Friday, May 04, 2007

Too Many Choices

Some sock pals, I know, have selected their pattern, bought the yarn, and have started knitting their socks already. I'm not out of the gate yet. I haven't even gone into the gate yet!

Here's what I'm thinking. My sock pal lives somewhere in the South. Although, through stalking her on her blog, I know that it snowed there this past winter, and she regularly knits woolen socks for herself, I can't help thinking that, perhaps, some cotton socks wouldn't go amiss, so that she can wear them as soon as she receives them in August. But then, wool socks just feel more loving, don't they?

So, I've been considering making two pairs of socks for my sock pal. One pair in wool, for when winter comes round again, and one pair in cotton, for immediate enjoyment. Below are all the patterns I'm considering, in black and white so your comments aren't influenced by the colour. First up are the wool sock possibilities.

These are the Best of Show socks from the book Socks Socks Socks. After seeing a pair of similar socks that Eunny knit, I've been wanting to knit something like this. But I'm a very slow colour knitter......and with the strands, the socks would be much thicker and warmer. Possibly a disadvantage in this situation. I don't know if my sock pal likes to go skiing! I've also been anxious to try knitting a pair of socks, any pair of socks, designed by Cookie A., because they are so spectacular. This pattern is called Baudelaire.
And here's a pair of socks designed by Eunny herself, Bayerische. Aren't they lovely?
Another, more complex pattern by Cookie A., the Pomatomus socks.
Queen of Cups by Nathania Apple.

And next are the cotton sock possibilities. I really think a pair of lacy socks would be best.

Leaf Socks, in Socks Socks Socks. Overkill, perhaps?
Feather and Fan socks, also in Socks Socks Socks.

Snowflake Lace socks, by Melanie Berney. I like this pair's delicate simplicity.
And this pair of Reptilian Lace socks, by Sivia Harding. The white dots you can see winding their way down the front are beads!!
Rainy Day socks, designed by Yuliya Sullivan. Aren't they cute? I think they're written as indoor socks, so the gauge is looser, with thicker yarn. I might need to change that for a tighter gauge and thinner yarn, to make a more durable pair of socks for regular use.
And last, but not least, Falling in Love socks, by Anniken Allis. My concerns with this pattern are that the foot looks a little baggy (but that is easily fixed), and I'm not sure how well the leg of the sock would stay up, because there isn't any ribbing.
I would appreciate any comments, because I still need to buy/order my yarn before I can start knitting! I've pretty much decided that I will go with solid colours, or very subtly variegated or heathered yarns in a single hue. But, oh, which pattern? Should I be ambitious and knit two pairs?

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Hi, I'm another Sockapalooza knitter. (Sockapaloozer just didn't sound right.) I saw your comment on the Blue Blog. I hoped you were my knitter, but you're not. We only get snow here about every 20 years.

Cotton socks don't always work as well; I'm searching for good cotton sock yarn. Maybe a blend would work well--cotton and wool, wool and bamboo... great pattern ideas!

greeeenwithenv said...

I can see why you can't decide on just one sock pattern. They're all beautiful. If you're really set on knitting two, maybe pick the two easiest patterns? If you really want to knock her socks off (ha!) choose the most spectacular one, which to me is Baudelaire. Anything resembling leaves is awesome, but that's just my opinion. I think the Pomatomus one is pretty, too. Leaves, waves... both are high in my person ranking of awesomeness.

Seanna Lea said...

On Wendy Knits, she recently knit socks using Panda cotton (it's a yarn that has no wool in it). I think it would be a good idea to ask Sheri at The Loopy Ewe to see if there are any issues with the yarn.

The other idea, maybe not as fun, is to knit the wool socks you think she'd love and knit ankle socks for the summer. Tons of cute little ankle socks!

Sorry, got carried away there.

RachelErin said...

grumperina has a list of cotton sock yarns that she likes.

I also like lombardy street from magknits. lacey and cabley.

amanda j said...

Knitting two pairs for your sockapalooza pal! My goodness what generosity! I like the idea of one complicated pair (personally I like Bayerische) and one ankle pair.