Year of Projects 3: Kwalla 03ish

SOCKTOPUS: Totally Vanilla • Kandahar • V Junkie • Kwalla • 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

Now that all other projects have been cleared off my needles, I've been knitting fairly monogamously on Kwalla. I think I mentioned my worries about sizing based on other Ravellers' notes? Well those worries were well-founded.

The main pattern on the leg involves cables  - C6F and C6B. And if you've knit cables before, you'll know that cables make for a dense, scrunched up fabric particularly across wide cables. So that explains the larger needle size and the higher primary stitch count. Typically I knit 64-68 sts on size 0 (2mm) needles for a sock, but in this case I cast on the medium size with 84 sts on a size 1 (2.25mm) needle. That worked out just fine; the leg of the sock fits perfectly.

But when you come to the heel flap and the sole of the sock where there are no cables you gotta have some decreases, right? Nope, not according to the pattern as written. So I'm supposed to knit a stockinette sole on size 1 (2.25mm) needles across 42 stitches and that's supposed to fit?! Uh, no.

Time for some mods! Remember the BFF socks that I knit a several months ago, and the clever decreases that Cookie A included to transition smoothly from cables to stockinette? Time to draw inspiration from Cookie A.

At the top of the heel flap I did a mega decrease row to bring the heel flap stitch count down from 42 sts to 30 sts. I carried on with gusset decreases until I had reduced the stitch count for the sole down to sts. And I did a matching set of decreases to transition from the cabled pattern to stockinette to begin the toe. Et voilà, the sock fits perfectly now ... no puffiness at the back of the ankle, no bagginess at the heel, a nice snug foot, and no puckering at the beginning of the toe decreases. PHEW!

It's a relief to have sock one done and fitting properly. Now I just have to reproduce what I did to make a second matching sock. Fortunately I made notes in my project page on Ravelry so there should be no problem. It's also nice to see how well the yarn is playing with this pattern. It's actually darker and browner in real life so the variegation isn't really overwhelming the pattern. So far the pattern's been nothing but trouble, but at least the sock is turning out nicely. It's super comfortable too ... I think they're going to end up as favourites in the sock drawer.