Sunday, August 4, 2013

Year of Projects 3: Spring Shoots 02



SOCKTOPUS: Totally Vanilla • Kandahar • V Junkie • Kwalia • Farmer McGregor • Shur'tugal • 2luvcrew • Vorticity • Rumpled! • Crowley • Om Shanti • Mince Pie Mayhem • Hundred Acre Wood • De Stijl • Fiori di Zucca • Caretta Caretta • Spring Shoots


Once I got over my fear of snipping open holes in my knitted feet for afterthought legs, the pair of Spring Shoots socks were off the needles pretty quickly. Just think - the KAL for this pattern ends on August 31st so now I'm ahead of schedule. Time to cast on a few side projects rather knitting monogamously on socks!

The yarn I used was Socktopus Sokkusu Original in a colourway called "Slice of Orange" It's very bright; the perfect choice for when you want to see the stitches clearly. The yarn is lovely - a nice twist, springy and not at all splitty - but it's a light fingering. When I'm knitting on patterns like this that ask for  US 1-1/2 (2.5 mm) needles, I'd rather something a bit fuller for a sturdier fabric. This yarn really begs to be knit on size 0 (2 mm) needles.

I'm not over the moon about these socks. There are lots of construction elements that make them an interesting knit but they don't give the greatest fit. The star toe and heel look dramatic, but I hate the feel of increases over the tops of my toes and under the pads of my toes. With the spiralling increase I never really feel like the sock is properly square on my foot. And then there's that persistent wrinkle at the back of my heel!! The gusset increase strategy was too spread out over the instep - leaving the sock baggy at my arch. And a seed stitch cuff looks cool but it's not stretchy and it's not doing a thing to help these sock stay up. Overall the sock feels a bit thin and a bit large ... maybe I'll like them more after a trip through the washer and dryer?!

Hopefully the next pair of socks in the KAL fit better. The pattern is Hundred Acre Woods - one of my early favourites in the book. The KAL runs from August 1st to September 30th - no pressure at all. I've chosen a yarn from one of the KAL sponsors: Djinni Sock from Dragonfly Fibers in a colourway called "Oberon". And thankfully it's thicker than it's predecessor.

Now, what else to cast on? I guess I'd better spend a bit of time looking through my stash today to see what I could knit up! A shawl? A baby blanket? Something else? Probably a baby blanket using the remaining Berroco Vintage in my stash.





14 comments:

Marie/Underground Crafter said...

The color is extraordinary. I am impressed with your ability to stick through a project - it definitely helps you learn new techniques, even if you don't end up wanting to use them again :).

Anonymous said...

I do love the colour of the socks but I especially like how you point out what doesn't work on the socks for you. This for me as a relatively new sock knitter is invaluable. It helps me figure out things when knitting and fitting socks. I love the hundred acre ones! I love the leaf lace pattern and they will look great in the yarn you have chosen. Looking forward to seeing what the other project might be.

Carolina22 said...

Congrats on your perseverance! They are beautiful but sorry to hear they have so many issues.

Stefanie said...

The citrus color is terrific. The st pattern is lovely. Sorry though how it doesn't feel and for the way you'd like it to.

Elisabeth said...

The colour on the sock is awesome! I hope you'll like them better after they have been through the washing machine =) Maybe they will soften up :)

Claire said...

Your Spring Shoots are lovely! I cut my first sock this morning and it turned out to be less traumatic than I thought.

Christine said...

The fibre you have for the "Hundred Acre Wood" socks have me swooning! I can hardly wait to see it in action!

Leftycrafter said...

I'm in! WOOHOO! Love the sock again. The color is so bright and cheery too.

Wanderingcatstudio said...

They look pretty good in your pictures. Too bad they don't fit well.

I've cast on for Hundred Acre Wood too - I'll share tomorrow.

Unknown said...

Love the color, but the fit does look off. But the color is luscious!

katie metzroth said...

I like the look of the Oberon for sure! and your orange socks look great. here's hoping they do fit better after a wash!

Keri said...

I LOVE the new sock yarn. I can't wait to see how that knits up!!!!

Ylva said...

Both the socks and the other yarn are just gorgeous!

Emma (GirlAnachronismE) said...

The socks look great, but it is a shame they don't fit well (not that you can tell that from the pictures!). I hope the next ones fit better.