Become a Creator today!Start creating today - Share your story with the world!
Start for free
00:00:00
00:00:01
Episode 22: Techniques, Socks 1.0
269 Plays3 years ago
Lisa and Tiffany talk all things socks: how to knit or crochet them, and how to write that into patterns.
Recommended
Transcript
Introduction to 'Knit, Design, Edit, Sleep, Repeat'
Exploring Knitting and Crocheting Techniques for Socks
00:00:15
Speaker
Hello and welcome to Knit, Design, Edit, Sleep, Repeat with Lisa Conway, Denise Finley and Tiffany Wooten. Let's listen in and see what's happening, who's happening and what's new and new.
00:00:37
Speaker
Today, Tiffany and I take a deep dive into the techniques of socks, both knit and crochet. Well, hi there, Tiffany. Hello, darling. How are you? I'm hanging in there and looking forward to even colder weather than what we have now. Look, I was excited when I came out the other day and it was like upper sixties when I got off of work the other morning. I was like,
00:01:07
Speaker
There is fall coming. I'm not going to live in a forever summer. I got all excited and because it is cooling off at night now, I'm able to pull out my big comfy cocoon jacket that I made. What was it last year, year before?
Seasonal Changes and Holiday Plans Discussion
00:01:23
Speaker
I don't know. It's made with this Wool-Ease thick and quick that I love and I'm obsessed with.
00:01:28
Speaker
Yeah, I got all excited when I got to pull this back out. So this is my favorite. We've been watching just just so our listeners know, yes, we're playing this in November, but we're recording in September because we're getting ready to take some time off.
00:01:43
Speaker
Yay. And yes, much needed. The chronic illness is happy. Yeah, sorry. Okay. But I've been watching the snow line slowly creeping down the mountains. I bet that's an entertaining thing to watch really it is and it it we've had so much rain. And
00:02:07
Speaker
That means that the mountains are clouded, you know, they're stuck in the clouds. And oftentimes that's the indication at the end of August that, yeah, one of these days real soon, we're going to have snow. And that happened two weeks ago, I think that I, I took the photo. I'd have to go back and check the photo date. You really had snow two weeks ago on the mountain had snow on the mountain zone. I was about to freak out that even that was early. So, okay, that makes more sense.
00:02:36
Speaker
on the mountains only. Yeah, not down here. We probably won't get an actual snowfall until the latter half of October. Oh, okay, that's not too bad. And then the first one usually doesn't stick. But there's often most
00:02:56
Speaker
Well, my birthday's on the 23rd of October, and it's not uncommon to have had a snow right around that point that doesn't stay. But then by Halloween, we have snow that does.
Podcast Break Announcement and Listener Engagement
00:03:08
Speaker
So right in that range. For those of you who might be interested, we had our first snowfall on October 10th. And at my house, it stuck around for about four days. OK. See, we don't.
00:03:26
Speaker
We don't typically get snow until January, February, occasionally December, like middle to end of December, but it's not, not super common for that time. My mom did get her white Christmas a few years ago and she was thrilled and, you know, woke everybody, you know, made everybody come look, oh my gosh, it's snowing again. She loves white Christmases, but me, I'm just like, I'll stay inside with the fireplace and the knitting, I'm good.
00:03:54
Speaker
Well, I love the snow. I am not out in it like some people. I mean, I've never learned to ski, so either downhill or cross-country. That just sounds so complicated to me. Yeah, but I do love the winter. Yes.
00:04:15
Speaker
I could not, well, we lived for nine years in Oregon where we didn't have, you know, winter and the one year it snowed, it literally shut down everything. Oh, you should see Texas when it snows. Yeah.
00:04:32
Speaker
Yeah, but yeah, I like living where there's there's a real winter So anyway, I hit on this and I want to say it again. We are getting ready to take some time off While that time off is going to start for us here at the latter half of September You guys won't see it until December and December and January there will be no new episodes and
00:04:57
Speaker
And then we will come back in January with a nice new plan for the 2023 year and possibly some minor changes to the back end that you guys are never going to notice. But I'm going to be doing some learning and we're going to be doing some planning and we'll come back in January and record and then release our next episode in February as we did this year.
00:05:26
Speaker
Although there won't be four episodes in February, there will only be two. That was kind of a unique thing just to kick us off.
00:05:35
Speaker
So we will be there. We are planning our upcoming year, so please, please, please, if you have questions, if you have ideas for episodes, do feel free to reach out. We have our Facebook group, we have our Ravelry group, or you can email us at knitdesignedit at gmail.com. I'm so glad you said that because I wouldn't remember it. You mess it up every time.
00:06:03
Speaker
I do. I really do. I would have been going knit, knit. I don't know. Just DM me. How about that? Or you can DM either team Tiffany or I on Instagram. She is or crafts and I am Arctic edits. Or Lisa M. Arctic edits. That's the way it goes. So you can DM us there. But send us your ideas, guys.
Sock Techniques and Personal Stories in Knitting and Crochet
00:06:25
Speaker
Reach out. Let us know what you want. Let us know what you need. OK?
00:06:30
Speaker
Today, we are going to throw out there an idea that started with Denise. Her brilliant mind threw this at Tiffany in an episode a while back. Our sparkle coordinator is always here, whether she knows it or not. That's right. She is always with us.
00:06:50
Speaker
We love you, Denise. We miss you. And we're going to talk techniques. Now, as we started listing techniques, we realized we could probably talk forever. We could probably do 12 of these episodes in a row and never touch the same technique twice, couldn't we?
00:07:12
Speaker
I'm going to say yes. So we'll call this one techniques one or techniques 1.0. Yeah. Yeah. Cause we're gonna there's, and this is where you guys as listeners, I, we really would love in all sincerity and all genuineness.
00:07:28
Speaker
We really would love your feedback, so that we know how to help, especially i'm talking about these and whether it's a technique, you want to learn as a maker. Or you need some clarification on as a maker, because let's be real on the knitting side Lisa and Denise are amazing on the crochet side Denise and I got it. Tunisian i'm here. So yeah. We can tackle all three crafts.
00:07:52
Speaker
And we can between the show notes and like book references and that kind of thing, whatever you guys want to learn and whatever you guys want to know how to do or know how to write it in a pattern or whatever you're looking for, please, please, please tell us because we really do want to help. So yeah, that's what the whole premise of this podcast was from the very start is to be here for both our makers and our designers and
00:08:22
Speaker
help our makers figure out how to read it and our designers how to write it and that's that's what we that's what we love that's what we're learning yeah we want to be here for you so it's always a good day when you can learn something new so we're going to start out today with what Denise was talking about when she mentioned techniques and that's socks
00:08:45
Speaker
And just covering socks will probably, I've actually got a timer set people. So when we hear it go off, we don't, we don't go beyond, you know, we don't go to two, three hours because we probably could, especially the way Tiffany and I talk.
00:09:01
Speaker
Knit socks alone. Let's be real knit socks alone. It's ridiculous. Yeah, there's like a hundred different ways to do there's a hundred different ways to do it and there's probably ten different ways to write it and Yep. Yep, and maybe knit or knows nothing the bottom the bottom line with knit socks is if If there's a way to do something There's a way to do it that every knitter can find that's different and unique truth seriously
00:09:32
Speaker
And so many people believe that socks are a big deal, that they're too hard, that they can't do them. Let me tell you. They still scare me. They used to scare a lot of people. And I actually had a friend for a while, she's unfortunately no longer with us, that
00:09:56
Speaker
at 70 years old decided she wanted to learn to knit. She was finally getting to where she thought she would retire from her job and so she decided she wanted to learn to knit because she wanted something to do and she also decided that what she wanted to knit was socks. I mean there's something comfy cozy about socks. Yeah.
00:10:20
Speaker
Well, and they were small and they were portable and, you know, she felt like they wouldn't take her forever to make. And so her very first ever knitting project, I mean, she didn't even do the typical garter stitch scarf.
00:10:37
Speaker
She did. She skipped straight into socks. She skipped straight into socks. She is fearless and I love her. I loved her to death. She was absolutely awesome. As a matter of fact, she knit several pairs of socks after the first pair. And then she finally thought, well, she found a sweater that she really loved and she thought, OK, I'll make that. And it was a fairly heavy yarn. So she was working with like US 10 needles. Which probably feels huge after working with sock needles forever.
00:11:07
Speaker
And she hated it. The needles were just too big. The yarn was just too bulky. And I don't know that she ever even finished it, even though she spent a fortune on the yarn. Because of course, being a baby knitter, she bought the yarn that was recommended in the pattern and it was a high end yarn.
00:11:25
Speaker
Yep, that's what we have a tendency to do, unless we know how to substitute it appropriately. Right. So and, and she hadn't yet mastered that skill. And rather than talking to those of us who had, she just automatically don't, don't get me wrong. She didn't need to substitute. She could thoroughly afford that high end yarn. But, uh, if you don't enjoy it and it's not something you makes you happy then, you know,
00:11:55
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. I buy the high end yarn that makes you happy rather than spending the money on the high end yarn that may not make you happy. And, and she learned very rapidly that she didn't like that. She went back to her socks and she happily knit socks for the rest of the time I knew her. So that's all.
00:12:13
Speaker
I know a lot of people that that's all they need is socks and they're very happy with doing it. Well, especially people in hotter climes. Yeah. Right. Because a heavy sweater is not something you're ever going to use. So why knit it? Yeah. So socks make perfect sense. But there are tons of ways to do them. Yes.
00:12:38
Speaker
And there's tons of different yarns you can do them with. You don't have to stick with just fingering weight sock yarn. What you have to remember with any yarn that you use to create socks is, is it going to withstand the wear of a sock? So you generally want something that is easily laundered.
00:13:06
Speaker
has some nylon in it so that it doesn't wear too quickly.
00:13:16
Speaker
That's it. I mean, the nylon gives some stretch to it too, doesn't it? Um, it, no, it really doesn't give it stretch so much as it just gives it strength. Oh, that's the other thing about yarn you want to knit socks with. You don't want a woolen spun yarn. You want a worsted spun yarn with multiple plies. So it's as strong as possible. So you want a smooth yarn. Your feet all the time and having feet in socks or
00:13:44
Speaker
feet, socks in shoes. Good grief. Hello, chaos train. I'm so glad you came to show. Yeah. Yeah. But feet in socks in shoes. There we go. Yes. Uh, does wear on them. Even if you're not standing a lot, it does wear because you know, body odors and you know, natural processes of the body and that kind of thing. Well, and I don't care how well your foot fits in the shoe.
00:14:12
Speaker
it still moves in the shoe. And so there's, depending on the style of shoe you wear, it depending on how you walk, your socks are gonna wear in different places. Some people wear through the toes of their socks in moments. Other people wear through the heels. I know some people who it wears through on the ball of the foot.
00:14:39
Speaker
is the way they walk and the type of shoe they wear. So you might want to look for a technique that protects the toes, protects the ball of the foot, protects the heel. Most
00:14:53
Speaker
People focus on the heel with stitches that make that heel a little bit more wear-worthy. But look at where you wear your socks. Look at your commercial socks. Where do they wear out first? And then look for techniques that create, that are stitches that make that a little bit stronger in that area.
00:15:20
Speaker
so the friend of mine that wears through the balls of their foot started using the um keel stitch the the slip stitch where you carry the yarn every other stitch the uh what is it the partridge heel so on one row you knit a stitch slip a stitch knit a slip slip
00:15:43
Speaker
Then you purl back and then the slip stitches are shifted so you slip a stitch, knit a slip, slip a stitch, knit a stitch. So that the, because what it is, is that stranding that goes across that slipped stitch in the back makes that stitch double thick. So now it's got to wear through two layers of yarn, right? In order to wear out. That's good to know.
00:16:14
Speaker
So as well, if people wear through their toes faster.
00:16:18
Speaker
Yep. You can do the same thing on, it's harder on the toe because you're also doing increases or decreases, but it's not impossible. Uh, let's see the, I think now I'm not going to swear by this and I'm not going to say you can find it anywhere, but I think I've seen a doubled, doubled toe where you knit a toe, turn it wrong side out and knit a second toe over the top of it.
00:16:49
Speaker
I think I've seen something about that somewhere. I don't remember where. I don't either. I will look to see if I can find a link for that somewhere, but. We both go diving for YouTube while we do this.
00:17:08
Speaker
If I can find if we can find a link for something on that I will definitely share that in the show notes because i'm pause I know i've seen it with hats and other things, but i'm almost positive I see i've seen it with a toe and that would double up the toe.
00:17:25
Speaker
In a way, the only thing I will say about doubling it that way, rather than doubling it in the stitch you use is that they're not connected except at the, where it starts the foot. So it might shift around inside and not be.
00:17:48
Speaker
That would probably be a little wonky to wear. It might be. Yeah, I've never tried it. I'm fortunately one of those people that does not wear through the toes of my socks. So I haven't really investigated stitches for toes. But where you wear your socks out is where you should be investigating the techniques that double that up a little bit and make it a little bit
00:18:15
Speaker
stronger another way of doing it is to there is a Clear nylon thread. It almost looks like super miniature fish line, but I mean super miniature It's it's very flexible and it's more a thread than it is a cord like fish line, but it's clear and you can carry that along with your stitches and
00:18:42
Speaker
in whatever area. And it doesn't add any bulk. It just adds nylon. So as the wool wears away, you don't actually develop a hole because that nylon is still there. And it makes it much easier to graft over a repair. That would be a good idea. So that's another technique for protecting those areas that need a little bit of extra
00:19:12
Speaker
She's leaning across, she's leaning onto her keyboard, y'all. That's why you can't. Am I losing, are you losing me? Yeah, I'm sorry. I need to move that keyboard back closer to me. I had it moved out of the way. I'm making a note to myself because protecting toes and heels was not something I had in my list. And I want to make sure to get that in the show notes folks, so that we can have links for you. Uh, I will look for a link for the nylon thread.
00:19:49
Speaker
Any place you want a little extra strength this nylon thread and it's really wonderful because, like I said, it adds no extra bulk. To the area, but it does add that strength because it, you know, if you ever look at a commercial pair of socks as they wear out, they'll get that real thin
00:20:03
Speaker
because I even own some have never used it.
00:20:12
Speaker
fabric that almost look that actually usually looks like knit stitches, but it's just a super fine thread Usually that the reason that stayed behind is because that is nylon so and it's the it's a nylon thread that works its way through there and so
00:20:31
Speaker
It lasts a lot longer than cotton or wool or any of those other fibers would. And it gives you a foundation, like I said, for a hand knit sock that you've put the time and effort into making. If you can repair it fairly easily when it does start to wear, it's just going to mean that your happiness lasts that much longer.
00:20:55
Speaker
Right. Which is what we want because you know we put all this time into making things and sometimes it's really hard to get them to last as long as we want them to. Exactly. Especially when we've spent more for fancy yarns to do it with.
00:21:07
Speaker
Yeah. And we fear wearing them because we don't want them to wear out, which is just, it's hard to, you know, we should indulge in wearing our makes because we put so much time and effort into it. Exactly. And if you're like my husband, one of the joys of the hand knit socks is you can wear them for more than one day before they, because of the wool in them, they don't need to be laundered as often because we'll
00:21:36
Speaker
Repels a lot of the dirt and it doesn't start to smell like the store-bought cotton that has so much polyester in them So he loves them for that reason and he usually wears his socks two or three days before he actually puts them into the launder until be laundered and Yeah, that that's another
00:21:59
Speaker
It's very nice to know that the effort I've gone to is well appreciated. It really is and that's always a good thing. Almost always when he gets a new pair of socks I realize that he wears them for like three days before they go any into the launder. All right so let's look at what kinds of
00:22:24
Speaker
Techniques are important in crochet socks because that I've never done. I know friends who have but So crochet socks. It's the same thing. You know, you want to make sure that you get the the socks early the The shaping in for the sock to fit correctly and you want to make sure that you're building up where it does wear down as far as building up
00:22:53
Speaker
like you're talking about doing the knit and the slip and that kind of thing. I would say probably stitching the front loop and the back loop with matching stitches off of the same base row or whatever previous row it is, that'll give you two stitches on top of each other and then you will join them eventually when you get
00:23:18
Speaker
start working on both rows again, or under both loops again. So I think that would probably be the easiest way to build it up on like the ball of the foot or something. And even on the heel, I'm trying to think, even on the heel and the toe, I think that would probably be the easiest way to do it is just stitch the front loop and the back loop on the same row. So you would do front loop, back loop, back loop, front loop, and that way you can kind of
00:23:47
Speaker
Zigzag your way across the road without crossing the yarn too badly, right? I think is Is what's working in my head? I don't um Because again, I didn't think about the building up portion until we started talking about it But that's what makes sense in my head So if anybody's actually done that they can catch up with me and let me know if i've got it right or wrong Um, but yeah any of these ideas that
00:24:12
Speaker
You know, make comments and those messages. You know, if anybody's actually done this in practice. Yeah. If anybody's actually done this in practice, it would be great to hear it. Right. Um, but it's the same thing. You know, you gotta make sure that the, the heel and the toe all fit correctly and the cuff is where you want it and how big it is. Um, but yeah, I think the easiest way to build it up for where it doesn't wear away. And it's the same thing for the yarn, the yarn, you know, you can use the same yarn in.
00:24:40
Speaker
crochet that you do and Tunisian that you do in knitting. So that part is easy.
Constructing Socks: Methods and Preferences
00:24:46
Speaker
Is there a common base stitch? I'm thinking single crochet or slip stitch would probably be the best for the soul. Right? Um, they all actually flatten out pretty good.
00:25:05
Speaker
Me personally, I would actually probably prefer a half double crochet for the sole just because it's a little bit thicker and it does flatten down well. Whereas the other, like a single is flat and square but the half double is just a little bit thicker whereas anything bigger is going to be longer and not quite as thick. So the half double is my prefer on a sole.
00:25:34
Speaker
But you can do pretty much anything on the stitch as long as you can double it, you know, if you want to double it up for the wearing. Right. You can do any stitch like that. But I, I prefer half doubles just on the bottom just because it is thicker. Okay. So you have a little bit of padding and it does create a little more room for them to wear through.
00:25:54
Speaker
I've never even thought about attempting a crocheted sock. I probably, you know, it, I'm a flat crocheter. The crochet I do do is generally blankets and, and flat. I've, I've never really, there's actually, I mean, there's, there's quite a few, um, basic socks. Um, one of my designers, um, she's got, um, the Alice sock out, which is.
00:26:24
Speaker
It's a contrast heel until I think she's got a contrast cuff as well. Her name is Siobhan and she's yarnoverfloyd on Instagram. And her sock is actually pretty, she does a lot of natural dyed yarn and stuff, but she's also got a ton of patterns
00:26:50
Speaker
that as I'm thinking this one is a pretty it's a double and I think this one is a seed stitch if I remember correct where it's a double crochet and a single crochet and then they alternate so um but it's a really easy sock that's very pretty to work up if that makes sense right it works up really well and she's got some extra socks that are really really simple to work as well so I'll have to find those and throw those into the
00:27:21
Speaker
show notes for y'all. I'm going to be totally honest. I'm sitting here thinking about it. The thing that does not excite me about the idea of doing crocheted socks. And this is me. I will take full ownership. This is my opinion. This is my idiosyncrasy.
00:27:41
Speaker
I've only done socks two at a time, except for once. The very first time I made socks, I did them two at a time because I knew
00:27:56
Speaker
that I would be better off sizing them two at a time. I think we talked about this before. We did. A while back. We have, yeah. Yeah. And so I've only done one at a time socks one time. And that was because I wanted to try out the little nine-inch serks. And while it's a perfectly legitimate method of doing them, and I do know people who like doing them that way,
00:28:24
Speaker
preferred doing mine two at a time and then when I get them done, they're done. I have... Yeah, second stock syndrome and crochet is a very real thing because doing them two at a time is very difficult. Yeah, you've got one hook. Yeah, I don't know the way to do them two at a time in crochet. I'll be real.
00:28:48
Speaker
What I do love. Could you do them two at a time in Tunisian crochet? Because a lot of the new Tunisian needles are a cable. You probably could. I haven't seen it done, but that doesn't mean that it can't be done. It just means that I haven't seen it. There are quite a few knit techniques that do carry over. So like for cast ons with Tunisian,
00:29:18
Speaker
you can do a long tail cast on or a cable cast on for Tunisian because you need to cast them on to the hook to be able to work the stitches and when you're on your four rip pass they sit on the needle like they do in knitting and then on your return pass you pull them off one at a time where you end up with one stitch like crochet. So I would think you could two at a time in Tunisian that would be something
00:29:48
Speaker
Hey, you Tunisian designers. I would love to see a pattern that attempted that. Yeah. I would definitely. I'm thinking of a couple that you've got out there that designed that way. Yeah. I know that there are some out there. It would be intriguing. I think it definitely can be done. It's just a matter of doing it. Right, right.
00:30:15
Speaker
So, but yeah, like with Tunisian cast ons, you can do the long tail cast on, or the cable cast on, or the German twisted cast on. And see, all three of those are, you will find as knitting cast ons, but can be converted to using them for Tunisian crochet.
00:30:42
Speaker
Yep. For the foundation. Cause if you, if you don't want to, those do give the really stretchy cast on for knitting, which depending on what you're doing in Tunisian, you're going to want to stretch on the cast on too. And to get a stretch in crochet for the socks to go cuff down, you would do foundation stitches where you're not chaining your initial band, but you create
00:31:09
Speaker
the bottom and the stitch or like you create your foundation chain and your stitch at the same time. So you're basically conquering two rows in one stitch. Right. And those usually get quite a bit of stretch to them as well. Um, with those, I personally have to go down a hook size. So if you do do foundation stitches, be careful of your tension because you, your tension, maybe it won't carry the same way.
00:31:39
Speaker
Because depending on how big your foundation row is, depends on how big your project will be. And going back to our attention talk a couple of episodes ago, same thing. You need to make sure that you watch that. So I always have to size down at least one hook size, maybe two, to be able to maintain the correct tension gauge for the pattern. OK. You mentioned to me before, when we were talking about doing this, that the cast on is really the
00:32:10
Speaker
place where you have the most differences in technique for crocheted socks, correct? Is that what you were talking about, the difference between doing a chain and doing a foundation row? Would that be what you were referring to? Or is there another cast on that you would talk about? No, that's really the big one. Because with a chain, it's not going to, even if you go up or down a hook size, it's not going to give. A chain is a chain.
00:32:40
Speaker
Um, like I've got a, and I'm sorry, y'all, you're not going to see it here, but I've got a bottle koozie here that I, I didn't bind off loosely enough when I did it. So I have a hard time getting it around certain cans and bottles and that kind of thing. So when you do your cast on and cast off, you need to make sure that it's the right tension, but the chain only gives so much. Whereas a foundation actually is a stretch, kind of like the Jenny stretchy, um, bind off.
00:33:09
Speaker
where once you build, you know, as you build that cast or that bind off, you can stretch it at the end or even the, the German twisted and the cable, you can stretch them. So it's the same thing, but the foundation stitches give, have more give to them. Whereas the chain, the chain is just the chain. Right. And that's why the foundation gives more is because you're building it as you go. So.
00:33:36
Speaker
I'm assuming, and that may be a bad thing to do, that you can do crochet socks toe up just as easily as you can do them top down though, right? So it seems to me like that would be another way to conquer that because now it's a
00:34:04
Speaker
Okay, a little bit of a bump there in the road. We'll probably have to do a little bit of an edit, but my phone rang and it was a doctor's office. Yeah, I gotta love them. Yes. And I knocked my hearing aid sideways. Anyway, so toe up crocheted socks. Okay. So sorry. That's okay. Okay. Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. Toe up crochet socks. Um, they can be done.
00:34:34
Speaker
The thing with that is you can do it two ways either you can do them flat and seam everything up like the side I would prefer because I prefer working in the round and most everything just because I hate seaming and I think a lot of our makers and listeners will join me on the I hate seaming so I I would say to you know you can
00:35:04
Speaker
you can do one of two things either you can start around you know do we'll say 30 stitches in the round and then you can seam your toe or what I would prefer to do, and this is just me, is I would work a base chain across the length of my toe and then I'd work in one side of the
00:35:23
Speaker
works working one side of the chain and then add an increase on each end and then work the other side of the chain because again, I hate singing. So, um, I, even in knitting, I'm a toe up person. So again, I automatically, my brain went to that foundation chain working in the front and the back of that loop and building your mind from that. So for,
00:35:51
Speaker
For me, for the crochet, sock, toe, like going toe up, I would actually probably chain that and then working both sides of the chain rather than doing a foundation chain or doing a foundation stitch. I said it wrong. I said it wrong. I meant the chain.
00:36:08
Speaker
Okay. I was looking on non crochet or trying to talk crochet terms. I meant baby knitters. So words, even working both sides, you know, the both sides of the loop to get your in the round. Yeah. To me, that's what makes total sense. Yeah. It's logical from the standpoint that tow up socks. You have your special cast ons.
00:36:39
Speaker
Uh, you're Turkish. Jenny's. Is it Jenny's? Yeah. Cause it's Judy's. No, Judy's magic cast on it. It's Jenny's surprising, surprising, stretchy bind off.
00:36:53
Speaker
Yeah, Judy and Jenny. They're the J's, right? They're the brilliant makers that came up with these ideas. So anyway, you've got Judy's Magic Cast On, you've got Turkish Cast On. Both of those actually start in a way that you are casting on to both needles at the same time with no space in between. And then your first knit row, you're knitting in those stitches to create your in the round.
00:37:24
Speaker
So those are the ways that I'm the most familiar with doing, because that's what I do all the time. There is also, you can just cast on a mini tube in waste yarn. And then when you're all done, like you said with your crochet sock, then you can seam or kitchen or stitch the toe together.
00:37:54
Speaker
Kitchener stitch terrifies me. Um, it shouldn't. It's, everybody says it's so scary and oh my gosh, it doesn't line up and oh my gosh. Nope. Just like DPNs, DPNs still terrify the crap out of me. I borrowed a pair from my mom intending to do one of the advent throws that came out a couple of years ago. I really wanted to do it and I pulled up the pattern and it said, start with DPNs. And I was like, oh crap.
00:38:23
Speaker
So I was like, well, maybe I can figure this out. Nope. It was too much for my brain, which terrifies me. Someday we're going to have a meet up at some fiber festival or something. And we're all going to go there, all three of us, and we're going to meet each other face to face in person and in real life.
00:38:43
Speaker
And then we'll sit down and we'll, we'll get you over that fear. But I will say this. I hate using DPNs. I'm not afraid of DPNs. I just am not fond of them. I'm a magic loop girl. I learned magic loop. Not what I'm okay with. I can do magic loop all day long. And anything you can do on DPNs, you can do magic loop.
00:39:09
Speaker
Absolutely. That's a good thing to know because I didn't know that. So I'm going to have to, I'll have to figure out how to do this pattern and get you to help me with that because I really love this pattern and it's all for minis,
Needle Preferences and Overcoming Knitting Fears
00:39:21
Speaker
for mad rants. And I'm just like, yeah, I'd rather do that. But you know, DPN scared me. So I stopped because, you know. Yeah. Pretty much everything you can do on DPNs, you can do with magic loop or there's, there's a,
00:39:37
Speaker
a fake short circular that you can do if you don't want to do the full magic loop and you want to keep them in a circle. But it's not hard. You just have to remember that when they talk about moving from this DPN to this DPN where you're moving to in the next stitch, it's not that complicated. That's good.
00:40:04
Speaker
And here's why I hate DPNs. Now, I use DPNs, but I don't use them as DPNs to knit in the round. I use them when I'm only doing a short number of stitches, like an entrelac or something like that. Moving your stitches back and forth are much easier on DPNs than trying to do long needles. But my problem with DPNs,
00:40:30
Speaker
I always end up dropping the one I'm supposed to be knitting on to and now I'm missing a needle. That's part of why I hate DPNs and they terrify me is like I said, I tried to sit there. I think I got the first round. I got like I got it all cast on and I think I got through the first round and I was like, Nope, because I dropped the needle I was supposed to be knitting and then I dropped a needle I was supposed to be holding and I dropped too many stitches. And as a baby knitter, I was like, Nope, I'm out. I'm done. Nope.
00:40:58
Speaker
Yep. That is the problem with DPNs. With DPNs, I found that they beat my coordination. You know, we talked about the material of your needle and how important that is. And you and Denise talked about the material of the needle. With DPNs, I would definitely say if you're going to use DPNs for the first time, get something that's a little grippy. Yeah.
00:41:24
Speaker
get a wood needle or a plastic needle that the slip stitches do not slip easily on too easily on so that they stay in place when you're not working that needle. That's what I will say about that. But anything you can do on DPNs, socks included, you can do magic loop. There's another method that you could use even on your afghan and that's the two circular method.
00:41:51
Speaker
I wanna look into that because I saw that as an alternate and I was so overwhelmed with the DPNs that I just never got into it because I was just like, nope, I can't, nope, it's too much. I can't do it. So I never did it. So I'm gonna have to look into that one.
00:42:07
Speaker
Uh, the very first pair of socks I did, I did on two circulars and then I figured out magic loop and I've never looked back. Nice. Um, but two circulars work the same way as magic loop, except that you have four tips. And the one thing I will say about that is pay really close attention to which needle you're knitting onto.
00:42:36
Speaker
Because you don't want to accidentally grab the one that's resting. And then all of a sudden you've got it all on one loop. That sounds like something I would do. I did it more than once. That sounds like something I would do. 100%. So, you know, there's DPNs, there's magic loop. Magic loop, you do need to have a pretty long needle.
00:43:06
Speaker
Because you need a lot of sleeves. Yeah, a long cable. When we talk circulars, we include the tips in the length of the needles. So I think of it in terms of it's one needle. But Magic Loop is my favorite because you can't accidentally drop a needle. And even with the two circular needles,
00:43:30
Speaker
Yes, I'm having trouble. It's getting late. You can't accidentally drop a needle. And then there's the short circulars that if you are a knitter that holds close to the tip of your needle, you probably will find this method comfortable.
00:43:59
Speaker
If, like many, you grip your needles more with the palm of your hands than the tips of your fingers, you're going to find that the little short tip on that short circular needle makes your hands cramp. Yeah, I can see that. And cramping hands makes it very difficult to knit.
00:44:22
Speaker
Yeah, now you're talking about putting your body into a position where you're causing stress. Now, that said, there are many people out there that love them, that couldn't live without them, that have no issues holding them. That's my problem with them.
00:44:48
Speaker
I can use it for a short period of time. If I've decided to knit something, you know, small circumference, and it's going to grow, say, like a sleeve or something like that, I can start them off on a short circular. But
00:45:09
Speaker
I have to be able to say eventually that short circulars going away. I can't knit a lot, like the full tube of a sock that way. I did make a pair of socks that way. It took me quite a while to do them because I could only knit for a very short period of time and then I had to put them down. Yeah, they do have a tendency to cramp. And that's actually one of those things that I figured out that I could rent, I could actually
00:45:37
Speaker
use metal needles because I was afraid I was going to be able to not be able to use metal needles was because the yarn stays over them. But I have the same problem with nine inch needles is that I have to, I start cramping and I have to put them down. Yeah. Well, and especially seeing as you have issues with that to begin with in your hands and such. It doesn't make it nice for at all.
00:46:03
Speaker
Yeah, it, it, it's not a comfortable position to put the body into. And that's another thing we should talk about is ergonomics. You know, we can, oh gosh, the three of us, we could spend an hour on ergonomics all by themselves. Yep. Easy. So, um, just for everybody's information that the ad or the, uh, admin I'm talking about is our advent throw.
00:46:31
Speaker
And I just put the notes up there for Lisa to put into the show notes. It's really great for the yarn adverts that we all love to get at the holidays for Christmases and Halloween. Would you believe it or not? I have never succumbed. I have succumbed only for particular dyers.
00:46:58
Speaker
because I am one that I have to be able to trust the dyer and their colors, but also the two that I succumb for were two of my really good friends that I did it for support. Yes, I get that. That was the reason I succumbed. Otherwise, I have to trust the dyer very intently to be able to do this
Toe-Up Socks: Fit and Yarn Usage Considerations
00:47:21
Speaker
practice. I think the biggest reason I don't succumb is because there's usually something bigger that I really want more.
00:47:28
Speaker
And I would rather have my husband spend the money on that bigger gift. Completely valid. I don't know. I think that's what it boils down to. Right now, I've spent so much on yarn in the last three weeks that I'm beginning to think that, you know,
00:47:55
Speaker
I don't dare ask for a birthday present. But you know, anyway, so short circulars and DPNs, that's your, you know, your needle choices is the first step in making your sock. So yeah, those are your options. Um,
00:48:16
Speaker
We've talked about toe up versus top down. You have to consider your cast ons, whether it's crocheted or knitted. Toe up, I mentioned Judy's Magic Cast On, which is my favorite. I've mentioned the Turkish. When you're casting on a top down sock and you're going to do it any other way than DPN or short circular, you have to look at how it's going to sit on the cable.
00:48:45
Speaker
Well, okay, that's not true. If you're doing one sock, magic loop, you're going to cast on all your stitches and then you're going to split them in half on the cable. If you're doing two at a time, you have to cast on that second sock in a unique manner. And I'm not going to attempt to describe it.
00:49:11
Speaker
I video you're going to be putting in the show notes. I hope I do have a video on how to do it, but this, this, the second sock is cast on differently than the first because you, your cast, you have to cast on both needles separately. That makes sense. And the way I end up doing it, and I know that there's a better way to do that. Do it is I cast on the first half of my stitches.
00:49:42
Speaker
And then I transfer them to, I usually, this is where a DPN comes in handy. I usually cast them onto a DPN. And then I slip those stitches to the correct needle because the second half of the cast on the, the has to come from the cable end of that first cast on to make a circle. Okay.
00:50:11
Speaker
And I know trying to describe that in words is so hard. That's why I'm going to link a video because the way it sits on the needle for two at a time cast ons is totally different. Because in order to get the open end of the stitches at the tip end of the needles, the cast on has to start from the back and work forward on that second half.
00:50:41
Speaker
Yeah. So you have to know how not to twist that. You have all of those little things play into it. So there's a lot of little details to be able to do to the time socks. There are. And the cast on for a top down is to me a bit tricky. And I think that's another reason I love toe up is because the cast ons are so easy.
00:51:10
Speaker
The number one reason is because I'm usually working with hand dyed yarns and I want to use as much of it as I possibly can. And so I like toe up because you don't stop until you are almost out of yarn. I like toe up because I can try them on as I go. Just like top down tops, my favorite. I was just telling my mom this afternoon that the blouse that I'm wearing, I'm going to have to actually
00:51:40
Speaker
I can't believe I'm going to have to say this. I'm going to have to run a lifeline and cut the ribbing off of and make the ribbing a little bit longer. Change it and make it longer because I'm about an inch and a half too short of where I really want it to be. Oh, yeah. Yeah. It's lots of fun. And that was a bottom up that you... It was a bottom up that I told her, I was like, either I'm going to have to learn how to do provisional cast on. The bad part is that I added like an inch and a half to begin with. So I really needed, I guess, a three inches.
00:52:08
Speaker
Plus size all the way makes it hard. It is harder to determine whether you've got the length you want before you start your sleeve unless you really are paying attention to your gauge and know exactly where your arm hole should start. Yeah, that's a tricky one.
00:52:37
Speaker
I'm working on one right now that the construction is so unique and it started bottom up and you do the whole front and the whole back and then you seam just at the ribbing and then you pick up stitches for a side panel on both sides. So I have no clue how long this thing is really going to be. That sounds difficult. I mean, I think I've actually got it plenty long enough.
00:53:09
Speaker
I, my biggest concern is, is the arm hole going to be too large? Yeah. And I thought, well, if it is, I will do a gusset in that to pull that underarm in. Yeah. But thankfully, I know how to do those things. Yeah, that's why I love, I'm a sucker for toe up and I'm a sucker for top down blouses because you can try them on as you go. Yeah.
00:53:38
Speaker
For me, that takes a lot of the mystery of the fit out of it.
Writing Size-Inclusive Sock Patterns
00:53:42
Speaker
So just touching back on cast ons real quick on a top down, remember whatever cast on you use, it needs to be stretchy. So the German twisted, the long tail is somewhat stretchy, but it's not as stretchy as the German twisted. The other option is a tubular, especially seeing as you're usually starting with a one by one or a two by two ribbed cuff.
00:54:08
Speaker
the tubular again is is somewhat tricky i wouldn't attempt it with two at a time right from the get-go um because it takes quite a bit to
00:54:25
Speaker
Some knitters and I were just talking about it yesterday. One of the knitters was having a struggle because tubular, especially when you do them on a circular needle, the stitches that move down on the cable have a tendency to twist. So it's really easy to get a twist in your join when you join. Yeah, that sounds like a thing.
00:54:45
Speaker
So yeah, so there are tricks out there. And I will link to a really good video on that. But yeah, make sure it's a stretchy cast on. That's the number one thing. Make sure it's stretchy, and then doing two at a time. So let's talk our last few minutes, because we are starting to run out of time, about writing these in patterns.
00:55:14
Speaker
hints and tips that you could give designers on writing the sock for a crocheted sock pattern or are you not familiar enough with sock patterns to really... So cuff down or top down like I was saying that's just a foundation stitch so that's not too difficult to write. I would highly suggest that saying that either you know either having photos
00:55:44
Speaker
or having a YouTube link out or both quite honestly. Y'all heard Denise and I both talk about it multiple times of we want the words, we want the pictures and we want the video because sometimes we need all three to make a brain work. But half day on isn't hard. Like I said, it's just the foundation stitches. So having a good video and having some decent photos would be good. But toe up, I think,
00:56:14
Speaker
I think that one really would require some clear and good photos for where to put the stitch placement and being very clear that you know I'm working into one side of this chain and then working into the other side of the chain. I think working into both sides of the chain has become kind of common so I think everybody should be kind of familiar with that but some really good clear photos with some stitch markers or
00:56:45
Speaker
you know, a needle to point where you're going. Real close up on the chains. Very yeah. And labels and correct very and arrows and that kind of thing. Yeah, some very clear photos would be good for that. Okay.
00:57:05
Speaker
I think for knitting, there's so many patterns out there that you can kind of get an idea of the format. The number one thing that I think, besides clear photos or links to videos, it would be making sure that each section of your sock is a section on your pattern with its own header.
00:57:31
Speaker
And you can do that in crochet and Tunisian as well. And it makes it a lot easier to follow through and follow where you are. It gives the reader's brain a break spot. You know, if you've got a really long section of text, giving it a place to stop, giving it a place to breathe.
00:57:57
Speaker
is the number one tip I could probably think of. And that's in your individual rows as well as the sections of the sock. But break it up into sections. You don't have a section that is the toe instructions because they're going to be different from the foot instruction, the heel instructions.
00:58:23
Speaker
the cuff, the leg and the cuff, whichever direction you're doing it, you need to make sure that they're clearly marked. This is the part of the sock that the knitter is working on or the crocheter is working on. Be very specific with your language so that people know what you're talking about and
00:58:47
Speaker
what area they are working on and what increases you're doing or decreases you're doing or what stitch pattern you're using. And as Tiffany said, photos and videos, I think that the more designers that provide that information, even if you didn't create the video. Correct. And if you didn't, give the creator credit in your pattern.
00:59:17
Speaker
I think the other important part too of labeling each section and breaking it out is if you are a unique person and this is going to come, this is that it makes it a little more inclusive, size inclusive. And the fact that if your toe is, you know, if you need a longer toe box than some people do, you give that break point where you can go, okay, I, I can just continue this round a couple more rounds to make it long enough to cover my toe box.
00:59:45
Speaker
Or if you have a longer sole or a deeper heel or whatever it is you need, if you build in those break points, then it makes it a little bit easier for your makers to be able to adjust accordingly. And you can put in your notes of your pattern or the notes in the section. And I absolutely love when designers will put, especially at the bottom or the beginning of that section,
01:00:12
Speaker
If you need to increase or decrease to fit your person, do it here. Right. You know, increase the cup, you know, add another inch here, take an inch off here, whatever it is. I love where designers, and this is going to be for any design, but especially socks, um, because garments are the same way, but especially with socks, because all of our feet are completely different, but having those break points and then you can add those instructions in. Excuse me.
01:00:42
Speaker
um of you know if you need to add or add or decrease some rows do it here you know just continue the pattern until it hits x spot on your on your foot right so and if that's going to require if that's going to require an adjustment to any stitch pattern they're using make sure they note that make sure you're
01:01:04
Speaker
That's where I say be specific, be clear and share as many ideas and tips as you possibly can, um, just to, to make it more inclusive because sock sizing is very unique for every maker.
Custom Socks for Unique Needs
01:01:22
Speaker
I tried making socks for my brother-in-law a few years ago. Oh my gosh. What a different experience that was. I am so used to.
01:01:32
Speaker
Okay, my husband and I, he takes more stitches because his foot's a little bigger around, and he takes a few more rows because his foot's a little longer, but the method I use, the
01:01:45
Speaker
Basic. Okay, I'm going to cast on these many stitches. I'm going to increase this many times. I'm going to knit to here. I'm going to do this type of heel. I'm another thing about loving toe up socks is I knit the sock on one needle and then as soon as I get past the heel turn
01:02:07
Speaker
I go to a needle size up because both he and I have slightly larger legs than our foot. And it just gives those stitches a little bit more give and makes it just a little bit more bigger. It, you know, not so big that they're going to fall down, but big enough that that they fit our legs, that they're comfortable. Oh, okay. First off, my brother-in-law has square toes. So you have to cast on twice as many stitches
01:02:37
Speaker
and cut out the increases because his toe box is. Yeah. He doesn't need. He doesn't need the length, but he doesn't need the increases in the toe. Right. I kid you not four out of five toes are the exact same length. Interesting. And then his little toe just kind of.
01:02:58
Speaker
falls off. You know, it's, it's there, but it's like half an inch shorter than the toe next to it. It's hilarious. And then he has no leg. Okay. I mean, his legs are so skinny. His wife jokingly calls him chicken leg. And so I did what I would make for my husband. And the socks fell right down. And it totally did not fit. It was, I just
01:03:28
Speaker
Yeah, you don't even think about the techniques that you need for other people, but it's such a unique experience to make socks for other people that it's crazy. So look at the legs of your recipient to make sure you make a leg that's appropriate. And look at the toes too, because square toe boxes, like you said, is very different than those of us with rounded toe boxes. Well, girl.
01:03:53
Speaker
We hit one thing. We did. Socks. So I think we kind of knew we were already going to hit socks.
Conclusion and Holiday Wishes
01:04:00
Speaker
I think we're going to change the.
01:04:03
Speaker
title of this episode to techniques, socks, socks, techniques, 1.0 socks or techniques, socks, 1.0. There we go. Technique, socks, 1.0. Okay. I think we're good. Cause we're going to end up back on socks at some point. I'm sure. I'm sure we will. I'm sure we will. There, there's bound to be something out there that we, we decide we need to cover, but my mouth is dry.
01:04:30
Speaker
My pills are telling me it is time for a nap. I think I just heard pizza come in the door, so I'm going to go around some before it disappears on me. You have a husband in your midst that you haven't seen for how many days? I saw him about 20 minutes before we started, so we're good. OK. Y'all have a lovely evening. You too. And you go get some rest. You guys.
01:05:00
Speaker
know that there's emails coming for planning purposes. And we'll just take the next couple of months and just like figure out what's going to come in the future. Yep. Y'all let us know what you want and what you need and we will see what we can do to make it happen. That's right. Reach out people. Let me know. I would love to to tailor this for for a. Hey, they can reach out if they want to
01:05:30
Speaker
Join in. They can. We would love that, too. You can DM or email and say, hey, I want to be part of your podcast. We would love that. Absolutely love that. Absolutely. Well, since this is our last one before the holidays, may you all have a happy holiday, whatever your holiday choice is, even if it's just running away from the world for a little while. May you enjoy your weather.
01:06:00
Speaker
find something happy every day and hydrate. Amen. I can't put it any better than that, folks. So with that, I'm going to bid you all a very happy adieu. Happy 2022. We'll see you all in 2023. All right. Bye bye. Bye.
01:06:28
Speaker
Well folks, no sneak peek, but as we've said several times, please let us know what you would like to hear more of. Send us an email at knitdesignedit at gmail.com. Contact us through the Facebook or Ravelry groups or DM Tiffany or I on Instagram. Tiffany's handle is Wootcrafts and mine is lisa.m.arcticedits.
01:06:59
Speaker
Don't forget to like and subscribe wherever you listen and join the conversation in our Ravelry or Facebook groups. For show notes or knit tech editing and related services, please visit my website at arcticedits.com. To inquire about crochet tech editing and other services Tiffany provides, please go to wootgraphs.com.