Playing with String: September 2010

Gauge: 8 stitches to the inch in stockinette

Needles: 2.25 mm, US 1

Yarn: 50% superwash merino, 50% tencel, 380 yards of fingering weight. Sample socks used aprox 320 yards.

Size: Women's medium

Rib Pattern: Rounds 1 thru 8 - (K2, P2), repeat to end of instep/round.

Rounds 9 thru 16 - (P2, K2), repeat to end of instep/round

Directions: Using Turkish or Figure 8 cast on, cast on 32 stitches, 16 on each needle. Knit 1 round plain. Place marker indicating start of round. The first 16 stitches are the instep stitches, the second 16 are the sole stitches.

Round 1: (K1, Right leaning increase, knit 14, left leaning increase, K1), repeat for sole stitches.

Round 2: Knit

Round 3: Instep: K1, Right leaning increase, knit to 1 stitch before end of instep, left leaning increase, K1.

Sole: K1, Right leaning increase, knit to 1 stitch before end of sole, left leaning increase, K1.

Directions for increasing can be found on Knitty, here.

Repeat rounds 2 and 3 until there are 60 stitches total, 30 instep and 30 sole. To make socks larger, continue repeating rounds 2 & 3 until desired size is reached.

Work 8 rounds plain.

Begin Rib Pattern on Instep stitches only.

Continue in pattern until sock is approximately 1 1/2 inches short of desired length (a little past the ankle bone when tried on.)

If you wish to add extra ease stitches for the heel, add them to the sole stitches.

Work across instep stitches in pattern, then work short row heel on Sole stitches only.

Row 1: Knit 29 (or until 1 sole stitch remains), wrap the last stich and turn. (Bring the yarn to the front between the stitch just worked and the next stitch, slip the next stitch from the left needle to the right needle, turn work around).

Row 2: Slip first stitch as if to purl, purl 28 (or until 1 sole stitch remains unworked), wrap the last stitch and turn. (Move the yarn to the back betwen the stitch just worked and the next stitch, slip the next stitch from the left needle to the right needle, turn work around).

Row 3: Slip first stitch, Knit to 1 stitch before wrapped stitch, wrap as in row 1 and turn.

Row 4: Slip first stitch, Purl to 1 stitch before wrapped stitch, wrap as in row 2 and turn.

Repeat rows 3 & 4 until 10 stitches remain unwrapped.

Next Row: Slip first stitch, Knit to first wrapped stitch, knit that stitch, wrap next stitch as in row 1 and turn.

Next Row: Slip first stitch, purl to first wrapped stitch, purl that stitch, wrap next stitch as in row 2 and turn.

Repeat these last two rows until only 1 double wrapped stitch stitch remains.

Repeat Knit row only.

I do not knit my wraps as I like the effect, so the directions do not include this step.

Resume knitting in the round.

Work in pattern across 30 stitches. Begin pattern on next 30 stitches on round 1 or 9 of rib pattern.

If extra ease stitches were added, decrease them away in the first 2 to 3 rounds.

Continue working in pattern until sock is desired length, ending with round 8 or 16.

Work a Yarn Over bind off as follows:

Knit first stitch, (YO, K1, pass first stitch and YO over the last stitch worked), repeat until no stitches remain.

Weave in ends.

Copyright 2010 by rosegil. Please use this pattern for your personal use and not for mass production.

Yarn used was handspun fiber from Fiber Optic in colorway "Honeysuckle Rose", 2 plies.

may or may not be dead.

Gil thinks that his cat should have been more sensible and just smooshed in the top of the box.

The Quantom Paratsox are done! However, my feet have insufficient length to put a box on the foot. If I had, the end of the box would have been at the toe. The boxes were illusion knit in the round, with a technique that the Tsarina call "festive illusion". Festive illusion is a method that does not involve weaving floats the entire way around. I did 4 boxes, 2 on each tsock, 1 question mark and 1 cat per tsock