THINK ABOUT COLOUR CHANGES
Knitters often work socks in their favourite
yarns rather than the ones the socks were
originally designed in – this is a great way
of personalising them, but do remember
that the colours might work differently,
and different sock elements work better
with different colour changes. If you’re
using a self-striping sock yarn, an
afterthought heel is the best way to
preserve the colour order. For a variegated
yarn, a short-row heel will mean that the
stitch count stays consistent on both the
leg and foot of the sock – the longer round
lengths given by a heel flap gusset will
‘pool’ the colour changes differently.
REINFORCE YOUR HEEL FLAP
If you are knitting a heel flap, slip every
other stitch on each right-side row as you
work. This will create a double thickness
of fabric, as the yarn strands over the back
of the slipped stitches - so you’re less likely
to get a hole there when it rubs against the
back of your shoe. If you slip the same
stitches each row, you’ll get a column
effect, which looks great flowing on from a
ribbed leg design. If you offset every other
row, you’ll get a pretty ‘eye of partridge’
pattern like on the socks pictured above.
If you’re particularly prone to holes here,
you can also hold a reinforcing thread
alongside your yarn for this section,
for extra strength.
AVOID HOLES AFTER THE HEEL
Once you’ve finished your heel flap and
are working in the round again, it’s really
common to find holes in the fabric either
side of the heel flap. To avoid these, pick up
one or two extra stitches either side of the
top of the sock. So pick up your gusset
stitches down the heel flap, then continue
down the same column of stitches for an
additional stitch or two, before beginning
to knit across the top of the sock. Then
when you’re ready to work back down the
other side of the heel flap, pick up your
first couple of stitches from the leg of the
sock, in line with the edge of the heel flap.
Voilà! No pesky holes.TWIST THOSE STITCHES
When you work your second round after
the heel, work all the picked-up stitches
along the sides of the heel flap through the
back loop. This helps tighten them up and
makes the edges much neater.AVOID SECOND SOCK SYNDROME
We all know the joy of finishing one sock,
only to have to go right back to the
beginning of the pattern to knit the second
one. If you struggle to cast on that second
sock right away, instead being lured away
by more tempting new projects, try
knitting both socks at the same time.
This can be done using two sets of needles,
or one long circular where you knit one
round of one sock, then one round of the
second, round and round as you go.BLOCK THOSE SOCKS
Invest in a set of sock blockers, and
whenever you wash your handknit socks,
let them dry on the blockers. We promise
you, you’ll be amazed at the difference it
makes! This is particularly good for gifted
socks, as it evens out your stitches and
makes the finished project look brilliantly
professional.PREPARE FOR DARNING
No matter how many tricks you try, you’re
sure to get holes eventually in a knit that
gets as much friction and wear as a sock- most probably at the heel or toe. Don’t
throw away all your hard work; instead,
invest in a darning mushroom and always
hang on to a small amount of the original
yarn so you’re ready and waiting when
those holes appear. Alternatively, if the
hole is in the toe, you may prefer to just
rip back the end of the sock and reknit it.
TAKE THEM WITH YOU!
Sock are the perfect portable knitting, and
you’ll be surprised at just how much
progress you’ll make in odd minutes here
and there. If you use double-pointed
needles, invest in a tubular knitting holder
or needle caps like StitchKeepers (above)
to protect the ends on the go – or you can
even make your own from two pencil
toppers and a couple of pieces of elastic!Try your hand at
darning to help
your socks to last
a bit longerMasterclass
The Knitter 77 Issue 150