WIP: Argyle socks

#1

I’m not very far into the project, but I’m posting it as a self-motivator. I’m using recycled gray lambswool (fingering wt.) with some laceweight Kid Seta carried along in the toe and heel for strength. The pink diamonds, when I get that far, will be Deborah Norville Serenity. The socks are for my daughter. Oh, and the pattern is the Seamless Argyle Sock Pattern Generator.

BTW, the Kid Seta is very hard to keep untangled (working from outside and inside of one ball), so I’m tearing off yard-long lengths, whose ends will felt inside the sock. :woohoo:

#2

Seamless argyle! Awesome! Those are going to be gorgeous socks.

Yeah…kid seta has mohair in it doesn’t it? That stuff is a nightmare to frog.:zombie: Actually probably impossible is a better description.

#3

Excellent! And you’re doing it right :wink: 2 at a time, toe up. That’s the “right” way because that’s how I do socks too. What cast on did you use? They’re gonna be loverly for your daughter.

#4

Amen to that! I recyled thrift-store, and I learned the hard way not to bother with any that are mostly mohair. Now that I’m working with manageable lengths of the stuff, so I can detangle, I think it’ll be fine.

#5

Oh, I always do socks at least 2AAT. I’ve also done 4AAT and 6AAT (a learning experience). For toe-up socks, I always use Judy’s Magic CO. I once tried a short-row toe, and it worked OK but I didn’t see any real advantage to it. When I get there, I’ll be doing a Sweet Tomato Heel. I’m hoping to have the socks done by my daughter’s birthday, on the 22nd, but we’ll see. It wouldn’t be the first time I’ve given a gift still on the needles and then taken it back to finish it. She knows I’m good for it, hehe.

#6

I do the Turkish Cast on and the Fleegle Heel. Funny how we all do them differently. :thumbsup:

I’ve been doing two socks at one time, but on separate needles. Haven’t attempted two at once. I don’t make that many socks so maybe not a big deal, but I’ll have to try it. More than two sounds like a nightmare of twisted yarn balls. :zombie:

#7

Those look lovely and soft and the argyle in pink will be perfect. Thanks for the pattern link.

#8

She’s gonna love them. I am strictly a one sock at a time dpn kinda gal. I have worked with magic loop but I like the dpn’s better. Of course, you always have one completed and you realize you have another to go, but unless it is a boring sock, I don’t mind. :stuck_out_tongue:

#9

Funny how we all do them differently.

One of the things I love about knitting. When I find that someone does something in a way I’ve not tried, I can try it! I have to look at the Sweet Tomato Heel again, I think I’ll be doing Fleegle Heels this time.

#10

The yarn isn’t too hard to manage if you put all the balls into something snug and then turn all of them at once at the end of each half round. Alternate between clockwise and counterclockwise turning, and the yarns don’t get tangled. Once I get to about mid instep, I simply tuck each ball of yarn into the toe it’s attached to.

Here’s my yarn-management system for 4AAT:

#11

You’re very welcome.

#12

Wow…amazing job…the yarn looks delicious and 4 at a time…I am so impressed that I am blogging on my kindle. (Which is a chore for ME)…AWESOME…CAN’T WAIT FOR THE FINISHED PRODUCT…u go girl

#13

Oh!That 4AAT project was from a couple of years ago. I posted that pic just to show how I kept the yarn from getting tangled. Here’s how the socks came out. Glad you like the yarn; I dyed it.

#14

Ohhhhh my. You’re very talented! I love the plan! Carry on, sista!

#15

I’ve finished the reinforced toes, and I’m working my way up to the instep.

#16

WOW…a sock maniac!!! I am so jealous…I have read several books on the magic method and I can’t picture it…so your photo certainly does help…you are giving me motivation to try it now!!! Thanks!

#17

I never really got magic loop until I watched a couple of videos on YouTube. Sometimes books work best for me, sometimes videos. I highly recommend magic loop, so don’t give up.

#18

DJ, I appreciate your posting about your socks, you share tips and bits of info that help me a lot.

As for learning to do magic loop, I finally just grabbed a long circ and some yarn and watched a video and tried it. It worked. I couldn’t understand it until I saw it taking place on the needles. Two at a time was the same way, but once I did it, it was clear why it works. I wouldn’t try to explain it to anyone, I’d have to say that once you’ve done it you should get it.

#19

Glad I could help! I’m working on the heels now. Once I get them done, I’ll post another pic. Then I’ll be doing the argyle, which is new territory for me.

#20

Lest y’all think I’m some kind of sock-knitting guru, I had just about finished the heels, realized they weren’t fitting right, and discovered I’d neglected to rearrange the stitches. So I was using half the stitches instead of 60% or so. Rip, rip, rip. This was the first time I’ve ripped back socks the “thrilling” way: pulling the needles out! But the wool was nice and grabby, so the tiny loops just sat there for me to pick up. :woot: Here’s where I’m at: