socks * socks * socks

Hello there - For Christmas 2013 I was given a ball of sock yarn as I wanted to knit some socks.  I found myself a pattern and off I went, knitting these on four needles and in a rib pattern in a self colouring sock wool.  Well I knitted about four inches of these socks, round and round and didn't like them at all.  They got thrown into my knitting/crochet basket and that is where they stayed until three weeks ago when Christine Perry from here Winwick Mum started an online sockalong. 

I rescued the said socks from Christmas 2013 from my basket and unpicked them.  Once I had unpicked them -

I turned a chair upside down on the kitchen worktop and wound the yarn around the legs of the chair

when the wool comes off the chair legs it looks like this, as it has been knitted for 18 months (I put a this pic on my facebook page - my friend Tracy saw this and started to hyperventilate) - "trust me Tracy" - I said

next - my old copper kettle goes on the hob and the wool gets held over the steam from the kettle (being careful not to scold your arm) and turn the skein around and the wrinkles drop out

see Tracy - "I said trust me" - said wool as good as new!

next - you need a pair of hands (hubby) to hold your skein so that the wool can be wound into a ball

all ready to go - we can now start our socks

cast on and away we go - round and round

OOOOOhhh look at that self patterning wool

OOOOOhhh - two socks (you wind the yarn into the two balls starting with the same pattern) to keep your two sock patterns even once knitting - I think I managed it pretty well

keep knitting round and round and then you have to do the single panel for the heel

you continue to follow the pattern and then shape the toes and hey presto you have a pair of your very own hand knitted socks - look at those!!

Christine has done the best sockalong tutorial in three sections to show you how to make a pair (or many more pairs) of socks

I have spotty socks

I have Dopey socks

I have trainer socks for running - with L (left foot) and R (right foot) on them

I have long socks for running with sheep and smiley faces on

but none of them are as lovely as these hand made by Joy beauties!!!

I LOVE * LOVE * LOVE * THEM

OOOOOhhh - and I have some more

OOOOOhhh and more

well that's at least three pairs

just turning the heel on sock three

sock three finished

 It would appear that there are three "work in progress" here.  Whoops!!!  That's all for now and I think the cosy blanket is on the back burner for the time being and the socks are to the fore

Thanks for popping by and I hope you like my socks and may be tempted to make yourself a pair or two!

Xx Joy Xx

PS  There is also, as well as the cosy blanket "work in progress" another one

OOOOOOhhhh - I  am very excited about this "work in progress"