What She Shovels

I started socks for Gosling quite some time ago. I finished them for St Nicholas Day in December, and he found them in the morning with his brand new bright green Crocs (another story worth telling). I had intended to make matching ones for his sister in time, but it didn’t happen. I did cast on and start them, but got as far as the first heel before I needed to consult Sensational Knitted Socks, and never seemed to have the book and the sock in the same place at the same time.

Last Tuesday, I ducked out of the house for knitting and didn’t have time to come up with a project, but grabbed the bag with the sock project in it. I remembered in time to also get SKS and headed out. With all the chit chat of knit night, I didn’t get a whole lot done, but I did turn the heel.

I picked it back up again on Friday and finished the leg of the sock. These aren’t monumental feats, given the sock fits a 1 year old’s foot, but it’s more than I’ve managed in a while.

With the 3 year old version of the socks, the bind off wasn’t stretchy enough. I keep hearing “bind off using a larger needle” but that wasn’t cutting it. The socks go on, but not easily, and the 1 year old wouldn’t stand still for it and it wasn’t satisfying for me, either. I needed something that would be easy to do on the go, didn’t require extra notions, and would solve the stretch problem. I found 
Peggy’s Stretchy Bind-off for Toe-Up Socks and it worked like a charm. It’s so easy, too!

If you are knitting a K1, P1 ribbing, on the row before the bind-off row: K1, M1 (“make one” by making a half-hitch loop, not by picking up the in-between thread), pull the M1 tight, P1.

Repeat around. Bind off row (go up a needle size or two): K1, slip the M1, pass the K1 over the slipped M1, P1, pass the slipped M1 over the P1, K1, pass the P1 over, etc. as for a regular bind off.

If you are knitting a K2, P2 ribbing, on the row before the bind-off row: K2, M1, P2, M1.

Repeat around. Do a regular bind off, as above, remembering to slip the M1 rather than knitting it. The M1 is never actually knit, so it doesn’t make a stitch which will add bulk to the top of your cuff; it simply creates an extra loop in your chain bind off.

I also found Weebleknits’ run down of various stretchy bind offs. Maybe I’ll try some more, but I’m pretty sold on the one I used.

Having finished the 3rd sock, I only had a smidgen of yarn left. I had some scraps that may have been enough to eek out a 4th small sock, but I remembered Ruth had offered some from her stash when I was working on the first sock. A quick email and some fresh baked cookies to bribe her with, and I was off. I cast on the 4th sock last night and finished it this afternoon. Whoo! [insert sfx huffing nails]

So now I have a new problem to attack. What do I do with 1 3/4 skeins of Moda Dea Sassy Stripes in Crayon?

Oh, and pictures to come when I have two awake models.