at the public library and discovered Nancy Bush's Folk Socks: the History & Techniques ofHand knitted Footware . What a treasure this book is. I found a pattern for replica revolutionary war lace socks. The pattern called for "Wildfoote" superwash sock yarn. So I trotted off to Hillcreek Yarn Shoppe, to see if they had this magic elixir.

I walked in confidently, and demanded to know whether they had any "whitefoot" yarn. "We have some Wildfoote yarn," said Ms. Bex. I looked at it and sure enough it was the stuff called for in the pattern. The pattern called for "Vanilla" and the price sticker on the vanilla was $5.60. Not bad! It called for two balls to make these fancy lace socks. I put that on my "to do" list, and reminded myself I needed to finish my Lion's Brand "magic sock yarn" socks first.

I was quite impressed with this "magic" yarn. I casually showed it to Bex, thinking she too would be impressed. Magic stripe yarn knits up into striped socks, without the knitter having to change yarns along the way. They make easy socks look very fancy.

"Oh, yes," said Bex, "we have some OPAL magic yarn," and she pointed it out on the shelf. My jaw dropped when I looked at the shop samples. These weren't simple stripes of black alternating withburgundy like prisoners might wear in jail to identify them if they should try to make a run for it. There were blue stripes and green stripes and orange stripes, and some of the stripes were wide and solid, others were speckled, and some even had little geometric patterns on them. There were many stripes before the pattern started repeating, creating a beautifully complex design.S'okay, I went home with a ball of Opal in color #4.

With superwash sock yarn, you can have all the stretchiness and wicking ability of wool socks, but still be able to toss them in the laundry. It's the best of both worlds. Those opal socks were a big hit with both my mother and sister for Christmas that year.

There are SO MANY options available to the sock knitter today. After a few pairs of Opal, I tried some Trekking yarn. Also very lovely. Trekking now has a wool/bamboo blend for a completely natural fiber sock yarn with added strength from the bamboo fibers and elasticity, moisturewicking and warmth from the wool fibers. 100g/420m balls are enough for a generous pair of socks, or a pair and a spare of ladies' crew socks. The cost is $14 forsuperwash wool (with nylon) or $17.95 for the "natura" (wool/bamboo blend).

Just this week the shoppe got a shipment of Supersocke Cotton, just in time for spring knitting. This yarn is also a magic striping yarn, but instead of nearly all wool, it is 45% Baumvolle (cotton), 40% Schurwolle (wool), and 15% Polyamid. At just $13.00 per pair, this is a great deal for some comfy spring/summer walkin'.

You could choose Austermann with Aloe Vera and Jojoba Oil right in the yarn. It's not only pleasant on the hands as they knit, it stays in the sock for at least 40 washings to offer soft, soothing comfort for feet. The cost is $19.50 for a 100g/420m ball.

A new sock yarn came in recently, called "Tofutsies." No, it is not made of tofu, but it does contain some soysilk, made from soybeans just as tofu is. However, unlike tofu, Tofutsies are not bland or boring. These brightly colored yarns knit up with vibrant stripes of color. Check out Rosemarie's entrelac sock knit of Tofutsies yarn. Tofutsies yarn is comprised of 50% superwash wool, 25% soysilk, 22.5% cotton, and 2.5% chitin (from crustacean shells) for extra strength. Chitin is also naturally antibacterial! A 100g/425m ball ofTofutsies is $16.00 and is enough for a generous pair of socks.

Looking for a more economical sock yarn?

If you'd like a stretchier sock yarn, you might check out Regia's "Stretch Color" for $7.80 for 50g/200m, enough for a pair of short ladies' socks. A 50g/200m ball will knit up a pair of ladies' anklet socks, at a cost of $7.80.

Fortissima "Socka" yarn, in pretty solid colors of the rainbow, will knit up a pair of ladies' anklets for just $6.95.

For economical ladies' anklets, there's always the ever reliable Wildfoote yarn at $5.60 a 50g/215m ball.

All of the sock yarns mentioned are machine washable.

We just got the long awaited sequel to Charlene Schurch's Sensational Knitted Socks called....More Sensational Knitted Socks. There are goodies for everyone in this book, including toe up and cuff down designs in many different colors and textures, a faux entrelac sock for the entrelac-phobic, and some interesting new cuff treatments for toe-up socks, including a picot edging. Be sure to check it out before this hot book flies off the shelves.

Don't forget our sock club meets on Sunday afternoons at 1 pm, right here at Ye Old Hillcreek Yarn Shoppe. From wanna-be sock knitter to virtuoso, all are welcome. Even if you just enjoy the company of other knitters, bring whatever you are working on and join us. Hope to see you there!