In honor of Lolly’s fantabulous SOCKTOBERFEST, I give you my sockstory:

When did you start making socks? Did you teach yourself or were you taught by a friend or relative? or in a class?
I started knitting my first sock in January ’05. It was Koigu and I used size 3 bamboo dpns and a pattern from Ann Budd’s The Knitters Handy Book of Patterns. No one taught me per se, I just followed everyone’s advice to do what the pattern said, and turned the heel as it was written. Let’s just say I didn’t get much farther than this:

I think I lost a dpn somewhere and the sock was slouchy and I hate to rib and the color was boring. I abandoned all sock knitting until…

What was your first pair? How have they “held up” over time?
My first pair of socks were knit in June ’05 after seeing Meredith’s pair of purple stripey socks. I took one look at her stripes and knew I had to have another go at it. This time I used two circulars instead of dpns (the d stands for dreaded) and it only took me 11 days to finish the pair!!!

I used Regia Cotton Surf and while I loved knitting the socks, I haven’t loved wearing them. Cotton just doesn’t work for me for socks. They’ve stretched out quite a bit and haven’t bounced back. BUT I loved knitting with two circulars instead of dpns. LOVED IT! And had every intention of knitting another pair. I started a few other pairs of socks after that but nothing that I really loved. Then I went to Rhinebeck and bought A LOT of Socks That Rock. When I got home I was itching to try it out and I stumbled upon the Jaywalker sock pattern by Grumperina which appeared in the September ’05 Magknits. I thought, hey – this might work.

Let’s just say that the pattern literally changed my life. Between October 2005 and February 2006 I completed 8 pairs of Jaywalkers in STR yarn. I currently have two single jaywalker socks and one mate on the needles.

What would you have done differently?
Absolutely nothing. I feel like my sock journey has been exactly as it should be.

What yarns have you particularly enjoyed?
My love for Socks That Rock is well documented. It is by far my desert island yarn. I could live on it forever. That said, I’ve been enjoying Koigu as of late. I also love Sock Hop yarn and will be spinning up my very own Sock Hop roving for socks very soon. I’ve tried other yarns, but these are the ones I come back to – and when I haven’t knit with STR in a bit, I always fall in love all over again. I make no apologies for my unadulterated affection for this yarn. It is, in a word, perfect.

Do you like to crochet your socks? or knit them on DPNs, 2 circulars, or using the Magic Loop method?
I have knit my socks with two cicular needles exclusively. I prefer Addi #1s for my socks. I like to have one circular be longer than the other. I always do the heel on the shorter circular. I’m not sure why. Also, I move the stitches around when picking up the gusset so that half the heel and half the instep are on one needle, and the other halves are on the other. I can’t see myself going any other way on this.

Which kind of heel do you prefer? (flap? or short-row?)
I prefer top down heel flap socks with kitchenered toes. I LOVE to kitchener. LOVE IT.

How many pairs have you made?
I have knit seventeen pairs of socks – two pairs were for Sockapalooza, and three pairs of those socks are actually six singles waiting for mates. I’m currently obsessed with knee highs. I’ve finished one pair, one pair is waiting for handspun heels and toes, one pair needs a mate, and my current sock is just about ready for a heel:

The yarn is Koigu – the semi-solid green is 2340 and the variegated is P852. I’m thinking I’m going to start the second sock and knit to the same spot – right before the heel flap. For some reason I like doing knee highs this way.

My plans for Socktoberfest 2006 are all about finishing. Finishing my new knee highs. Finishing my old knee highs. Whatever I get done I get done.

Handknit Socks. They make life better.